What is self- efficacy?

In our action research study we are going to be measuring student self-efficacy.  So what exactly is student self-efficacy?  Self-eficacy refers to how students feel about themselves in regards to their capabilities.  It is the belief that they can or cannot complete a certain task successfully.  This differs from self-esteem which deals with students' perception of their worth or self-value. However, self-efficacy can affect self-esteem.  It is also common that self-efficacy can affect student achievement in school.

So how are we going to measure this?  Well, after multiple discussions our team has decided on a one-group pretest/posttest method to complete our research.  We will measure student self-efficacy through the survey previously posted.  We will then assign students to groups of mixed readiness levels to work on an assignment to be graded.  After the assignment is complete, we will measure student self-efficacy within the content area a second time through the same survey.  The second survey will include additional space for students to add any comments on how working in the group helped or hindered their achievement in the content.