Epistemological Beliefs and Physics Performance in STEM

Do Students’ Beliefs About Knowledge Affect Physics Grades? Findings From 407 Filipino STEM Learners

Introduction

Why do some students do better in physics than others? Intelligence, study habits, and teaching quality are the usual answers. A less obvious factor is epistemological beliefs: what students believe knowledge is and how learning happens.

A 2023 study in Jurnal Pendidikan Progresif by Panergayo, Gregana, Panoy, and Chua at Laguna State Polytechnic University examined this question among Grade 12 STEM students in the Philippines. Its findings matter for physics teachers, school leaders, and education researchers.

What Are Epistemological Beliefs?

Epistemological beliefs are a person’s views about knowledge and knowing. In science learning, researchers often describe them along five dimensions:

1. Structure of scientific knowledge: Is physics a set of loose facts or a connected, coherent whole?
2. Nature of knowing and learning: Is learning about absorbing information, or building your own understanding?
3. Real-life applicability: Do students see how scientific knowledge applies outside the classroom?
4. Evolving knowledge: Do students see knowledge as fixed and absolute, or as something that develops over time?
5. Source of ability to learn: Is success about hard work and good study habits, or about fixed talent?

Why This Study Matters

The Philippines has scored low in international science and maths assessments. In PISA, Filipino students averaged 357 in science and 353 in mathematics, against OECD averages of 483 and 489. In TIMSS, the country scored 249 in science. Researchers want to understand what drives these results, and epistemological beliefs are one proposed factor. Few studies had examined them in the Philippine context.

How the Study Was Done

• Participants: 407 Grade 12 STEM students, mostly aged 17–18, from public and private schools (about 65% public). Just over half were female.
• Instrument: The Epistemological Beliefs Assessment for Physical Science (EBAPS), a 30-item survey scored from 0 (unsophisticated) to 4 (most sophisticated).
• Performance measure: Students’ physics course grades.
• Analysis: Pearson correlation and multiple regression.

Key Findings

1. Students performed well, but their beliefs were less sophisticated

The average physics grade was 87.83, rated “Very Satisfactory,” and no student failed. Yet overall epistemological sophistication was only 2.32 out of 4, rated “Poorly Sophisticated.”

Students were strongest in valuing hard work and good study habits, and weakest in seeing physics as a unified, connected body of knowledge.

2. Four of five dimensions correlated with grades

Structure of scientific knowledge, nature of knowing and learning, evolving knowledge, and source of ability to learn all showed a statistically significant relationship with physics performance. The strongest was nature of knowing and learning (r = .248). Real-life applicability showed no significant link.

These correlations were small, though. Even the strongest explains only a modest share of grade differences.

3. Two beliefs stood out as predictors

In the regression analysis, only two dimensions significantly predicted physics performance:

• Nature of knowing and learning (β = .183)
• Structure of scientific knowledge (β = .123)

Students who see learning as building their own understanding, and who see physics as a coherent system, tended to earn better grades.

4. Beliefs explain only a small part of the picture

All five dimensions together accounted for only about 6.4% of the variation in physics grades (adjusted R² = 0.064). Students can earn satisfactory grades even with less sophisticated beliefs. Many other factors matter too.

What This Means for Physics Teachers

The authors recommend that teachers design instruction that improves students’ epistemological beliefs, focusing on the nature and structure of knowledge in physics. In practice, this could mean:

• Connect concepts explicitly. Show how topics like force, energy, and momentum relate, rather than teaching them as separate chapters.
• Reward understanding over memorisation. Use conceptual questions and open-ended problems.
• Encourage students to build explanations in their own words instead of passively copying notes.
• Consider the classroom context. Beliefs vary across social and learning environments.

Limitations to Keep in Mind

• The sample came from one Schools Division Office in the Philippines, so the results may not generalise elsewhere.
• The survey was online, so responses may have been affected by distractions or by how honestly students answered.
• The authors suggest future studies using qualitative methods and comparing gender, grade level, and academic tracks.

Conclusion

This study suggests that how students think about knowledge has a real but modest link to physics performance. The two beliefs that matter most are seeing physics as an interconnected whole and seeing learning as active understanding rather than absorbing facts. Epistemological beliefs are one useful lever for teachers, but not the only one.

Reference: Panergayo, A. A. E., Gregana, C. F., Panoy, J. F. D., & Chua, E. N. (2023). Epistemological Beliefs and Academic Performance in Physics of Grade 12 Filipino STEM Learners. Jurnal Pendidikan Progresif, 13(1), 16–24. https://doi.org/10.23960/jpp.v13.i1.202302

Answer the questions :

• What are epistemological beliefs in science learning?
• Do epistemological beliefs affect physics grades?
• How can teachers improve students’ beliefs about learning physics?