MATHEMATICS LEARNING DIFFICULTIES IN TWO-DIMENSIONAL GEOMETRY BASED ON SELF-EFFICACY LEVEL

Source abstract

This study focuses on the level dimension of self-efficacy one of Bandura’s three dimensions which reflects an individual’s belief about the difficulty of tasks they can accomplish. Based on a Likert-scale questionnaire, students were grouped into three self-efficacy categories (strength, score ≥ 83.34; generality, 67.36–83.34; level, ≤ 67.36); one eighth-grade student whose score fell in the lowest band (self-efficacy level category, score 62.50) was purposively selected from 32 students for an in-depth case study, hereinafter Subject SE-L. This study aims to analyze Subject SE-L’s learning difficulties in solving two-dimensional geometry problems. Data were collected through the Flat Shapes Problem Solving Task (FSPST), semi-structured interviews, and documentation, and analyzed following the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña model data condensation, data display, and conclusion drawing/verification validated through technical and time triangulation. Difficulties were examined using Cooney’s indicators of understanding concepts (KK), using principles/procedures (KP), and solving problems (KM), mapped onto Polya’s four problem-solving stages. Results showed the subject faced no obstacles in understanding the problem, but made errors identifying the shape and strategy during planning, applied procedures without conceptual grounding and miscalculated during implementation, and did not re-check the answer during re-examination. These findings confirm that a low self-efficacy level contributes to students’ mathematics learning difficulties, highlighting the need to strengthen self-efficacy alongside conceptual mastery in geometry instruction.