The role of parenting styles and teacher interactional styles in children's reading and spelling development.

Abstract This study examined the associations between parenting styles, teacher interactional styles, and children's reading and spelling skills. The sample consisted of 864 Finnish-speaking children and their parents (864 mothers, 864 fathers) and teachers ( N  = 123). Children's risk for reading disabilities and reader status were assessed in kindergarten. Children were also tested on reading and spelling skills in Grades 1 and 2. Parenting styles and teacher interactional styles were measured using parents' and teachers' self-reports in Grade 1. First, the results indicated that both an authoritative parenting style and authoritative teacher interactional style positively predicted child…

Verkottumista ja vertaiskehittelyä : 10 vuotta tutkimus- ja aluekehitystyötä

The development of school and sports task values among adolescent athletes : The role of gender

AbstractSuccessfully integrating elite sports with education requires motivation to commit oneself to both domains. This study examines the development of and gender differences in adolescent athletes’ task values for school and sports across the upper secondary school years. A total of 391 adolescents (aged 15–16 at the beginning of the study) were followed four times during sports upper secondary school. The participating student athletes were recruited from six sports upper secondary schools in Finland, which offer equal competitive sport opportunities for both genders. The results showed that school- and sports- task values are strongly related to each other. Males valued school less th…

The role of parents' and teachers' beliefs in children's self-concept development

This study examined to what extent parents' and teachers' beliefs about children's abilities predict children's self-concept of math and reading ability development during the first grade, and whether these predictions depend on the child's gender and level of performance. One hundred fifty-two children and their parents and teachers were followed across first grade. The results showed, first, that the associations between teachers' beliefs and children's subsequent self-concept of ability depended on the level of the children's performance. Among high-performers, the higher the teachers' beliefs about their students' abilities in reading or in math, the higher the subsequent level of self-…

Children's Temperament and Academic Skill Development During First Grade: Teachers' Interaction Styles as Mediators.

The present study followed 156 Finnish children (Mage = 7.25 years) during the first grade of primary school to examine to what extent parent- and teacher-rated temperament impacts children's math and reading skill development during the first grade, and the extent to which this impact would be mediated by teachers' interaction styles with the children. The results showed that the impact of children's low task orientation and negative emotionality on their math skill development was mediated via teachers' behavioral control and, among girls, also by psychological control. The negative impact of children's inhibition on math skill development, in turn, was not mediated via teachers' interact…

Cross‐lagged associations between kindergarten teachers' causal attributions and children's task motivation and performance in reading

The present study investigated whether kindergarten teachers' causal attributions would predict children's reading‐related task motivation and performance, or whether it is rather children's motivation and performance that contribute to teachers' causal attributions. To investigate this, 69 children (five to six years old at baseline) and their teachers were examined twice during the kindergarten year. Teachers filled in a questionnaire measuring their causal attributions twice during the kindergarten year. Information about the children's reading‐related task motivation and performance was gathered at the beginning of and at the end of the kindergarten year. The results showed that the hig…

Maternal homework approach and adolescents’ academic skills: The mediating role of task values

The present study investigated the mediating role of the task values between the types of maternal homework approach (perceptions of their child’s autonomy or direct involvement) and adolescents’ academic skills. Data were utilized from 995 mother–child dyads followed across Grades 6, 7, and 9. At each time-point, mothers answered questionnaires on the types of their homework approach, adolescents answered questionnaires about their task values for math and Finnish, and adolescents’ skills in math (arithmetic and multiplication) and reading (reading fluency and reading comprehension) were tested. Separate longitudinal structural equation models were estimated for math and for reading. The r…

Motivation and academic performance among first-graders : A person-oriented approach

The present study applies a person-oriented approach to examine the motivational patterns children show on the basis of their reading- and math-related intrinsic value and self-concept of ability and how these patterns are related to their reading and math performance during the first grade of elementary school. The participants were 156 first grade children. The children were examined at the beginning and at the end of their first grade of elementary school. Five groups of children showing differing motivational patterns were identified using the ISOA procedure: Positive, Negative, Math-motivated, Reading-motivated, and Low interest but high belief. Children's motivational patterns were as…

