Why Self-Belief Can Improve Academic Performance | An Advice To Students

It is not only about ability, but also about believing that you can do it.

Several scientists over the past decades have tried to identify what promotes of academic success with the hope of developing strategies to promote success and combat failure. Academic self-confidence, the belief in one’s own ability to reach an academic goal has been identified to be a strong predictor of academic success.

Researches have shown that people’s actions are strongly influenced by their belief that they are capable of reaching a goal or effectively handling a challenging situation. It unlikely and perhaps impossible to perform an action if you do not believe that you can do it.

Academic excellence requires two things. First, students’ ability to successfully master curricular areas like Mathematics, English, science, etc and secondly, their self-perceived capacity for engaging in self-regulating learning activities, such as planning and organizing their academic activities, structuring environments conducive to learning, and motivating themselves to complete schoolwork.

 Students need to believe, for example, that they are capable of doing homework with little or no help and studying even when more interesting and distractive activities beckon, taking notes in class, using the library and the internet effectively to collect information for class assignments, or finding a place to study without distractions.

Most children say they want to do well in school, yet many still fail to complete the level of work necessary to succeed academically. The reason is often lack of motivation and Self-belief. Often what holds children back from trying is the fear of failure or the memory of a time they didn’t do well in class. Parents and teachers can help break this cycle by celebrating the child’s successes, no matter how small, and by giving him or her opportunities to succeed academically and encouraging children to believe in their abilities. This can be achieved by helping them to develop the 'can do' spirit.

In their efforts to boost their students’ belief in their own capabilities, teachers should also be aware of students' individual characteristics and take them into account. By promoting self-belief, we can promote academic success.