Engineering Self-Efficacy Beliefs

My area of interest deals with teacher efficacy in STEM education. The article I have chosen discusses issues related to teacher efficacy, standardizing STEM education, using educational theories, pedagogical approaches, increasing teacher capacity and supports provided to teachers in STEM education. This topic is relevant because it supports the idea of building the efficacy of educators in STEM that is needed to prepare our students for the 21st century global workforce.

Surveys, according to Lovelace & Brickman (2013), are able to divulge information critical to the educator’s pedagogical practices, since practitioners can measure how students’ attitudes toward math and science influence their learning. Attitudes toward science are either positive or negative, and these innate feelings and predispositions affect students’ ability to learn science and math and acquire mastery of the subjects. Thus, educational practitioners use these psychometric measurements, in conjunction with learning outcomes to draw conclusions about levels of efficacy in their own instructional

Mr. Evans even cites the use of instilling self efficacy in students. He mentions famous psychologists like Albert Bandura.(p33) Bandura was a very important psychologist who defined self efficacy as a persons belief in his or her ability to succeed in a particular situation. Mr. Evans says that teachers should lead by example, if the teacher is motivated and loves the material being taught, then the students will engage in the material with the same

(2017) aimed to study effects of gender, interest, self- efficacy on children’s epistemic knowledge of science. Their subjects included 489 students from eight different Taiwanese high schools. A 36-item questionnaire developed by them was provided to the subjects. Their results did show minor differences but much to contrary belief, females had performed better. It was found that the female participants were better ay “understanding the meanings and limitations of measurement in science”.

Many of the theories are similar to each other in the sense that they use many of the same constructs. One of the many repeating themes in the theories is the idea of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is agreed to be an important

Social cognitive theory explains how everything plays a role in the way that we think. Everything including the roles other people play in our lives. Often I think that the impact the people around us have on our lives in undermined. The book refers to it as the social part of the cognitive theory. I think there is really a social part to everything. We are social beings and are forever intertwined and effected by the social aspects around us. In the podcast about encouraging self-efficacy, the author explains how teacher self-efficacy directly relates to student success. That is a prime example proving that there is a social aspect to cognitive ability. She states that self-efficacy is contagious. Believing in your abilities to be successful is directly related to your students success if you are a teacher. Your abilities and goals should involve your students.

Another theorist model that can be constructively used for the retention of women and minority students in STEM programs in higher education institutions is Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy. Bandura’s sense of self-efficacy cam from four information sources: performance accomplishments, vicarious learning, social persuasion, and emotional arousal. The tree primary behavioral outcomes influenced by self-efficacy beliefs are approach versus avoidance, performance and persistence. Bandura suggested that self-efficacy beliefs are rooted in the core belief that one has the power to produce desired

To answer the research questions, “Is there any relationship between teacher self-efficacy and students’ motivation?” and “What is the impact of teacher self-efficacy on the students’ achievement?” (Mojavezi & Tamiz, 2012, p. 484) a

Students’ beliefs about their academic capabilities play an essential role in their motivation to achieve, and their belief in their efficacy to exert control over their own learning and to master academic activities are determinants of their level of motivation and academic accomplishments (Zimmerman, 2000; Bandura, 1993). Students with a weak self-efficacy belief are less willing to learn, have difficulty focusing on instructional tasks and have little desire to overcome tasks that present difficulties. Students with high self-efficacy beliefs are more likely to participate readily, work harder, demonstrate resilience in the face of adversity and achieve at a higher level (Margolis et al., 2004).

Spring Quarter 2016 was my first time taking classes on campus at SPSCC. As an older student, I have learned to appreciate school whereas years ago, I would not have cared. When I registered for Psych 116 it was mainly because of the reviews left on the Rate My Professors website. Every student left a rave review for Amanda Ybarra and I knew that I needed to take a class with a teacher who actually cared for not only the curriculum but the students. School is the only outlet I’ve had over the past few months. I’ve been using it to hide from the relationship I have with my boyfriend. The hostility in my relationship often leads to a violent environment for myself and this class has opened my eyes to what is needed in healthy relationships.

Self-efficacy beliefs not only involve the exercise of control over action but also the self-regulation of various personal determinants of learning, such as thought processes and motivation (Bandura, 1997). According to Caprara, Barbaranelli, Pastorelli, and Cervone (2004), self-regulatory self-efficacy concerns peoples’ perceptions for relating their actions in accord with personal norms when they are faced with peer pressure for engaging in antisocial conduct. It has been found that good self-regulators do better academically than poor self-regulators (Zimmerman & Schunk, 1989), and that those students who are considered good self-regulators use their own performances as a guide for assessing their self-efficacy (Schunk,

Many previous academic studies (Wang et al., 2003; Agarwal et al., 2000; Venkatesh, 2000) have well documented the extent to which perceived self-efficacy is vital in Information System (IS). Perceived self-efficacy presents itself as being a major risk-factor in predicting sustainability of a new technology (Ellen et al., 1991). In the context of M-banking, perceived self-efficacy is defined as the “judgement of one’s ability to use mobile banking” (Venkatesh, 2000). Agarwal et al., (2000) state that there is empirical evidence to support the casual relationship between perceived self-efficacy and behavioural intention. However, among mobile banking adoption researches, Brown et al. [2003] supported self-efficacy was

. If I had a team member that lack confidence toward a task, I would have that team member observe how the task is to be completed and then let that team member give it a try while being supervisor. Another technique use would be praise the effort and encourage the team member with positive words of affirmations, stating to him or her that it can be done. Allow the team member to take notes and ask questions if something is not clear. Additionally, letting the team member know it is acceptable to make mistake has this is where learning takes place. Evaluating why the team member feels he or she can not accomplish the job by asking, can help me resolve the problem, it can be something as simple as not understanding what exactly he or she suppose to do. Clear instruction or direction will be provided. Utilizing a reward system can help boost self efficacy. Challenging the individual to give it a try and if all fails,

In this article a study was done at the University of Calgary to measure how well self efficacy works in a classroom. They measured two types of outcome efficacy; proximally and distally, the overall teacher's performance, feedback given from teachers to students, and how positive or negative the student felt about the feedback. The students answered a 30 question-questionnaire covering the four issues. The result found that both types of outcome efficacy were highly related to motivation, but feedback from teachers have little effect on students performance.

Researchers who study self-regulation suggest that learners who set goals, enlist cognitive and metacognitive strategies, and manage their learning environments are more likely to display higher task motivation and to experience academic success than those who do not (Klassen , Krawchuck, Lynch, & Rajani, 2008). Other research claims that academic self-efficacy also is a predictor of future academic performace when academic self-efficacy is also operationalized as study skills and behaviours (Putwain, Sander, & Larkin, 2013). While other researchers claim that it is the feedback which affects the self-efficacy, the majority agree that it is the changes in the study skills which will produce the greatest change. Students with disabilities do