Browsing by Author "Reivinen, Anna"

Aims. The aim of the study was to find out the relations between attention, formal operational thought, psychological well-being and school achievement and choices of educational tracks. The thesis complements the study and modelling carried out by the Centre for Educational Assessment and Unit of Special Education of the University of Helsinki by adding psychological well-being to the model of attention, formal operational thought and future plans. Method. The data consisted of a sample of ninth graders from six comprehensive schools from a municipality in Eastern Finland. The size of the sample was N=287 of which girls 53% (ngirls=152) ja boys 47% (nboys=135. The data were gathered using a computer-assisted ACT-test, a multiple choice Formula-test and a BPNS-questionnaire. The data were analyzed using correlations, linear regression and general linear model (GLM) two-way analysis of variance. Results. Both girls' and boys' experience of competence and formal operational thought had a statistically significant relation between school achievement. Regarding girls, competence was a stronger explanatory variable than formal operational thought, whereas regarding boys formal operational thought was a stronger explanatory variable than competence. When girls' choices of educational tracks were examined it appeared that attention and competence were statistically significant explanatory variables regarding the choice of academic track. Boys' choices of the academic track could only be explained by competence. It also appeared that attention had a statistically significant correlation between formal operational thought which in turn was correlated with school achievement. This confirmed the assumption given by previous studies that attention has an indirect effect on school achievement via formal operational thought. The thesis is part of a study (attention, thinking skills, self-determination theory and school achievement) carried out by the Centre of Educational Assessment and Unit of Special Education of the University of Helsinki.