Date

4-26-2024

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)

Chair

Christopher Clark

Keywords

valence, instrumentality, expectancy, adverse childhood experience, emotional, reactivity, math anxiety, test corrections

Disciplines

Educational Leadership

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of middle school students who have challenges in math and their expectations of opportunities provided to improve their performance at a middle school in the Spring Valley School District. The theory that guided this study was Vroom’s expectancy theory, which argues that the tendency of a person to act in a certain way depends on what the person expects to happen, that it will be favorable to the person, and that the person feels the result will provide a potential gain. The central research question was, “How do middle school students describe their thoughts and emotional experiences about their expected performance in math activities?” Thirteen middle school students were chosen to participate using the maximum variation sampling technique based on a prescreening survey to determine their perceived level of math anxiety, which is inversely related to math self-efficacy. The data collection methods were individual interviews, focus groups, and journal prompts. Moustakas’ data analysis methods of horizonalization, reduction and elimination, clustering, textual and structural description of themes, and the synthesis and meaning of the essence guided the data analysis process. From the data analysis, four major themes emerged: (a) emotions related to math performance, (b) motivational factors, (c) test and homework corrections, and (d) the teacher’s role. The study’s findings were discussed, along with recommendations for the findings, and future research recommendations.

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