Eastern Educational Research Association. Teacher Reading Motivation: Factors and Latent Profiles

• In Event: Consortium of State and Regional Educational Research Associations Distinguished Paper Session 4

Abstract

This study investigated reading motivation among teachers in PK–12 schools. Teachers (N = 1,052) from across the U.S. completed the Adult Reading Motivation Scale. Researchers used exploratory structural equation modeling to find five factors, namely Importance of Reading (IR), Reading for Recognition (RR), Reading for Occupational Effectiveness (RO), Preference for Challenging Reading (PCR), and Reading Self-Efficacy (RSE). Further latent profile analysis yielded five profiles of teachers’ reading motivation: (a) the group labeled AVG (n = 528) had close to average scores on all five factors; (b) the latent profile labeled AA-Low RR (n = 302) had overall above-average factor scores except for RR; (c) an AA-High RR (n = 77) group with overall above-average scores and the highest mean RR scores; (d) a BA-Low RSE group (n = 79) with overall below-average factor scores and the lowest mean RSE scores; and (e) a BA-Low IR group (n = 61), the smallest group, with below-average factor scores on all indicators and the lowest mean IR scores. Ethnicity and educational attainment differed significantly across groups. Findings are interpreted through the lenses of self-determination theory. Implications for teacher education and school improvement are discussed.
Keywords: adult learning, reading motivation, teacher attitudes

Authors

• Robert A. Griffin, University of West Georgia
  Presenting Author

• Diana L. Mindrila, University of West Georgia
  Presenting Author