Developing a Scale to Investigate Student’s Self-Efficacy as it Relates to Three-Dimensional Modeling

Abstract

Binkley et al. (2012) contends that the economy and workplace for the 21st Century will not lie in the routine tasks of the past, instead emphasis will be put on the ability of stu¬dents to communicate, share and use information to solve increasingly complex prob¬lems. This is especially true of individuals who chose to pursue careers in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). For many engineers and technol¬ogists, at the heart of this exchange of information is the ability to model, design, and fabricate complex objects using the latest three-dimensional modeling software. Yet, for many students tackling this authoring software begins with their own perceived ability to complete said task. Eccles et al. (1983) seminal research revealed that students’ belief about their ability to complete a task is inextricably linked to their previous experience and other socialization factors. To better understand how different experiences impact students’ belief about their abilities, it is imperative to design, test and validate instruments with the ability to provide insight into students’ belief in their ability to complete a task within a given domain or self-efficacy. In an effort to address the lack of instruments designed to measure students’ self-efficacy as it relates to three-dimensional modeling, researchers conducted a study with the intent to develop, test and validate such an instrument.