Academic Engagement

The Challenge Before Us

For many low-income families, access to a good education is the only path to a life with improved opportunities for their children. A move away from tough, urban neighborhoods into inner-ring suburban communities where the school systems have historically graduated high percentages of college-bound students represents a major investment on the part of many such families in their children’s futures. But the reality is that the academic success of minority students in these school systems lags substantially behind that of their majority counterparts (Diamond, 2006; Fry, 2009; Noguera, 2006). Nowhere is this more evident than in the widely differing rates of success in algebra - a course that serves as a gatekeeper to college (Flores, 2007; Kelly, 2009) and determines for many students whether they will be able to access higher levels of mathematics, attend college, and compete for the numerous career opportunities that require mathematics skills (Adelman, 2006).

Underlying contributors to students’ difficulties in Algebra I go beyond content specific issues. The 2008 National Math Panel Report underscores powerful interactions between students’ academic performance and social, motivational, and affective influences. Indeed, the report indicated that 61.8% of surveyed teachers identified “working with unmotivated students” as the single largest challenge of teaching Algebra I. The next most common answer, “making mathematics accessible and comprehensible” was chosen by only 11.3% (National Mathematics Advisory Panel, 2008). Providing teachers with proven strategies and support for positively influencing unmotivated students is critical. Exploring the necessary and sufficient components of effective professional development to support teachers’ in this endeavor is the primary goal of this proposal.

Stereotype Threat

As fifteen years of research and over 300 empirical studies have found, stereotype threat (ST) can adversely impact students’ academic performance, and as such, is a key issue in motivation. Fortunately, teachers are uniquely positioned to impact students’ vulnerability to negative stereotypes (Good et al., Under Review). In fact, studies show that their beliefs, actions and discourse contribute to students’ achievement related conceptions, goals, and motivation (Good et al., Under Review; Murayama & Elliot, 2009; Rosenthal & Jacobson, 1968), underscoring the importance of educating teachers about the breadth of their influence on this dimension of student motivation. Researchers have further identified two factors in particular that appear to reduce students’ vulnerability to stereotype threat:

• beliefs about whether intelligence is a fixed capacity that cannot significantly change; and
• beliefs about whether “belonging” as a member of a stereotyped domain hinges on their race or gender (Good, Aronson, & Inzlicht, 2003; Good, Rattan, & Dweck, Under Review).

Critically, both appear to be malleable with minimally invasive, low intensity interventions (Good et al., 2003; Good & Iaffaldano, In Process). And more importantly, both have the potential to be impacted directly by teachers. Research has shown, when these factors shift, susceptibility to ST shifts and so does academic performance.

Considering targeted professional development

In this work, we propose to explore whether professional development focused on stereotype threat and methods of reducing it can positively impact student motivation and thus, achievement. In particular, we propose to investigate the level of intensity and ongoing support necessary for professional development in this area to affect student intrinsic motivation and achievement. In addition, we propose to explore whether the positive effects of interventions on student beliefs about intelligence and sense of belonging that have been found in the laboratory can be replicated when adapted for teacher use in the classroom. We further propose to examine the relationships between teachers’ practices and students’ goal setting and compensation strategies to better understand the mechanisms connecting intelligence beliefs and belongingness with academic outcomes.