Secondary school teachers participating (n=371) and not participating (n=422) in continuing education in Hong Kong were surveyed. Such variables as situations, dispositions, attitudes, beliefs, and social norms did not distinguish participants from nonparticipants. The only significant factors were socioeconomic status and motivations. (SK)

There has been an increasing effort to integrate use of self-reports and a more profile-oriented approach with observations and interviews conducted during the actual learning process. The purpose of the present study was to investigate how students with different goal orientation profiles involve themselves in actual learning situations over four…

Two experiments investigated the effect of achievement goals on the transfer of a problem-solving strategy in 7- and 11-year-old children. In the first experiment, motivational priming took place before the learning of the strategy, affecting the learning as well as the transfer of the strategy. In the second experiment, motivational priming took…

In this article, the author shares the details of her visit to India in 2004 where she had the opportunity to conduct two workshops, one in Mumbai, previously Bombay, and the other one in Chennai, formerly known as Madras. She details her observations of the two groups, focusing first on the preservice group and moving on to the experienced…

The study examined an ESL writing class, which consisted of 36 students, at a community college of Hong Kong. The students took part in three online collaborative writing tasks by sending drafts to peers who gave them suggestions and comments for improvement and working together on the completion of the writing tasks via email. The 36 students…

In Western countries, women and men, young and old, enroll in adult education for different reasons. This is even more the case in China. This study helps Shanghai program planners better appreciate learners by understanding how motivational orientations vary as a function of gender and age. The Chinese version of the Education Participation Scale…

The present article is part of a large-scale study conducted in Ontario that investigated gender differences in motivation to learn French. However, for this particular article second language (L2) motivation theory is the primary focus. Over the past 30 years of research, the study of L2 motivation has evolved. There appears to be a definite…

This paper explores what students taking an international project-based course in computer systems strive to learn. Through empirical, phenomenographic work we have identified three different motives that the students strive for: academic achievement; project and team working capacity; and social competence. What a student strives to learn largely…

In many countries around the world there is a current focus on the restructuring of education systems in a bid to increase the "quality" of the educational experience for pupils in order to raise their academic achievement. However, the definition of quality as expressed through policy may not always accord with the aims and aspirations…

This research investigated social and academic outcomes from single-sex classrooms in a Tasmanian coeducational government primary school. Interviews, observations and surveys formed the basis of the evidence. Teachers, parents and children reported positive benefits from the class organisation, but these differed according to gender. Staff…

For the thirty-sixth year, the Research and Theory Division of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Anaheim, California. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two…

Although drama has been used successfully in English as a second language and has been shown to have positive effects on achievement and on self-confidence and motivation in various studies, it has received little attention in French immersion context where subjects are taught in French, the second language of students. The objective of this study…

It is argued that rock lyrics, alternatively seen as poetry, are a source of instructional material for students of English as a Second Language (ESL), offering an opportunity for literary analysis that is highly motivating, relevant to students' lives, a potential bridge to more serious literature, and a readily-available source of authentic…

While there have been many gains made in second language instruction as a result of the communicative movement, such as increased sensitivity to learner needs, the movement to some extent, may be considered an extension of a general relativism, promoted at the expense of demanding and serious content. Second language educators have become…

Fourth-grade control students were given a multiple-choice problem involving conservation of weight. Experimental group subjects were given a fictitious choice response distribution with conflicting reasons. Curiosity for confirmation, progress in generalizing the principle of conservation, and positive correlation between curiosity and progress…