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Significance of Students’ Motivation

Students’ Motivation Determines, Directs, and Sustains What They Learn 

There are two important concepts that are central to understanding motivation: the subjective value of a goal and the expectancies, or expectations, for achievement of that goal. 

Value

A student will be more motivated to pursue a goal or task that has the highest value to them. Value can be derived from different sources (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). Click on the accordions below to learn about different sources of value. 

When motivation is due to attainment value, you get personal satisfaction and sense of accomplishment from successfully mastering a goal or task. For example, a student may feel a deep sense of fulfillment after solving complex analytical problems, which motivates them to spend time working on these tasks to demonstrate and further develop their problem-solving abilities. 

When motivation is due to intrinsic value, you get satisfaction simply from doing the task rather than from a particular outcome of the task. For example, a student spends hours writing a computer program because of the enjoyment they derive from the task. 

When motivation is due to instrumental value, an activity or goal helps you accomplish other important goals. For example, a student may be motivated to study in a challenging organic chemistry course because they know it will help them do better on the MCAT and strengthen their medical school application, ultimately helping them achieve their goal of becoming a doctor. 

Expectancies

People are motivated to pursue goals and outcomes that they believe they can successfully achieve. Two forms of expectancies inform our understanding of motivated behaviour. 

Outcome expectancies refer to belief about the likely result or consequence of your actions (Carver & Scheier, 2001). It’s about whether you think your efforts will lead to a desirable outcome, regardless of your ability to perform the task. For example, even if a student believes they can study well and do everything right, they might still doubt that doing so will improve their grade if they think the exam is unfair or too difficult (i.e., negative outcome expectancy). 

Efficacy expectancies refer to belief in your ability to successfully perform a task or take specific actions to achieve a goal (Bandura, 1997). It’s about your confidence in whether you can do what’s needed to succeed, which can influence how much effort you put into tasks and how persistent you are when facing challenges.  

This perception is shaped by several factors, including: 

  • Past experiences: If you’ve succeeded in similar tasks before, you’re likely to feel more confident in your ability to succeed again. On the other hand, past failures may lower your confidence. 
  • Observing others: Seeing people like you succeed at a task can boost your own belief in your ability to do it. 
  • Feedback and encouragement: Positive reinforcement from others can enhance your belief in your capabilities, while negative feedback can undermine it. 
  • Emotional and physical state: Feeling calm and focused can increase confidence, while stress or anxiety might lower it.

For example, a student preparing for a big math exam feels confident because they’ve done well on previous math tests and their instructor’s positive feedback on their homework boosts their belief that they can handle the upcoming exam. 

How perceptions of the environment affect the interaction of value and expectancies

Values and expectancies interact within the broader environmental context in which they exist. Click on the plus icons in the image below to learn how differences in value, efficacy, and the supportive nature of the environment can influence students’ motivation. Each of these dimensions are features of the learning environment over which we can have substantial influence. If we neglect any single dimension, motivation can suffer substantially. 

(Image adapted from Ambrose et al. (2010), p. 80.)

Strategies to establish value and build positive expectancies

  • The following strategies offer some ways that may increase the value that students place on the goals and activities, strengthen students’ expectancies, and create an environment that supports motivation. 
  • Connect the material to students’ interests 
  • Provide authentic, real-world tasks 
  • Show relevance to students’ lives 
  • Identify and reward what you value (e.g., in the syllabus, through feedback, through modelling) 
  • Show your own passion and enthusiasm 
  • Identify an appropriate level of challenge (e.g., pre-assess prior knowledge) 
  • Provide early opportunities for success 
  • Articulate your expectations (e.g., provide a rubric, provide targeted feedback) 
  • Describe effective study strategies

Reflection Activity

Reflect on how you can increase student motivation by working through the following questions:

  1. Identify a topic or activity in your course that students typically show low motivation or engagement with. 
  2. Consider students’ goals for the course. Do their goals align with the goals you have for them? How can you better connect the course material to students’ personal or academic goals? 
  3. Evaluate the perceived value of the activity or material. How can you make it more relevant, interesting, or meaningful to students? What real-world applications or connections can you emphasize? 
  4. Assess the expectations for success. Do students believe they can succeed with reasonable effort? How can you provide clearer guidance or support to enhance their confidence in achieving success? 
  5. Develop a strategy to improve motivation by adjusting one or more of these elements (e.g., adding choice to increase autonomy, providing early success opportunities, or showing relevance to their academic or future professional lives).

References

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. Macmillan. 

Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (2001). On the self-regulation of behavior. Cambridge University Press. 

Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). Expectancy–value theory of achievement motivation. Contemporary educational psychology, 25(1), 68-81.