Pilot Mixed-Methods Study: Puerto Rican High Schools Teachers’ Self-Efficacy, Dispositional Optimism, Resiliency, and Classroom Management

This pilot study aimed to ascertain whether self-efficacy, dispositional optimism, and resilience affect teachers’ classroom management in Puerto Rican high school classrooms. A sequential mixed-methods analysis was conducted to draw quantitative comparisons between teacher ratings on pilot observational checklists designed for this purpose and the scores on four Likert-scale questionnaires. This was followed by a content analysis of observational notes from teachers in those same classrooms. The sample consisted of seven (n=7) high school teachers of English, science, mathematics, history, geometry, and Spanish. While the results failed to provide sufficient evidence of a clear relationship between teachers’ quantitative scores, they did demonstrate the presence of behaviors indicative of each variable as well as salient categories and behaviors including teaching behaviors with unique cultural implications for Puerto Rican educators. Suggestions for future research directions are discussed.