Finnish Students’ Engagement in Science Lessons

The decreasing number of students who are engaged in science learning has been recognised as a problem. The pre-conditions of engagement and actual engagement were examined using a novel research method to obtain detailed information on Finnish students’ engagement in different situations and to gain a better understanding of this phenomenon. The study’s participants consisted of 68 students (31 girls, 37 boys) from 9th grade and 67 students (46 girls, 21 boys) from 1st grade in upper secondary school. The research aimed to answer the following question: How does Finnish students’ engagement occur in exact and life science lessons? Participants received smartphones equipped with a smartphon…

The role of mothers' beliefs in students' self-concept of ability development

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the child-related competence beliefs of mothers are associated with the development of Finnish adolescents' self-concept of mathematics and literacy ability during their transition from primary to lower secondary school and whether these associations depend on adolescents' level of performance. The results showed that, first, adolescents' self-concept of mathematics and literacy ability decreased over time. The impact of maternal beliefs on the linear trend of the self-concept of mathematics and literacy ability was dependent on the level of students' performance. Mothers' high beliefs buffered against the decrease in adolescents' self-concep…

The Role of Task Values in Adolescents' Educational Tracks: A Person-Oriented Approach

The present study examined what kinds of patterns of task-values adolescents show, and whether these patterns predict their educational and occupational expectations and school track. Six hundred and fourteen adolescents were examined twice before their transition to secondary education and once thereafter. The clustering-by-cases analyses identified 6 groups: (1) those who placed a high value on all school subjects, (2) those who did not value any of the subjects, (3) those who valued Finnish and social sciences, (4) those who valued in particular practical and art subjects, (5) those who valued only practical and art subjects, and (6) those who especially valued mathematics and science. T…

Neljäsluokkalaisten lasten oppiainekohtainen koulumotivaatio ja sen yhteys suoritusstrategioihin

Introducing the DYNAMICS framework of moment-to-moment development in achievement motivation

This article introduces a new theoretical and psychometric framework describing moment-to-moment development and inter-dependencies of achievement motivation in terms of the situated expectancy-value theory, by introducing dynamical systems concepts into this line of research. As a first empirical example of a study using this framework, we examined whether task values, costs, and success expectancies measured in a learning situation (time point t) predicted themselves and each other at the next situation (t + 1; 27 min later) within a weekly university lecture. Situational task values, expectancies, and costs were assessed using the experience sampling method in 155 university teacher trai…

The role of parental affection and psychological control in adolescent athletes' symptoms of school and sport burnout during the transition to upper secondary school.

Abstract Introduction The transition from compulsory school to upper secondary school is a challenging period for adolescents. Especially challenging it can be for adolescents who aim to integrate two domains of achievement, such as an athletic career and academic education. The pressure from two intertwined achievement domains may make student-athletes vulnerable to symptoms of burnout. The study examined the role of mothers' and fathers’ affection and psychological control as possible risk or protective factors in the symptoms of school and sport burnout among 15–16 year olds adolescent athletes in Finland. Methods The adolescents’ (n = 391) burnout symptoms in the two domains were measur…

Teacher ability evaluation and changes in elementary student profiles of motivation and performance in mathematics

Abstract The aim of this person-centered study is to identify the profiles of interest value, self-concept, and performance in the domain of mathematics among elementary school students and to examine the stability and changes in these profiles from grade 1 to grade 2. Teacher-reported evaluations of students' mathematical ability and gender were examined as predictors of changes in the student profiles. The sample consisted of 237 students (46.8% girls). The latent profile analysis identified four profiles: 1) low levels of interest value, medium levels of self-concept and performance; 2) low levels of interest value, self-concept and performance; 3) high levels of interest value, self-con…

The role of maternal support of competence, autonomy and relatedness in children's interests and mastery orientation

