The Impact of Achievement Goal Orientation, Learning Strategies, and Digital Skill on Engineering Skill Self-Efficacy in Thailand

Abstract

Rapid technological changes in industry and institutions of higher education required that their continuous learning and teaching methods conform to the needs of the labor market in the digital era. Building the engineering skill self-efficacy of students should be a key goal for educational institutions as they develop necessary skills for future engineers. This work investigated structural factors influencing engineering skill self-efficacy by conducting a questionnaire survey among 1,316 engineering students in Thailand. Structural equation modeling was used to validate the proposed model. The research results indicated that engineering skill self-efficacy was contributed to digital skills, learning strategies, and achievement goal orientation. Learning strategies were predicted by achievement goal orientation, and they positively associated with digital skills. These empirical findings reflect a sustainable educational development structure for engineering education. The results may benefit educators by specifying methods of educational development and learning activity design and promoting pedagogical system to develop learners' characteristics to enhance their engineering skill self-efficacy. Students can then be prepared with digital skills to apply to their further work, which will affect capacity building and the overall image of a country's development.