Chapter 1

Introduction to the Study

Chapter 1 consists of five parts: (1) Background and

Theoretical Framework of the Study, (2) Statement of the

Problem and Hypothesis, (3) Significance of the Study, (4)

Definition of Terms, and (5) Delimitation of the Study.

Part One, Background and Theoretical Framework of the

Study, presents the rationale and conditions that motivate

the present researchers, provides the theoretical framework,

discusses the purpose of the study, and shows the conceptual

framework of the study.

Part Two, Statement of the Problem and Hypothesis,

presents the general and specific problems that the study

would like to address and the hypothesis.

Part Three, Significance of the Study, enumerates the

identified beneficiaries of the study and explicitly

discusses how the recipients will benefit from the results

of the study.

Part Four, Definition of Terms, defines important

terms, gives an understanding of the concepts or factors

that will be discussed throughout the study.

 Part Five, Delimitation of the Study, specifies the

boundaries of the study in terms of the researcher’s

decision of what to include and exclude.

Background and Theoretical Framework

Math is an essential subject in senior high school, and

it lays the groundwork for higher education and scientific

and technologically related occupations. Nevertheless, most

students do poorly at mathematics, and as a consequence,

their scholastic achievement is lowered and their motivation

is decreased (Artino, 2012). An overriding factor that

accounts for such differences is math self-efficacy—a belief

by the learner that he or she can accomplish mathematical

tasks successfully. In line with Bandura's social-cognitive

model, self-efficacy exerts a significant impact on effort,

persistence, and accomplishment (Artino, 2012). Each study

affirms that higher mathematical self-efficacy is a

predictor of better performance, higher persistence, and

higher learning engagement (Liu & Koirala, 2009; Lee &

Stankov, 2018). Besides, there is the bidirectional

relationship such that the self-efficacy not only predicts

the achievement but is also affected by the prior success or

failure in maths (Zohouri et al., 2023).

 Moreover, classroom intervention such as mastery

experience and feedback increase the students' confidence

and performance they are capable. (Béné et al., 2022). In

the Philippines, there were findings showing that

mathematical self-efficacy is a predictor of achievement and

is regulated by teaching behaviors, anxiety, and classroom

climate (Cruz, 2020; Reyes & Castillo, 2019). However, there

is more need for studies since the relationship concerns

particularly for senior high school. Therefore, the current

study focuses on investigating the relationship between

mathematical self-efficacy and mathematical achievement

among senior high school.

The SEEMS framework developed by Hay et al. (2022)

further expands on this theory by operationalizing

mathematics self-efficacy in terms of students’ effort,

persistence, and participation in classroom activities.

Their findings revealed that mathematics self-efficacy

has a strong and consistent positive correlation with

academic performance in both primary and secondary students,

with the correlation being even more pronounced among high

school learners. The SEEMS framework also addresses the

increasing cognitive and academic demands students face as

they progress to higher grade levels, highlighting that

higher self-efficacy is required to meet the challenges of

more complex mathematical concepts.

In this context, mathematics self-efficacy is seen as a

student’s belief in their ability to succeed in mathematics

tasks, which in turn affects their academic behavior, such

as the amount of effort they invest, their willingness to

participate in class, and their resilience when facing

difficult problems. The learning performance of Grade 11

STEM students, measured through grades and assessments, is

thus directly linked to their self-efficacy levels.

This study is anchored on the Expectancy-Value Theory

by Eccles and Wigfield (2002) and supported by the work of

Hay, Stevenson, Winn, et al. (2022) on the Self-Efficacy–

Effort in Mathematics Scale (SEEMS). The Expectancy-Value

Theory explains that a student’s motivation and academic

performance are influenced by two major factors: their

expectancy beliefs (i.e., the belief in their ability to

succeed in a task) and the value they place on the task.

When applied to mathematics education, this theory suggests

that students who believe they can perform well in

mathematics and see it as valuable are more likely to

persist, exert effort, and succeed academically.

The purpose of this study is to determine the influence

of mathematics self-efficacy and the learning performance of

Grade 11 STEM students in Filamer Christian University. This

study is significant for both students and researchers, as

it offers insights into how self-beliefs affect learning

outcomes and how fostering a strong sense of self-efficacy

can lead to improved learning performance in mathematics. It

also encourages the creation of methods that teachers might

employ to improve learning results, student confidence, and

engagement in mathematics classes.

The independent variable in this study is mathematics

self-efficacy, while the dependent variable is the learning

performance of Grade 11 students in mathematics.

Figure 1 shows the conceptual framework of the study.

