Abstract
Recent policy reports documented that a growing group of students in secondary education could perform better given their expected performance. Studies showed that school performance is related to a range of social–emotional factors, including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and responsible decision making. However, experimental studies in schools on the relation between these factors and school performance are scarce, and results are mixed. This study used a randomized field experiment to examine whether self-reflection on school behavior of underperforming secondary school students affected their school performance [grade point average (GPA)], school engagement, and self-concept. The sample comprised 337 ninth-grade students (M = 15.74 years old; SD = 0.58) from 18 secondary schools in Netherlands. The intervention was designed in co-creation with teachers, to be as close to school practice as possible. Underperformance was measured using achievement test scores from both primary and secondary school, supplemented with teacher and parental assessments. Different model specifications were estimated to perform the analyses and test for robustness of findings. The results showed that, for treatment compliance, students with higher school motivation were approximately 29% more likely to comply. Students who reported higher levels of self-concept of school tasks were 17% less likely to comply. No significant effects of the treatment were observed on students’ GPA, school motivation, hours spent on homework, or self-concept of school tasks. The treatment showed a negative effect on self-concept of leadership skills.
Highlights
The Importance of Social–Emotional Skills for School PerformanceSchool performance is about more than just cognitive ability in the domains of, for example, math and reading
As a result, targeted outcomes of the current intervention are school performance (GPA), school engagement, and self-concept
Using a randomized field experiment, in this study we investigated whether an intervention using self-reflection on school behavior of underperforming secondary school students affected their grade point average (GPA), school engagement, and some domains of self-concept
Summary
School performance is about more than just cognitive ability in the domains of, for example, math and reading It includes the development of social–emotional skills, or the ability to regulate one’s thoughts, emotions, and behavior. When students have positive beliefs about their own capabilities in relation to the task they are confronted with and are able to set realistic achievement goals, they are more likely to be motivated to start with the task and to persist when they encounter any difficulties. They are expected to perform better at the task, compared to students who have negative beliefs about their own capabilities, or those that set unrealistic goals. Setting realistic goals and reflective monitoring of progress is likely to have positive effects on students’ performance
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