This summary report by the Center on Education Policy (CEP) pulls together findings from a wide array of studies on student motivation by scholars in a range of disciplines, as well as lessons from programs around the country intended to increase motivation. It is intended to start a conversation about the importance of motivation and the policies and practices that might better engage students in learning. The information in this summary is distilled from a series of six background papers by CEP, available at www.cep-dc.org. The background papers focus on the following aspects of student motivation: (1) What is motivation and why does it matter? (2) Can money or other rewards motivate students? (3) Can goals motivate students? (4) What roles do parent involvement, family background, and culture play in student motivation? (5) What can schools do to motivate students? (6) What nontraditional approaches can motivate unenthusiastic students? Most of the findings in this summary are based on multiple sources, for which the specific citations can be found in the appropriate CEP background paper for that topic. Where a particular study, statistic, or quotation is referred to in this summary, the source is cited and included in the reference list at the end of this paper.