Achievement goals,academic self-concept,and school grades in mathematics: Longitudinal reciprocal relations in above average ability secondary school students

This study examined the longitudinal reciprocal relations between academic self-concept, achievement goals (i.e., performance-approach, performance-avoidance, and mastery), and achievement (i.e., self-reported grades) in mathematics. The research aim was twofold. First, we examined the confound hypothesis, which states that performance-approach goals do not feature any incremental validity in predicting achievement over and above students' competence perceptions (i.e., academic self-concept). In addition, we expanded research on the confound hypothesis by also investigating performance-avoidance and mastery goals. Second, we investigated the predictive validity of all three achievement goals for changes in academic self-concept. Seven hundred sixty-nine students (50.78% female) attending the highest track of the German three-tier secondary school system participated in three waves of measurement in Grades 5, 6, and 8. Our findings confirmed the confound hypothesis: Performance-approach goals did not explain achievement over and above academic self-concept. The same findings applied to performance-avoidance and mastery goals. Furthermore, performance-approach goals were positively related to academic self-concept changes, whereas performance-avoidance goals showed a negative relation to academic self-concept changes over time. Mastery goals were not associated to changes in academic self-concept. Academic self-concept and achievement showed positive reciprocal relations. To conclude, our results point to complex relations between achievement goals, academic self-concept, and academic achievement over time.     

Academic self-concepts in adolescence: Relations with achievement and ability grouping in schools

The effects of ability grouping in schools on students' self-concept were examined in a sample of 23 secondary schools with a range of structured ability groupings. Measures of general self-concept, academic self-concept, and achievement were collected from over 1600 students aged 14–15 years and again two years later. Students' academic self-concept, but not their general self-concept, was related to the extent of ability grouping in the school attended. Subject-specific facets of academic self-concept were not related to the number of years of ability grouping students had experienced in English, mathematics and science; however, they were related to students' position in the grouping hierarchy, with students in high-ability groups having significantly higher self-concepts in all three subjects than students in low-ability groups. Students' intentions to learn in future were more strongly affected by self-concept than by achievement.     

Academic self-concept,autonomous academic motivation,and academic achievement: Mediating and additive effects

Three conceptual models were tested to examine the relationships among academic self-concept, autonomous academic motivation, and academic achievement. This allowed us to determine whether 1) autonomous academic motivation mediates the relation between academic self-concept and achievement, 2) academic self-concept mediates the relation between autonomous academic motivation and achievement, or 3) both motivational constructs have an additive effect on academic achievement. A total of 925 high school students (404 boys and 521 girls) were asked to complete a questionnaire on two occasions separated by a year interval. Results from SEM analyses provided good support for the hypothesized model positing that autonomous academic motivation mediates the academic self-concept–academic achievement relation. Results are discussed in light of self-determination theory and self-concept theory.     

The Developmental Dynamics between Interest,Self-concept of Ability,and Academic Performance

Only a few studies have examined the direction of associations between academic achievement, interest, and self-concept of ability simultaneously by using longitudinal data over several school years. To examine the cross-lagged relationships between students' interest, self-concept of ability, and performance in mathematics and reading, longitudinal data from Grade 1 to Grade 7 of comprehensive school was gathered from 216 students. The results showed that, in both reading and math, performance predicted students' subsequent self-concept of ability. Some evidence was also found that math performance predicts subsequent interest in mathematics, and that self-concept of math ability mediates the impact of math performance on interest. No evidence was found for the assumption that self-concept of ability or interest would predict subsequent academic performance.     

大学新生学业自我概念与学业行为的关系探析

目的:针对当代大学生群体不断发展的学业自我概念与相应学业行为之间存在的落差和不一致性,探究其可能的心理机制.方法:采用基本认知图式(调查一)和行为测量(调查二)分析了574名大学新生学业自我概念与学业行为间的关系.结果:学业自我发展水平高的个体对学业自我概念的重要性和规范性有更多的认知,同时表现出行为上的增强.但这种影...     

