Browsing by Author "Puljujärvi, Joonas"

The aim of this study is to find out the classroom teachers' perceptions of learning motivation, the factors influencing it and their motivation strategies. I use two different theories related to learning motivation as the theoretical background of the research. These are Deci's and Ryan's (2000) Self-Determination Theory and Eccles’ and Wigfield's (2000) Expectation-Theory. According to these theories, an individual's motivation is constructed by various factors. At the heart of self-determination theory are basic psychological needs that, when fulfilled, increase an individual's intrinsic motivation. According to Decin and Ryan (2000), the basic psychological needs of an individual are perceived autonomy, perceived ability, and a sense of belonging. In Eccles and Wigfield's (2000) expectation value theory, an individual's motivation is again seen to be influenced by performance-related expectations and values. This study is a qualitative and its research approach is a case study.The subject of this study was six classroom teachers. Classroom teachers were interviewed individually using themes related to learning motivation. All interviews were recorded and later transcribed. Thematic design was utilized in the analysis of the obtained material. The results of the study showed that the perceptions of learning motivation of the interviewed teachers were very similar to each other. Three different themes were created from the responses of classroom teachers as factors influencing learning motivation. These included psychological factors, social factors, and student alertness. Three different themes were also created from the motivational strategies provided by the teachers themselves. The themes related to the strategies of motivation were the strategies related to working methods, the strategies related to the learning environment and the strategies related to the learning situation. This research does not actually provide entirely new information on the topic I am researching, but it does give voice to the interviewees ’perceptions of learning motivation. I find this important both from a research point of view and from the individual point of view of the interviewees. Some of the interviewees stated that they had never thought deeper about perceptions of learning motivation, because they felt that it was automatized.