Introduction
My study is about the effect of using strategies based on Keller’s ARCS model of motivation on the reading motivation of students who participated in McConnell Middle School’s Readers Rally program, a reading incentive program that ended in a county quiz bowl-type competition. The ARCS model states that motivation strategies should focus on four areas: attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction, and has been used in many instructional situations, including promoting reading. I used a variety of ARCS motivational strategies at team meetings, and examined the effects of those strategies on the team members by administering a pre-survey and post-survey that measured motivation, as well as administering a student reflection instrument at the end of the program.
Background
Reading is fundamental to success in school, and is integral to the school library media specialist’s mission. If we are to ensure that students are effective users of ideas and information, it is imperative that students be able to read well. Studies have shown a link between time spent reading and reading achievement (Cullinan, 2000, Krashen, 2006, Taylor, Frye and Maruyana, 1990). Thus, programs which encourage reading are a worthwhile endeavor for the school library media specialist. Because students today have many demands on their time, it can be difficult to keep them interested and motivated enough to complete the required reading for a program. The Readers Rally program in particular requires students to read five or more books on their own time within a five month period, as well as to attend weekly meetings. Examining the effect of using a research-based model of motivational strategies such as Keller’s ARCS model can lead to a better understanding of factors that motivate students to read.
Research Question
How does using Keller’s ARCS model of motivation as a framework for team meetings affect the reading motivation of students on McConnell’s Readers Rally team?
Importance of the Study
Understanding the factors that motivate students to read helps media specialists to employ motivational strategies in their media program, and thus create more motivated readers. The rewards of this motivation will include students who have honed their reading skills, are excited about reading, and whose excitement may influence the reading habits of other students.
Context
The context of this problem was school-wide, since students from all grade levels were invited to join the team. The media center served as the home base for McConnell’s Readers Rally program, which consisted of fifteen meetings before school to study and discuss the twenty books nominated for the Georgia Book Awards. The program culminated in a county-wide bowl competition on Saturday, February 2, 2008, with student teams from county middle schools answering questions about the books.