What Is the Connection between Self-Esteem and Learning?

Self-esteem and learning are interconnected in many ways. The most vital connection is that self-esteem drives the urge of an individual to acquire more knowledge and to achieve an ever-increasing level of success. Those who lack self-esteem hardly have an urge to strive for any level of success, and this attitude is often reflected in their lukewarm attitude toward learning.

A person with a low self-esteem has often established limitations in his or her mind about what is achievable. Such a person inadvertently lives down to the low expectations he or she has set, even when it comes to learning. Those with a low self-esteem lack confidence, and self-confidence enables an individual to tackle new challenges, including learning.

Another way in which self-esteem and learning are related is that those who are not able to learn easily suffer from a lack of self-esteem. This reduction in self-esteem stems from the fact that such people commonly view themselves as flawed or different from other members of the society who do not have the same handicap. Examples of learning disabilities include dyslexia — a reading disability, dysgraphia — a writing disability, and dyscalculia — a math disability. People with such disabilities may feel that they are too slow or not as clever as others. Such a feeling can have a direct negative impact on a person's self-esteem.

An inability to learn also affects the individual’s sense of capability, making such a person feel that he or she is incompetent. Such a feeling might cause the individual to start engaging in some negative and even self-destructive activities. This is because he or she might struggle to find other avenues that will not involve dealing with feelings of shortcoming.

Self-esteem and learning are connected in the sense that a person with a low self-esteem will not even have the confidence or drive to make the decision to study in the first instance. Such a person will procrastinate and fall behind in studies, further compounding his or her poor performance. A person with a low self-esteem will not have the initiative to take advantage of educational opportunities like scholarships due to the fact that he or she is not motivated enough. Self-esteem and learning are important because a person with a high self-esteem will strive harder in other fields like sports, drama, music and other extracurricular activities that may open the door to scholarships, grants and such things that can help facilitate a higher educational opportunity.