Abstract The present study investigated the extent to which mothers' support for their children's sense of competence, autonomy and relatedness predicts their children's interest in math and reading, and also their mastery orientation, during the transition to primary school. One hundred fifty-two children were examined twice during their first grade year regarding their interests and mastery orientation (Time 1 and Time 2). Mothers filled in a diary and questionnaire measuring maternal support, also on two occasions (Time 1 and Time 2). Children's school performance in reading and math was tested at the beginning of the first grade (Time 1). The results showed that, after controlling for t…

Cross-lagged relations between task motivation and performance in arithmetic and literacy in kindergarten

Abstract To examine the cross-lagged relationships between children's task motivation in mathematics and literacy, and their related performance, 139 children aged 5–6 years were examined twice during their kindergarten year. The results showed that only math-related task motivation and arithmetic performance showed cross-lagged relationship: the higher the math-related task motivation children reported in the beginning of the kindergarten year the higher the level of their arithmetic performance at the end of the kindergarten year. Moreover, the higher the level of children's arithmetic performance the more the interest in mathematics children reported later on. Literacy-related task motiv…

The role of teaching practices in the development of children’s interest in reading and mathematics in kindergarten

Abstract This study examined the extent to which teaching practices observed in kindergarten classrooms predict children’s interest in reading and mathematics. The pre-skills in reading and mathematics of 515 children were measured at the beginning of their kindergarten year, and their interest in reading and mathematics were assessed in the following spring. A pair of trained observers used the Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure (ECCOM; Stipek & Byler, 2004 ) to observe the teaching practices used by 49 kindergarten teachers. The results revealed that in classrooms in which the teachers placed greater emphasis on child-centered teaching practices than on teacher-directed practic…

Investigating Bidirectional Links Between the Quality of Teacher-Child Relationships and Children’s Interest and Pre‐Academic Skills in Literacy and Math

This study investigated bidirectional links between the quality of teacher–child relationships and children's interest and pre‐academic skills in literacy and math. Furthermore, differences in the patterns of bidirectionality between boys and girls were explored. Participants were 461 Finnish kindergarteners (6‐year‐olds) and their teachers (n = 48). Teachers reported their closeness and conflict with each child twice throughout the kindergarten year. Children rated their interest in literacy and math, and were tested on their pre‐academic skills. Cross‐lagged path models indicated that teacher‐perceived conflict predicted lower interest and pre‐academic skills in both literacy and math. Re…

Teachers adapt their instruction according to students’ academic performance

This study examined the extent to which a student’s academic performance in first grade contributes to the active instruction given by a teacher to a particular student. To investigate this, 105 first graders were tested in mathematics and reading in the fall and spring of their first school year. At the same time points, their teachers filled in a questionnaire on five successive days on the active instruction they have given a particular student. The results showed that the poorer the performance in reading a student showed in fall, the more active instruction teachers reported giving a student in spring. Moreover, the poorer the performance in mathematics a student showed in fall, the mo…

THE DEVELOPMENT OF ADOLESCENTS’ SELF-CONCEPT OF ABILITY THROUGH GRADES 7-9 AND THE ROLE OF PARENTAL BELIEFS

This study examined the development of adolescents’ self-concept of ability in mathematics and literacy during secondary school, and the role that mothers’ and fathers’ beliefs concerning their child’s abilities play in this development. Also examined was whether the role of mothers’ and fathers’ beliefs about their adolescent child’s ability in mathematics and literacy differs according to the adolescent’s gender and level of performance. A total of 231 adolescents and their mothers and fathers were followed up across secondary school. The results showed, first, that adolescents’ self-concept of ability declined slightly from grade 7 to grade 9 in both mathematics and literacy. Second, mot…

The development and role of task motivation and task values during different phases of the school career

Adolescents’ preparedness and motivation across the transition to post-comprehensive education

This longitudinal study aims to test the concept of transition preparedness in the context of educational transitions. The study investigates how adolescents' transition preparedness, conceptualized as their self-efficacy beliefs and their inoculation against setbacks, before an educational transition affect the adolescents' school value and effort related to educational goals after the transition through the effects on achievement goal orientations. Student data from three waves of a longitudinal study are used, first collected in 2004 (before the students' transition from comprehensive school to upper secondary education) and then collected twice after the transition. The students include…

