Examining the Validity of the Writing Challenge Task: An Assessment Tool for Measuring Writing Motivation in Kindergarteners

Schrodt, Katie; FitzPatrick, Erin; Brown, Megan; Hover, Ashlee

doi:10.1080/10573569.2022.2109227

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…In fact, we observed a nonsignificant but positive trend between the highest level completed and writing skills. While prior research has interpreted such positive relations as indicative of a link between motivational beliefs and writing skills (Schrodt et al, 2022), it is important to acknowledge that this positive trend may simply be due to a confounding factor.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The challenge preference task was adapted from the Writing Challenge Task (Schrodt et al, 2019(Schrodt et al, , 2022. The Writing Challenge Task was designed to expand upon typical self-report measures by aiming to capture the complexities of motivational beliefs behaviorally.…”

Section: Challenge Preference Taskmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On a broader scale, we suggest that the field reorient its goals for studying motivational beliefs about writing. Some previous studies have explored motivational beliefs to examine its potential in predicting writing performance (e.g., Camacho et al, 2021;Schrodt et al, 2022). Additionally, studies have further examined whether interventions aimed at enhancing motivational beliefs can supplement writing instruction and improve writing skills (e.g., Schrodt et al, 2019;Camacho et al, 2023).…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent efforts have also focused specifically on expanding upon typical self-report measures by assessing motivational beliefs through a behavioral task. Schrodt et al (2022) conducted further analyses on a behavioral task, the Writing Challenge Task, used in their earlier work (Schrodt et al, 2019). This behavioral, task-based assessment measures challenge preferences during writing as a means to capture motivational beliefs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Measuring kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs about writing: a mixed-methods exploration of alternate assessment formats

Takada,

Lemons,

Balasubramanian

et al. 2023

Front. Psychol.

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There have been a handful of studies on kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs about writing, yet measuring these beliefs in young children continues to pose a set of challenges. The purpose of this exploratory, mixed-methods study was to examine how kindergarteners understand and respond to different assessment formats designed to capture their motivational beliefs about writing. Across two studies, we administered four assessment formats — a 4-point Likert-type scale survey, a binary choice survey, a challenge preference task, and a semi-structured interview — to a sample of 114 kindergarteners engaged in a larger writing intervention study. Our overall goals were to examine the benefits and challenges of using these assessment formats to capture kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs and to gain insight on future directions for studying these beliefs in this young age group. Many participants had a difficult time responding to the 4-point Likert-type scale survey, due to challenges with the response format and the way the items were worded. However, more simplified assessment formats, including the binary choice survey and challenge preference task, may not have fully captured the nuances and complexities of participants’ motivational beliefs. The semi-structured interview leveraged participants’ voices and highlighted details that were overlooked in the other assessment formats. Participants’ interview responses were deeply intertwined with their local, everyday experiences and pushed back on common assumptions of what constitutes negatively oriented motivational beliefs about writing. Overall, our results suggest that kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs appear to be multifaceted, contextually grounded, and hard to quantify. Additional research is needed to further understand how motivational beliefs are shaped during kindergarten. We argue that motivational beliefs must be studied in context rather than in a vacuum, in order to work toward a fair and meaningful understanding of motivational beliefs about writing that can be applied to school settings.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Challenge Preference Taskmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Measuring kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs about writing: a mixed-methods exploration of alternate assessment formats

Takada,

Lemons,

Balasubramanian

et al. 2023

Front. Psychol.

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The ABCs of writing motivation: a systematic review of factors emerging from K–5 students’ self-reports as influencing their motivation to write

Alves-Wold,

Walgermo,

McTigue

et al. 2024

Front. Educ.

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Motivation is essential for writing success. However, investigations of writing motivation in younger students often overlook the students’ voices, basing instead—insufficiently—findings solely on teachers’ and/or researchers’ observations. The present systematic literature review highlights the importance of also listening to students’ own perspectives. It synthesizes findings from empirical studies (1996–2020) in K–5 classrooms. Of 5,795 studies initially identified, 56 met the inclusion criteria and were qualitatively analyzed. The analysis yielded nine factors that influence writing motivation. They are presented as the ABCs of Writing Motivation, organized according to the first nine letters of the alphabet: (A) Appeal, (B) Beliefs, (C) Choice, (D) Difficulty, (E) Environment, (F) Feedback, (G) Goals, (H) Help, and (I) Instructor. We suggest that this can be a useful tool both for researchers and for teachers, as a checklist or source of ideas when planning writing lessons or interventions.

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Examining the Validity of the Writing Challenge Task: An Assessment Tool for Measuring Writing Motivation in Kindergarteners

Cited by 2 publications

References 30 publications

Measuring kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs about writing: a mixed-methods exploration of alternate assessment formats

Measuring kindergarteners’ motivational beliefs about writing: a mixed-methods exploration of alternate assessment formats

The ABCs of writing motivation: a systematic review of factors emerging from K–5 students’ self-reports as influencing their motivation to write

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