Date of Award

Winter 2025

Project Type

Dissertation

Program or Major

Education

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

First Advisor

Suzanne Graham

Second Advisor

Paula Salvio

Third Advisor

Carla Evans

Abstract

Few studies examine the specific component of teacher evaluation and reporting and its relationship with student motivation. Student motivation to learn and achieve is a fundamental element of academic success in school. Motivation has been linked to educational outcomes like curiosity, persistence, learning, conceptual understanding, and long-term achievement (Vallerand et al., 1992). Diminished motivation can lead to consequences such as higher dropout rates and increased anxiety. Research indicates that classroom climate and student-teacher relationships have the most significant impact on student motivation (Jansen et al., 2022). This dissertation explores the association of teachers’ evaluation and reporting practices with student motivation. While the importance of student-teacher relationships and classroom climate in enhancing motivation is already well established in the literature, few studies address the specific component of teacher evaluation and reporting and its relationship with student motivation. This quantitative secondary analysis first considers student and teacher survey data from the ECLS-K:2011, a longitudinal study involving approximately 18,000 nationally representative elementary school students and their teachers, who were surveyed annually from grades K-5. The study explored the relationship between teachers’ evaluation and reporting orientations and their grade-level teaching placements. Results from regression analyses indicate that teachers’ mean ratings of evaluation and reporting orientations differ significantly across grade levels. On average, teachers align themselves most with a growth-referenced orientation and least with a norm-referenced orientation, regardless of their grade-level teaching placement. Teachers in lower-grade-level placements, on average, align more with norm-referenced orientations than those in upper-grade-level placements. Ratings of criterion and growth-referenced orientations are similar across grade-level placements. Next, associations between teachers’ evaluation and reporting orientations and students' motivation levels were examined using a series of regression models, controlling for gender, race, and socioeconomic status. Regression results suggest little to no relationship between teacher evaluation orientation and student achievement motivation. However, the control variable representing male/female shows the strongest positive association with student motivation (a 0.22 difference in ratings between males and females, with females scoring higher). Asian students and students attending more diverse schools tend to rate their motivation slightly lower on average than their peers. Finally, growth patterns in student motivation from kindergarten to grade 5 were investigated with a series of multi-level models for change, controlling for the same characteristics. Results suggest that the average motivation level across all grade levels is about 3.1 (on a 1-5 scale), but levels vary among students. On average, student motivation levels begin at 3.05 in kindergarten and decrease in motivation over time, plateauing between grades 3 and 4, and then increase slightly after grade 4. Female students, Asian students, and students of higher SES (socioeconomic status) have higher-than-average growth rates, while African American and male students have lower-than-average growth rates. Students with K-2 teachers who align more with a criterion-referenced evaluation and reporting orientation begin third grade with slightly higher motivation but experience slower growth. Students of K-2 teachers who were more aligned with growth-referenced evaluation and reporting orientations had statistically significant differences in motivation levels and growth rates. Implications for education include emphasizing motivational theory in teacher preparation programs and professional development, and developing a deeper understanding of motivational differences in students by gender, race, and socioeconomic status.

Download

Share

COinS