Browsing by Author "Horttanainen, Ida"

Aim. The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of motivation and competence in mathematics within third- and fourth-graders. Additionally, there was objective to find out whether there are gender differences in motivation and mathematics competence. The study also examined the relation between motivation and mathematics competence. Motivation was examined through motivational dimensions of the expectancy-value theory (intrinsic value, utility value, attainment value, cost, and self-concept of ability) and mathematics competence through arithmetic fluency, word problems, and logical thinking. Based on previous research, there is a connection between the self-concept of ability and mathematics competence. However, it should be noted that the subject has been studied little in the context of primary school. Methods. In the thesis I utilized data collected in the MathMot research project. The data was collected by the research assistants from MathMot research project in the spring of 2022 from three municipalities in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. The final data of this study consisted of 871 third graders and 896 fourth graders. Motivation was measured by a motivational instrument based on the expectancy-value theory. Mathematics competence was measured by instruments that measure competence in arithmetic fluency, word problems, and logical thinking. I analyzed the data with IBM SPSS Statistics 27-software. I used descriptive statistics, t-test, Pearson correlation, and variance analysis as analytical methods. Results and conclusions. According to the results of the study, the motivation in mathematics was quite high within third and fourth graders. There were gender differences in motivation in mathematics as self-concept of ability within the boys was higher than within the girls. There were gender differences also in mathematics competence since boys' mathematics competence was higher compared to girls in arithmetic fluency and word problems. However, in terms of logical thinking the result was opposite as girls' competence was better compared to boys. The relation between motivation and mathematics competence was found in areas of cost and self-concept of ability. As the follow-up research it would be interesting to investigate which are the most effective ways to develop the self-concept of ability for girls. Additionally, it would be valuable to find out whether there are still some attitudes in schoolwork that affect the creation of a different self-concept of ability in mathematics for girls and boys.