Examining second year college student self-efficacy regarding study skills

Abstract

This dissertation concerns the concepts of student self-efficacy and study skills implementation from the post-secondary students' perspective. Specifically, the following two questions were asked and answered within this study. First, how do second-year learners at a four-year college perceive their self-efficacy capabilities regarding the use of implementing critical study skills to accomplish required academic tasks? Secondly, how have the second-year student's individual self-efficacy levels regarding the implementation of critical study skills influenced their overall academic performance? This qualitative study incorporated three distinct data sets including the review of four course syllabi focusing on business classes, a survey, the Self-Efficacy Study Skills Questionnaire and four one-on-one student interviews lasting a maximum of one hour in length. The results were clear. The study showed that students do not have much study skills training regarding reading academic text, test preparation and time management skills when arriving on campus. However, the results showed that students believe that study skills can be taught at the college level even though the students did not have a sense of urgency to obtain such training. Undoubtably, the students saw a direct correlation between their self-efficacy levels and their overall grade point average. In short, what makes this study unique and worthwhile is that all the data and the results are from the student perspective exclusively. The research unearthed eight key findings that students, faculty and college administrators should find useful both in the present and the future. Key Words: Student Self-Efficacy, Study Skills, Post-Secondary Education