Development and Initial Validation of the Teachers' Self-Efficacy for Homework Management Scale

Introduction. Homework is one of the daily assessment methods used by the classroom teacher. In the literature, there are many studies dealing with homework management from the perspectives of students and parents. However, studies concerning teachers' self-efficacy for homework management are scarce. This study aimed at developing and validating a scale for measuring teachers' self-efficacy for homework management. Method. A descriptive research design was employed in this study. The participants were 127 teachers randomly selected from one educational governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. The literature was reviewed to construct 20 items reflecting various aspects of the homework design and implementation. The items and the responses were subjected to a validation process. Results. Factorial structure of the scale revealed three subscales: efficacy for planning and designing homework; efficacy for monitoring, assessing, and providing feedback on homework; and efficacy for considering individual differences in homework. The three subscales showed acceptable evidence of validity and reliability. Discussion and Conclusion. The psychometric analysis of the teachers’ responses showed that the three subscales were reliable measures of teachers’ self-efficacy for homework management. These results support the usefulness of using the scale as an assessment tool for research purposes and the professional development of teachers. These results present new knowledge about teachers’ management of homework with planning and designing being the salient factor.