How Children Choose High Schools: The Role of Career Self-Efficacy and Academic Performance / Kako učenici biraju srednje škole: Uloga samoučinkovitosti u odlučivanju o karijeri i školskog postignuća

Abstract

Despite its relevance and potential long-term consequences for each individual, the process of students’ transition from elementary schools to high schools has still not been sufficiently explored nor understood. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the goals of describing how students make decisions regarding their future high schools and establishing the contribution of individuals’ earlier school achievement and own perception of such achievement for their career decision self-efficacy and expectations regarding high schools. In addition, the study aimed to determine the relevance of career decision self-efficacy for the explored decision-making process. The obtained results indicate the correlation between students’ evaluation of own academic performance, but not their objective school achievement, and their evaluation of personal efficacy in career decision-making. Perceived academic control, as well as students’ knowledge of potential occupations and the world of work in general, were revealed as significant predictors of their career decision self-efficacy. Furthermore, career decision self-efficacy and perceived academic control were identified as significant predictors of students’ high school expectations. The obtained results confirm the relevance of developing students’ career competencies that are crucial for the formulation of more positive expectations and a more active engagement in choosing their future high schools.
Keywords: career decision self-efficacy; career management; decision-making; expectations; perceived academic control.

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Iako se radi o relevantnoj problematici koja za svakog pojedinca ima dalekosežne posljedice, dosada se relativno malen broj istraživanja bavio ispitivanjem procesa odabira srednjih škola. Stoga je provedeno istraživanje kojem je cilj bio detaljnije opisati način na koji učenici donose odluke o srednjim školama te utvrditi doprinos prijašnjeg školskog postignuća i vlastitog doživljaja akademskih sposobnosti samoučinkovitosti u odlučivanju o karijeri i očekivanjima od srednje škole. Također, istraživanjem se željela utvrditi važnost samoučinkovitosti u odlučivanju o karijeri u procesu odlučivanja o budućoj srednjoj školi. Dobiveni rezultati pokazuju povezanost učeničkog doživljaja vlastite školske učinkovitosti, odnosno percipirane akademske kontrole, ali ne i objektivnog školskog postignuća, s procjenom osobne samoučinkovitosti u području donošenja profesionalnih odluka. Pritom su percipirana akademska kontrola, kao i učenička znanja o svijetu rada, izdvojeni kao značajni prediktori njihove samoučinkovitosti u odlučivanju o karijeri, a samoučinkovitost u odlučivanju o karijeri i percipirana akademska kontrola kao prediktori učeničkih očekivanja od srednje škole. Dobiveni rezultati upućuju na važnost razvoja učeničkih profesionalnih kompetencija koje su ključne za postavljanje pozitivnijih očekivanja i aktivniji pristup odabiru srednje škole.
Ključne riječi: očekivanja; odlučivanje; percipirana akademska kontrola; samoučinkovitost u odlučivanju o karijeri; upravljanje karijerom.