Student Motivation in Academic Support Classes

The present study was an adapted replication of a previous study by Young (2011). It was designed to discover the best practices and procedures necessary to create a successful academic support program by increasing the motivation, effort, and participation of the students enrolled in these classes. A sample of five administrators and counselors, ten academic support teachers, and 117 students at a Southern California high school took a survey regarding the pros and cons of the class, student motivation, and student goal setting. The quantitative data were analyzed using multiple ANOVAs and Fischer LSD post-hoc analysis, while the qualitative data were thematically grouped. The findings demonstrate a large significant difference between what the school staff believe academically motivates students and what the students self-report. The data also suggest that the longer a student is in the academic support program, the less he/she will find it beneficial.