Research Article

Examining fresh students’ achievement motivation and self-efficacy towards learning high school mathematics

Francis Atanga Akayuure 1 , Peter Akayuure 2 *
More Detail
1 Zorko Senior High School, Bongo, GHANA2 Department of Mathematics Education, University of Education, Winneba, GHANA* Corresponding Author
Contemporary Mathematics and Science Education, 5(2), July 2024, ep24012, https://doi.org/10.30935/conmaths/14691
Published Online: 11 June 2024, Published: 01 July 2024
OPEN ACCESS   662 Views   412 Downloads
Download Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

One of the reasons for students’ reluctance to study and succeed in mathematics is that they may not be motivated to learn. This study examined fresh senior high school (SHS) students’ achievement motivation levels and its correlate to self-efficacy towards core mathematics. The study adopted descriptive research design involving a random sample of 314 fresh students in three SHSs in a low performing district in Ghana. The achievement motive scale and the new general self-efficacy scale were adapted and used for data collection. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance and Spearman rank correlation. The results indicated that the students’ achievement motivation levels in dimensions of striving to achieve learning targets, participation in lessons, willingness to work and maintaining positive study habits towards mathematics were quite high. Furthermore, the students’ achievement motivation levels did not differ by gender, type of junior high school attended and boarding status. However, the students’ achievement motivation levels varied across the five programs of study. The study also found a moderately positive significant correlation between students’ achievement motivation and self-efficacy beliefs. The study concludes that the fresh students in this study are highly motivated and believe they can succeed in their study. The study recommends that mathematics teachers should guide these fresh students to set realistic short-long term learning targets to facilitate higher achievement in mathematics. Mathematics teachers should try to first gauge the achievement motivation of the fresh students for high school mathematics for appropriate pedagogical decisions.

CITATION (APA)

Akayuure, F. A., & Akayuure, P. (2024). Examining fresh students’ achievement motivation and self-efficacy towards learning high school mathematics. Contemporary Mathematics and Science Education, 5(2), ep24012. https://doi.org/10.30935/conmaths/14691

