Do Elementary Students Reading Motivation Levels Differ by Racial/Ethnic And/Or Immigrant Background?

Prior research indicates that students enter school with high levels of reading motivation, but levels begin to decline as soon as second grade. However, most studies rely on predominately White samples. This exploratory study uses a large dataset to examine self-report reading motivation levels for students of varying racial/ethnic and immigrant backgrounds. Results show that self-report reading motivation levels are high for all students and decline from third to eighth grade. When data is disaggregated self-report reading motivation levels are higher among Black and Hispanic students than among Whites. Students from first and second generation immigrant backgrounds have similar levels of self-report reading motivation levels as their native counterparts. Two main policy implications emerge: (1) early reading interventions can potentially leverage the relatively high reading motivation levels reported by young children; and (2) stakeholders should be aware when implementing programs that students regardless of immigrant background and race/ethnicity have high levels of reading motivation.