Motivating Students, Improving Schools

For nearly two decades, this series has reflected and chronicled the interests, insights, findings and concerns of motivational researchers. This volume is unique in that it grew out of a conference honoring a major contributor to the motivational literature, Carol Midgley. Yet, it too reflects the richness and variety that exists across motivation research today. While the authors tend to work within a goal theory perspective, they reflect concerns with the range of questions that interest motivation researchers more broadly. True to the tradition established by Carol Midgley, the chapters also exhibit a considered and creative concern with the "real world of achievement". The studies reported or reviewed are largely field-based. The implications drawn have relevance to practitioner as well as theorist. Especially noteworthy is that this collection of chapters does more than review the past. It points to the future - in several ways: asking challenging questions, regarding the implications of current motivation theory for school reform, portraying the potential of new research methods, re-examining tried and true conceptions of the nature and nurture of motivation, and, suggesting new issues and pointing to new venues for application. All in all, this particular volume stands not only as a testament to the life and work of one major figure in the field, but goes a considerable distance in reflecting the diversity of interests and concerns within motivation research more broadly. It also points to what is missing, what has been overlooked, and what needs to be done. Those who are especially concerned with theory, research methods, or applications will each find something of interest and of worth - regardless of their theoretical perspective or specific research focus.