Student Motivation

Paper Summary:

This paper points to the literature that explains how and why some students become motivated to do well in school and others do not. The paper refers to Albert Bandura's important work in psychology, in particular his learning tool of "self-efficacy," which measures confidence and reinforces positive goal-setting as a way of building the power of motivation within one's own self.

From the Paper:

"This aspect of self-efficacy carries over into a student's writing abilities; and a writer with a "strong sense of confidence" may excel while writing an essay because there will be less apprehension over the quality of what the writer is trying to express. The writer may have some doubts about whether the essay is going to be strong enough (or not), but self-efficacy provides the "resiliency in the face of adversity," Pajares explains.
"That means, once a student has confidently said to himself, before launching into a project, that he can do this (self-assessment is a big part of motivating one's self), there is resilience (a resistance to giving up when the writing gets a little tough) that pushes the student on. After all, he has said out loud or perhaps written down his confident belief that he can complete the assignment, and the echo of that promise to himself is powerful, if of course it was sincere in the first place."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Malone, Yvonne. (2002). Social Cognitive Theory and Choice Theory: A Compatibility Analysis. International Journal of Reality Therapy, XXII(1), 10-13.
• Pajaraes, Frank. (2003). Self-Efficacy Beliefs, Motivation, And Achievement In Writing: A Review Of The Literature. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 19, 139-158.
• University of Minnesota Duluth. (2002). Motivation. Retrieved June 23, 2006, from http://www.d.umn.edu/student/loon/acad/strat/motivate.html.

More papers on Student Motivation:

• Research Paper # 69680 : "Student Motivation and Influences"
• Term Paper # 121806 : "Student Motivation in Middle School"
• Term Paper # 141788 : "The Learner-Centered Design and Student Motivation"

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