Associations Between Classroom Environment and Academic Efficacy

Abstract

Research was conducted on associations between classroom psychosocial environment and academic efficacy. A sample of 1055 mathematics students from Australian secondary schools responded to an instrument that assessed ten dimensions of mathematics classroom environment (viz. Student Cohesiveness, Teacher Support, Investigation, Task Orientation, Cooperation, Equity, Involvement, Personal Relevance, Shared Control, Student Negotiation). These scales were from two existing instruments, namely, What Is Happening In This Classroom? (WIHIC) and the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES). A seven-item scale assessed students' academic efficacy at mathematics-related tasks. Simple and multiple correlation analyses revealed statistically significant correlations between these classroom environment dimensions and academic efficacy. Results showed that classroom environment relates positively with academic efficacy. A commonality analysis showed that the three scales from the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey scales did not contribute greatly to explaining variance in academic efficacy beyond that attributed to the seven scales in the What Is Happening In This Classroom? questionnaire.