Independent Variable Dependent Variable

Figure 1. A paradigm showing the relationship that

exists between the mathematics self-efficacy and the
learning performance.

Statement of the Problem and Hypothesis

 The major goal of this study is to get an empirically

based understanding of Mathematics self-efficacy and

Learning performance among Grade 11 STEM Student of Filamer

Christian University Inc., Roxas Avenue, Roxas City, Capiz

Specifically, this study seeks to attain the following

questions:

1. What is the level of Mathematics self-efficacy of

Grade 11 STEM students?

2. What is the Learning performance of Grade 11 STEM

students in Mathematics based?

3. Is there a significant relationship between

Mathematics self-efficacy and the Learning performance of

Grade 11 STEM students?

Based on the statement above, the hypothesis will be

tested:

1. There is no significant relationship between the

mathematics self-efficacy and Learning performance among

Grade 11 STEM students.

Significance of the Study

 The result of this is beneficial to the following

stakeholders: students, parents, teachers, school

administrators and future researchers.

Students. This study may help them recognize how their

self-perceptions in mathematics influence their performance.

This awareness can encourage them to build confidence,

overcome anxiety, and develop effective study habits.

Parents. This study shows may provide parents with a

deeper understanding of how their support, encouragement,

and attitudes toward mathematics can influence their

children’s self-efficacy and performance.

Teachers. The results can serve as a guide in creating

teaching approaches that foster confidence and motivation in

students. By recognizing how students self-efficacy affects

their performance, teachers can design classroom practices

that not only enhance skills but also nurture belief in

one’s mathematical abilities.

School administrators. This study shows that the it can

use the results to develop intervention programs and support

services for remedial intervention directed at low levels of

self-efficacy in order to enhance overall student

performance.

Future Researchers. The study can serve as a reference

or guide for future research on similar topics, helping to

build upon the existing knowledge base and potentially

leading to new insights or solutions.

Definition of Terms

The following terms were purposely defined

conceptually and operationally for a clearer understanding

of the ideas presented in this study as follows:

Mathematics Self-Efficacy – refers to the students have

faith in themselves that they can successfully complete

mathematical tasks and resolve mathematics problems. It is a

stable and strong belief concerning students’ confidence to

apply their mathematical knowledge to accomplish their

academic tasks (Alviar-Eisma & Campoamor-Olegario, 2022).

In this research, “Mathematics Self-Efficacy” referred

to the students’ scores in the adapted Mathematics Self-

Efficacy Questionnaire Alviar-Eisma and Campoamor-Olegario

(2022)that were used to assess students’ mastery and

vicarious experiences in mathematics. Responses are coded as

Strongly Agree (5), Agree (4), Neutral (3), Disagree (2),

and Strongly Disagree (1). The mean score was coded as Very

High (4.21 – 5.00), High (3.41 – 4.20), Moderate (2.41 –

3.40), Low (1.81 – 2.60), and Very Low (1.00 – 1.80).

 Learning performance – refers to the measurable result

of students’ learning, shown through their grades, test

scores, or ranking in a subject area. It reflects how well

learners have met the expected learning outcomes and skills

(Caballero et al., 2020).

In this research, “learning performance” refers to the

final grades in General Mathematics of Grade 11 STEM

students for the first semester of the 2025–2026 school

year, as recorded by the school. The grading scale used by

the Department of Education categorizes scores as follows:

Outstanding (90-100), Very Satisfactory (85-89),

Satisfactory (80-84), Fairly Satisfactory (75-79), Did Not

Meet Expectations (below 75).

To determine the influence of Mathematics self-

efficacy to the learning performance of Grade 11 Student of

Filamer Christian University Inc., Roxas Avenue, Roxas City,

Capiz for academic year 2025-2026.

Delimitation of the study

The major goal of this study was delimited to Grade 11

students under the STEM strands at Filamer Christian

University Inc., Roxas Avenue, Roxas City, Capiz, during the

school year 2025–2026. The focus is specifically on

examining the relationship between Mathematics self-efficacy

and Learning performance in mathematics.

The researchers will gather data from a total of 100

students selected through stratified sampling techniques to

ensure that grade 11 STEM are fairly represented. This means

the population is divided into strata based on strand and

grade level, and participants are proportionally chosen from

each group.

The Independent Variable of this study is Mathematics

Self- efficacy while the Dependent Variable was Learning

Performance.

The statistical tools that were used in the data

analysis are mean, standard deviation and Pearson r. All

inferential tests were set at 0.05 alpha level of

significance.