This paper reports on a study examining Year 7 students’ perceptions of their
mathematical ‘confidence’ (referred to as ‘self-belief’ in this paper) and the educational
experiences and contexts they believe influence its development. The study utilises
selected data from a larger project, which explored middle year (Years 5-7) students’
motivation and engagement in mathematics, to provide a foundation for understanding
participants’ mathematical self-belief in more detail.