Dissertations and Theses @ UNI
Availability
Open Access Thesis
Keywords
Self-perception -- Testing; Iowa Tests of Educational Development; Motivation in education;
Abstract
Numerous studies have been conducted with respect to self-concept (Marsh & Shavelson, 1985; Shavelson & Bolus, 1982). Learner self-concept is considered to be a specific dimension of general self-concept (Brookover & Gottlieb, 1964). Due to increased interest in learner self-concept, more academically focused self-concept measures, such as the Self-Concept As a Learner Scale (SCAL) (Waetjen, 1967), were developed. Previous studies conducted by Randall (1989), Schmidt (1990), and Wood (1991) established that learner self-concept and locus of control have construct independence (are uncorrelated). All three researchers used the Self-Concept As a Learner Scale (Waetjen, 1967) and the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale for Children (NSLOC) (Nowicki & Strickland, 1973). Wood (1991) also incorporated the Crandall Intellectual Achievement Responsibility Questionnaire (IAR) (cited in Crandall, Katovsky, & Crandall, 1965), which contained more school-loaded items than the NSLOC. These three studies confirmed that the SCAL has construct independence--that the SCAL does indeed measure something different. The next problem, then, is to determine if the SCAL can contribute to the understanding of student academic performance as measured by cumulative grade point average or academic achievement tests. The purpose of this study was to explore the degree of the relationship between student grade point average, the SCAL, and the composite score on the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) (1980). The study was designed to help the researcher determine if the information derived from the SCAL would contribute to the understanding of student performance as measured by cumulative grade point average. In addition, the researcher was interested in exploring if the SCAL would be a significant contributor to a regression equation which relates the ITED and the SCAL to cumulative grade point average. It was found that there is a correlation between the SCAL and cumulative grade point average. Although this relationship was relatively small (r = .32), it was found to be statistically significant. However, when looking at the contribution of the total variance when paired with the ITED in a regression equation, the SCAL contributed only 2% of the variance while the ITED contributed 37%. From this, it was determined that the SCAL has little to offer in the way of understanding student performance as measured by cumulative grade point average.
Year of Submission
1994
Degree Name
Specialist in Education
Department
Department of Educational Psychology and Foundations
First Advisor
Donald W. Schmits
Second Advisor
Paul J. Porter
Third Advisor
Charles May
Date Original
1994
Object Description
1 PDF file (64 leaves)
Copyright
©1994 Heather Williams Kaufman
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Kaufman, Heather Williams, "A study of the relationship between the Waetjen Self-concept as a Learner Scale, the Iowa Tests of Educational Development, and cumulative grade point average" (1994). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 1415.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/1415
Comments
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