Analysis of Calvin
Calvins motivational Pattern
Throughout the comics, you can tell that Calvin is very smart. He can ramble off many different facts. Most of the time, he seems to state random facts as a way to get out of answering a question or presenting something to the class. This is seen in the comic to the right where he mentions something about superheroes and then even states that he knows lots of useless facts.
Calvin seems to be very performence avoid motivated. His main focus is to make sure the class doesn't think he doesn't know what he is doing. When he uses excuses, rambles facts, or makes jokes to Mrs. Wormwood he is trying to avoid the task at hand. In the comic to the left, Calvin uses a joke and pretends to me a malfunctioning robot in order to avoid demonstrating the probelm on the board. As an audience, we dont know if he knows the answer but he could still be distracting the class in order to avoid looking like he doesn't know in front of the class.
Calvin also seems to show his performance avoidance through excuses. He makes excuses like didn't know or he didn't study. This is probably his way of making himself feel better when he is told he didn't do a good job. He is trying to avoid looking bad by using excuses. In the top comic on the right his dad says how horrible his test score was, and Calvin simply responds that he didn't study. The fact that Calvin didn't study seems to make his bad test grade okay to himself. In the bottom comic his friend tells him about the report card. He uses another excuse of not knowing he was being graded. In the long run this can be an excuse as to why he wasn't doing a good job.
Calvin also seems to not focus because he has no interest in what he learning about. He seems to be unmotivated and dislike school because he would rather learn about dinosaurs. In the comic to the left his dad says that Calvin can do better. In which Calvin then responds by saying he doesn't like school because they don't read about dinosaurs. His lack of motivation seems to be coming from having a lack of interest in school which is not allowing him to want to learn.
Calvin also seems to be unmotivated because he doesn't see a purpose in what he is learning. The comic to the right is just one example. He explains how the test question is pointless and not information he cares to learn about. He seems to not have motivation because he doesn't find a purpose in what he is doing. He avoids doing his work because of this.
Outside of school, Calvin does seem to have learning mastery goals. In the comic to the left, Calvin is actually wanting to learn about the snake. He isn't infuenced by those around him here. Instead he is mostly just interested learning new information and understanding it.
Why Calvin has this pattern
Calvin shows a low interest level in school, he doesn't connect to what is being taught. Calvin is often caught not paying attention in class. In the comics we can see Calvin using his imagination, daydreaming or doodling in class.
Calvin is a very smart boy, he would just rather learn about his personal topics of interest. In the comic to the right we see Calvin very interested in learning but it is on his own time on a topic of his choice.
How Mrs. Wormwood can foster a more positive attitude for Calvin
As can be seen from the various comics provided, Mrs. Wormwood's classroom environment (including possibly her goals) are all set up to cater to performance goals rather than learning. Throughout the comics, Calvin is often asked to demonstrate his performance and knowledge publicly which pushes Calvin to take on performance avoidance goal orientations. Calvin uses strategies of self-handicapping to avoid doing work which can be seen in the first and second comic presented. In order to engage Calvin in the classroom, Mrs. Wormwood may benefit from giving students more autonomy in the classroom which can be done by assigning students projects that allow them to investigate their historical interests. When students are engaged in the task and topic, students are enabled to take on mastery learning goal orientations in which effort will increase and students will be prompted to be concerned about learning and mastering the task.