The research team at the LSU Social Research and Evaluation Center of Excellence in the LSU College of Human Sciences and Education conducted six focus groups with educators in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System in the summer of 2024.
During the focus group sessions, the team shared findings from the Math Mind Measure survey administered to 5th-8th grade EBRPSS students in the 2023-2024 school year. The survey asked about student motivations affecting their ideas about math.
The team found that some of the 10 different types of motivation measured by the Math Mind Measure were significantly linked to student performance in their classes.
For the focus groups, the team investigated two types of motivation: inner drive and social value. Educators were asked how they thought schools could increase students’ internal determination to complete math goals and students’ perceptions that their peers and family felt math was important.
The report showcases educators’ recommendations for impacting students’ inner drive and social value around math, outlines the process of collecting educator feedback, and provides specific examples of educator suggestions.
The main findings include suggestions to increase other types of motivation, and the discussion synthesizes these recommendations into next steps.