Student motivation and learning in Singapore

Liem, A. D., Lau, S., & Nie, Y. (2008). The role of self-efficacy, task value, and achievement goals in predicting learning strategies, task disengagement, peer relationship, and achievement outcome. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 33(4), 486–512.

Background

Studies in North America have shown that students wishing to excel in an area are more likely to think critically, elaborate ideas and synthesize concepts. Students who are more interested in outperforming their peers might also adopt such deep learning strategies but they may also adopt surface learning strategies such as memorization and reproduction of materials. The authors wanted to investigate whether these findings applied to students learning English in Singapore.

Aims

This study examined the role of self-confidence, students’ perception towards a task, and achievement goals in students’ learning strategies, task disengagement, peer relationships, and English achievement outcomes among Singapore students.

Sample

The participants were 1,475 secondary three students from 147 classes in 39 Singapore secondary schools.

Method

The data were drawn from a survey, and past and present achievement scores. The survey measured students’ task perception, self-confidence, achievement goals, surface and deep cognitive engagements, task disengagement, and perception of relationship with peers. Students’ past English achievement scores were based on their primary six English national examination scores. A multiple-choice English achievement test was developed to measure students’ present English achievement.

Findings

The results indicated that both performance and mastery goals were positive predictors of deep learning and peer relationships. Moreover, students who adopted mastery goals also engaged in surface learning to some extent. The authors hypothesized that Singaporean students, being bilingual, might have memorized new vocabulary, sentence structures and grammatical rules.

Deep learning was a positive predictor of students’ English test scores while surface learning was a negative predictor. Students who valued the mastering of English did not give up easily when faced with difficulty or boredum. Students who persisted in the face of difficult or boring English tasks scored better than those who quit studying. Having better relationships with peers also positively predicted students’ English performance. Self-confidence also had a direct effect on deep learning and English achievement.

Implications

To motivate students, Singapore teachers need to maintain the competitive school and classroom learning environments that value both mastery and performance goals. Teachers and parents can also help students develop a healthy academic self-confidence by encouraging skill development, promoting mastery, fostering an optimistic outlook, and helping students set short-term goals.

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