Relationship Between Academic Motivation and Mathematics Achievement Among Indian Adolescents in Canada and India

This study examined the relationships between academic motivation—intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, amotivation—and mathematics achievement among 363 Indian adolescents in India and 355 Indian immigrant adolescents in Canada. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed that intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation were not statistically significantly related to mathematics achievement among Indian adolescents in India. In contrast, both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation were statistically significantly related to mathematics achievement among Indian immigrant adolescents in Canada. While intrinsic motivation was a statistically significant positive predictor of mathematics achievement among Indian immigrant adolescents in Canada, extrinsic motivation was a statistically significant negative predictor of mathematics achievement among Indian immigrant adolescents in Canada. Amotivation was not statistically significantly related to mathematics achievement among Indian immigrant adolescents in Canada. Implications of the findings for pedagogy and practice are discussed.     

Children’s effortful control and academic achievement: do relational peer victimization and classroom participation operate as mediators?

Given that early academic achievement is related to numerous developmental outcomes, understanding processes that promote early success in school is important. This study was designed to clarify how students’ (N = 291; M age in fall of kindergarten = 5.66 years, SD = 0.39 year) effortful control, relational peer victimization, and classroom participation relate to achievement, as students progress from kindergarten to first grade. Effortful control and achievement were assessed in kindergarten, classroom participation and relational peer victimization were assessed in the fall of first grade, and achievement was reassessed in the spring of first grade. Classroom participation, but not relational peer victimization, mediated relations between effortful control and first grade standardized and teacher-rated achievement, controlling for kindergarten achievement. Findings suggest that aspects of classroom participation, such as the ability to work independently, may be useful targets of intervention for enhancing academic achievement in young children.     

Family Belongingness,Gang Friendships,and Psychological Distress in Adolescent Achievement

The authors investigated connections among social, psychological, and academic functioning of ethnically diverse urban youth. Participants included 310 seventh graders (mean age = 12.10 years) from an ethnically diverse middle school in which no ethnic group was a majority. Social engagements with family and gang members were predictive of academic achievement in the expected directions, with psychological distress mediating the effects of these social engagements on academic achievement. Implications for counselors’ work with ethnically diverse urban youth are discussed.     

Towards a symbol literacy approach in the education of children

Abstract

Children enter a world that is full of symbols, most of which have become inaccessible. This is true not only because of a positivistic attitude that views analogical truth as nonsensical, but also because of the fragmentation that we experience. This situation is impoverishing children’s awareness, connectedness as well as their ability to access and express existential concerns and the answers different generations have tried to provide. It is for this reason that children need to learn a variety of symbols and the ‘grammar’ of how they form meaning. A symbolic literacy approach not only helps them to read symbols but also enables them to formulate meaning and to connect with the deeper reality and facilitates their ability to transcend physical reality. The paper will also refer to the development of an interdisciplinary pedagogy and its implementation through a project that is being done in collaboration with Maltese primary schools.     

父母受教育水平与青少年学业适应的关系：父母教养与亲子沟通的中介作用

选取716名高一和高三青少年为被试考察父母受教育水平与青少年学业适应之间的关系,揭示父母教养行为与亲子沟通在其中的中介作用。结果发现,（1）父母受教育水平、亲子沟通、教养行为以及学业适应之间均存在显著相关。（2）父母教养行为的接纳/参与、严厉/监督维度以及亲子沟通在父母受教育水平与青少年学业适应之间起中介作用。（3）直接效应模型和中介模型具有跨性别、城乡和年级等同性。因此,既应关注父母受教育水平与青少年学业适应的直接关系,也应重视亲子互动在其中的重要作用。     

教师支持与心理素质对中学生学业成绩的影响

采用学生感知教师支持行为问卷和中学生心理素质问卷,对西南地区两所中学7~12年级的824名在校中学生进行调查研究,探讨教师整体支持和不同类型支持与中学生学业成绩的关系及心理素质在其中的中介作用。结果发现：（1）教师整体支持与中学生心理素质、学业成绩间存在显著正相关;教师情感支持与中学生心理素质、学业成绩间存在显著正相关,教师学习支持、能力支持与中学生心理素质存在显著正相关,但与学业成绩相关均不显著;（2）控制性别和年龄后,心理素质在教师整体支持与学业成绩的关系中起完全中介作用;心理素质在教师情感支持与学业成绩关系中起部分中介作用,在教师学习支持与学业成绩、教师能力支持与学业成绩关系中均起完全中介作用。     

乡镇小学生的数学焦虑与数学成绩:数学自我效能感和数学元认知的链式中介作用

采用儿童数学焦虑量表、小学生数学学习自我效能感量表和小学生数学元认知问卷,对508名乡镇中、高年级小学生进行测量,并运用结构方程模型探讨数学焦虑影响数学成绩的内在作用机制。结果发现：（1）数学焦虑显著负向预测数学自我效能感、数学元认知和数学成绩,数学自我效能感显著正向预测数学元认知和数学成绩,数学元认知显著正向预测数学成绩;（2）在数学焦虑对数学成绩的预测中,数学自我效能感和数学元认知均发挥了部分中介作用;（3）数学自我效能感和数学元认知在数学焦虑和数学成绩之间起链式多重中介的作用。因此,数学焦虑除了直接作用于小学生的数学成绩,还可通过数学自我效能感或数学元认知间接影响数学成绩,而且可通过数学自我效能感进而通过数学元认知间接影响数学成绩。文章讨论了上述发现的理论及教育实践含义。     

The longitudinal association between internalizing symptoms and academic achievement among immigrant and non‐immigrant children in Norway

The aim of this study was to explore the longitudinal relation between internalizing symptoms and academic achievement, as two processes of children and youth development, among children in Norway, and whether having an immigrant background moderated this association. Data collected from 4,458 students in Norway in four waves over three years were analyzed with multi‐group latent growth curve modeling (LGM ). Results showed that internalizing symptoms level remained unchanged over time both for immigrant and non‐immigrant children, while levels of academic achievement increased only for children of immigrants with both parents born outside of Norway. Further analyses supported a reciprocal relation between internalizing symptoms and academic achievement and revealed that the initial level of academic achievement predicted the rate of change in internalizing symptoms over time, but not vice versa. Moreover, immigrant background did not moderate the associations in the model, however, children of immigrants with both parents born abroad initially had lower levels of academic achievement, but showed an increase in academic achievement, compared to their non‐immigrant peers as well as to peers with one native‐born parent after controlling for gender and their grade at the first observation. The implications for policy and practice were discussed.     

从归因疗法到内隐理念：德韦克的心理学理论体系及影响

为更好地理解美国当代著名心理学家卡罗尔·德韦克(Carol S. Dweck)的心理学理论体系,对其学术成果进行了系统的整理与分析,发现可按时间维度将其理论划分为四个相继形成的主题：(1)习得性无助和归因的关系主题;(2)成就目标理论主题;(3)内隐智力理念主题;(4)内隐理念主题。这些主题促进了归因、智力、动机、人格等心理学理论的发展,已经被广泛地应用于健康、教育、人际关系及管理等实践领域,对学界与社会产生了深刻的影响。