The specific characteristics of online education require of the student engagement and autonomy, factors which are related to motivation for learning. This study investigated students’ motivation in virtual learning environments (VLEs). For this, it used the Teaching and Learning Strategy and Motivation to Learn Scale in Virtual Learning Environments (TLSM-VLE). The scale presented 32 items and six dimensions, three of which aimed to measure the variables of autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and demotivation. The participants were 572 students from the Brazilian state of Paraná, enrolled on higher education courses on a continuous education course. The results revealed significant rates for autonomous motivational behavior. It is considered that the results obtained may provide contributions for the educators and psychologists who work with VLEs, leading to further studies of the area providing information referent to the issue investigated in this study.

RESUMO Este estudo teve por objetivo construir e levantar evidências de validade para a escala de estratégia de ensino, de aprendizagem e motivação para aprender em ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem (EEAM-AVA). A evidência de validade da escala foi investigada por meio da estrutura interna e das dimensões emergidas no decorrer deste estudo. Participaram da pesquisa 572 estudantes matriculados em cursos disponibilizados em ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem. O instrumento de pesquisa elaborado constituiu-se em uma escala com quarenta e cinco itens. A análise dos dados coletados apresentou uma estrutura de cinco dimensões, todas com índices de consistência interna aceitáveis, evidenciando a validade da escala e suas propriedades psicométricas. Estudos adicionais que revisem e aprimorem itens da escala apresentada são recomendados. Espera-se que os resultados tragam contribuições para educadores e psicólogos que pesquisam as questões aqui investigadas.

The appropriate use of digital information requires skills that enable regulation of cognitive thinking. This research is focused on building a scale that measures the learning strategies used by teachers and the ones they observe being practiced by their students, either adopting classical media technologies or the internet, besides pursuing evidence of internal consistency for such scale. Altogether, 515 teachers from Parana and Mato Grosso do Sul states in Brazil participated in the research. The first stage was focused on preparing the questions, and the second on the search for evidence of internal consistency for the Learning Strategies Used and Observed by Teachers (LSUOT) scale. The results revealed the reliability of the tool by internal structural analysis, showing its psychometric properties. It is safe to consider that the results can make contributions to teachers in the utilization and teaching of strategies that make the learning process in this current digital society easier.

ResumoA motivação no contexto escolar é um tema muito discutido na contemporaneidade da educação em diferentes espaços e culturas. O presente estudo tratou do constructo motivação à luz da Teoria da Autodeterminação e buscou avaliar a motivação para aprender de crianças dos primeiros anos do ensino fundamental de duas realidades culturais distintas: Brasil e Chile. Participaram da pesquisa 528 crianças, sendo 268 brasileiras e 260 chilenas que responderam a dois questionários sobre motivação. O método utilizado foi para análise dos dados foi do tipo descritivo com delineamentos de levantamento e correlacional. Os resultados evidenciaram que a maioria das crianças, dos dois contextos investigados, se revelou motivada para aprender. A discussão dos resultados considerou as implicações educacionais das duas realidades culturais.Palavras-chave: Motivação íntrinseca; motivação extrínseca; ensino fundamental. Motivation of elementary school students: study of two cultural realities

Abstratct This research aimed to investigate the reading comprehension and possible associations with self-perception of academic performance in elementary and middle school students. The study included 298 students enrolled from the 2nd to 9th grades in public schools the states of São Paulo and Parana. Two Cloze tests were collectively applied: one specific for elementary school (first stage of basic education) and another for the middle school (second stage). Results indicated that the students presented an instructional reading comprehension. It was also possible to observe statistically significant differences between Cloze score and self-perception of academic performance. In general, it can be stated that the students who presented better levels of reading comprehension are also the ones that better self-assessed. The data are discussed considering the psychoeducational implications concerning the mode of education investigated.