Investigating the Relations of Teacher Perceptions, Noncognitive Constructs, and Mathematics Achievement

• In Event: Noncognitive Constructs and Academic Outcomes: Using NAEP Data to Understand Differences in Achievement

Abstract

Many teachers may perceive students’ mathematics ability as either high or low performing based on their observations of classroom interactions. For example, Sullivan, Tobias, and McDonough (2006) found in their study “that students saw pleasing the teacher, getting questions correct, getting the work completed, and scoring well on tests as the desirable goals” (p. 15). Teachers provided ratings of mathematics ability for each of the students. Students provided data by various academic tasks to support awareness of the importance of effort needed to succeed. Underlying teacher perceptions are issues associated with classroom culture and expectations. Beyond the student-teacher relationship, research suggests some items for consideration when examining teacher perceptions include noncognitive constructs such as students’ motivation for learning, interest and enjoyment in learning, and a sense of confidence about their academic knowledge and skills for learning (McIntyre & Vecchione).

The present study investigates how teacher perceptions about students’ mathematics ability relate to students’ noncognitive constructs and achievement by using the 2019 NAEP grade 8 assessment data with the associated teacher and student contextual questionnaires to investigate these relationships. Items from teacher questionnaires related to teacher perceptions about students’ mathematics ability (i.e., my students did well on the mathematics test because they studied/were prepared, put a lot of effort, and guessed well) are included in the analyses. Indices related to student noncognitive constructs (i.e., persistence in learning, interest/enjoyment in mathematics, and confidence in mathematics knowledge/skills ) are included in the analyses. The present study also analyzes demographic variables (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity) at the student level to explore possible group differences. Correlational analyses are conducted to examine the strength and magnitude of the relationships between the variables and student performance on the NAEP mathematics assessment. Regression models on student performance by student gender and race/ethnicity are included. Variables of teacher preparation (i.e., highest degree earned) and experiences (i.e., years teaching the subject) are considered. Discussion on how teacher perceptions relate to noncognitive constructs and achievement is provided.

Findings from this study suggest that students who have teachers that perceived them did well on the mathematics test because they studied/prepared and put in the effort, on average, tend to show higher persistence in learning, more interest and enjoyment in mathematics, and higher confidence in mathematics knowledge and skills. These students also tend to have higher scores on the NAEP mathematics assessment than their counterparts. Results also suggest that teacher perceptions of students’ mathematics ability varied slightly by student race/ethnicity.

Findings from this study provide crucial insights and a deeper understanding of how teacher perceptions relate to noncognitive constructs, mathematics achievement, and student demographics. There is still a need to understand how teacher perceptions relate to students’ noncognitive constructs and mathematics achievement with teacher characteristics (i.e., training, experiences), particularly for adolescents transitioning to high school with increasing cognitive demand and academic workload. Gaining this type of insight may help Institutes of Higher Education implement programs that better prepare the needs of pre-service and in-service educators, ultimately improving student achievement.

Authors

• Judy H. Tang, Westat
  Presenting Author

• Juliann Dupuis, Notre Dame of Maryland University
  Non-Presenting Author