Content Validation of the Children's Academic Self-efficacy Scale
Thank you for agreeing to help conduct a content validation of the items on the Children's Academic Selfefficacy Scale. We would appreciate your assistance in deciding whether each item on the survey measures
what it is supposed to be measuring. Your responses are confidential as only summary results will be used.
Below is an overview of the context and a description of the academic self-efficacy dimensions. Then, you
will find specific instructions for completing the content validation.
Overview.
The Teacher's for a New Era (TNE) project at UConn is currently involved in an Educational Expansions
study which involves collecting standardized achievement test data from multiple school districts across the
state of Connecticut. The data collected in this project will be used to assess the achievement of students
taught by graduates of the UConn teacher preparation programs.
In addition to standardized achievement test data, certain schools would like to collect data relative to the
perceived academic self-efficacy of their students. Perceived self-efficacy may be defined as: “people's
beliefs in their capabilities to produce given attainments” (Bandura, 1997). Specifically, academic selfefficacy pertains to one's belief in his or her level of ability to successfully execute designated academic
activities.
Albert Bandura developed the Children's Academic Self-efficacy scale which has been validated for use with
children in grades five through eight (Zimmerman, Bandura, & Martinez-Pons, 1992). For the purposes of
the Educational Expansions project, it is also necessary to collect academic self-efficacy data from students
in the third and fourth grades. The items listed below have been adapted from Bandura's original scale and
are intended for use with these younger students.
Dimensions of Self-efficacy
I: Self-Regulated Learning. Perceived self-efficacy for self-regulated learning includes a child's belief in his
or her ability to “structure environments conducive to learning, to plan and organize their academic activities,
to use cognitive strategies to enhance understanding and memory of material being taught, to obtain
information and get teachers and peers to help them when needed, to motivate themselves to do their
schoolwork, to get themselves to complete assignments within deadlines, and to pursue academic activities
when there are other interesting things to do” (Bandura et al., 1996).
II: Academic Achievement. Perceived self-efficacy for academic achievement includes a child's belief in his
or her capabilities to master different areas of coursework including math, science, social studies, reading,
written language skills, and computer skills (Bandura et al., 1996).
Rating Instructions
Please answer the following three questions:
First, indicate the dimension that each statement fits:
SRL: Self-Regulated Learning
AA: Academic Achievement
Second, indicate the certainty of your placement of the statement in the proper dimension:
1: Not Very Sure
5: Very Sure
Third, indicate how relevant you feel each item to be for the dimension you chose:
1: Low/Not Relevant
5: Highly Relevant
Q. Table
Please choose only 'one' response in each column.
Dimension
1. How well can you
 SRL
learn math?
 AA
2. How well can you
finish your
homework on time?
3. How well can you
keep your desk clean
and organized?
4. How well can you
learn to use
computers?
5. How well can you
learn science?
6. How well can you
learn social studies?
7. How well can you
do your homework
when there are other
fun things to do?
8. How well can you
learn to write?
9. How well can you
pay attention in
class?
10. How well can you
learn to read?
11. How well can you
find the books you
need in the library?
12. How well can you
remember things
your teacher tells
you?
13. How well can you
learn to speak a
different language?
14. How well can you
do your work without
your teacher
reminding you?
Certainty
 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
Relevance
 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
Now answer the following questions in regard to the items above.
1. Do you have any suggestions regarding the definition and operationalization of any of the
dimensions?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
2. Do you have any suggestions for improving the content coverage within each dimension?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
3. Do you have any suggestions for the items that you would add, delete, or reword?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
4. How appropriate do you feel the items are for use with third and fourth grade students? How
would you change any items to make them more appropriate for this age level?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Thank You!