Learning in basic electricity: how do motivation, cognitive and classroom climate factors influence achievement in physics?

Abstract

The study of school learning cannot be reduced to cognitive aspects alone, because motivational factors, teaching methodology and other classroom‐contextual factors exercise a significant influence. In this study we describe a school experiment in which the learning history of students is followed by the use of tests, and, at the same time, the psychological context of their learning is monitored and examined. From data on physics achievement and on psychological constructs, we attempt to elucidate the relationship between the two using LISREL analysis. The analyses of the results for the total population and for particular student groups led to conclusions that, taken as a whole, confirm the complex approach. Cognitive factors and interest contribute relatively stable components in all the path analyses. The variations show up in the domains of emotions and of learning strategies, and in the perception of the social climate.