Math talent development of elementary school students: The relationship of gender, math motivation, and goal orientation to math achievement

• Main Author: Colorado, Ann Haimburger
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: W&M ScholarWorks 2014
• Subjects: Elementary Education; Gifted Education; Science and Mathematics Education
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd/1539618626; https://scholarworks.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1836&context=etd

Research has established that motivation is an important factor of student achievement. Many researchers in the field of gifted education consider motivation to be a crucial component of giftedness, yet the literature base for motivation and math talent development within gifted populations is scarce. This descriptive study used a within-group design to measure the math motivation, math achievement, and goal orientation of high-ability 5 th grade math students to elucidate the relationships among motivation, achievement, goal orientation, and gender. Findings indicated that math achievement, math motivation, and goal orientation were similar for both genders; students had high math achievement yet low math motivation; and a high number of students had a performance goal orientation. Ideas for future math motivation research for the gifted are shared.;Keywords: gifted math students, math achievement, math motivation, goal orientation.