After defining the school learning environment as a collage of various goal stresses and discussing relationships between motivation and achievement explored in recent research, this document explains the need to change school culture and climate in order to enhance student motivation. Policy and procedural areas where change may be desired are…

A discussion of second language teaching techniques that appeal to adult students looks at general principles of motivation and how they may apply in specific classroom activities. Theories of motivation and human needs are examined, and the role of language in meeting communication needs is considered. Communication activities for developing…

This study investigated the effects of medium of instruction, task difficulty, and gender on continuing motivation. A total of 139 fifth and sixth graders with previous computer experience completed an initial learning task in one of the two media formats (computer or paper/pencil) and under either a hard or easy difficulty level. Students' choice…

Because intermediate grade students were not working up to their potential, a coordinator of elementary school instruction implemented a practicum to increase students' motivation. In-service meetings were held with six intermediate grade teachers from each of two schools for the purpose of planning techniques and devising activities for…

This document reviews the major trends of thought concerning first and second language acquisition, in an attempt to trace a sequential history to second language teaching methodology today. The contributions of the behaviorist and nativist schools of thought are examined in particular, and two major issues are focused upon: (1) the origins of…

A study was conducted in Spokane, Washington, to determine motivational factors and preferred conditions that would encourage adults to participate in learning activities. Interviews were conducted with 600 randomly selected households (89 percent success rate) distributed across the age, educational attainment, occupational, and socioeconomic…

A study examined older adult participation in continuing education to determine if there are significant differences in the characteristics and participation motivations between older adults who enroll in age-integrated programs and those who participate in age-segregated programs. Questionnaires consisting of a program participant's survey…

This is a discussion on the role that cognitive and affective variables play in second language learning. The variables under consideration are: (1) intelligence; (2) language aptitude; (3) motivation; and (4) anxiety. Specifically, this report focuses on the importace of attitudinal and motivational factors in achievement. Research is reviewed…

This pamphlet is a report of a study of motivation among adults learning Welsh in Wales. It is claimed that the situations in which a language is likely to be used and the linguistic aim of the learners should be taken into consideration when the nature of the vocabulary to be included in a second language course is determined. Recent research…

The purpose of this monograph is to describe a number of studies that the author has carried out, which offer some evidence for the existence of a few environmental factors which appear to influence children's performance on both ability and attainment tests. The notion is developed of how children's motivation to learn, and hence their level of…

Educators and parents share a common goal: helping children and youth become successful in school and life. The basic principles of social and emotional learning serve as the underlying principles of motivation. Motivation is what stimulates and focuses actions. It is an internal state that can be thought of as "reasons for doing". Needs,…

This chapter examines how adolescents' self-concept beliefs are powerfully influenced by frame of reference effects, which involve students comparisons of their ability levels with those of other students in the immediate context as well as assessments of their own ability and academic accomplishments. Noting that academic self-concept is…

The goal of this book is to increase the usefulness and relevance of research to educational practice, particularly in the area of improving student learning. It proposes and describes an experiment: the establishment of a Strategic Education Research Program (SERP). The SERP plan calls for a large-scale and sharply defined program of research,…

This document presents an action plan to solve the problem of inadequate English-as-a-Second/Other-Language (ESOL) instruction in high school content area courses and to increase effort and motivation among ESOL students. ESOL students often do not have sufficient command of English to do very well in content-oriented courses (such as history,…

This paper is an in-depth investigation of classroom language learning motivation in a Korean high school. Understanding the source of motivation and development of motivation is very important for educational and pedagogical purposes. This study surveyed 192 Korean high school students' orientations for learning English to discover what kinds of…