REFERENCES

  1. Afrifa-Yamoah, E. P. O. (2016). Measuring and relating senior high school students’ achievement motivation towards mathematics lessons. Journal in Education, 4(6), 89-95.
  2. Akbar, Z. (2020). Achievement motivation, self-efficacy and mathematics anxiety among students in elementary school. Palarch’s Journal of Archaeology of Egypt/Egyptology, 17(10), 2004-2013. https://testmagzine.biz/index.php/testmagzine/article/view/12052
  3. Ansary, K., Saha, B., & Gorain, S. C. (2021). A study on achievement motivation of undergraduate students. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Educational Research, 9(7), 119-121.
  4. Arifin, S., Wahyudin, & Herman, T. (2021). The effect of students’ mathematics self-efficacy on mathematical understanding performance. Elementary Education Online, 1, 617-627. https://doi.org/10.17051/ilkonline.2021.01.52
  5. Arul Lawrence, A. S., & Vimala, A. (2013). Self-concept and achievement motivation of high school students. Conflux: Journal of Education, 1(1), 141-146. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED543974
  6. Atkinson, J. W. (1953). The achievement motive and recall of interrupted and completed tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 46(6), 381. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0057286
  7. Ayotola, A., & Adedeji, T. (2009). The relationship between mathematics self-efficacy and achievement in mathematics. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 1(1), 953-957. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2009.01.169
  8. Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman.
  9. Bandura, A. (2012). On the functional properties of perceived self-efficacy revisited. Journal of Management, 38(1), 9-44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206311410606
  10. Brunstein, J. C., & Heckhausen, H. (2018). Achievement motivation. In J. Heckhausen, & H. Heckhausen (Eds.), Motivation and action (pp. 221-304). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65094-4_6
  11. Dagnew, A. (2017). The relationship between students’ attitudes towards school, values of education, achievement motivation and academic achievement in Gondar secondary schools, Ethiopia. Research in Pedagogy, 7(1), 30-42. https://doi.org/10.17810/2015.46
  12. Devi, C. S. (2012). Achievement motivations across gender and different academic majors. Journal of Educational and Developmental Psychology, 2(2), 105-109. https://doi.org/10.5539/jedp.v2n2p105
  13. District Education Office (2021). Senior high school West Africa Examination Council results analysis. Bongo District Education Directorate. Bongo.
  14. Elias, H., Noordin, N., & Mahyuddin, R. H. (2010). Achievement motivation and self-efficacy in relation to adjustment among university students. Journal of Social Sciences, 6(3), 333-339. https://doi.org/10.3844/jssp.2010.333.339
  15. Ellez, M. A (2004). The relationships among effective learning, use of strategy, mathematical achievement, motivation and gender [PhD dissertation, Institute of Educational Sciences, Dokuz Eylul Üniversitesi].
  16. Kasim, M. A. (2022). Effects of together learning on university students to achievement motivation. JournalNX-A Multidisciplinary Peer Reviewed Journal, 8(5), 57-65. https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/7C5RW
  17. Lau, C., Kitsantas, A., Miller, A. D., & Drogin Rodgers, E. B. (2018). Perceived responsibility for learning, self-efficacy, and sources of self-efficacy in mathematics: A study of international baccalaureate primary years programme students. Social Psychology of Education, 21(3), 603-620. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-018-9431-4
  18. Li, X., Pu, R., & Phakdeephirot, N. (2022). The influence of achievement motivation on college students’ employability: A chain mediation analysis of self-efficacy and academic performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.972910
  19. McClelland, D. C. (1958). Methods of measuring human motivation. In J. W. Atkinson (Ed.), Motives in fantasy, action, and society (pp. 7-42). D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc.
  20. McClelland, D. C., Atkinson, J. W., Clark, R. A., & Lowell, E. L. (1958). A scoring manual for the achievement motive. In J. W. Atkinson (Ed.), Motives in fantasy, action, and society (pp. 179-204). D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc.
  21. Pawar, S. (2017). A study of academic achievement motivation among secondary school students. Scholarly Research Journal for Interdisciplinary Studies, 4(31), 4768-4774. https://doi.org/10.21922/srjis.v4i36.10009
  22. Phan, H. P. (2012). Relations between informational sources, self-efficacy and academic achievement: A developmental approach. Educational Psychology, 32(1), 81-105. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2011.625612
  23. Roy, S., & Saha. B. (2022). Achievement motivation of post graduate level students: an analytical study. Galore International Journal of Applied Sciences & Humanities, 6(4), 51-55. https://doi.org/10.52403/gijash.20221008
  24. Sharma, D., & Sharma, S. (2018). The relationship between self-efficacy and achievement motivation among young adults. International Journal of Current Research and Academic Review, 6(1), 45-56. https://doi.org/10.7439/ijasr.v4i1.4584
  25. Siddhu, G. (2011). Who makes it to secondary school? Determinants of transition to secondary school in rural India. International Journal of Educational Development, 31, 394-401. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2011.01.008
  26. Sivrikaya, A. H. (2019). The relationship between academic motivation and academic achievement of the students. Asian Journal of Education and Training, 5(2), 309-315. https://doi.org/10.20448/journal.522.2019.52.309.315
  27. Stajkovic, A. D., Bandura, A., Locke, E. A., Lee, D., & Sergent, K. (2018). Test of three conceptual models of influence of the big five personality traits and self-efficacy on academic performance: A meta-analytic path-analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 120, 238-245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2017.08.014
  28. WAEC. (2021). Chief examiners’ report. West African Examination Council.
  29. Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). Expectancy-value theory of motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25, 68-81. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1015
  30. Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics: An introductory analysis (2nd edn.). New York: Harper and Row.
  31. Yan, G. (2022). The relationship between social persuasion and high school students’ self-efficacy in mathematics–A mediated moderating model. Journal of Mathematics Education, 31, 28-34.
  32. Yanru, L., Dan, S., & Zhe, Z. (2022). Exploring the motivational factors of students’ participation in university governance–An empirical study based on universities in Liaoning Province. Higher Education Evaluation and Development, 38, 117-118.
  33. Yarin, A. J., Encalada, I. A., Elias, J. W., Surichaqui, A. A., Sulca, R. E., & Pozo, F. (2022). Relationship between Motivation and Academic Performance in Peruvian Undergraduate Students in the Subject Mathematics. Education Research International, 2022, 3667076. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/3667076
  34. Yaru, W., Zhen, W., & Shaojie, L. (2019). The influence of self-efficacy on achievement motivation of secondary vocational school students: The mediating effect of perceived social support. Journal of Vocational Education Research, 1, 68-72. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1031912
  35. Zakariya, Y. (2022). Improving students’ mathematics self-efficacy: A systematic review of intervention studies. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.986622