Cognitive and Motivational Characteristics of Elementary Teachers in General Education Classrooms and in Gifted Programs

Abstract

Whether teachers in general education classrooms and in gifted programs differ in their cognitive and motivational characteristics was examined in 182 elementary school teachers. The teacher characteristics examined were epistemological beliefs (beliefs about the nature of knowledge and beliefs about the nature of learning), metacognition (planning, monitoring, and strategy selection), and motivation (self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, and goal orientation). Teachers in gifted programs reported more sophisticated epistemological beliefs, higher learning-goal orientation, and lower performance-goal orientation than did teachers in general education classrooms. However, perceived use of metacognitive strategies, self-efficacy, and intrinsic motivation were not different between the two groups. Teachers in general reported epistemological sophistication more in the nature of learning than in the nature of knowledge, that they use cognitive strategies more so than planning and monitoring of their activities, and that they are more learning-goal oriented than performance-goal oriented. It is suggested that more courses and trainings are needed for preservice and in-service teachers so they have opportunities to learn and self-reflect on their own characteristics. Putting the Research to Use This study compared trait-level cognitive and motivational characteristics between teachers in gifted programs and teachers in general education classrooms. The findings provide some evidence that teachers in gifted programs and teachers in general education classrooms have characteristic differences and that gifted students in pullout programs seem to be more likely to have teachers with certain favorable characteristics. The reality is that the majority of gifted children spend most of their hours in general education classrooms. Therefore, the focus should be whether teacher training can provide opportunities for preservice and in-service teachers in general education as well as in gifted education programs, to become aware of these characteristics evidenced as having strong relationships with student learning. Beyond teacher knowledge and skills, teacher attributes and beliefs about student learning are underscored as important areas in teacher preparation for differentiating instruction for gifted children in the general education classroom. Preservice and in-service teacher trainings should provide teachers with opportunities to learn and self-reflect on their own cognitive and motivational characteristics as they develop into effective teachers.