Education Commons^™

Influence Of Friendship On Motivation And Academic Achievement, Anna Dechant

Master's Theses

Research has shown that friendship, along with motivation, can impact the cognitive development and academic achievement of students in varying ways. As a result of the increase in attention nationwide on student achievement and the positive outcomes that result from academic success, knowing the influences of age, friendship quality, various aspects of friendship, and motivation on academic achievement can only serve to enhance student achievement outcomes, and therefore success in adulthood. The present study examined the variables of age, grade level, and friendship quality, including specific aspects such as conflict and closeness, length of friendship, and time spent with friends, …

Cultural Perspectives On Social Responsibility In Higher Education, Iris M Yob

Higher Learning Research Communications

The writers of the UNESCO document, Rethinking education: Towards a global common good? challenge educators to address their efforts to meet the current threats to sustainable life for all who share this planet. One way that higher education has been attempting to do this is through campus-community partnerships working to solve social problems locally or further afield. In this exploratory study, answers were sought to the question of why faculty members and administrators participate in these service partnerships, both in terms of what motivates them to do so and what they hope to accomplish, and how cultural context may influence …

Bintu's Dance: An African Story Book, Samuel Hinton

Samuel Hinton

This is the story of a little girl who is motivated by her dreams to enter the dancing competition in her village. African dance uses improvisation and the entire body. Some dancers learned their moves from former dancers who became famous by participating in dance during various rituals, celebrations, or festivities. Bintu's grandma was a champion dancer. Learn how Bintu's family comes together to support her in the big competition.

Leaders Of Today Are Challenged By Generation X Workforce Retention, Joyce K. Kutin

Joyce K Kutin RN, MSN, MOL

Many organizations today are comprised of a culturally diverse workforce. In addition to organizational diversity related to gender, ethnicity, race, or religious beliefs, there are also four different generations working side by side. Today’s workforce includes the Silent Generation, the Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y. The Silent Generation is known for their lifestyle approach of consistency, uniformity, conformity, law and order, hard work and playing by the rules. Baby Boomers were the first generation to grow up with television; they were the first to have broad access to news, issues, advertising, and a variety of programming. Generation X …

Implicit Beliefs About Writing: A Task-Specific Study Of Implicit Beliefs, Kyle R. Perry

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study investigated students’ implicit beliefs about a writing task. Implicit beliefs are defined as the unconscious cognitive constructs that influence motivation, behavior, and affect (Bruning, Dempsey, Kauffman, & Zumbrunn, 2011). Studies regarding implicit beliefs are applied to many constructs, ranging in specificity from domain-general beliefs such as epistemological beliefs (Schommer, 1990) to domain-specific beliefs such as reading (Schraw & Bruning, 1999). In the present study, implicit beliefs about a specific writing task are compared to implicit beliefs about intelligence, demographic information, and participants’ educational background experiences. Research is reviewed pertaining to a variety of studies of implicit beliefs. One …

Can The Use Of Clickers Or Continuous Assessment Motivate Critical Thinking? A Case Study Based On Corporate Finance Students, Lucia Morales

Higher Learning Research Communications

This study explores the use of clickers as a tool to support, encourage and motivate critical thinking in higher education students. A case study was carried out with a cohort of undergraduate students undertaking the BSc. in Accounting and Finance during the academic year 2009/10, were corporate finance was a major component. Since the students in this sample had previously demonstrated passivity during their corporate finance classes, it was proposed that clickers would help motivate them to participate during face to face sessions. Previous research on the use of clickers shows evidence that this tool has a positive effect on …

Understanding Fourth Graders' Decline In Reading Motivation From Students' And Teachers' Perspectives, Christine A. Hebert

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

Previous research by Chall and Jacobs (2003) documented the phenomena of the fourth grade slump, a period in which students switch from learning to read to reading to learn and the subsequent loss of motivation to read. The purpose of this research is to present a phenomenological qualitative study of whether a sample of fourth grade students, low-achieving readers and average achieving readers, exhibited a loss in their motivation to read. Students' responses to a standardized conversational survey and questionnaire, the Motivation to Read Profile (Gambrell, Palmer, Codling & Mazzoni, 2007) and teachers' responses to a researcher-developed questionnaire were examined …

Can The Use Of Clickers Or Continous Assessment Motivate Critical Thinking?: A Case Study Based On Corporate Finance Students, Lucia Morales

