A correlational study of self-efficacy and perceived parental encouragement for learning English as a foreign language with English academic achievement of Batch 5 and Batch 6 students at level up academy, Loikaw Township, Kayah State, Myanmar

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate if there was a significant relationship of self-efficacy and perceived parental encouragement for learning English as a foreign language with English academic achievement of Batch 5 and Batch 6 students at Level Up Academy, Loikaw Township, Kayah State, Myanmar. A population sample of 71 students from Batch 5 (34 students) and Batch 6 (37 students), enrolled during the academic year 2017-2018, was chosen for this study. A 32-item questionnaire was used to measure the levels of self-efficacy for learning EFL, including its four subscales (listening efficacy, speaking efficacy, reading efficacy and writing efficacy); an 8-item questionnaire was used to measure perceived parental encouragement for learning EFL; and the levels of English academic achievement were determined using the English subject’s final test. After data collection was done, descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) and a statistical hypothesis testing (correlational analysis using Pearson’s product moment correlation and multiple correlation coefficient) were carried out to address the research objectives and hypotheses of this study. The research findings indicated that the levels of self-efficacy for learning EFL of both Batch 5 and Batch 6 students were slightly high. It was also found that the level of perceived parental encouragement of Batch 5 students was slightly high, while that of Batch 6 students was moderately high. The English subject’s final test revealed that Batch 5 and Batch 6 students had good English academic achievement. Correlational analysis using Pearson’s product moment correlation suggested that there was a strong, significant and positive relationship of self-efficacy for learning EFL with English academic achievement of Batch 5 and Batch 6 students. However, there was not significant relationship of perceived parental encouragement for learning EFL with English academic achievement of Batch 5 and Batch 6 students. The four subscales of self-efficacy for learning EFL (listening, speaking, reading and writing efficacy) were also strongly, positively and significantly correlated with English academic achievement of Batch 5 and Batch 6 student Level Up Academy, Loikaw Township, Kayah State, Myanmar.