The influence of students' contextual perceptions on motivational goal pursuit in the first year of middle school

The nature of student motivation in schools, particularly during early adolescence, has been of interest and concern to educators and researchers alike. Particularly over the last 20 years, considerable technological advances, societal changes, changes in traditional family structures, and changes in educational structures and practice have seen the issue of student motivation emerge as a prime focus for educators and researchers. Simultaneously, developments in educational research and consequent understandings developed about student motivation in classroom contexts have revealed the complexity of students' motivational processes and served to inspire further research in this field. In Australia, the problem of best meeting the needs of early adolescents and enhancing their motivation in educational contexts has been in some schools addressed by the implementation of a 'middle' school. Traditional school structures in Australia have consisted of primary (Years K-7, ages 4-12) and secondary (Years 8-12, ages 12-17) schools, but recent changes have seen some schools restructure to preparatory school (Years K-2, ages 4-7), junior school (Years 3-6, ages 7-11), middle school (Years 7-9, ages 11-14) and senior school (Years 10-12, ages 14-17). Middle schools in Australia generally aim to provide a more age-appropriate learning environment for early adolescents through changes in school structures and learning environments. In Western Australia there are many varying models of such middle schools as schools tend to adopt differing degrees of middle schooling policies and practices. Nevertheless, most middle schools aim to more adequately meet the educational needs of early adolescents and positively enhance student motivation. 2 The research reported in this dissertation investigates the influence of students' contextual perceptions on the academic and social motivational goals they pursued in their first year of middle school. Using a goal orientation theory :framework and approaching the nature of student motivation from a 'situative' perspective, the study focused on the experiences and perceptions of seven Year 7 students throughout the first year of their middle schooling experience. The study focused particularly on how students' perceptions of the middle school context in which they participated, influenced the nature of the academic and social motivational goals they chose to pursue throughout the year. 3 An exploratory study conducted in a naturalistic setting, the research used primarily qualitative techniques for data collection and analysis. Data were collected mainly through classroom observation and student and teacher interviews. The research also incorporated one set of quantitative data (by way of survey) that were explored and enriched through qualitative data. A case study approach was used to gain a deeper understanding of the contextual perceptions held by students and to develop a holistic view of the complexities of student life during early adolescence. The findings of the study revealed that students' perceptions of the contexts in which they operated during their first year of middle school had a significant influence on the nature of academic and social goals individuals pursued and that students' goals seemed to emerge from a consistent series of negotiations that occurred between family goals, school and classroom goals, and peer goals over the course of the year. It appeared that students also 'filtered' contextual information and endorsed behaviours and goals that corresponded with their personal priorities and agendas. Also, over time some students reported an increasing desire to protect their sense of self-worth in front of teachers, peers and parents by engaging in avoidance strategies and self-presentation tactics. With regard to the specific school and classroom context in which students participated, the study found the school's behavioural control and reward system to have a significantly negative impact on individual's sense of belonging at school, school affect, perceived levels of teacher care and support, student teacher relationships and students' self-reported academic engagement and effort. Such a system also seemed, for some students, to override any positive benefits from task mastery focused classrooms and learning environments. In addition, some students' perceptions of teacher support appeared to also have a significant impact on their school adjustment, feelings about school and academic engagement and effort.