Student Engagement in Mathematics: A Longitudinal Study of Classroom and Psychosocial Processes

Increasing student engagement is an explicit goal of many reform efforts that address problems of student boredom, alienation, and low achievement. To better understand the processes linked to math engagement, it is important to study the trajectories and patterns of student math engagement and differences by race and gender, the associated motivational and classroom factors, and the impact of engagement on achievement. Understanding the conditions under which classroom characteristics are most effective and for whom can lead to the development and refinement of contextually-relevant interventions and optimal teaching practices that enhance student engagement and achievement in math. The study aims to investigate the classroom and psychosocial processes linked to mathematics engagement from 6th to 8th grade with a racially diverse sample. Understanding these processes among historically underrepresented groups of students is particularly important because it will enhance our ability to broaden participation in STEM and increase the access and involvement of underrepresented groups in STEM learning. The findings can help to identify groups of students who are at greater risk for disengaging from math and potentially turning away from STEM careers and to develop classroom-based interventions that reflect specific contexts, instructional practices, and motivational beliefs. The study has three specific aims: 1. Identify differential trajectory patterns of student engagement in math classes and examine how these trajectory patterns differ by gender and race; 2. Examine how and what instructional and social characteristics predict student engagement in math classes, which in turn predict math achievement; 3. Examine how and what psychological beliefs of teachers and students moderate the associations between classroom characteristics and student engagement in math classes. To meet these goals, the researchers employ both longitudinal quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative study will investigate this complex system of interrelations between classroom and motivational factors and the development over time of these dynamics, while the qualitative study will investigate the different meanings and purposes that students ascribe to their math experiences and self-perceptions about math identity. By examining the reciprocal relationship between classroom characteristics and student engagement in math and variations through collection of classroom observation data, coupled with survey and interview data, the project will identify which classroom and psychosocial predictors are prime targets for raising math engagement. In addition, this project relies on longitudinal, person-centered quantitative and qualitative data to track changes in students' engagement over time, identify engagement trajectories in specific subgroups, and address questions about the desirability of various patterns of engagement and synergy among dimensions of engagement. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.