Teachers' and coaches' motivation to participate in training and the implementation of educational innovations

Abstract

The purpose of the present PhD research was the in-depth examination of Greek teachers’ and youth football coaches’ work specific motivation regarding two work tasks promoting educational innovations; (a) participation in training and (b) implementing innovative practices. Drawing from social-cognitive psychology, two prominent theoretical frameworks of human motivation namely Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2002) and Achievement Goals Theory (AGT; Ames, 1990; Dweck, 1986; Nicholls, 1984), guided this investigation in order to better explain and understand various aspects of participants’ intentions, behaviors, beliefs and thoughts in real life situations. In order to examine theoretical hypotheses in diverse contexts and populations, four different purposefully selected samples of educators-instructors were invited to participate in the research. Specifically, participants were youth football coaches (n=15), pre-service physical education teachers (n=52), in-service secondary school teachers (n=287) and physical educators (n=92) who were taking part in independent programs aiming at promoting instructional innovations.To triangulate and to complement findings, multiple sources of data were utilized, such as face-to-face interviews, questionnaires, on-line surveys, open-ended questions, and email interviews. Thus, for the purposes of the present research a multiphase mixed methods design (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011) was adopted (see Table 2, p. 56) in terms of data gathering and analyses, where multiple studies were conducted sequentially and concurrently, to inform one another and to answer three overarching research questions: (a) Why do some individuals decide to participate in training aiming to promote educational innovation? (b)Why are some educators more engaged than others with educational innovations? (c) How this involvement with instructional innovation might be fostered?Cumulatively, the findings of the studies described below suggest that not only individual motivation plays a very important role in their work behaviors, but the quality of this motivation is the element that makes the difference. From quantitative and qualitative data it was evident that educators (i.e., secondary school teachers, PE teachers and youth football coaches) decide to participate in training programs promoting innovative instruction, primarily for autonomous intrinsic and well internalized extrinsic reasons, while non-autonomous extrinsic reasons may exist but in a much smaller extent and vigor. Furthermore it seems that the most autonomous motivated individuals are those who are mastery/learning oriented in their working behaviors, meaning that they embrace this kind of disposition in a variety of work tasks. In addition, educators’ future intention for engagement with innovations was found to be determined only by their autonomous motivation and mastery goals orientation, and not by controlled motivations and performance goals. Nevertheless, it appeared that teachers may hold different beliefs about their capabilities (i.e., self-efficacy) to implement different aspects of an educational innovation. These findings suggest that during the design phase of an educational novelty/change, it would be meaningful apart from educators’ motivation quality, to take into account their self-efficacy beliefs, as well. Hence, stemming from empirical evidence and the theoretical foundation of the present research, suggestions to foster teachers’ and coaches’ optimal involvement with innovative instruction include the establishment of a work environment for teachers, supporting and enhancing their mastery goals and autonomous motivations. According to the existing theory and research, this work climate must (a) emphasize personal development, effort expenditure and persistence, (b) constantly deliver opportunities for collaboration and experimentation, (c) provide frequently, corrective non-threatening feedback and support (e.g., by colleagues, superiors and experts).