In-service English teachers' perceptions of self-efficacy in teaching four basic language skills

Educating students as natural users of the language is a shared objective, underscored by current studies and the updated curricula in Türkiye. This highlights the importance of teaching four fundamental language skills. The present study aimed to identify in-service English teachers' perceived levels of self-efficacy in teaching four skills. To collect quantitative data, a scale developed by Taştan Aslaner (2019) was used. A total of 258 teachers from the Western Black Sea Region participated and 12 were interviewed to provide deeper insights. This study also investigated whether demographic variables influenced English teachers' perceived levels of self-efficacy. Teacher suggestions to improve their efficacy were also drawn from interviews. The quantitative results were analyzed using Jamovi and for the qualitative part, MAXQDA (demo version) was used. The findings revealed that teachers' perceived self-efficacy was high in teaching four fundamental skills of English. The area that teachers felt most efficacious was teaching reading. Productive skills (speaking and writing) had lower ratings compared to receptive skills (listening and reading). Teachers' gender, academic degree, school type, and experience did not lead to significant differences. Teachers with degrees from ELT and English-related departments demonstrated higher self-efficacy overall, as well as in teaching speaking and reading, compared to those with degrees from other departments. Finally, teachers stated several issues that have the potential to influence their self-efficacy. Students' improvement and engagement were reported to boost teachers' perceptions of self-efficacy. Students' unwillingness, crowded classrooms and insufficient teaching hours were mentioned by the participants as factors that created challenges for them.