Examining Sources of Self-Efficacy in Whole-Class Problem Solving

Abstract

Self-efficacy is commonly defined as the belief in one’s abilities to attain a goal or outcome. This has significance in classroom situations where students with low self-efficacy fall into a self-fulfilling feedback loop of low aspirations leading to low performance, leading to even lower aspirations. In this research outline, we present a context in which a whole-class problem-solving implementation interrupted that loop for a student with low self-efficacy in mathematics. We demonstrate this using Bandura’s four sources of self-efficacy and offer further nuance to the original framework.