Judith L. Meece

A Pattern Analysis of Students' Achievement Goals.

Cluster analysis procedures were used to classify 257 5th- and 6th-grade students on the basis of their mastery, ego, and work-avoidant goal orientations. The results identified 3 clusters of students with different achievement profiles in science. Students who exhibited a pattern in which mastery goals were stronger than the other 2 goals, showed the most positive achievement profile. In contrast students who were high on both mastery and ego goals did not perform as well academically; students low on both mastery and ego goals showed the most negative achievement profile. Additional analyses revealed that the cluster analysis provided a more distinctive and internally consistent set of findings than did pattern analyses that were based on median split procedures

Math Anxiety in Elementary and Secondary School Students.

We assessed math anxiety in 6ththrough 12th-grade children (N = 564) as part of a comprehensive longitudinal investigation of childrens beliefs, attitudes, and values concerning mathematics. Confirmatory factor analyses provided evidence for two components of math anxiety, a negative affective reactions component and a cognitive component. The affective component of math anxiety related more strongly and negatively than did the worry component to childrens ability perceptions, performance perceptions, and math performance. The worry component related more strongly and positively than did the affective component to the importance that children attach to math and their reported actual effort in math. Girls reported stronger negative affective reactions to math than did boys. Ninth-grade students reported experiencing the most worry about math and sixth graders the least.

The Formation and Role of Self Perceptions of Ability in Elementary Classrooms

The Elementary School Journal Volume 82, Number 5 o 1982 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved. 00 13-5984/82/82 05-0003

Applying Learner-Centered Principles to Middle School Education

0 1.00 In an effort to understand better the factors influencing childrens performance in school, the relation of ability perceptions to academic achievement has been a topic of concern for many investigators (e.g., Bar-Tal 1978; Covington and Omelich 1979a, 1979b; Weiner 1979; Parsons, in press). Their formulations have been guided by attribution theory (i.e., Weiner et al. 1971), which proposes that an individuals interpretation of the causes of success and failure influences future achievement-oriented behavior. One of the most consistent findings in this tradition is that, if individuals believe that their successful completion of tasks is due to their own abilities, then they will be likely to attempt similar endeavors in the future because they expect to do well and feel good about their accomplishments. They will be less likely to do so if they believe achievement is due to other factors, like luck or ease of assignment. Consequently, this theory postulates that ability perceptions mediate achievement behavior. While there is a great deal of theory and research to support this view (see Weiner [1980] for a review), much of it results from studies using adult subjects in a laboratory setting. Several features of the work may limit the applicability of findings based on this approach to the classroom. First, there are developmental differences in childrens cognitive capabilities that influence the formation and operation of ability perceptions. Second, in the natural context of the classroom the ecological validity of experimental results is questionable because the genesis and effect of perceptions may be quite different outside the

Relationship of School Context to Rural Youth’s Educational Achievement and Aspirations

This article draws on a goal perspective of motivation to examine the use of the Learned-Centered Psychological Principles (LCPs) for improving the academic engagement and learning of middle school students. Using survey data from 2,200 middle school students from diverse communities across the United States, the findings indicate many important motivational benefits of learner-centered practices for young adolescents. Specifically, students reported more positive forms of motivation and greater academic engagement when they perceived their teachers were using learner-centered practices that involve caring, establishing higher order thinking, honoring student voices, and adapting instruction to individual needs. Suggestions for creating a learner-centered middle school classroom are highlighted.

Rural-Nonrural Disparities in Postsecondary Educational Attainment Revisited

Though the poverty encountered by many rural youth encompasses numerous developmental challenges and substantially increases the chances for educational problems, the school context is central to promoting and constraining their development. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of school characteristics and schooling experiences to the educational achievement and aspirations of youth from high-poverty rural communities. Differences in the relationship of school characteristics and schooling experiences to the educational outcomes of students from high- versus low-poverty rural communities were also examined. Participants included 6,247 high school students from 43 low-poverty and 21 high-poverty rural communities. Approximately 51.7% of participants were female and the sample was racially/ethnically diverse (66.4% White, 9.2% African American, 8.1% Hispanic/Latino(a), 4.4% Native American, and 11.8% Multiracial). After controlling for student and family background, school characteristics (e.g., lower student–teacher ratio) were predictive of achievement for rural youth from high-poverty communities. Schooling experiences (e.g., positive perceptions of their ability, a sense of school valuing and belonging, and preparation for postsecondary education) were predictive of educational achievement and aspirations for rural youth from high- and low-poverty communities. Overall, the study highlights unique ways schools can positively shape the educational outcomes for rural youth despite community poverty.

Educational Sorting and Residential Aspirations Among Rural High School Students What Are the Contributions of Schools and Educators to Rural Brain Drain

Using data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study, this study revisited rural-nonrural disparities in educational attainment by considering a comprehensive set of factors that constrain and support youth’s college enrollment and degree completion. Results showed that rural students were more advantaged in community social resources compared to nonrural students, and these resources were associated with a significant increase in the likelihood of bachelor’s degree attainment. Yet results confirmed that rural students lagged behind nonrural students in attaining a bachelor’s degree largely due to their lower socioeconomic background. The findings present a more comprehensive picture of the complexity of geographic residence in shaping college enrollment and degree attainment.

Effects of a developmentally based intervention with teachers on Native American and White early adolescents' schooling adjustment in rural settings.

An extended body of research has documented the outmigration of the “best and brightest” youth from rural areas. Some of this scholarship has suggested that rural schools and educators may be complicit in this process as they devote extra attention and resources to the highest achieving students—those most likely to leave their rural communities after high school. Using data from a national multimethod study, we find mixed support for this hypothesis. To the contrary, our data suggest that the highest-achieving rural students are among those with the greatest community attachment, and that student perceptions of local economic conditions are far more influential in shaping postsecondary residential aspirations than the advice of educators, or the poverty level of the school.

Predictors of Bachelor's Degree Completion among Rural Students at Four-Year Institutions.

This study reports the effectiveness of a developmentally based, teacher professional development intervention aimed at improving early adolescent school adjustment. Teachers in rural schools in a Northern Plains state took part in professional development activities across a year. Following a randomized control trial design, Native American and White students’ (N = 165) social, behavioral, and academic adjustment was assessed in intervention compared with control schools. Regression analyses, controlling for baseline and demographic variables, indicated that students in intervention schools improved in achievement, and improved or sustained beginning-of-year schooling dispositions, and perceptions of the school social/affective context, in comparison with evident declines for students in control schools. Native American students more so than White students evidenced particular gains in achievement and perceptions of the school social/affective context.

Educational Barriers of Rural Youth: Relation of Individual and Contextual Difference Variables.

Using the National Education Longitudinal Study, this study explored various factors that predicted bachelor’s degree attainment among rural youth attending a four-year institution. Results showed that Hispanic origin, family income, parental educational expectations, the rigor of the high school curriculum, timing and intensity of college enrollment, and participation in Greek social clubs were significant predictors. Contrary to expectations, gender, parental education, family structure, number of siblings, institutional features of the college first attended, and participation in intramural athletics and student government were insignificant predictors. The discussion highlights implications for secondary and postsecondary policies.