An Analysis of the Relationship between High School Students' Self-efficacy, Metacognitive Strategy Use and their Academic Motivation for Learn Biology

Abstract

This study aimed to analyze the relationship between high school students’ self-efficacy perceptions regarding biology, the metacognitive strategies they use in this course and their academic motivation for learn biology. The sample of the study included 286 high school students enrolled in three high schools who attended a biology course in Kars, Turkey. Survey method was employed in the study. The author administered ‘Self Efficacy for Learning and Performance’ and ‘Metacognitive Self-Regulation’ subscales of Motivational Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and Academic Motivation Scale for Learning Biology. According to the study results, the use of metacognitive strategies and self-efficacy made a positive and significant prediction of students' intrisic motivation to learn biology. Moreover, self-efficacy made a negative prediction of amotivation, and it did not predict extrinsic motivation. The use of metacognitive strategies did not predict amotivation, and it positively and significantly predicted extrinsic motivation. In addition, it was found that amotivation had a negative correlation with other variables.