Self-efficacy among community college faculty teaching in CTE dual-enrollment programs

Abstract

In 2012, the Kansas Legislature passed Senate Bill 155 that allowed all high school juniors and seniors to enroll in tuition-free postsecondary career and technical education courses (CTE) courses. Community colleges provided many of these courses. As a result, high school students and college students were integrated in the classroom and instructed by college faculty. This qualitative study explored faculty perceptions of self-efficacy as it related to teaching dualenrollment CTE courses to high school students in rural Kansas community colleges. Data was collected through faculty focus groups consisting of faculty who taught CTE dual-enrollment programs, interviews of administrators who supervised dual-enrollment programs, and document analysis at three community colleges. The data was analyzed through the theoretical framework of Bandura's Self-Efficacy Theory and common themes were identified that affected the selfefficacy of these instructors in both negative and positive ways. Administrators and instructors reported high levels of satisfaction helping students obtain an education. Both groups acknowledged challenges associated with differences between the high school and community college environments. The two groups differed on their perceptions of the amount of time required to teach dual-enrollment courses. Instructors viewed dualenrollment courses as more time-intensive than regular college courses while administrators did not view them any differently. Faculty experienced high self-efficacy with teaching content but low-self-efficacy maneuvering within the high school environment. Administrators were not aware of faculty's level of self-efficacy and did not address it. Implications include aligning the high school and community college class schedules, addressing the need for funding for course supplies, creating a student admissions process, and improving communication between the high school staff and community college faculty.