Social and emotional competencies in the classroom: teacher characteristics that foster motivation for learning in ESO students

Abstract

ABSTRACT

It can’t be denied that, in the last ten years, research and publications focusing on Social and Emotional Competencies is increasing. This study addresses one of the processes, which according to Goleman (1996), is part of the Emotional Intelligence construct: motivation. Numerous studies deal with its relationship with performance and school failure (Gonzalez, Mendiri and Arias, 2002; Brier, 2006). The increased rates of demotivation in the classroom, coupled with an increasingly lower academic performance in some groups of pupils, together with dysfunctional family situations, justify this study about one of the factors with more impact on students: the characteristics of teachers who are perceived as motivating by the students. Specifically, in this paper, the differences taking into account the courses, the sex and the motivational factors according to the Academic Motivation Scale (EMA, Manassero and Vazquez, 1997, 1998) will be analyze. For this propose, the first findings of a study, with an incidental sample of 350 students from two schools in different areas of Madrid, will be presented. The paper concludes with some recommended guidelines for intervention for teachers in the classroom.