Computer-related metacognitive and self-efficacy beliefs of university students: A Japanese case study

The climate crisis poses a serious threat to the health and well-being of individuals. For many, climate change knowledge is derived from indirect exposure to information transmitted through the media. Such content can elicit a variety of emotional responses, including anger, sadness, despair, fear, and guilt. Worry and anxiety are especially common responses, usually referred to as “climate anxiety”. The main objectives of this study were to analyze how exposure to climate change through the media relates to climate anxiety and individual and collective self-efficacy, and to evaluate the relationship between climate anxiety and efficacy beliefs. A total of 312 Italian university students (aged 18–26 years) participated in the research by filling out an anonymous questionnaire. Participants reported being exposed several times per week to information about climate change, especially from social media, newspapers, and television programs. Moreover, the results showed that the attention paid to information about climate change was not only positively related to climate anxiety, but also to individual and collective self-efficacy. Most notably, participants’ efficacy beliefs were found to be positively related to climate anxiety. This somewhat controversial finding stresses that, in the context of pro-environmental behavior changes, a moderate level of anxiety could engender feelings of virtue, encouraging people to rethink actions with negative ecological impacts.

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Motivation, Strategy Use, and Self-efficacy Beliefs in Korean University Students’ L2 English Proficiency

Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics ◽

10.15738/kjell.17.3.201709.519 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (3) ◽

pp. 519-545

Author(s):

최문홍 ◽

Song ji yeong

Keyword(s):

University Students ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

English Proficiency ◽

Efficacy Beliefs ◽

Strategy Use ◽

Motivation Strategy

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University mathematics students’ self-efficacy beliefs about proof and proving

LUMAT International Journal on Math Science and Technology Education ◽

10.31129/lumat.7.1.406 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Antti Viholainen ◽

Timo Tossavainen ◽

Hanna Viitala ◽

Maria Johansson

Keyword(s):

University Students ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Efficacy Beliefs ◽

Tertiary Level ◽

Mathematics Students ◽

University Mathematics ◽

Mathematical Proofs ◽

Proof And Proving

We examine university students’ motivation and self-efficacy beliefs about proof and proving, i.e., beliefs about personal abilities to understand, construct and present mathematical proofs, as well as their certainty about self-produced proofs. The sample of the study consists of 29 Finnish and Swedish students who were studying mathematics in tertiary level. The results show that the students were highly motivated to learn to understand and construct proofs, but they were more uncertain about their proving skills. Moreover, the study revealed reasons for the uncertainty about proving achievements. Most of the reasons are caused by deficiencies with respect to knowledge of, understanding about or experience from proof and proving.

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Can I teach these students? A case study of Vietnamese teachers’ self-efficacy in relation to teaching English as a Foreign Language

10.31235/osf.io/pjez5 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Nga Thi Tuyet Phan

Keyword(s):

Data Collection ◽

Foreign Language ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Sense Of Self ◽

Efficacy Beliefs ◽

The Self ◽

Teaching English ◽

University Teachers ◽

The Relationship

The study looked at factors that influenced the self-efficacy in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) of a group of university teachers in Vietnam. This study explored the relationship between Vietnamese teachers’ discourses of effective teaching practices and their self-efficacy beliefs, the influence of Vietnamese culture and context on teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs, and whether participating in the research led to a change in the self-efficacy beliefs of the teacher participants and of myself as researcher.The research took the form of a qualitative case study. Participants were eight university teachers of the English language at a technical university in Vietnam. Data collection lasted six months. Data collection tools included focus group discussions, individual interviews, journaling, and observations. An inductive coding process and thematic analysis were used for analysing data. Findings indicate that social persuasion was the most influential source of self-efficacy information. The study shows that different sources of self-efficacy information interacted with one another to influence the two dimensions of self-efficacy. Besides, it appears that teachers’ understanding of a number of environment and workplace factors appeared to constrain some teachers into adopting the Grammar Translation Method (GTM) approach and possibly reduced their self-efficacy in adapting a Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)-oriented approach. After participating in the study, the teaching approaches of study teachers and my own approaches seemed to be more CLT-oriented although most of us were characterised by a low sense of self-efficacy in adapting this approach in the Vietnamese classrooms. Findings also suggest that several aspects of Vietnamese culture, e.g. the concept of face, are likely to have influenced the way the study teachers selected, weighted and interpreted efficacy-building information. In addition, it is plausible that changes in context, e.g. teaching different kinds of students, led to a change in the way the teachers and I weighed and selected self-efficacy information. Self-reflection, self-doubt and self-regulation were other factors causing fluctuations in the study teachers’ and my self-efficacy. My study contributes to a widening understanding of how different aspects of culture can impact on self-efficacy. It provides examples to challenge the claim that the self-efficacy of experienced teachers is stable and the widespread view that a negative sense of self-efficacy induces individuals to give up and make less effort. The study shows the relationship between teacher self-efficacy beliefs and their discourses of EFL instruction, i.e. their self-efficacy in using different aspects of a communicative approach fluctuated at different stages of the study. The study points to the need to improve leadership practice and teaching conditions at the faculty and university. Preparing teachers for regulation strategies, encouraging them to work collectively, and offering more professional development programs are likely to develop a stronger sense of self-efficacy among teachers.

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