Self Concept And Academic Success

When I was a young child I was shy, socially awkward, and horribly insecure, so when I realized popularity would never be my strength I decided to put all my efforts into what I was good at: school. As early as kindergarten I was identified as an advanced student and teachers quickly highlighted my efforts as exemplary to the other students. I fed off the high praise. The better I performed academically, the greater the approval I received, the better I felt about myself, so as a naive child I determined my self-worth and academic performance were inherently linked. As long as I was successful in academics, I would be a successful person. For years, I believed that, putting school beyond all else.

A widely observed behavior in students is their decrease in motivation. Many will label students as being ‘lazy’ or ‘careless’ with their work when in reality multiple factors are influencing their motivation to do well in school. Two kinds of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic, are the primary influences on how students behave in school. Intrinsic motivation is very important because it is what makes students want to learn more because the reward is self-satisfaction and enjoyment in the tasks they are doing. If a student is more motivated by extrinsic motives it means they are working by external pressures or constraints such as grades. These students will tend to show more signs of extrinsic motivation, which in turn decreases intrinsic motivation. This decrease in intrinsic motivation is what sets many students apart from their seemingly more successful peers. In a study done by Henderlong and Lepper in 2002, it was shown that too much focus on extrinsic values leads to an overall decrease to perform in school because the intrinsic motivation has decreased. This also shows that intrinsic motivation is in fact what leads to students being motivated in school and in the classroom. Overall, intrinsic motivation is crucial to student wellness in terms of behavior, academics, and emotional wellbeing. Authoritative figures in the classroom such as teachers have the most influence on student motivation whether they are aware of it or not. This being said teachers

So if we place our students in an environment that supports their efforts to learn we can conclude that our students will learn and actualize their potential. Studies in the health field have shown that when a person is in a socially supportive environment they are known to use positive methods to overcome undesirable situations. So, we can conclude that if a student is in a socially supportive environment and have a good teacher-student relationship then they too will use positive methods for succeeding in the classroom. It is believed by Abraham Maslow that everyone comes to a point of self-actualization, meaning that there is a need to develop all of one’s potential talents and capabilities (Snowman, J. (2015). But this can only be achieved in an environment where one can develop all of the lower “Hierarchy of Needs,” such as safety, belongingness and love, and esteem. Without the lower tiers being developed, one can not come to self-actualization. Only in a supportive classroom can this be

In this editorial it states that many students are influenced by their communities and their, “Lower expectations.” Because of these lower expectations, which create a lack of competition, students no longer have the urge to succeed or to be better than another. There is a major difference in the, “Environments

(1992). Making the grade: A self-worth perspective on motivation and school reform. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

School is a crucial part of a person’s life due to the amount of knowledge and successability a person might gain in their future. School can also be a place where students can interact with their fellow friends, but for others it can be a traumatizing place due to the amount of stress and also responsibility they might carry . This can be because of the stress teachers may put on the students. This can lead to students not giving their full effort on school, which will cause them to be mediocre students, and they wouldn’t be able to show their teacher the true potential they carry within themselves. These types of students are the one’s who are typically the students that aren’t successful in school. They just don’t

With a positive start in self-concept, individuals will hold an advantage over their peers as they will not be as susceptible to

Hence, after we look at all these case studies, we could conclude that the students’ academic performance is clearly tied to teacher’s expectation. In other words, the students who were deemed as “better” or “good” ends up achieving better also due to the higher expectation that the teacher was giving to them. These result, especially Rosenthal and Jacobson’s, demonstrated extremely powerful self-fulfilling prophecy on the part of the teacher. This is because when a teacher forms certain expectations towards their students based on whatever characteristics

Exerting effort, experiencing difficulty, or coming into contact with other high-performing students makes students with a fixed view question their intelligence, even if they have high confidence in their intelligence. These students are likely to focus on low-effort successes, and they feel smart when they outperform their peers. Challenges are a threat to self-esteem, and students with a fixed view will pass up important learning opportunities if they believe it will demonstrate that they are not smart enough (Hong et al., 1999). After experiencing failure, these students quickly give up even after being successful shortly before in the task (Mueller & Dweck, 1998). Students with a fixed view orientation are more likely to focus on performance goals. These goals orient students to prove their ability and avoid failure (Dweck 1986,

How do you view yourself? How do you think others view you? These questions are central to the idea of self- concept how you perceive yourself and how you believe others perceive you impacts your thoughts and ideas your actions and reactions. Your-self concept developed over years through your social interactions with your fellow man. It is what you believe to be your strength and weaknesses. Years of self- evaluation and comparisons to your peers helped to paint the internal picture you feel describe your best.

Those goals provide a sense of mindfulness in meeting the major takes in life. For instance, a person with a higher self-esteem is excited by new challenges, while one with low self-esteem may be anxious. Per the article, self-esteem is more significant predict one life satiation in individualist countries than those with collectivist orientation, were relationship seems to be more closely related to self-esteem in life satisfaction (Myers, Sweeney, & Witmer, 2000). In Centereach, High School, the professional counselors stress the value of challenging one’s self by changing and adopting to new situations. An example is when the principle requested the counselors to analyze a student’s past grades before scheduling a student to a class. At first, the counselor became irritated, but due to their high self-esteem the change was

Critical occurrences throughout our life often form our opinion about how we value ourselves. Frequently the events we've seen, learned, and experience from our family, friends and in our communities, influence the way women see themselves. As women start to lack self-esteem, their confidence begins to decrease, and at some point, and time, it starts to disturb their thought process, and eventually it begins to influence the way you perceive yourself and how you view life. Alongside other aspects touch on, lack of self-worth produces a profound effect on our ability to value and care for ourselves and others.

Successful students exhibit a combination of successful attitudes and behaviors as well as intellectual capacity. Successful students . . .

A student is ultimately responsible for his or her own education. Although some undoubtedly have a greater chance for success than others, one cannot let their current social class, stereotype, or disadvantages stand in the way of happiness in life. The sad truth is that the majority of students are not those that

In today’s’ society, success is often measured by academic and professional achievement. Higher education provides more opportunity and freedom. Statistics verify that generally, the more highly educated have higher earnings and there is a significant difference between wages earned by employees with College degrees and those without. Higher education is often perceived as a means to a ‘better life’ .Though many recognize the benefits of higher education, the rate at which students leave in their first year of College is still very high. Students leave their first year of College for