Self-Efficacy Development among Students Enrolled in an Engineering Service-Learning Section

Service-learning presents exciting new ways for students to enhance their learning. Educators and scholars agree that service-learning is connected to self-efficacy, which affects student performance. This research tests the development of self-efficacy in students enrolled in service-learning and traditional sections of a first-year engineering course. Using a previously developed metric, the Engineering Skills Assessment (ESA), students enrolled in service-learning (SL) and “traditional” (non-SL) sections quantified self-efficacy on 11 skills previously deemed important for engineering. Student responses were compared between SL and non-SL students at the beginning and end of the semester. Analysis of the collected data using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) grouped self-efficacy ratings for the 11 skills into three meaningful constructs: (1) Job-related skills (2) Interpersonal skills and (3) Life skills. Mean self-efficacy scores were significantly better at the end of the course for non-SL students in all areas and for SL students in four of the 11 skills and two of the three constructs. Self-efficacy growth was significantly higher for non-SL students, which may be due to the Dunning-Kruger effect. However, similar percentages of both populations self-reported that their skills were improved at the end of the semester due to the class. This research also supports the use of the ESA as a reliable psychometric tool to evaluate student self-efficacy and its relationship to service-learning.