Impact of conscious self-regulation, Engagement and motivation on academic performance of schoolchildren during different periods of study

Abstract

The paper is devoted to the problem of the relationship between conscious self-regulation, school engagement and motivation, as well as the specifics of their contributions to the academic performance of schoolchildren during different periods of study. For the first time, a 5-factor structure of the relationship between self-regulation, engagement, personality traits, and academic motivation was described in a sample of 1103 students in grades 5-11 of general education schools. We evaluated the contribution of these factors to the academic achievement of students in three periods of school education (in middle school, during the transition from middle to high school, and in high school). It is shown that the factors "Goal-setting and engagement" and "Cognitive and social activity", which include regulatory, motivational, personality features and engagement, make a significant contribution to the academic performance of students, regardless of the period of learning. Regulatory processes of modelling significant conditions for achieving the goal and evaluating the results as part of the "Operational Regulation" factor provide high achievement for students in grades 5-6. We also revealed the negative influence of the "External Motivation" factor on the academic performance of high school students and the positive contribution of the "Neuroticism and Anxiety" factor to the annual final grades in this period of study. The results are discussed in the context of age-related and educational tasks that are solved by students during school education.