Incidence de la motivation des élèves du secondaire sur leur classement en mathématiques

Abstract

La présente étude visait à évaluer la valeur prédictive de la motivation au début de la 3e secondaire sur le classement en mathématiques en 4e secondaire. Un questionnaire portant sur différentes variables motivationnelles a été administré à 3 711 élèves. Les régressionsmultinomiales effectuées sur les données montrent que la proportion de variance expliquée par les variables motivationnelles pour prédire le classement est importante, principalement en ce qui concerne les perceptions de compétence en mathématiques. Mesurer le degré de motivation s’avère donc être un moyen efficace pour mieux prédire les trajectoires mathématiques des élèves du secondaire.The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the predictive value of students’ mathematics motivation on their classification for the subsequent year. A questionnaire about competence beliefs, attributions to effort, anxiety, interest, utility and accomplishment goals related to mathematics was administrated to 3 711 students (9th grade). Multinomial regressions showed that mathematics’ motivation can effectively be taken into account in predicting student’s classification. Although competence beliefs have the strongest influence, attributions to effort, interest and work-avoidance goals are variables that exert a significant influence on classification. Finally, results show that measures of motivation could enhance prediction of secondary level students’ mathematics progression.El propósito del presente estudio era evaluar el valor predictivo de la motivación en alumnos al inicio de tercer año de la secundaria sobre la clasificación en matemáticas en cuarto año. Un cuestionario que mide diversas variables motivacionales fue llenado por 3 711 alumnos. Las regresionesmultinomiales realizadas sobre los datos muestran que la proporción de varianza explicada por las variables motivacionales para predecir la clasificación es importante, en particular en lo referente a las percepciones de competencia en matemáticas. Se destaca que la medición del grado de motivación resulta ser un medio eficaz para ayudar a predecir las trayectorias de los alumnos de secundaria en matemáticas

Tracking in High School Mathematics: Individual, Social, and School-Based Determinants in an Education Reform Context

“…Other individual factors that exert a more moderate influence have been taken into account to explain math placement. Researchers have found a positive relationship between student motivation (generally defined in terms of interest, usefulness, and perceived competence) and their placement in an advanced math course (Ireson & Hallam, 2009;Lessard, Chouinard, & Bergeron, 2009;Ma, 2001;Pajares & Miller, 1995). In the literature on academic choice, one study indicated that motivation toward math had a positive influence on students' decisions, and this influence grew during adolescence (from grade 7 to 12) (Ma, 2001), such that by the end of high school, attitude toward math was more strongly determinant than marks for the choice to take advanced math courses.…”