I Thought I Was Going to Get an A! Understanding the Role of Self-Efficacy and Calibration in Student Achievement and Help Seeking

• In Event: 52.079 - Procrastination and Calibration: Factors Impacting College Students' Self-Regulated Learning

Abstract

We examined the contribution of self-efficacy beliefs and calibration on student achievement and help seeking in a sample of 4,197 STEM undergraduates. OLS regression revealed that students’ self-efficacy was positively related to grade at the end of the term; however, the inaccuracy of predicted grade had a strong negative association with actual course grade when controlling for whether or not the student had over predicted. Results obtained from looking at students’ need for help, their reported help from a teaching assistant or instructor, and their reported help from peers reveal different patterns among the variables of interest. We discuss results with regard to the importance of considering self-efficacy as well as calibration in examining students’ achievement and help seeking.

Authors

• Katerina Schenke, University of California - Los Angeles

• Cathy Tran, University of California - Irvine

• Tutrang Chung Nguyen, University of California - Irvine

• Lynn C Reimer, University of California - Irvine

• Thurston Domina, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill