Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Faculty member of the Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, Teacher Training University of Tehran
2 Education Research Expert, Ministry of Education
Abstract
In this study, relying on self-concept and cognitive/social perspectives, the effects of math self-comcept, learning motivation, prior math achievement, and gender on math achievement were investigated, using path analysis method. To conduct the study, 304 freshman high school students, 152 boys and 152 girls, from School District #6 of Tehran completed a mathematics self-concept and a math motivation scale. Further, to gather data to determine the level of participants’ math achievement, their math scores of the first semester of the academic year 1382-83/ 2003-2004 were obtained. Participants’ math scores of their previous year were collected to serve as a measure of their prior math performance. The findings derived from the overall path analysis method showed that math self-concept is a stronger predictor of math achievement compared to prior math performance, math learning motivation, and gender. Scrutiny of the direct effects of the variables showed that prior math performance has a very strong effect on math self-concept. This effect is almost equal to that of math self-concept upon math achievement. This draws attention to the reciprocal role of self-concept in teaching mathematics.
Keywords
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