Studentsʹ and teachersʹ goals in the classroom

The study presented in this article is aimed at understanding studentsʹ goal orientation in a classroom context. The methodology developed for this purpose has two main distinctive features: (a) the definition of two levels of approach to the real classroom context; (b) the development of interviews to elicit studentsʹ goals in the classroom. On the basis of these procedures, studentsʹ general and specific goals in the classroom are identified and characterized. Results are discussed in terms of the patterns of studentsʹ goals in the classroom, the consistencies and changes in studentsʹ goals in different situations, and the match or mismatch between studentsʹ and teachersʹ goals.