Teachers’ Control Orientation and Self-efficacy Belief as Predictors of Students Mathematics Achievement Motivation and Task Persistence in Enugu State

Abstract

This study investigated teachers’ control orientation and self-efficacy belief as predictors of students’ Mathematics achievement motivation and task persistence in Enugu State. The purpose of this study was to determine the predictive power of Mathematics teachers control orientation and self-efficacy belief on students’ Mathematics achievement motivation and task persistence in Enugu State. Six research questions and six null-hypothesis were formulated, answered and tested. The study adopted a correlational survey research design. The population of this study was 48705 consisting of respondents all the 48414 senior secondary class two students and the 291 Mathematics teachers of senior secondary two. The sample size was 636 comprising 607 students (311 females and 296 males) and 29 SS II Mathematics teachers. Multi-stage sampling technique was used. Four instruments were used to collect data namely Mathematics Teachers Control Orientation Inventory (MTCOI), Mathematics Teachers Self-Efficacy Belief Scale (MTSEBS), Students Mathematics Achievement Motivation Rating Scale (SMAMRS) and Students Mathematics Task Persistence Scale (SMTPS). The instruments were validated by three experts, two in the Department of Educational Foundations and one in Educational Measurement and Evaluation. The data was collected with the help of research assistants through direct delivery method. The data collected were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Pearsons Moment Correlation Coefficient ® and R-square to answer the research questions, while ANOVA was used to test the null-hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The result of this study showed that There is a very low predictive power of teachers’ control orientation on students’ mathematics achievement motivation. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ control orientation does not significantly predict students’ mathematics achievement motivation, There is a low predictive power of teachers’ self-efficacy on students’ mathematics achievement motivation. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ self-efficacy does not significantly predict students’ mathematics achievement motivation, There is a very low predictive power of teachers’ control orientation on students’ mathematics task persistence. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ control orientation does not significantly predict students’ mathematics task persistence, There is a very low predictive power of teachers’ self-efficacy on students’ mathematics task persistence. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ self-efficacy does not significantly predict students’ mathematics task persistence. There is a low predictive power of teachers’ control orientation on students’ mathematics achievement motivation and mathematics task persistence. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ control orientation does not significantly predict students’ mathematics achievement motivation and mathematics task persistence, There is a very low predictive power of teachers’ self-efficacy on students’ mathematics task persistence. Further analysis revealed that teachers’ self-efficacy does not significantly predict students’ mathematics achievement motivation and mathematics task persistence. The results have educational implications for teachers’ control orientation and self-efficacy belief as credible tools for enhancing students’ Mathematics achievement motivation and task persistence. Based on the findings, the following recommendations among others were made: The government should employ only qualified Mathematics teachers. The government should hold workshops and seminars for teachers to improve their control orientations and the teachers should encourage the students to work in groups and as cooperate individuals on tasks.