Using the theory of planned behaviour to predict pre-service teachers' preferences for scientific sources.

BACKGROUND: Despite the growing emphasis on research-based teacher education and calls for evidence-informed practice, teachers tend to prefer experiential over scientific knowledge sources to inform their actions, justify decisions and analyse educational problems. This tendency already occurs as early as during initial teacher education, and it is possibly bolstered by school internships where mentors emphasise the value of practical over scientific knowledge. AIMS: The present study applied the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to investigate under what conditions pre-service teachers intend to use and prefer scientific sources from educational research. METHODS: The study's participants were 343 pre-service teachers in a half-year school internship who indicated their attitudes towards educational research, behavioural control (i.e. self-efficacy), perceived subjective norm, intentions of using research and preference for scientific sources in a survey. Perceived subjective norm was established by measuring whether pre-service teachers believed their mentors considered research-based knowledge. RESULTS: In line with the predictions of the standard TPB model, structural equation modelling confirmed the effects of positive attitudes, self-efficacy and perceived subjective norm on pre-service teachers' intentions of using research. In turn, intentions and self-efficacy predicted preferences for scientific sources but not the use of scientific sources when planning a lesson in the internship. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-service teachers' scientific source preferences are shaped not only by personal dispositions but also by the social context of school.

When preservice teachers' prior beliefs contradict evidence from educational research.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge from educational research frequently contradicts preservice teachers' prior beliefs about educational topics. Such contradictions can seriously affect their attitudes towards educational research and can counteract efforts taken to establish teaching as a research-based profession. AIMS: Inspired by Munro's (2010, J. Appl. Soc. Psychol., 40, 579) work on science discounting, this study examined whether preservice teachers tend to devalue the potency of educational research when evidence contradicts their beliefs. SAMPLE: We used data from 145 preservice teachers from different German universities. METHODS: In an experimental design, participants indicated their prior beliefs about an educational topic (i.e., effectiveness of grade retention) before and after reading either confirming or disconfirming scientific evidence. Dependent variables were, first, whether participants devalued the potency of science to study this focal topic and whether they generalized this devaluation to further related and unrelated topics; second, whether participants preferred non-scientific over scientific sources to inform themselves about the focal topic as an indirect measure of science devaluation. RESULTS: Interaction effects on both outcome variables confirmed that participants devalued educational research and its sources when scientific evidence conflicted with their prior belief. Yet, results did not corroborate any generalization of devaluation to further topics. Despite the devaluation, participants indicated belief revision in the direction of the evidence read. CONCLUSIONS: Preservice teachers may indeed critically question educational research when scientific evidence conflicts with their prior beliefs. However, they may also adapt their assumptions in light of strong evidence. More research is needed to clarify the conditions of devaluation and belief revision.