Articles

This study explores the use of clickers as a tool to support, encourage and motivate critical thinking in higher education students. A case study was carried out with a cohort of undergraduate students undertaking the BSc. in Accounting and Finance during the academic year 2009/10, were corporate finance was a major component. Since the students in this sample had previously demonstrated passivity during their corporate finance classes, it was proposed that clickers would help motivate them to participate during face to face sessions. Previous research on the use of clickers shows evidence that this tool has a positive effect on …

Getting To Global Yes! Designing A Distributed Student Collaboration, Selma Limam Mansar, Randy Weinberg, Benjamin Kok Siew Gan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The authors have taught a course called 'Global Project Management' for four years, engaging students in three international locations in hands-on distance projects. The distance projects are intended to provide students with enriching, realistic global project experience. With experience, improved planning and better coordination, each iteration of the distance projects has improved. In this paper, the authors present lessons learned and a mind map demonstrating key aspects of design of global hands-on projects.

Examining The Motivating Factors That Influence Students With An Associate’S Degree To Complete A Bachelor’S Degree At A Private University, Rudolph D, Smith

Dissertations

The intent of this study was to shed light on the reasons and factors that influence the decision for community college graduates to complete a bachelor’s degree at a private, not-for-profit university. In addition, this study sought to identify and describe why students persist during degree completion programs, as well as the inhibitors and facilitators found throughout such programs.

This research was built on the qualitative research paradigm employing semi-structured interviews and focus groups to investigate how the elements of motivation theory influenced students to complete a bachelor’s degree program. The findings from the study validate that students are motivated …

Action To Acquisition—Boost Students’ English Learning Motivation With Filmmaking Project, Cheng-Ting Chen, Kuo-Chen Li

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

In Taiwan, English is more a major subject matter for student to “study” in school rather than a language for people to use in real life situations. Under the situation, students tend to have lower learning motivation when come to English classes, especially in higher academic settings, like universities. In order to boost students’ learning motivation as well as to encourage their productivity and creativity at the same time, a preliminary action research was conducted by two researchers collaboratively whereas one researcher is the instructor simultaneously. The major focus of the action research is concerning the application of “filmmaking” as …

Motivation To Train For Creativity, Nina Sacco

Honors Scholar Theses

Creativity among Unites States citizens is on a steady decline despite the overwhelming evidence that creativity is a crucial skill in the professional world (Zacko-Smith, Puccio, Mance, 2010). Educational organizations, such as the Connecticut Invention Convention (CIC) and other non-profit educational organizations, have been dedicated to increase the presence of creative problem solving and innovation through STEM-based learning and inventions in various schools in Connecticut. To promote the existence of these organizations in hopes of countering the current nations lack of focus on creativity, this thesis examines teacher's motivation to be involved in their programs and to train their students …

What Brings People To Leadership Roles: A Phenomenological Study Of Beef Industry Leaders, B. Lynn Gordon

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Leadership and volunteerism have been deeply studied in the literature. However, little research could be found studying the role of volunteer peer leaders in non-formalized leadership roles in membership based organizations. This phenomenological study was designed to explore the experience of beef industry leaders in leadership roles.

Twelve beef industry leaders active at the local, state, and national level of beef industry membership organizations were interviewed and described their experience as leaders. Interview transcripts were coded and analyzed for themes. A definition of industry leadership was developed by the researcher based on the data gathered and themes which emerged. Industry …

Examining Student Achievement And Motivation Using Internet-Based Inquiry In The Classroom, Julie M. Lokie

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of the pilot study was to compare middle school Family and Consumer Science student achievement and motivation in a classroom using Internet based inquiry to the achievement and motivation of students without the use of Internet based inquiry. The control group had 37 students and the experimental group had 21 students participate in the study. Each group was taught a two-week lesson on child growth and development. The control group was taught with a conventional, teacher-directed, method using textbooks and worksheets. The experimental group was taught with computers and an Internet based inquiry method. Students in each group …

Making Connections Between Science And Equity: A Motivation To Teach Science In Elementary Grades, Grinell Smith, Colette Rabin

Faculty Publications

Teacher quality is among the strongest correlates of student outcomes. However, only about a quarter of the nation’s elementary teachers consider themselves qualified to teach science. In this descriptive and exploratory study, we investigated whether helping pre-service teacher candidates explore connections between science and issues of equity, particularly around sustainability issues, could help them see the importance of teaching science to their students more often. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected from 59 students enrolled in revised science methods courses at a large public university. Our findings suggest that positioning science instruction thusly was perceived as a strong motivator to …

The Role Of Student Gender For Determining The Impact Of A Pedagogical Agent, Yanghee Kim, J. Lim

Yanghee Kim

This study was to understand how male and female teenage students reacted differently to the presence of a pedagogical agent (an animated human-like character) in a computer-based algebra-learning environment. The study first examined, in classroom experiments, if learner gender would be a determining factor for the effectiveness of a pedagogical agent on learner attitudes and learning. Next, in-depth interviews inquired into the two groups of students’ perspectives of their agent’s role for their learning and affect.

