Increasing Academic Motivation in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students From Low Socioeconomic Backgrounds

Abstract

According to research, students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds have lower rates of high school graduation and university attendance. There is little research regarding interventions to address these issues. The current study compared the effects of two programs designed to increase academic motivation. Forty-seven high school female athletes from culturally and linguistically diverse and economically disadvantaged backgrounds participated in the study. The programs were implemented over a 12-week period, 2 days per week within the school day. One group received instruction using a program that was designed by the school's physical education faculty. The other group received instruction using the Possible Selves program (Hock, Schumaker, & Deshler, 2003). The researchers investigated the effects of the programs with regard to the students' level of hope for the future as measured by the Children's Hope Scale (Snyder et al., 1994), records of the students' grades and number of administrative behavioral referrals, students' self-reports about their participation, and researchers' evaluation of the students' goals. The results did not indicate a difference in the students' hopes for the future. There was little difference in overall grade point averages and no difference in behavioral referrals between the two groups. The students' perceptions of their participation in the programs were similar. However, the students in the Possible Selves group indicated that they received more support from an adult during their program, and they reported higher levels of effort toward academics than the comparison group. The most significant finding was a difference in the quality of goals written. The Possible Selves group wrote goals and action plans that were more specific and realistic.