Beyond experience: How school leadership shapes early career teachers' professional learning and self-efficacy in Turkish high schools
Teaching and Teacher Education, vol.181, 2026 (SSCI, Scopus)
- Publication Type: Article / Article
- Volume: 181
- Publication Date: 2026
- Doi Number: 10.1016/j.tate.2026.105726
- Journal Name: Teaching and Teacher Education
- Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, IBZ Online, Periodicals Index Online, Educational research abstracts (ERA), Psycinfo
- Keywords: Early career teachers, School leadership, Teacher career stage, Teacher professional learning, Teacher self-efficacy
- Hacettepe University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
Over recent decades, teacher professional learning has gained attention for improving schools and student outcomes. However, conditions under which it thrives remain contested, particularly for early career teachers, whose development is often assumed to follow naturally from experience. This study investigates how school leadership shapes professional learning across career stages, focusing on early career teachers in Türkiye. Using survey data from 3541 public high school teachers, we tested a moderated mediation model in which school leadership influenced professional learning directly and indirectly through self-efficacy. Results supported a partial mediation model: school leadership positively affected teacher professional learning both directly and via self-efficacy. Career stage moderated this relationship, with early career teachers benefiting more from leadership support than experienced colleagues. These findings underscore the critical role of school leadership in fostering teacher professional learning and offer implications for designing supportive policies that move beyond experience-based assumptions.