Search results for: McCaslin Mary

Student motivation typically has been studied as it relates to extrinsic (e.g., reinforcement) and intrinsic (e.g., choice) sources of influence. The observation of Grades 3–5 classrooms engaged in Comprehensive School Reform (CSR), however, unexpectedly indicated that opportunities for both rewards and choice were scarce. This study sought to better understand what might influence student motivation in these settings.The central theme to emerge from the participant observation study was the key role of opportunity in students’ learning motivation and motivation to learn.

The achievement effects of Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) programs have been studied through the use of input-output models, in which type of CSR program is the input and student achievement is the output. This study focuses on observations of math and reading/language arts lessons in classrooms implementing an array of CSR programs to better understand what occurs in CSR classrooms. The authors found that students were productively involved in assigned tasks and that classrooms were pleasant and task oriented in both mathematics and reading/language arts.

A rich literature discusses various types of small-group learning formats and how those formats affect achievement. Few studies, however, have examined students’ perceptions of small-group learning experiences. This work extends the small-group literature by studying stories written in response to a picture of children in a small group by students who attend Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) schools about learning in small groups.Results suggest that students in these CSR schools held positive beliefs about their small-group learning experiences.