Student Engagement in Mathematics: A Longitudinal Study of Classroom and Psychosocial Processes

This project, which received $845K funding from the National Science Foundation, is a Level 2 study focused on Tracks I and II: STEM Learning and Environment and Broadening Participation in STEM. The study aims to investigate the classroom and psychosocial processes linked to mathematics engagement from 6th to 8th grade with a racially diverse sample. The quantitative study will investigate this complex system of interrelations between classroom and motivational factors and the development over time of these dynamics, while the qualitative study will investigate the different meanings and purposes that students ascribe to their math experiences and self-perceptions about math identity. The study has three specific aims:

1. Identify differential trajectory patterns of student engagement in math classes and examine how these trajectory patterns differ by gender and race;
2. Examine how and what instructional and social characteristics predict student engagement in math classes, which in turn predict math achievement;
3. Examine how and what psychological beliefs of teachers and students moderate the associations between classroom characteristics and student engagement in math classes.