Teachers' prerequisites for online teaching and learning: individual differences and relations to well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic

Teacher self-efficacy for e-Learning (TSE-EL) as well as attitudes towards e-Learning (A-EL) are highly relevant prerequisites for online teaching and learning (OTL). This study therefore analysed individual differences in A-EL and TSE-EL. Conducting latent profile analyses with n = 169 German in-service teachers, we found one group with positive A-EL as well as high TSE-EL and another with more negative A-EL and lower TSE-EL. We further analysed the differences between these groups during the COVID-19 pandemic: Teachers belonging to the group with more beneficial prerequisites were less emotionally exhausted, felt less stressed about the pandemic, perceived more success with OTL, and had higher implementation competency for OTL. These results highlight the pandemic's psycho-educational impact on teachers and provide a starting point for the development of training based on individual prerequisites.

Automated summary

This study analyzed the individual differences in teacher self-efficacy for e-Learning (TSE-EL) and attitudes towards e-Learning (A-EL), and identified two different groups of teachers with positive or negative A-EL and high or low TSE-EL. The study further revealed that teachers with more beneficial prerequisites experienced less emotional exhaustion, stress, and felt more successful and competent in implementing online teaching and learning (OTL) during the COVID-19 pandemic.