Understanding professional commitment change of novice CFL university teachers: an integrated perspective

This study examined three novice Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) university teachers’ professional commitment change in New Zealand from an integrated theoretical framework of professional commitment. Drawing on data from interviews, classroom observations, and teaching material, the study found that although all the participants had mixed reasons for becoming novice CFL university teachers abroad, their ensuing professional commitment towards CFL teaching either diminished, strengthened, or experienced no change under the joint effects of their self-efficacy, outcome expectations, professional autonomy, and social support. Specifically, the study showed that 1) either low or high teaching self-efficacy could be a hindrance to the sustainment of novice teachers’ professional commitment; 2) strong teaching self-efficacy together with high outcome expectations, to a large extent, could strengthen novice teachers’ professional commitment; and 3) professional autonomy and social support, to some extent, could modulate novice teachers’ teaching self-efficacy and thus bolster their professional commitment. This study concludes with practical implications for how to better support CFL university teachers’ continuous commitment to Chinese language teaching around the world.