The Study Of Regulation Of Math Subject Achievement Goals Of Students In Grade One And Grade Two Senior Middle School

Educational psychologists have focused on the study of achievement goal for long, and one common assumption underlying much of this research is that students'pursuit of these goals in a single course remains stable over time. This study examined whether the experimental group students in grade one and grade two senior middle school would regulate their math achievement goals after received positive competence feedback from teachers, as well as the type and trait of the regulation, comparing with control group. The results showed that:1. Perceived math ability had significant positive correlation to four math achievement goals. Math achievement had positive correlation to master-approach goal and performance-a- pproach goal, negative correlation to master-avoid goal and performance-avoid goal. Perceived math ability was a partial mediate between math achievement and master-avoid goal, as well as between math achievement and performance-avoid goal.2. For received more positive competence feedback, experimental group students increased their perceived math ability and interest, meanwhile decreased their pursuit of master-avoid goal and performance-avoid goal.3. After received positive competence feedback from teachers, boys in experimental group more likely decreased their pursuit of performance-avoid goal than girls, and girls in experimental group more likely increased their pursuit of master-approach goal and interest in math than boys.4. After received positive competence feedback from teachers, grade one students in experimental group more likely decreased their pursuit of performance-avoid goal and increased their perceived math ability than grade two students, and grade two students more likely increased their pursuit master-approach goal and interest than grade one students.5. All the students regulated their achievement goals over the whole semester, not only experimental group but also control group, but the two groups had different type of regulation. Students in experimental group regulated their achievement goals with the complex form of regulation– goal switching, and they switched from master-avoid goal and performance-avoi- d goal to master-approach goal. Students in control group regulated their achievement goals with the simple form of regulation– goal intensification, representing that they increased their pursuit of master-approach goal.