Preserving Adolescent Readership Through Interest And Motivation, Gina M. Doepker, Evan Ortlieb

Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

Adolescent literacy has remained a relatively hot topic for several years in the field of reading education (Cassidy, Ortlieb, & Shettel, 2010/2011) however, educators remain conflicted about how to maintain high levels of reading motivation. A historical analysis of adolescent interests and motivations was conducted to determine what instructional techniques have had positive effects so as to meet the imminent needs of adolescent readers. Findings include information pertaining to: choice of a multitude of reading materials, substantial time to experience aesthetic and engaging reading experiences, and a relevant, challenging curriculum that addresses student needs, personal interests, and motivations.

Student Organizational Skills And Motivation: What's The Connection?, Vesna Cejovic

Dissertations

Many studies have pointed out the academic advantages of teaching students to be more organized. While there is a great deal of information with regard to organizational skills of students, and an immense amount of inquiry into the phenomenon of motivation in nearly every field of study, there have been incredibly few studies that have combined the two issues in an effort to examine the potential relationship between organizational skills and self-motivation and how that relationship might help to increase the importance of making organizational skills an indispensable element of elementary school curricula. This mixed-methods, pretest/posttest case study examined a …

Program Fidelity And Teacher Decisions: A Case Study Of The Renaissance Learning Program, Jennifer D. Putnam

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation was designed to examine the degree to which the fidelity of implementation of the Renaissance Learning program impacts teacher instruction, as well as teacher perception of student reading motivation and achievement. The teachers at a western North Carolina elementary school used the Renaissance Learning program for over 15 years, with little training. The school's end-of-grade test scores in reading were below the state and district averages, indicating that many of the students were struggling readers. At the start of the 2010-2011 school year, the teachers attended a professional development seminar and were trained on the best uses of …

Turning The Switch On! The Teachers’ Ability To Influence Student Motivation In Physical Education, Dana Perlman, Philip J. Pearson, Kim Mckeen, Gregory J. Forrest

Faculty of Education - Papers (Archive)

Student motivation is an area of importance in physical education due to the association with enhanced levels of effort, participation and aspects of learning (Tjeerdsma-Blankenship, 2008; Chen, 2001). Physical education specialists are routinely challenged by students who demonstrate behaviours indicative of low levels of motivation, such as high rates of absenteeism and severely low levels of active participation within the class setting (Ntoumanis, Peensgaard, Martin & Pipe, 2004). Bryan and Solmon (2007) indicate that the teacher is a primary driver for the development and implementation of experiences that support and/or thwart student motivation. Therefore, the purpose of this study was …

The Influence Of State Motivation, Content Relevance And Affective Learning On High School Students' Intentions To Use Class Content Following Completion Of Compulsory Physical Education, Collin A. Webster, Diana Mindrila, Robert Weaver

Faculty of Education - Papers (Archive)

Little research has examined mechanisms leading to the utilization of compulsory physical education content in future contexts. This study tested a model in which motivation to be in physical education class functions as a predisposition influencing perceptions of teacher communication of content relevance, perceptions of course relevance to one’s personal life, affect for physical education and intentions to apply class content in the future. High school students (N = 636) enrolled in compulsory physical education classes completed questionnaires assessing each of these variables. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses indicated the questionnaire items were adequate indicators of the five constructs. Structural …

Community College Student Motivation And Persistence To Goals, Kai Alina Savi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Community colleges in the United States serve a vital educational role in job training, preparation for transfer to a four-year institution, granting academic degrees and certificates as well as offering opportunities for personal growth and development. Persistence has traditionally been measured by degree completion or by transfer rates. However, students who enter community college with other goals may successfully meet their goal while not reaching traditional persistence milestones. To date, much of the research on persistence has either focused on traditional students at four-year institutions, or on demographic risk factors among community college students. Little has been done to evaluate …

Culture, Motivation, And Vocational Decision-Making Of Australian Senior High School Students In Private Schools, Jae Yup Jung, John M. Mccormick, Gary Gregory, Kerry Barnett

Faculty of Education - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles of culture and motivation in the occupational decisions of senior high school students attending private schools. A theoretical framework guided the study. A questionnaire was administered to 492 Grade 11 students attending a stratified random sample of six independent (private) schools located in the Sydney (Australia) metropolitan area. Structural equation modelling was performed on the data collected. The major findings of the study centre on a new model of vocational decision-making, which provides empirical support for relationships between cultural orientation variables, expectancy-value variables, and related constructs. The findings may be …

