But should we be surprised at the important role the individual’s attitude plays in his/her own learning? Perhaps not. School psychologists have, for years, pointed to the importance of motivation as a key contributing factor to learning (see, e.g., Keller, 2010). In fact, Tambunan et al. (2021) conducted a study of 277 middle grades students in Indonesia and found that student motivation was a key factor in their achievement. Similarly, Oyedeji (2017) conducted a study of 360 students in 12 secondary schools in Nigeria and found that students’ own intrinsic motivation was the single greatest factor influencing students’ attitudes toward mathematics.

A learner’s motivation may also be heavily influenced by parents. Herges et al. (2017) conducted a study of 65 middle grades mathematics students in the midwestern United States and found a significant link among student motivation, parental involvement, and mathematics achievement. In sum, the research is fairly clear that a child’s intrinsic motivation makes a dramatic impact on their ability to achieve success.

An important starting point for school leaders to consider in helping improve student motivation to learn is the philosophy of education a school chooses to employ. There are several philosophical approaches to education, each with its own core beliefs and implications for classroom practice. Four of the most influential modern educational philosophers are Immanuel Kant, Maria Montessori, John Dewey, and Friedrich Froebel. A core belief in the Kantian philosophy of education is that learners need order, systems, and discipline to learn effectively, and learning should therefore be standardized with clear structure and rules (Churton, 2009). Montessori education is predicated on the core belief that students should be given as much autonomy as possible in the learning process. As a result, Montessori classrooms are set up with many opportunities for productive play (Morrison, 2014). Dewey believed students learn best when they receive a democratic education in which they have a voice in their own learning. In the classroom, students should experience hands-on education so they can learn by doing (Schmidt, 2010). Froebel’s philosophy, which gave rise to the kindergarten movement, is based on the belief that self-development in children should be fostered through the use of age-appropriate learning tools. In the classroom, Froebel advocated the use of songs and learning games so children would enjoy learning (Morrison, 2014). If students are not ready to learn, it may be that the philosophy being employed by a school is not working for that student population. For example, Wilson (2015) conducted research to investigate how parents choose schools and found that parents often choose schools that use an approach matching their child’s needs. Thus, a vital question that schools need to consider is what is the environment they are creating, and is it promoting a desire within students to achieve and be ready to learn mathematics?

A further consideration for establishing whether students are ready to learn is to consider whether the basic needs of safety, shelter, food, clothing, and well-being are being met (Maslow, 1998). Reardon and Portilla (2016) found an income achievement gap for a group of three cohorts of kindergarteners. They determined there were significant gaps in the achievement of groups from the 90th percentile of income to those from the 10th percentile (referred to as the 90/10 gap). In the middle grades, bullying presents a particularly pernicious threat to students’ feeling of safety and their ability to be in a learning mindset (Smith & Kearney, 2017). One way to address this is through restorative practice circles. In restorative practice circles, students can resolve conflicts by speaking/listening to one another with the aim of developing strong classroom communities (Gregory et al., 2021). The example of restorative practice circles is just one way that teachers can help students to be ready to learn.

School climate refers to stakeholders’ perceptions of the school environment, including formal and informal structures, leadership influence, and relationships between constituents (Hoy & Miskel, 2012). Researchers have developed a wide variety of school climate surveys to measure specific aspects of the school environment such as: collegial leadership, principal influence, academic emphasis, and trust. Utilizing school climate surveys is an important first step in school improvement efforts. The next step is to work with a wide variety of stakeholders (including administrators, teachers, students, and parents) to examine root causes that have led to areas of concern and to come together to address these areas either at the individual (remediation) or organizational levels. For example, Kearney et al. (2013) conducted research into the links between school climate variables and student achievement within 149 Texas schools, in which they found that mindful leadership made a statistically significant contribution to the variance in student achievement in both math and reading. Part of mindful leadership is being attuned to feedback from students and staff. Thus, asking teachers their perceptions of student readiness to learn may provide useful information in identifying attitudes and improving learning in middle grades mathematics.

Measuring effectiveness in teachers is not a new idea. Many teachers receive regular evaluation, whether formal or informal, from their administrators, their peers, their students, and themselves. At the college level, it has become standard to ask students for feedback about their professors. Miller and Seldin (2014) reported that in 2014, 94% of universities reported using course evaluations to solicit feedback from students on a variety of success indicators including content knowledge. It is not uncommon to see students’ opinions about schooling being solicited at the secondary level. Giraldo-Garcia et al. (2021) noted an increasing movement toward student advisory committees that give students a voice, particularly regarding school and classroom climate initiatives. When considering the effectiveness of mathematics teachers in particular, a straightforward method of evaluation is to gauge whether the instructions they provide (if followed) will lead students to the correct mathematical answers (Sonnert et al., 2018). However, caution must be taken when determining effectiveness on this characteristic alone. Newton et al. (2010) established that student ch...