EFL Reading Achievement: Impact of Gender and Self-efficacy Beliefs

Abstract

Research has shown that reading is highly associated with students' academic performance in other disciplines.  However, students' reading attainment is influenced by many factors. The purpose of this study is two folds:  Investigating the gender gap in English as a foreign language (EFL) reading achievement of male and female basic education students in grades four and ten; and investigating the relationship between these students' reading achievement and their perceived reading self-efficacy beliefs. More specifically, it examined the differences in these beliefs in light of gender and grade level and the interaction between the two. The total sample consisted of 636 students, 260 grade four students and 376 grade ten students from basic education schools in the Sultanate of Oman. Two instruments were used to collect the data to answer the research questions: national reading achievement tests obtained from the Ministry of Education and a reading self-efficacy beliefs scale developed by the researchers. Findings revealed that there were gender gaps in the EFL reading achievement in favor of females in both grades four and ten. Moreover, the findings showed that females in both grades held a higher level of reading self-efficacy beliefs for their EFL reading achievement than males did. Added to that, the findings showed that grade four students reading self-efficacy beliefs for EFL reading achievement was higher than those of grade ten. Finally, the findings showed a positive relationship between reading self-efficacy beliefs and the reading achievement of students in both grades; students with higher levels of self-efficacy beliefs for EFL reading tended to perform better in their reading achievement tests.