The influence of self-regulation towards academic achievement in english among Malaysian upper primary students

Abstract

Negative feelings towards English language learning are a common for some students due to the time constraint and needed of more effort. The main objective of this study was to investigate the influence of self-regulation towards upper primary students’ academic achievement in English in Johor Bahru. This study employs quantitative approach by using survey research design. The study was carried out to investigate the significant difference of self-regulation in learning English across gender and student achievement level. Instrument used in this study is Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire. The respondents were 389 Primary 4 and Primary 5 students from the Chinese primary schools in Johor Bahru. The sampling technique used was simple random sampling. Based on the study, it showed no significant difference of self-regulation in learning English across gender during forethought phase (t = -.544, p = .587). There is significant difference of self-regulation in learning English across gender during performance phase (t = -2.289, p = .023) and self-reflective phase (t = -3.254, p = .001). There is significant difference of self-regulation in learning English across student achievement level during forethought phase (F = 3.610, p = .000), performance phase (F = 1.761, p = .001) and self-reflective phase (F = 2.869, p = .000). Regression analysis was performed to predict the influence of self-regulation towards upper primary students’ academic achievement in English. Findings showed there is significant influence of self-regulation towards upper primary students’ academic achievement in English during forethought and performance phase. The findings of the study provide instructional implications for teachers and English language learners, as well as to enrich the current empirical research data in Malaysia context.