Academic self-concept and achievement in Polish primary schools: cross-lagged modelling and gender-specific effects

This study reports relationships between general academic self-concept and achievement in grade 3 and grade 5. Gender-specific effects were investigated using a longitudinal, two-cycle, 3-year autoregressive cross-lagged panel design in a large, representative sample of Polish primary school pupils (N?=?4226). Analysis revealed (a) reciprocal relations between general academic self-concept and achievement over time but the influence of prior achievement on self-concept was stronger; (b) on average, levels of both constructs declined over time; (c) gender differences were not observed in longitudinal relations (i.e. cross-lagged, autoregressive and intra-wave correlations); (d) girls demonstrated higher mean levels of academic achievement at both grades; and (e) average level of general academic self-concept was not gender differentiated in grade 3 but decreased more for girls. These results are discussed in the light of the theoretical and practical implications.     

Self-concept and IQ as predictors of remedial success in children with learning disabilities

Twenty-five children with learning disabilities (LD) in the auditory-linguistic realm participated in the present study over two academic years. The purpose of the experiment was to test whether IQ and self-concept were significant predictors of learning ability. IQ was found to have no relationship to the children's learning ability, whereas self-concept predicted patterns of successful achievement in spelling, arithmetic, and written language, but not in visual word recognition. The results were interpreted as support for the "specificity" presumption in LD, but also as support for the importance of self-concept as possibly a primary cause of academic underachievement. The paper develops a remedial model of LD that accounts both for the interplay of self-concept and cognition in learning and for the fundamental implications of the specificity principle.     

Perspective matters: The internal/external frame of reference model for self- and peer ratings of achievement

The internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model posits that students' academic self-concept in one domain (e.g., math) is positively associated with achievement in the same domain but negatively associated with achievement in a comparison domain (e.g., English). Whereas academic self-concept encompasses self-ratings of achievement, peer academic reputation (PAR) encompasses peer ratings of the same achievement and PAR was shown to have an incremental predictive effect on a range of positive academic outcomes. Considering the importance of PAR, we hypothesized that the I/E model would also apply to PAR both as predictor and as outcome. We tested this hypothesis in a sample of 850 seventh-grade students in 47 classes in math and English. Therein, PAR was measured in a round-robin design where students rated each classmate's level of achievement. We tested I/E models with academic self-concept and PAR as outcomes. Results supported the I/E model for academic self-concept as outcome with academic achievement and PAR as predictor but not for PAR as outcome with achievement as predictor. For PAR as outcome, the effects across domains were positive rather than negative. These results were consistent across replications over three years using the same sample. Thus, whereas academic self-concept was characterized by contrasts between domains, PAR was characterized by assimilation between domains.     

Does academic self-concept drive academic achievement?

Gaps in GCSE attainment have long been the concern of policy makers, academics, and social commentators, largely due to the importance of these exams for setting children on their future academic and career pathways. In the past a wide range of factors relating to the pupils, their families, and their schools have been found to account for differences in GCSE attainment. In this paper we examine the role of pupils’ beliefs in their own academic ability (academic self-concept). Using Next Steps data, we examine whether pupils with higher academic self-concept do better or worse in their GCSEs than pupils with lower academic self-concept. Results show that on average, controlling for other characteristics, having high academic self-concept increases GCSE scores by four grades. When we compare academic self-concept to measured achievement we find that both high and low attainers have higher probabilities of achieving five A*–C GCSEs and higher GCSE point scores on average if they have high academic self-concept than similarly able students who have lower academic self-concept.     

A Structural Equation Model of Parental Involvement,Motivational and Aptitudinal Characteristics,and Academic Achievement

The authors used the structural equation model (SEM) approach to test a model hypothesizing the influence of parental involvement on students' academic aptitudes, self-concept, and causal attributions, as well as the influence of the 3 variables on academic achievement. The theoretical model was contrasted in a group of 12- to 18-year-old adolescents (N = 261) attending various educational centers. The results indicate that (a) parental involvement had a positive and significant influence on the participant's measured characteristics; (b) causal attribution was not causally related to self-concept or academic achievement when the task involved finding causes for success, but, self-concept and causal attributions were found to be significantly and reciprocally related when the task involved finding causes accounting for failure; (c) self-concept was statistically and predominantly causally related to academic achievement, but not vice versa; and (d) aptitude and self-concept accounted for academic achievement, although the effect of self-concept was predominant. These results suggest that in adolescence, cognitive-affective variables become crucial in accounting for academic behavior.     

