03/05/2026
By Zakkiyya Witherspoon

The School of Education invites you to attend a doctoral dissertation defense by Carolyn Rocheleau Feeney “Beyond Good Intentions: Bridging the Self-Efficacy Gap in Multilingual Instruction."

Candidate: Carolyn Rocheleau Feeney
Degree: Doctoral- Ed.D. Leadership in Schooling
Defense Date: March 18, 2026
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Location: Via Zoom
Thesis/Dissertation Title: Beyond Good Intentions: Bridging the Self-Efficacy Gap in Multilingual Instruction

Dissertation Committee

  • Chair: Linda Riley, Ed.D., Visiting Professor, School of Education, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • Committee Member: Michelle Scribner, Ed.D., Clinical Professor, School of Education, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • Committee Member: Jayson Ramalho Ed.D., Adjunct Professor, School of Education, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Abstract
This improvement science study investigated a four-week professional development (PD) intervention focused on high-leverage multilingual instructional strategies and their impact on first-grade teachers' self-efficacy. Situated within literature on teacher self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997; Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2001) and culturally sustaining pedagogy (Paris, 2012), the study addressed an equity-critical problem at a school where the majority of students are classified as multilingual learners. Three first-grade teachers participated in PD focused on scaffolding, discourse-rich instruction, and social-emotional learning. This mixed-methods study utilized the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale alongside qualitative interviews and reflections. Quantitative findings showed no improvement in self-efficacy and a decline in Student Engagement, consistent with the Dunning-Kruger effect (Dunning & Kruger, 1999), in which increased knowledge temporarily lowers self-assessment. Qualitative findings identified foundational knowledge gaps in second language acquisition theory (Cummins, 2000; Krashen, 1982) and in trauma-informed pedagogy, which contributed to instructional uncertainty and constrained confidence in implementation. Results suggest strategy-oriented PD is insufficient without foundational theoretical knowledge and trauma-informed pedagogical frameworks. Implications informed Cycle 2's redesign, emphasizing the development of foundational teacher capacity through classroom observations, and identified district-level needs for coaching and policy frameworks to support ML equity.
Keywords: teacher self-efficacy, multilingual learners, professional development, improvement science, second-language acquisition