Parental Affection and Psychological Control as Mediators Between Parents’ Depressive Symptoms and Child Distress

The present study investigated the extent to which parental behavior in daily interaction with one’s child mediates the associations between parental depressive symptoms and children’s daily distress. The participants were 152 Finnish families with a 6- to 7-year-old child. Parents’ depressive symptoms were assessed using the revised Beck Depression Inventory. Children’s distress was operationalized as negative daily emotions assessed by using mother-, father-, and teacher-reported diary questionnaires. Parental affection and psychological control in daily interaction were measured using parent self-reported diary questionnaires. The results of structural equation modeling showed that both…

Ylioppilastutkinnon, tavoiteorientaatioiden ja muiden motivaatiotekijöiden yhteys luokanopettajakoulutukseen hakeneiden menestymiseen VAKAVA-valintakokeessa

Tässä tutkimuksessa selvitettiin ylioppilastutkinnon yleisarvosanan, tavoiteorientaatioiden ja muiden motivaatiotekijöiden yhteyttä menestymiseen valtakunnallisessa kasvatusalan valintayhteistyöverkoston toteuttamassa opiskelijavalintakokeessa (VAKAVA). Tutkimukseen osallistuivat Jyväskylän yliopiston luokanopettajakoulutukseen pyrkineet hakijat vuosina 2014 ja 2015 (n = 399). Tutkimusaineisto koostui VAKAVAkoepistemääristä sekä hakijoiden itsearvioinneista, jotka liittyivät erilaisiin tavoiteorientaatioihin (oppimis-, saavutus-, suoritus-lähestymis-, suoritus-välttämis- ja välttämisorientaatio) sekä muihin motivaatiotekijöihin (kokemus opiskelun mielekkyydestä, luovutusherkkyys ja epäonnis…

The role of parental expectations and students' motivational profiles for educational aspirations

Abstract The present study examined the stability and change of students' motivational profiles from Grade 7 (Time 1) to Grade 9 (Time 2), using task values and self-concepts of ability in mathematics, Finnish language, and arts as indicator variables. The study also examined the effects of students' (Grade 7: N  = 231; Grade 9: N  = 237) motivational profiles and of their parents' educational expectations at Grade 7 on their short- and long-term educational plans at Grade 9, controlling for gender and academic achievement. The latent profile analysis identified four motivational profiles: (1) low motivation group; (2) high motivation group; (3) math-motivated group; (4) practical group, wh…

Situational expectancies and task values: Associations with students' effort

Abstract According to expectancy-value theory, expectancies and task values are precursors for investing effort into learning. To date, it remains largely unknown (1) to what extent expectancies and values change from one learning situation to another and (2) to what extent inter-individual findings reflect intra-individual motivational processes. We applied an intensive longitudinal design in a sample of 155 pre-service teacher students attending a lecture. Across ten lessons with varying topics, students reported three times per lesson on their situational effort, expectancies, task values (intrinsic, attainment, utility), and cost. We used multilevel structural equation modeling with lea…

Maternal homework assistance and children's task-persistent behavior in elementary school

The present study used a sample of 365 children to investigate the longitudinal associations between maternal homework assistance (i.e., help, monitoring, and autonomy granting) and children's task-persistent behavior in learning situations from grade 2 to grade 4 of elementary school. Also, the extent to which task-persistent behavior plays a role in the links between parental homework assistance and children's academic performance was examined. The results showed that the more autonomy granting mothers reported, the more task-persistent behavior children exhibited; and more task-persistent behavior children exhibited, the more autonomy their mothers granted. In contrast, the more mothers …

Maternal homework assistance and children's task-persistent behavior in elementary school

Abstract The present study used a sample of 365 children to investigate the longitudinal associations between maternal homework assistance (i.e., help, monitoring, and autonomy granting) and children's task-persistent behavior in learning situations from grade 2 to grade 4 of elementary school. Also, the extent to which task-persistent behavior plays a role in the links between parental homework assistance and children's academic performance was examined. The results showed that the more autonomy granting mothers reported, the more task-persistent behavior children exhibited; and more task-persistent behavior children exhibited, the more autonomy their mothers granted. In contrast, the more…