Subjective evaluations of intelligence and academic self-concept predict academic achievement: Evidence from a selective student population

The study examined the relationship between implicit theories, goal orientations, subjective and test estimates of intelligence, academic self-concept, and achievement in a selective student population (N = 300). There was no direct impact of implicit theories of intelligence and goal orientations on achievement. However, subjective evaluations of intelligence and academic self-concept had incremental predictive value over conventional intelligence when predicting achievement accounting for more than 50% of its variance. The obtained pattern of results is presented via structural equation models and interpreted within a dynamic regulative systems framework suggesting the importance of further studying complex sets of achievement predictors that include ability, personality and mediating constructs.     

Relations between adolescents’ self-evaluations, time perspectives, motivation for school and their achievement in different countries and at different ages

The present study focused on the relations between the self-efficacy, social self-concept, time perspectives, school investment and academic achievement of students in four different European countries and in different adolescence periods. A total of 1623 students completed questionnaires. The relations between the concepts proved not to be specific to the Western or to the former Communist bloc countries studied. The expected general decline in investment and academic achievement over the adolescence period showed up in all four countries studied. Contrary to our hypothesis, however, this decline could not be explained by growing influences of either social self-concept or time perspectives regarding personal development on their investment. In fact, the effects of social self-concept were strongest for the youngest adolescence group. Students’ social self-concept was the best predictor for their investment, while self-efficacy proved to predict academic achievement best in all adolescence periods.     

What Happens With Comparison Processes When “the Other” is Very Similar? Academic Self-Concept Formation in Twins

According to the internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model (Marsh, 1986), individuals’ academic self-concept is strongly influenced by comparing their achievement in one domain with their achievement in other domains and with the achievement of others. Research has typically found contrast effects such that high-achieving others have a negative effect on students’ academic self-concept. Yet, what happens if the “other” is somebody very similar to oneself as in the case of monozygotic twins? We postulate and examine the mirror effect, which means that rather than serving as a contrast, the effect of the co-twin’s achievement parallels the effect of a monozygotic twin’s own achievement on academic self-concept. We used data from two school-aged cohorts (11- and 17-year-olds) from a representative sample (N = 4,202) of monozygotic and dizygotic twins in Germany. We regressed twins’ math and German self-concepts on their own and their co-twins’ mathematics and German achievement. Internal and external comparison effects as postulated in the I/E model were replicated for both monozygotic and dizygotic twins across both age groups. In line with our hypothesis, the mirror effect was found in monozygotic twins only: Co-twins’ achievement and twins’ own achievement showed a parallel pattern of positive effects on academic self-concept within each domain and negative effects on academic self-concept between domains, duplicating the I/E pattern. The mirror effect tended to be more pronounced for older monozygotic twins. We argue that the mirror effect is likely caused by high interpersonal similarity and constitutes a rare exception to the broad generalizability of contrast effects as assumed in the I/E model.     

Teacher frame of reference and the big-fish–little-pond effect

Teachers with an individualized teacher frame of reference (TFR) emphasize improvement in relation to prior achievement, effort, and learning. Individualized TFRs were hypothesized to enhance self-concept and reduce the negative effects associated with the big fish little pond effect (BFLPE). Math achievement and math self-concept data (2150 students from 112 classes) were collected at the end of Grade 7 and the end of Grade 8. TFR was independently assessed by student ratings of their teacher and ratings by two trained observers. Multilevel analyses confirmed the BFLPE, the negative effect of class-average achievement on self-concept. An individualized TFR enhanced self-concept, but had no significant effect on the size of the BFLPE (the class-average achievement × TFR interaction was not significant). Results were very similar for both student and observer ratings of TFR. The findings suggest that individualized TFRs enhance academic self-concepts but do not suppress the negative effects of ability grouping.     

The role of academic ability indicators in big-fish-little-pond effect research: A comparison study

The authors examined the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) on academic self-concept (ASC) using different indicators of academic ability (i.e., achievement test, cognitive ability test, grades corrected for grading-on-a-curve effects, uncorrected grades). They investigated under what circumstances grades are suitable indicators of academic ability in BFLPE research. The sample comprised 730 sixth-grade students from 30 classes belonging to the top track of the German secondary high school system. Using multilevel models, all indicators of academic ability exhibited negative contrast effects on ASC at class level (i.e., BFLPE). The authors found the strongest effects for corrected grades, followed by achievement tests, cognitive ability, and, finally, uncorrected grades. Thus, the study provides evidence for the usage of grades within BFLPE research for investigating the BFLPE.     

