teacher efficacy

In Language Learner Literature: A Mixed Methods Study, Mora (2025) explains that implementing Language Learner Literature (LLL) significantly enhances teacher efficacy by providing a research-backed framework that yields measurable classroom success. While this research is currently an unpublished doctoral dissertation, it is planned for public release by May 2026. The study highlights that the integration of LLL leads to increased efficacy through the following mechanisms:

• Empirical Validation: Standardized AAPPL data confirmed that the shift to LLL resulted in significant student proficiency gains, particularly in expressive skills. This objective proof affirms that teachers' instructional choices are effective, which drastically increases their professional confidence.
• Instructional Efficiency: Educators reported a professional reset after realizing that traditional grammar drills were less effective for acquisition. LLL provided a clear roadmap that allowed them to halve the time spent on rote exercises and double the time for meaningful interpretive activities, making them feel more effective in their daily practice.
• Unified Professional Identity: LLL provided a common pedagogical language and research-driven foundation for the entire department. This shifted the culture from one of isolation to one of collaboration, where teachers felt confident defending their instructional decisions because they were grounded in current Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theory.
• Reduced Burnout: Teachers explicitly linked their sense of efficacy—seeing genuine student growth—to higher retention rates. Feeling effective and intellectually engaged serves as a primary antidote to the burnout often caused by feeling lost or ineffective in a traditional classroom model.

Mora, E. (2025). Language Learner Literature: A Mixed Methods Study [Unpublished doctoral dissertation].        

                 National Louis University.