Examination of professional development self-efficiencies of religious culture and ethics teachers

The aim of this study is to examine the professional development self-efficacy of Religious Culture and Ethics Teachers (DKAB). The population of the research consists of 203 DKAB teachers working in schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in the provinces of Nevşehir and Şanlıurfa in the 2022-2023 academic year. In the research, descriptive survey model, which is one of the quantitative research methods, was used. "Teachers' Professional Development Self-Efficacy Scale" developed by Yenen and Kılınç (2021) was used as a data collection tool. While the factor load values of the developed scale ranged from .46 to .85, the item-test correlation values ranged from .44 to .77. factors; It has been named as "instructional development", "institutional development", "personal development" and "areal development". The scale was prepared in the form of "I strongly disagree, I do not agree, I partially agree, I agree and I completely agree" in a 5-point Likert type. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin and Bartlett tests of the research were performed and the KMO value was 0.833 and the Cronbach Alpha value was α =.803. The Bartlett result was found to be χ2= 1809,192. The quantitative data obtained were analyzed by using the IBM SPSS Statics 26 package program and calculating the frequency (f) and percent (%) values. In addition, it was investigated whether the data obtained from the scale differed significantly according to age, gender, educational status, professional experience, and the type of school he worked in. As a result of the research, it was seen that the professional development self-efficacy perceptions of DKAB teachers were at a moderate level. Considering the self-efficacy of DKAB teachers for their professional development according to the gender variable, it is seen that there is no significant difference between male and female teachers. When we look at the self-efficacy of DKAB teachers regarding their professional development according to the type of school they work in, it is seen that there is a significant difference between public and private schools and this difference is in favor of teachers working in private schools. DKAB teachers for their professional development according to their age, it is seen that there is a significant difference between DKAB teachers in the 21-30 age group and the teachers in the 41-50 age group, which is in favor of the 21-30 age group teachers. When the self-efficacy of DKAB teachers regarding their professional development is examined according to their educational status, it is seen that there is a significant difference between doctoral graduate teachers and undergraduate and graduate teachers. DKAB teachers for their professional development according to their professional experience, there is a significant difference between DKAB teachers with 21 years and more professional experience, teachers with 11-15 years of professional experience, teachers with 5-10 years of professional experience and teachers with 1-5 years of professional experience. It is seen that there is a difference and this difference is in favor of teachers with 21 years and more professional experience. Keywords: Religious culture and ethics, professional development, self-efficacy, teacher.