Classroom

Teachers ' responsiveness to and empathic understanding of students ' perceptions when they are not motivated are critical in promoting students ' ownership of the literacy learning agenda; in helping students with their motivational difficulties; and in establishing classrooms that focus on the enhancement of caring. An interpretive study, conducted fifth/sixth-grade whole language classroom, provides insigl..,s about students ' thoughts, feelings, and actions when not motiva'..ed for literacy tasks, and examines students ' subjective experiences in three different motivational situations. Forty-eight classroom observations were conducted that included a series of 41 indepth interviews over an 8-month period. Results offer clues about the affective and cognitive processes that enable some students to become engaged in literacy activities and prevent others from beginning them. Findings suggest that a responsive classroom culture that honors students ' voices may enhance students ' ownership of literacy learning and alleviate feelings of anger, anxiety, alienation, and powerlessness. (Contains 72 references.) (Author/RS) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document