The effects of classroom teaching on students' self-efficacy for personal development

Abstract

The personal development of students is an essential component of school guidance and counselling programmes, but no published research on guidance and counselling has investigated the effects of regular classroom teaching on students' self-efficacy for personal development. In this study, questionnaire items were constructed to measure classroom teaching, student self-efficacy for personal development and student use of deep learning strategies. Data were collected from 16,208 secondary school students in Hong Kong. Using structural equation modelling, regular classroom teaching was found to have a direct effect on personal development self-efficacy as well as an indirect effect through student use of deep learning strategies. Implications of these findings for implementing a whole-school approach to guidance and counselling are discussed.

Keywords:

• personal development
• self-efficacy
• classroom teaching
• secondary school education
• structural equation modelling

Acknowledgements

The research reported in this study was supported by a grant from the Education Bureau, Hong Kong. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Education Bureau.