The importance of teachers and school environment for motivating adolescents for secondary school study

The paper deals with secondary education, one that is often marginalized by experts in the field. A research project undertaken at the Psycholog y Department of Faculty of Arts, Charles University included diagnostic testing of nearly five hundred secondary school students and their teachers. The Motivation and Performance Questionnaire was among the methods used. It was used specifically for collecting data on motivation for learning in formal education among the students and motivation for teaching among the teachers. The results suggest remarkable difference between the two groups, pointing to areas to seek for opportunities for developing the potential of students and motivating them for study during a stage when motivation of students to learn in formal setting generally drops significantly. The diagnostics also relied on an original Education Style Questionnaire developed by I. Gillernova, focusing on the degree of emotional involvement and requirements on/freedom given to students. A third method applied was semantic differential by Osgood, used to test relevant characteristics of school environment and school atmospere. The results were tested for correlation and found to clearly suggest a connection between motivation for study at school on the one hand and educational style of teachers and perceived school environment on the other. The main focus of the paper is on the importance of teachers and school quality in motivating adolescents for school study. The effect of other factors – such as the importance of peer groups and family background – is considered, too.

keywords: adolescents, teachers, motivation, types of motivation at school, educational styles, school environment and atmosphere