Investigating the Lived Experience of Math Teachers' Self-Efficacy Teaching Face-to-Face during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Study

The purpose of this replicated phenomenological study was to describe teachers' lived experiences with self-efficacy teaching face-to-face instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic in a public school district in Southwestern Louisiana. The theory guiding this study is Bandura's (1977) theory of self-efficacy, which was used to answer the following research question: What are math teachers' lived experiences with self-efficacy teaching face-to-face instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic? Fourteen teachers from two schools described their lived experiences teaching face-to-face instruction during the pandemic. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews (digital or written) and a focus group. Data analysis followed Moustakas' (1994) methods of epoche, phenomenological reduction, and thematic development and synthesis for textual and structural descriptions of the phenomenon, to present the essence of the phenomenon. The study focused on four themes and nine sub-themes. The themes were perseverance, awareness, a need to socialize, and challenging. The findings revealed that teachers' self-efficacy in teaching face-to-face instruction continuously fluctuated and was influenced by their classroom experiences and perceptions of their classroom environment. Teachers experienced increased self-efficacy through mastery experience, vicarious experience, and verbal persuasion, which increased teacher commitment and relationships, however, teachers also experienced decreased self-efficacy through emotional arousal because they perceived their environment as challenging, which intensified teacher stress. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]