When Do Students Perceive High Value in Math Lessons? The Role of Situational, Individual, and Classroom Factors

• In Event: Affordances and Modeling of Intensive Data

Abstract

Theoretical Framework
Based on Eccles’ expectancy-value theory (1983), research has shown that students’ math values are powerful predictors of their math course enrollment and math-related careers (Lauermann, Tsai, & Eccles, 2017; Simpkins, Davis-Kean, & Eccles, 2006). However, previous research has mostly investigated rather stable domain-specific values (e.g., in math), although expectancy-value theory refers to the experience of specific tasks (Wigfield & Cambria, 2010). Assessing more situation-specific aspects of values can provide important insights into their development in the learning situation.

Purpose & Research Questions
Our study was aimed at investigating intraindividual variation in students’ values in math classrooms. Using a repeated-measurement design, we examined how much variance in students’ values in a particular math lesson can be attributed to the situation, the student, and the classroom level, and which situational, student, and classroom factors predict students’ values.

Data Sources
Data comes from the Motivation in Mathematics study conducted in Germany. A total of 1721 students out of 78 ninth grade classrooms from 28 academic track schools participated in this study (M = 14.63 years, 53.6% female). At the pretest, students reported on their math values (e.g., "I simply like math", Gaspard, Häfner, Parrisius, Trautwein, & Nagengast, 2017). Students’ gender and prior math grades were obtained from the schools. The repeated-measurement phase consisted of short questionnaires that students filled out at the end of five consecutive math lessons. Students’ situational values were assessed with 6 items referring to this particular lesson (e.g., “The contents were interesting to me”, α = .93). Student-perceived autonomy-supportive climate and relevance support were assessed with 6 items (e.g., “I felt that our teacher provided us choice and options”, α = .83) and 2 items (e.g., “Our teacher explained us how we can use what we learned in daily life”, α = .72), respectively.

Method of Analysis
Data from the repeated measurement phase were analyzed using three-level regression analyses, in which Level 1 referred to lesson-specific variation within each student, Level 2 referred to variation between students, and Level 3 referred to variation between classrooms. As predictors of students’ situational values, we included perceived autonomy-supportive climate and relevance support at all three levels, and students’ characteristics (i.e., math values, gender, math grade) at Level 2.

Preliminary Findings
Multilevel models revealed substantial proportions of variance in students’ values at the within-student level (46%), at the between-student level (45%), and—to some extent—at the classroom level (8%). At the within-student level, both autonomy-supportive climate and relevance support predicted values. At the between-student level, math values and average relevance support emerged as significant predictors. No further contextual effects were found at the classroom level.

Discussion
Our analyses show that there is substantial intraindividual variation in students’ values in math classrooms from lesson to lesson. This variation could partially be explained by perceived autonomy-supportive climate and relevance support, which has implications for educational practice. At the same time, it is important to see at which levels these explanatory effects can be found.

Authors

• Hanna Gaspard, TU Dortmund University

• Cora Parrisius, Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tübingen

• Benjamin Nagengast, University of Tübingen

• Ulrich Trautwein, University of Tubingen