Classroom effect on primary school students’ self-concept in literacy and mathematics

AbstractAccording to the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLP) model, high individual academic performance in a particular subject is related to high self-concept in that subject, whereas high average classroom performance has a negative effect on self-concept. In the present study, data from Finnish primary school students in grade 3 (504 students), grade 4 (487 students), and grade 6 (365 students) are used to examine whether the assumptions of the BFLP effect model hold already in primary school. Furthermore, we examined gender differences in BFLP effect. The results showed that as expected students’ high performance in literacy and in mathematics was related to high self-concept in the sam…

The impact of children’s socioemotional development on parenting styles: the moderating effect of social withdrawal

This study focused on associations between children’s socioemotional development (prosocial behaviour, internalizing and externalizing problems) and parenting styles (affection, behavioural control, and psychological control), and the moderating role of children’s social withdrawal (as a temperamental characteristic) in these associations. Children’s socioemotional development (n = 314) were rated by teachers at three-time points (grades 1–3). Parents completed questionnaires measuring their parenting styles at the same three-time points. The level of social withdrawal was obtained at the end of kindergarten from teachers’ reports. Panel analysis showed that prosocial behaviour was associat…

The Developmental Dynamics between Interest, Self-concept of Ability, and Academic Performance

Abstract. Only a few studies have examined the direction of associations between academic achievement, interest, and sel f-concept of ability simultaneously by using longitudinal data over several school years. To exam ine the cross-lagged relationships between students’ interest, self-concept of ability, and performance in mathematics and reading, longitudinal data from Grade 1 to Grade 7 of comprehensive school was gathered from 216 students. The results showed that, in both reading and math, performance predicted students’ subsequent self-concept of ability. Some evidence was also found that math performance predicts subsequent interest in mathematics, and that self- concept of math abil…

Does daily distress make parents prone to using psychologically controlling parenting?

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether parental daily distress in terms of negative emotions is associated with the daily variation in parental use of psychological control with their children. Whether parental positive emotions play a role in the use of psychological control was also investigated. The participants were 149 Finnish families with a child between the ages of 6 and 7 years. Parents’ negative and positive emotions, children’s misconduct, and parental use of psychological control when interacting with their children were measured daily using diary questionnaires filled in by the mothers and fathers over 7 successive days in the fall term of the children’s first…

The role of parents in students' motivational beliefs and values

Patterns of word reading skill, interest and self-concept of ability

AbstractThe majority of previous research on academic skills, self-concept of ability and interest has deployed the variable-oriented approach and focused on self-concept, or ability, or interest only. This study examined the patterns and dynamics of pattern change in Finnish children’s word reading skill, self-concept of ability and interest from kindergarten to Grade 2. Six groups of children were identified by using the I-states as objects analysis (ISOA) procedure: (a) low skills, negative self-concept but high interest; (b) high skills but low interest; (c) average; (d) high skills, positive self-concept and high interest; (e) low skills, negative self-concept and low interest; and (f)…

The role of temperament in children's affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations

Abstract Although students' affects and behaviors in achievement situations have been shown to be influenced by their previous learning experiences, less is known about how they relate to students' dispositional characteristics, such as temperament. This study examined to what extent children's temperament is related to their affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations. Teachers rated first-graders' ( n  = 153) temperamental characteristics in the Fall semester. Children's active task avoidance, anxiety, and helplessness were rated in test situations in the Fall and Spring semesters. The results showed that the more easily distracted the children were, the more task avoidan…

Temperamentally inhibited children are at risk for poorer maths performance : self-concept as mediator

AbstractIt has repeatedly been found that temperamental inhibition and low academic achievement are associated with each other: children with cautious and wary or shy behaviour are at risk for low academic achievement. Several suggestions about the mechanism behind this association have been made, these highlighting for example, the fewer learning opportunities of cautious and wary children and more negative interaction between teachers and inhibited children. However, the empirical studies about these mechanisms are rare and, thus, they have remained unclear. This study examined whether children’s maths-related self-concept of ability acts as a mediator between their temperamental inhibiti…