The
conceptual framework in Fig. 2.1 is a schemer or model that reflects the
interrelationship between the two variables in the study. According to the
model (Fig. 2.1) the independent variable (i.e. nature of schools) is
conceptualized in terms of public and private primary schools which are assumed
to affect pupils' academic performance (dependent variable). The framework
further reflect that there are other factors referred to as intervening
variables which are assumed the moderate the relationship between the
independent and the dependent variable.
2.2 Theoretical perspective
Attribution theory (Weiner, 1980, 1992) cited in Weiner, B.
(2000) is probably the most influential contemporary theory with implications
for academic motivation. It incorporates behavior modification in the sense
that it emphasizes the idea that learners are strongly motivated by the
pleasant outcome of being able to feel good about themselves. It incorporates
cognitive theory and self-efficacy theory in the sense that it emphasizes that
learners' current self-perceptions will strongly influence the ways in which
they will interpret the success or failure of their current efforts and hence
their future tendency to perform these same behaviors.
According to attribution theory, the explanations that people
tend to make to explain success or failure can be analyzed in terms of three
sets of characteristics:
First, the cause of the success or failure may be internal or
external. That is, we may succeed or fail because of factors that we believe
have their origin within us or because of factors that originate in our
environment.
Second, the cause of the success or failure may be either
stable or unstable. If the we believe cause is stable, then the outcome is
likely to be the same if we perform the same behavior on another occasion. If
it is unstable, the outcome is likely to be different on another occasion.
Third, the cause of the success or failure may be either
controllable or uncontrollable. A controllable factor is one which we believe
we ourselves can alter if we wish to do so. An uncontrollable factor is one
that we do not believe we can easily alter.
An important assumption of attribution theory is that people
will interpret their environment in such a way as to maintain a positive
self-image. That is, they will attribute their successes or failures to factors
that will enable them to feel as good as possible about themselves. In general,
this means that when learners succeed at an academic task, they are likely to
want to attribute this success to their own efforts or abilities; but when they
fail, they will want to attribute their failure to factors over which they have
no control, such as bad teaching or bad luck.
The basic principle of
attribution theory as it applies to motivation is that a person's own
perceptions or attributions for success or failure determine the amount of
effort the person will expend on that activity in the future. There are four
factors related to attribution theory that influence motivation in education:
ability, task difficulty, effort, and luck. On the basis of this theory
the study suggest that pupils' academic performance is determined by the nature
of schools.
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