Self-Efficacy and Gender as Correlates of Senior Secondary School Students’ Academic Achievement in English Reading Comprehension in Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined self-efficacy and gender as correlates of senior secondary school students’ academic achievement in English reading comprehension in Ondo State, Nigeria. Employing a descriptive correlational design, data were collected from Senior Secondary 2 (SS2) students using a self-efficacy questionnaire and a standardised reading comprehension achievement test. A multi-stage sampling technique was employed. In the first stage, the state was divided into three strata based on its senatorial districts. In the second stage, one local government area was randomly selected from each stratum. At the third stage, one public secondary school was purposively selected from each of the identified local government areas, resulting in a total of three schools. At the end of the selection, 76 students—38 males and 38 females—participated in the study.  Analysis through SPSS software included t-tests analysis to assess the impact of self-efficacy on reading comprehension and to explore gender differences in performance. Findings show a significant relationship between self-efficacy and academic achievement. Additionally, while female students scored slightly higher than their male counterparts, the difference was not statistically significant. These findings emphasize the importance of self-efficacy in student achievement. Consequently, it is recommended that teachers incorporate strategies to enhance students’ self-efficacy, such as positive reinforcement, setting achievable goals, and creating opportunities for mastery experiences to support better academic achievement.