The Positive Feedback Loop of Korean English Teachers’ Knowledge and Resilience Systems

The Positive Feedback Loop of Korean English Teachers’ Knowledge and Resilience Systems

This study analyzes the relationship between the teacher knowledge (technology, pedagogy, content, and the intersection of three components) required for the development of curricula, the external environment (perceived school technology infrastructure), and emotional factors surrounding it (teacher self-efficacy, teacher resilience). Survey data from 400 Korean English teachers was analyzed using the Structural Equation Model (SEM). A total of 10 hypotheses were proposed following a review of the extant literature. This study, building on previous research on teacher resilience, proposes two models: a recursive model that returns to teachers’ knowledge systems, and a linear model in which resilience is unilaterally burned up. Only one path associating Korean English teachers’ technological knowledge with perceived school infrastructure was found to be invalid. Moreover, the Goodness of Fit Indices of the recursive model is effective in explaining the relationship between variables. In other words, teacher resilience affected by technological pedagogical content knowledge (the intersection of three components) shows the characteristics of a relationship that could strengthen a teacher’s knowledge system by reflecting the technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge of English teachers. This study found that teacher resilience is an essential factor that can help Korean English teachers overcome the adversity they may face in the classroom or school environment.