PERCEPTIONS OF MOTIVATIONAL CLIMATE, PERCEIVED COMPETENCE, AND MOTIVATION OF STUDENTS OF VARYING AGE AND SPORT EXPERIENCE

This study examined differences in students' motivation in Greek physi cal education classes depending on age and amount of experience in spo rt and the extent to which these differences reflected divergent perce ptions of competence and classes' motivational climate. 1,393 students responded to questionnaires measur ing motivational climate, perceive d competence, preference for challenge, interest in the lesson, and pe rceived importance of the lesson. Students who were not involved in ou t-of-school sport activities had lower scores on perceived physical co mpetence, perceived learning orientation of the class, preference for challenge, interest in the lesson, and perceived importance of the les son than students who were involved in organized sport. These differen ces in students' motivations decreased when scores on perceived learni ng goals and perceived physical competence were adjusted. Senior high school students (16 yr. old) were much less motivated than junior stud ents (13 yr, old), but these differences were decreased or eliminated when scores on perceived learning orientation were controlled. These r esults suggest that to increase all students' motivation in physical e ducation, a strong emphasis on personal progress should be adopted.