Academic Outcomes of Ability Grouping Among Junior High School Students in Hong Kong

Abstract

Ability grouping is supposedly undesirable because it leads to deficits in academic self-concept and academic achievement. However, it appears to be justifiable for its improvement of teaching and learning in schools, perhaps more so in a collectivist culture. In view of the paucity of data examining the controversy in Hong Kong, the authors collected data from 2,720 junior high school students with a random sampling procedure and obtained teachers' reports about the students' subsequent academic achievement, ability grouping, and the ability level of the class. The authors maintained students' past academic achievement as a control variable in predicting their subsequent academic achievement and self-concepts. Results revealed no significant detrimental effect caused by the ability-grouped class and the ability level of the ability-grouped class. Rather, students in classes that were more homogeneous according to past academic achievement tended to have significantly higher subsequent academic achievement and self-esteem. Results revealed no variation attributable to each student's gender and IQ in the effects of ability grouping.     

A longitudinal analysis of gender differences in academic self-concept and language achievement: A multivariate multilevel latent growth approach

This study investigated the development of academic self-concept and language achievement from Grade 7 to Grade 12 by repeated assessment of 2826 Flemish adolescents in 50 secondary schools. Latent growth curve modeling showed that both girls and boys experience a declining academic self-concept during the period of secondary education and that girls declined at a faster rate. Furthermore, girls were shown to have an increase in Dutch language achievement over time, whereas boys showed a decrease in middle years, followed by an increase from Grade 9 on. The multivariate multilevel growth curve model suggested that the evolution of academic self-concept was not related to the evolution in achievement, neither at the individual level, nor at the school level. There is, however, a positive relation between students’ academic self-concept and their achievement, the magnitude of which decreased throughout secondary school. At the school level, the correlation is small, but also positive, except for the girls from Grade 10 on. The results are discussed in relation to the reciprocal effects model and the developmental perspective regarding the self-concept/achievement relation.     

Simultaneous testing of four decades of academic self-concept models

In separate studies on academic self-concept, previous research has shown: (1) the distinctiveness of a cognitive and an affective component, (2) the domain specificity of self-concepts, (3) the reciprocal effects of self-concept and achievement, (4) the internal/external frame of reference in self-concept development, (5) the reciprocal effects of the internal/external frame of reference, (6) the big-fish-little-pond effect, and (7) the interrelatedness of self-concepts in similar domains. The present study demonstrates that all of these seven findings are replicable and may be synthesized in a single study with a sample of students in Singapore. Secondary 1 students (7th graders; N = 275) were surveyed with 24 items about their academic self-concepts in physics, English, and math in two components (cognitive and affective), and their respective achievement scores were recorded over two time points. Confirmatory factor analysis found that the cognitive and affective components of academic self-concept were separable. The students’ self-concepts in different curriculum domains were distinct, supporting the domain specificity of self-concepts. The frame of reference and reciprocal effects were both supported, but only for the cognitive component of self-concept. Positive and statistically significant correlations between physics and math suggest that these curriculum domains were interrelated. Results of self-concept studies in schools can encourage and guide the design of interventions that could enhance students’ self-concept for positive sustainable effects on desirable educational outcomes. Attempts to improve learning outcomes should emphasize an enhancement of specific components of academic self-concept in domain-specific and related curriculum domains for optimal effects.     

Self-concept differences in student teachers in primary,elementary, secondary,and special education

Self-concept, intelligence and academic achievement were examined in students preparing to teach in primary, elementary, secondary, and special education (N = 267). The measures were the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, a group intelligence test, and school grades. Differences in self-concept, but not in intelligence and academic achievement, were found among groups of student teachers. Secondary education majors reported a more positive self-concept than primary or elementary, with special education majors reporting the least positive self-concept of all.     

High-Ability Grouping: Benefits for Gifted Students’ Achievement Development Without Costs in Academic Self-Concept

Effects of full-time ability grouping on students’ academic self-concept (ASC) and mathematics achievement were investigated in the first 3 years of secondary school (four waves of measurement; students’ average age at first wave: 10.5 years). Students were primarily from middle and upper class families living in southern Germany. The study sample comprised 148 (60% male) students from 14 gifted classes and 148 (57% male) students from 25 regular classes (matched by propensity score matching). Data analyses involved multilevel and latent growth curve analyses. Findings revealed no evidence for contrast effects of class-average achievement or assimilation effects of class type on students’ ASC. ASC remained stable over time. Students in gifted classes showed higher achievement gains than students in regular classes.