Master of Education (M.Ed.) Theses

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The Effects of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations on Academic Performance of Seventh Grade Students
(2015) Chirica, Bettina; Kariuki, Patrick
The purpose of this study was to examine the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on academic performance of 7th grade health students. The population of this study came from University School, which was a K-12 laboratory school enrolling 499 students, 267 included girls and 232 included boys. The sample consisted of 7th grade students between the ages of 13 and 14 year olds in a health class. There was a total of 16 students of which 10 were girls and 6 were boys. Two units, which were similar in comprehension and difficulty, were selected for this study. First unit was taught using extrinsic motivation strategies and second was taught using intrinsic motivation strategies. At the end of each unit the students were administered a unit test and data were recorded. Both test scores were compared for difference. The results showed no significant difference in overall test scores when students were taught using extrinsic and intrinsic strategies. Similarly, no significant difference was found when boys and girls were compared. However, the overall mean score of intrinsic motivation was slightly higher. The results suggest that teaching using intrinsic motivation strategies may be beneficial to students than using extrinsic motivation.