Growth orientation predicts gains in middle and high school students’ mathematics outcomes over time

Abstract

Academic growth constructs, such as growth mindset and various forms of growth goals, have been of substantial focus in psycho-educational research. Recent research has sought to identify how such growth constructs are inter-related, finding that an underlying growth orientation (comprised of growth mindset, self-based growth goals, and task-based growth goals) was cross-sectionally associated with more positive outcomes for students. However, for such a construct to have meaningful relevance to education and educational research, it must be associated with actual growth in academic outcomes. Accordingly, using two-wave longitudinal structural equation modeling in a large sample of Australian middle and high school students (N = 2949), we examined the extent to which students’ growth orientation predicted growth in academic outcomes. We hypothesized that students’ growth orientation would be positively associated with gains in students’ mathematics engagement and achievement, while controlling for student demographic covariates (e.g., gender, age) and prior variance in each substantive factor measured one year prior. Results demonstrated that students' growth orientation in mathematics was a significant positive predictor of students' gains in mathematics engagement and achievement, above other sources of influence. Findings are discussed in terms of improving researchers’ understanding of how growth constructs are inter-related and how to promote students’ academic success in mathematics.