The mediating role of teacher self-efficacy in the relationship between teacher leadership and student achievement

Objective: This study aims to investigate the relationship between teacher leadership and student academic achievement as well as the mediating role of teacher self-efficacy in this relationship. Materials and Methods: This study investigates causal relationships among variables, so it was designed using casual research method. Based on the existing literature on study variables, the research model was developed involving the hypothetical relationships among teacher leadership, teacher self-efficacy, and student academic achievement. The model was tested using Meta-Analytic Structural Equation Modeling (MASEM). Since the study examines the relationships between variables based on the results of existing studies in the literature, data were obtained from studies accessed through databases such as Web of Science and Scopus. Following a data collection and selection process based on various criteria, data from a total of 39 articles and theses were included in the analysis. Results: The analyses confirmed the four research hypotheses and the final research model. Accordingly, it was determined that teacher leadership has a significant impact on teacher self-efficacy and student achievement, teacher self-efficacy significantly predicts student achievement, and teacher leadership affects student achievement both directly and indirectly through increasing teacher self-efficacy. Results also showed that the relationship between teacher leadership and student achievement may be higher in secondary schools, and that this relationship has been found to be higher in studies conducted in Turkey compared to those from other countries. Conclusion: The findings revealed that teacher leadership can have significant benefits for both teachers and students in schools. In this context, educational administrators and practitioners must create an environment that encourages and supports teacher leadership in schools. Furthermore, the findings of this study conducted with MASEM offer significant contributions to the literature by providing more generalizable results. Given that studies investigating both the binary and more complex multiple relationships related to teacher efficacy are insufficient in number and quality, it is crucial that such studies continue in the future.