Date
6-19-2024
Department
School of Behavioral Sciences
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD)
Chair
Danisha Keating
Keywords
Teacher as Social Context Questionnaire, self-determination theory, needs-supportive teaching practices, standardized test scores, autonomy, competence, relatedness, motivation
Disciplines
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Recommended Citation
Barlow, Ed, "Needs-Supportive Teaching and Its Impact on Standardized Test Scores in Southwest Missouri Schools" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 5745.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5745
Abstract
Despite the theoretical proposition that needs-supportive teaching practices, guided by self-determination theory (SDT), can positively influence student academic outcomes, research examining the relationship between teachers' self-reported needs-supportive behaviors and objective measures of student performance, such as standardized test scores, is scarce. This study investigated the correlation between teachers' needs-supportive practices, as assessed by the Teacher as Social Context Questionnaire (TASCQ), and their students' academic achievement based on standardized test results. The sample consisted of 31 K-12 teachers from various grade levels in public schools located in Southwest Missouri. Participants completed the TASCQ, which measures needs-supportive teaching in terms of autonomy support, competence support, and relatedness support. The primary outcome measure was the percentage of students in each teacher's classroom who achieved proficiency or higher on standardized tests. Contrary to expectations, the study found no significant correlation between teachers' self-reported needs-supportive teaching practices and the percentage of their students achieving proficiency or higher on standardized tests. Furthermore, the study observed no significant correlations between the individual dimensions of autonomy, competence, and relatedness support and students' test performance. This research contributes to the field of educational psychology by highlighting the complexity of the relationship between teaching practices and student achievement, suggesting that sole reliance on standardized test scores may not fully capture the influence of needs-supportive teaching on student growth and development. Future research should explore alternative indicators of student success and investigate the potential long-term effects of needs-supportive teaching on student motivation, engagement, and well-being.
