Graduation Semester and Year
Summer 2026
Language
English
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics
Department
Mathematics
First Advisor
Theresa Jorgensen
Second Advisor
Ruth Gornet
Third Advisor
David Jorgensen
Fourth Advisor
Leaf Zhang
Abstract
Transfer students entering proof-based mathematics courses face a double transition: they are adjusting to a new institution while simultaneously learning to construct mathematical proofs. Although transfer students have been widely studied in higher education and self-efficacy for proving has received increasing attention in mathematics education, little research has examined the intersection of these two areas. The purpose of this study was to better understand how transfer students’ academic trajectories shape their self-efficacy for proving. This multiple case study examined twelve transfer students enrolled in an Introduction to Proofs (ITP) course, using Bandura's (1997) four sources of self-efficacy as the theoretical framework and the Self-Efficacy for Proving Scale (Regier & Savic, 2020) across four stages of participants’ academic trajectories. Results showed that higher self-efficacy was generally associated with greater proving success, although self-efficacy beliefs and proving performance were not always identical. Self-efficacy for proving developed nonlinearly and was influenced by prior exposure to proof-based mathematics. Overall, self-efficacy for proving is shaped by the accumulation of experiences across students’ academic trajectories rather than through a single course or event. Much research surrounding the transfer student experience is deficit focused. This study contributes to the understanding of the tools and resources that transfer students bring to their advanced mathematics coursework. This view of transfer student strengths can then be leveraged by their instructors.
Keywords
Mathematics, Introduction to Proofs, Self-Efficacy for Proving
Disciplines
University Extension
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Hussain, Sundas, "EXPLORING THE ACADEMIC TRAJECTORIES OF TRANSFER STUDENTS ENROLLED IN AN INTRODUCTION TO PROOF COURSE AND THEIR SELF-EFFICACY FOR PROVING" (2026). Mathematics Dissertations. 7.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/math_dissertations2/7