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Correlates of academic self concept of 'A' level students in Singapore
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Type
Thesis
Author
Chong-Tan, Geok Leng
Supervisor
Wong, Lily Yee Sheung
Abstract
The main purpose of this exploratory study is to see if academic self concept is related to the classroom climate, to the school climate and to their specific aspects. In the classroom climate, the aspects identified are Relationship with Teachers, Relationship with Students, Personal Development, Order and Organisation and Innovation while those in the school climate include Emotional Tone, Care for School, Academic Press, Fairness of School and School Rules. In addition, the study sets out to determine if the relationship between academic self concept and the classroom climate and that between academic self concept and the school climate are different.
In Singapore, the 'A' level curriculum is offered over a two- or three-year period in three school-types, namely the junior college, centralised institute and pre-university centre. A sample of 389 students from these three school-types is selected to respond to a researcher-designed questionnaire measuring the various aspects focused in this study. The academic self concept is related, using the Pearson product-moment correlation, to the classroom climate, to the school climate and to their specific aspects respectively to see if any relationship exists between them. A t-test is then carried out to determine if the relationship between academic self concept and the classroom climate is different from that between academic self concept and the school climate.
An additional analysis focusing only on the 172 Commerce students in the total sample is then carried out to see if the academic self concept of these students is related to the classroom climate, to the school climate and to their specific aspects in a manner similar to that of the total sample. In addition, it aims to find out if the relationships and the specific aspects of the climates are perceived to be different across the three school-types.
The findings indicate that students at the 'A' level have relatively average academic self concept. This is related positively and significantly to each of the two climates and their specific aspects. Furthermore, academic self concept is more strongly related to the classroom climate than to the school climate although these relationships are similar statistically. In the classroom climate, academic self concept is most strongly related to the Relationship with Teachers aspect while in the school climate, it is most strongly related to the Academic Press aspect. The Order and Organisation in the classroom climate and the School Rules aspect in the school climate are least strongly related to academic self concept.
The additional analysis showed that the nature of these corresponding relationships in the three school-types is similar to that in the total sample. The strengths of these relationships also vary across the three school-types -- the strongest are found in the pre-university centre and the weakest in the junior college. However, these relationships are not found to be significantly different across school-types. Perceptions of the classroom climate, the school climate and their specific aspects are found to be significantly different across the three school-types ; the climates and their specific aspects perceived by students in the pre-university centre are the poorest while those perceived by students in the junior college are the best comparatively.
These findings suggest that classroom and school climate aspects should be monitored to enhance students' academic self concept. When studying the relationship between academic self concept and the climate in a school, only one climate (either the classroom climate or the school climate) needs to be studied. In addition, different aspects in the classroom and school climates attract favourable or unfavourable student perceptions so that necessary steps should be taken by teachers and school administrators to enhance or rectify them accordingly in order to get the best out of students.
In Singapore, the 'A' level curriculum is offered over a two- or three-year period in three school-types, namely the junior college, centralised institute and pre-university centre. A sample of 389 students from these three school-types is selected to respond to a researcher-designed questionnaire measuring the various aspects focused in this study. The academic self concept is related, using the Pearson product-moment correlation, to the classroom climate, to the school climate and to their specific aspects respectively to see if any relationship exists between them. A t-test is then carried out to determine if the relationship between academic self concept and the classroom climate is different from that between academic self concept and the school climate.
An additional analysis focusing only on the 172 Commerce students in the total sample is then carried out to see if the academic self concept of these students is related to the classroom climate, to the school climate and to their specific aspects in a manner similar to that of the total sample. In addition, it aims to find out if the relationships and the specific aspects of the climates are perceived to be different across the three school-types.
The findings indicate that students at the 'A' level have relatively average academic self concept. This is related positively and significantly to each of the two climates and their specific aspects. Furthermore, academic self concept is more strongly related to the classroom climate than to the school climate although these relationships are similar statistically. In the classroom climate, academic self concept is most strongly related to the Relationship with Teachers aspect while in the school climate, it is most strongly related to the Academic Press aspect. The Order and Organisation in the classroom climate and the School Rules aspect in the school climate are least strongly related to academic self concept.
The additional analysis showed that the nature of these corresponding relationships in the three school-types is similar to that in the total sample. The strengths of these relationships also vary across the three school-types -- the strongest are found in the pre-university centre and the weakest in the junior college. However, these relationships are not found to be significantly different across school-types. Perceptions of the classroom climate, the school climate and their specific aspects are found to be significantly different across the three school-types ; the climates and their specific aspects perceived by students in the pre-university centre are the poorest while those perceived by students in the junior college are the best comparatively.
These findings suggest that classroom and school climate aspects should be monitored to enhance students' academic self concept. When studying the relationship between academic self concept and the climate in a school, only one climate (either the classroom climate or the school climate) needs to be studied. In addition, different aspects in the classroom and school climates attract favourable or unfavourable student perceptions so that necessary steps should be taken by teachers and school administrators to enhance or rectify them accordingly in order to get the best out of students.
Date Issued
1991
Call Number
BF724.3.S35 Cho
Date Submitted
1991