Class Music Learning Activities: Do Students Find Them Important, Interesting And Useful?, Geoffrey Lowe

Research outputs 2011

Retaining students in elective class music programmes is an issue in many secondary schools. Retention is particularly problematic among lower secondary students. Eccles (2005) states that the subjective task values students attach to learning activities in any elective subject are key indicators of future enrolment decisions. Accordingly, this article reports on a study which utilized subjective task values as a theoretical foundation for investigating why many students drop out of elective class music programmes at this early stage. Specifically, the article reports on a study into students’ valuing of class music learning activities in Western Australia. Participating students were in …

The Impact Of An Online Learning Community Project On University Chinese As A Foreign Language Students' Motivation, Shengrong Cai

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study empirically investigated the impact of an online learning community project on university students' motivation in learning Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). A newly-proposed L2 motivation theory - the L2 motivational self system (Dörnyei 2005; 2009) - was used as the theoretical framework for this study. The three aspects of motivation (ideal L2 self, ought-to L2 self, and L2 learning experience), as described in this theory, were measured before and after the online project. Specific motivating and demotivating features of the online project were generated from participants' responses. Four individuals with different heritage and technology backgrounds were selected …

The Performance Production Process Of An Outstanding High School Choir, Kathy K. Rolsten

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite the interest in and importance of producing high quality choral performance, the question "How is superior performance produced?" has not been addressed in a holistic and naturalistic way. A synthesis of previous research findings suggests that a combination of actions, interactions, relationships, and conditions produce superior choral performance. Yet a holistic examination of this multi-faceted production process has not been conducted. In order to identify all factors contributing to the production of superior performance and how these factors work together, I comprehensively examined an extreme case of superior performance. This extreme case of superior performance was one high school, …

Examining The Attitudes And Outcomes Of Students Enrolled In A Developmental Mathematics Course At A Central Florida Community College, Leila Sisson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Examining students' attitudes toward mathematics has become extremely popular. This study examined the attitudes and outcomes of Beginning Algebra students at a central Florida community college. Quantitative methods were used to examine the students' initial composite attitudes toward mathematics. The initial composite attitude was used to examine the relationship between CPT scores and State Competency Exam scores. Further analysis was conducted to examine completers' and non-completers' initial attitudes. The composite change score was determined and quantitative methods were used to examine interactions between class sections, age, gender, and ethnicity.

The study began with 217 students and ended with 158. The …

The Motivating Factors Of Secondary School Assistant Principals In Southeast Michigan And Their Impact On Job Mobility, David M. Schmittou

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Recent research identified two broad categories of motivation, extrinsic and intrinsic. These two forms of personal motivation play a large role in determining individuals‟ level of job satisfaction. By affording a level of perceived empowerment, the environment of the workplace is a contributing factor toward encouraging or discouraging individual satisfaction.

This study demonstrates the relationships that exist between personal motivation needs, workplace empowerment, and the attempted job mobility or stability of assistant principals, a select group of public school administrators.

Prior studies have argued that when an individual possesses both high levels of personal intrinsic motivation needs and high levels …

Deliberate Practice In Professional Speaking Expertise, Helen Lie

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore expertise development in professional speaking from the perspective of deliberate practice. A convenience sample of 10 elite and 12 experienced professional members of the National Speakers Association participated in 30-60 minute phone interviews in which they described behaviors and activities that contributed to their skill development in speaking and what factors motivated them to pursue excellence in their craft. The group of elite subjects averaged 62.9 years of age (SD = 8.03) and 34.9 years (SD = 7.78) of professional speaking experience. The experienced group had an average age of 53.3 years …

Motivations For Involvement : An Empirical Test Of Parents Of Students With Disabilities, Callen Emily Fishman

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Parents of students in special education have greater barriers to parent involvement than parents of students in general education. Little is known, however, about the factors that facilitate or impede involvement practices for this group. This study investigated the extent to which the motivational factors from Hoover-Dempsey and Sandler's (2005) Model of Parent Involvement (i.e., Parent Role Activity Beliefs, Parent Efficacy, General School Invitations, Specific Teacher Invitation, Specific Child Invitations, Perceived Knowledge and Skills, and Perceived Time and Energy) predicted the Home-Based, School-Based, and Special Education Involvement of 177 parents of students in special education. Family structure, race/ethnicity, family socioeconomic …