Exploring Teacher Beliefs and Motivational Orientations Across Qualification pathways in CS Education

Teachers’ subject-related beliefs and motivational orientations are central components of their professional competence, shaping how they perceive their subject and engage in instruction. In computer science (CS) education, these dimensions gain particular importance due to both the subject’s growing curricular relevance and the particular heterogeneity of teacher qualification pathways in this subject. However, empirical insights into how different qualification pathways relate to CS teachers’ beliefs and motivational orientations remain scarce.

The presented study addresses this gap by investigating the associations between CS teachers’ qualification pathways, their subject-related beliefs, and motivational orientations, operationalized as general and domain-specific self-efficacy, as well as enthusiasm for the subject and for teaching. Based on the model of teacher competence by Baumert and Kunter (2006), we employed two instruments: a newly constructed belief scale derived from qualitative interview data and theory, and a validated questionnaire for motivational orientation.

A statewide survey was conducted among German secondary school CS teachers (N = 182). The results reveal significant differences in beliefs and motivational orientations depending on teachers’ qualification pathways. Teachers with formal CS education reported higher levels of domain-specific self-efficacy and stronger beliefs in the relevance of thinking skills, practical orientation, and a conceptual understanding in CS, while alternative pathways show more heterogeneous patterns. Positive correlations were also identified between teachers’ perceived self-efficacy, enthusiasm, and certain belief profiles.