The link between perceived academic control, responsibility and the development of reading skills

This paper examines how secondary pupils’ perceived academic control changes over the school year and how these beliefs relate to reading development. Using longitudinal survey data linked to STAR reading tests for 10,687 pupils in a large English multi-academy trust, the author analyses temporal patterns, demographic variation, associations with four-month reading progress, mediation by perceived academic responsibility and subgroup differences. Perceived academic control declines notably from autumn to spring, particularly in Year 7. Higher perceived control is linked to greater reading gains: pupils with strong control beliefs make roughly two months more progress than peers with low control. This association is unlikely to be fully attributable to unobserved confounding. Evidence of variation by year group, socioeconomic status or prior attainment is limited, and findings on academic responsibility as a mediator are inconclusive. Supporting pupils’ sense of academic control may therefore promote reading development.