Self-underestimating students in physics instruction: Development over a school year and its connection to internal learning processes

• We found a tripartite development of ‘self-underestimators’ over a school year.
• 41% ‘remained self-underestimating’, 26% ‘improved’, and 33% ‘decreased’.
• Improving students' self-concepts aligned with their high cognitive characteristics.
• Self-underestimators' improvement was linked to higher internal learning processes.
• Hence, self-underestimators can be supported through their internal learning.

Students' individual cognitive and motivational–affective characteristics play an important role for successful learning but are also influenced by learning processes. For ‘self-underestimating’ students, high content knowledge is not met by an according self-concept of ability. This study investigates the development of N = 360 of these students over their ninth grade. Furthermore, it explores the connection between their development and their internal learning processes during physics instruction. Internal learning processes included the perceived fulfillment of their basic motivational needs, intrinsic motivation, and cognitive learning activity. Via latent class analysis, three developmental patterns were identified: students (1) whose self-concepts ‘improved’ and aligned with their high cognitive characteristics, (2) whose alignment ‘remained self-underestimating’, and (3) whose low self-concept prevailed and cognitive advancement ‘decreased’. Findings suggest that positive development is connected with higher internal learning processes. These results indicate that a positive development of ‘self-underestimating’ students is possible and should be supported by fostering internal learning processes.