Student Motivation: Perspectives from Mathematics Teachers

This study investigated the extent to which teachers believed motivation was important to student learning, methods they employed to address student motivation, and motivational methods they identified as ineffective. The results indicated that for this sample (1) teachers believed motivation was important to student learning, (2) novice teachers were not identifying teaching methods as a motivational tool,(3) teachers had difficulty in identifying motivational strategies related to pedagogy and curriculum, (4) some teachers utilized tangible rewards, and (5) teacher preparation and professional development programs need to focus more attention on educating teachers about their role in positively influencing students' motivational beliefs and shaping students' learning goals.