A comparative analysis of pre-and in-service teacher beliefs about readiness and self-competency: Revisiting teacher education for ELLs

This study addresses differences between pre-and in-service teacher beliefs about readiness and self-competency in helping English language learners' (ELL) language and academic achievement in content area classes. It also examines the role of gender and certain background factors in mediating differences in beliefs while providing suggestions to help pre-service teachers become ready for ELLs in mainstream classes. Three beliefs questionnaires were administered to 83 in-service and 88 pre-service teachers (n = 171). The multivariate analyses suggested several significant differences between pre-and in-service teachers' beliefs about self-competency and readiness as well as specific recommendations to improve teacher education to better serve ELLs in mainstream classes. Yet, findings also revealed that gender and some background factors appeared to play a role in mediating some of these differences in beliefs. By bringing together the perspectives of both the teachers in training and those in the classroom, this study suggests that content area teachers feel unprepared and unready for mainstream classes with ELLs where they spend most of their school day. Consistent with current approaches to teacher education that aim to empower teachers, these findings, likewise, urge for a teacher-beliefs-driven approach to content area teacher education to ensure equal and inclusive opportunities for all students.