In this study I examine the academic self-concept (ASC) of students who changed from vocational to academic tracking at the transition to upper secondary education in Germany. I ask (1) how their ASC differs to the ASC of their established peers in academic tracking, and (2) how their ASC is affected by the change in the learning environment.…

In this paper, we develop an information distortion model (IDM) of social class differences in self-beliefs and values. The IDM combines psychological biases on frame-of-reference effects with sociological foci on ability stratification. This combination is hypothesized to lead to working-class children having more positive math self-beliefs and…

Predictions about processes linking gender to students' choices of advanced courses were derived from the internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model and expectancy value (EV) theory. The predictions were tested for the domains of mathematics and biology using data from 1,148 students attending academically oriented secondary schools in…

The evaluation of an elementary classroom self-regulated learning program aimed at the central causes of academic underachievement is recounted. The participants of the study were 36 Fourth Grade gifted underachievers in mathematics, who were identified in a sample of 1200 students. The training program developed by Zimmerman, Bonner and Kovach…