English Language Self-Efficacy, Grammatical Competence, and Vocabulary Knowledge Among Senior High School Students: A Correlational Study

Abstract

This study examined the interrelationship among self-efficacy, grammatical competence, and vocabulary knowledge in English language learning among senior high school students in the Buenavista Districts, Division of Bohol, Philippines. Specifically, it described students' levels of self-efficacy, grammatical competence, and vocabulary knowledge and explored the relationships among these variables and selected demographic characteristics. A quantitative descriptive-correlational research design was employed involving 182 senior high school students selected through simple random sampling. Data were gathered using validated self-efficacy questionnaires and standardized assessments of grammatical competence and vocabulary knowledge. Descriptive statistics and Spearman's rank-order correlation were used to analyze the data. The findings indicated that respondents generally demonstrated a moderate level of English language self-efficacy. At the same time, grammatical competence was predominantly very low, and vocabulary knowledge was largely at the moderate level. No statistically significant relationships were found between self-efficacy and either grammatical competence or vocabulary knowledge. In contrast, grammatical competence exhibited a statistically significant moderate positive relationship with vocabulary knowledge. The findings suggest that learners' confidence in using English may not necessarily correspond with their demonstrated language proficiency, whereas grammar and vocabulary appear to develop in a complementary manner. The study highlights the importance of integrating motivational support with explicit and contextualized language instruction to strengthen English language learning among senior high school students.