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Friday, November 4, 2011

10.1 Self-Efficacy

When and Where Did I Find It: I didn't really find this term, but it is one that came up in conversation recently and I wanted to remember where I found it.   I went back to my files to locate an article I remembered a student from a LTED 625 (back in 2008) brought to class for his Reciprocal Teaching discussion.  
Full citation
Walker, B.J. (2003).  The cultivation of student self-efficacy in reading and writing.  Reading and Writing Quarterly, 19, 173-187.


What It Means: "Self-efficacy refers to people's beliefs about their capabilities to carry out actions required to achieve a confident level of achievement (Bandura, 1993).  Specifically, they are beliefs that individuals have that they can do something like read a book, write a poem, or dance.  Self-efficacy beliefs refer to specific judgments rather than more global judgments like being a good reader, writer , or dancer.  In fact, self-efficacy often refers to specific situations within a learning environment based on learn goals" (as cited in Walker, 2003, pp. 174).  

Level of Familiarity: Even though I am familiar with this concept, I was glad to find the article so I could refresh my memory of the full meaning of the term.

Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why? 
Yes. As Walker states, "Understanding the situational nature of self-efficacy can help teachers design classroom procedures that reinforce positive attributions for specific tasks" (p. 174). 

Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY?  I definitely think this is an important concept for teachers to understand.  Again, to quote Walker directly:  "...students who are efficacious are more likely to work hard, to persist, and seek help so they can complete a task.  These same students use cognitive and metacognitive strategies to increase their understanding. ... Self-efficacy is also linked to motivational beliefs like interest, value, and utility, as well s positive affective reactions.  Collectively these characteristics of self-efficacy demonstrate a relationship between self-efficacy and academic performance." (Walker, p. 174)

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