Patterns of motivation and emotion in mathematics classrooms

Overview & Synopsis

A case is made that the study of state, as opposed to trait, is necessary to give a more rounded picture of affective aspects of students' experience of learning mathematics. This paper is based on a study of disaffection with school mathematics. The study was a primarily qualitative study conducted from a constructivist and interpre-tivist perspective, using Reversal Theory as the main design and interpretive framework. The paper reports findings of some patterns in the students' experience of motivation and emotion in mathematics classrooms. Sequences of motivation and emotion are described, and the notion of dominant narrative is introduced. Two common motivational pathways are described: 'mastery for a reason versus what's the point', and 'engagement and pleasure through interest versus I can't be bothered.