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U.S. Students' Academic Interests Tend to Wane in Middle School

WEDNESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- American adolescents are more likely than their Chinese counterparts to lose interest in academics, a finding that may explain why Chinese children outperform Americans in academic pursuits such as math, researchers say.

In a study that included American and Chinese students in grades 7 and 8, more than 800 children completed questionnaires four times over a two-year period. The students reported how much they valued achievement, whether they liked to do difficult work in a particular subject (mastery), how much time they spent on schoolwork outside of school and how they used learning strategies.

The U.S. and Chinese researchers found that American students became less motivated academically as they progressed through grades 7 and 8, placing less value on achievement, losing interest in mastery of a subject, implementing fewer constructive learning techniques and cutting back on time spent studying.

Among Chinese students, however, the value they placed on achievement, use of constructive learning strategies and time spent studying remained stable, the study authors noted.

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