Graduate Studies, UNL

 

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

First Advisor

Deepika Menon

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Committee Members

Amanda Henson, Ursula Nguyen, Wayne Babchuk

Department

Teaching, Curriculum, & Learning

Date of this Version

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Citation

A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate College of the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Major: Teaching, Curriculum, and Learning

Under the supervision of Professor

Lincoln, Nebraska, December 2025

Comments

Copyright 2025, the author. Used by permission

Abstract

In the context of teacher education, self-efficacy and goal orientation can have an impact on one’s motivation, desire to improve, and maintaining a growth mindset in teachers. This study utilized an explanatory mixed methods design to investigate how and why preservice elementary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teachers’ confidence and views on competency changes after completing an array of courses built around integrated STEM.

Sixty-five preservice teachers participated in the pre- post-test quantitative data collection to determine changes in integrated STEM self-efficacy and achievement goal orientations (mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-approach, performance-avoidance). Data collection measures include Self-Efficacy for Teaching Integrated STEM (SETIS) instrument (Mobley, 2015) and Achievement Goal Questionnaire (Elliot & McGregor, 2001); data analysis includes a paired sample t-test and correlational analysis to identify if there is a significant difference between the pre- and post-test data and to assess the relationship between the different constructs. Integrated STEM teaching self-efficacy and performance-approach goals showed a significant increase from pre-test to post-test, whereas mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, and performance-avoidance goals showed significant decreases. Additionally, there was a statistically significant correlation between post-integrated STEM self-efficacy and post-mastery-approach as well as between post-mastery-approach and post-performance-approach.

Post-hoc analysis of the quantitative data guided our sampling to invite ten participants for interviews. Participants were invited that were in the top or bottom quartile of one or more of the constructs. The qualitative data from participants included submitted reflections over the semester and answered questions in a semi-structured interview. The qualitative data analysis produced four emergent themes from the participants shared experiences: (1) practicum experiences, (2) constructive instructor feedback, (3) competitive environment, and (4) personal academic success and struggles.

Finally, the qualitative and quantitative results were integrated to develop a better understanding on what cognitive beliefs changed, and what were the root causes of that change. The four themes were supported by the scores of the participants, and a theoretical explanation was constructed for each theme. Findings shed light on what cognitive changes happen to preservice teachers and are important for teacher preparation programs. The findings provide insight into structuring practicum and methods course experiences within teacher preparation programs to support the development of preservice teachers’ self-efficacy and goal orientation.

Advisor: Deepika Menon

Download

Share

COinS