Date
6-19-2024
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Chair
Sara Capwell-Geary
Keywords
English language learners, academic self-efficacy, college English courses
Disciplines
Higher Education
Recommended Citation
Aweina, Shada, "Comparing the Academic Self-Efficacy of English Language Learners Taking College Prep ESL, English Composition I, or English Composition II Courses at a U.S. Community College: A Quantitative Causal-Comparative Study" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 5752.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5752
Abstract
This quantitative, causal-comparative study investigated the academic self-efficacy of English language learner college students. The main objective was to determine whether there were differences in academic self-efficacy among English language learners enrolled in different English course levels: college prep ESL, college English composition I, and college English composition II. The study aimed to understand how confident English language learners feel about their abilities to perform various academic behaviors at different English course levels and how they perceive their ability to transfer and utilize language and academic skills within different levels of English courses. Using the College Academic Self-Efficacy Scale, data was collected from a sample of 138 English language learner college students in northern Virginia, who were evenly divided into three groups. The study analyzed the data using a one-way ANOVA with three groups at the alpha < 0.05 level. The study revealed that English language learners enrolled in college prep ESL courses demonstrated significantly higher levels of academic self-efficacy compared to their counterparts in college English composition II courses. No significant difference was observed in academic self-efficacy between English language learner students enrolled in college English composition I courses and the ones in college prep ESL or college English composition II courses. Further discussion highlighted how self-efficacy was developed among English language learner students, suggesting that factors beyond their proficiency in English, such as individual learning experiences and instructional contexts, could have influenced their academic self-efficacy beliefs. Implications of the research for stakeholders along with study limitations and recommendations for future research are addressed.
