Effects of a Motivational Intervention on Learning New Topics in Mathematics

Abstract

The aim of the study was to examine the effects of a
motivational intervention based on context personalisation,
drawing on from Expectancy-value theory and the Model of
interest development. The study aimed to explore whether
there would be a difference in motivational beliefs and
knowledge between students who participated in the
motivational intervention (the experimental group) and
students taught in the usual way (the control group) when
learning new mathematical content. A total of 316 second
grade high school students participated in the study that was
conducted at four time points assessing: prior knowledge
and general motivation for learning mathematics; specific
motivation after the first lesson of a new unit; specific
motivation and knowledge after partial completion of the
unit; and again, specific motivation and knowledge after
completion of the entire unit. The students in the
experimental group show higher triggered situational interest
and perceived utility, although there were no differences at
later time points. There were no significant differences in
self-efficacy or test scores. In conclusion, while introducing
context personalisation into instruction can increase student
motivation, these effects appear to be modest and transient.