Motivation and Achievement in Problem-Based Learning: The Role of Interest, Tutors, and Self-Directed Study

__Abstract__ This study examines the effects of two learning environments (i.e., problem-based learning [PBL] versus lecture-based [LB] environments) on undergraduates’ study motivation. Survey results demonstrated that PBL students scored higher on competence but did not differ from LB students on autonomous motivation. Analyses of focus groups further indicated that active learning aspects, such as collaboration are perceived as motivating. However, controlling elements (i.e., mandatory presence) and uncertainty (i.e., in selecting the correct and sufficient literature) were described as detrimental for students’ motivation. In conclusion, PBL does not always seem to lead to higher intrinsic motivation. It is therefore crucial to build in the right amount of structure in learning environments and balance controlling elements versus autonomy, even in learning environments that are intended to be motivating for students

The role of perceived quality of problems in the association between achievement goals and motivation in problem-based learning

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of perceived problem quality in the relationship between students’ (N = 226) achievement goals and autonomous motivation to study in a problem-based learning (PBL) environment. Specifically, the relationships between students’ achievement goals (mastery-approach, performance-approach, performance-avoidance, and mastery-avoidance goals), problem quality-related characteristics (triggering interest, familiarity, stimulating collaborative learning, resulting in intended learning objectives, and promoting critical reasoning), and autonomous motivation to study were investigated. The findings indicate that the perceived quality of problems (i.e., familiarity, resulting in intended learning objectives, promoting critical reasoning, and by that triggering interest) fosters autonomous motivation to study and that the perception of this quality is influenced by students’ achievement goals. Therefore, the quality of problems and students’ achievement goals should be taken into account in a PBL environment

University teacher judgments in problem-based learning: Their accuracy and reasoning

This study investigated the accuracy of 14 university teachers’ judgments. Early in the first year, university teachers ratedthe chance each university student intheir groupwould successfullycomplete theirfirst year as well as the entire bachelor’s program. Results showthat university teachers’ chance ratingswere predictive of actual academic success. However, they were more accurate in predicting success than failure. Moreover, results revealed that university teachers mostly built upon their observations of university students’ engagement andmotivation, instead of students’ cognitive ability in their judgments. Unsuccessful university students received relatively more negatively framed statements than successful students did

Behind the times: a brief history of motivation discourse in problem-based learning

That idea that problem-based learning (PBL) is more motivating that traditional education has been prevalent since the inception of PBL at McMaster University in the late 1960s. Evidencing this through empirical research, however, has proven to be a lot more problematic. This paper retraces how the discourse on motivation started from a laymen's conception in the early days of PBL, and slowly evolved into a field of scientific inquiry in the 1980s and 1990s. However, looking at the evolution of motivation theory over the same period, we show that motivation discourse in the burgeoning literature on motivation and PBL remained largely wedded to the laymen's approach, and failed to catch up with the new achievement-goal theory and self-determination theory approaches. This paper proceeds to analyse the explosion of studies on PBL and motivation after 2000, acknowledging efforts to move away from anecdotal accounts and provide theoretical grounding to the research. However, once again, we show that the majority of the research employed outdated motivational measures that do not fully grasp the complexity of contemporary motivation theory. The paper concludes on the observation that single-course and curriculum-wide research interventions have yielded no conclusive results on the effect of PBL on intrinsic motivation, and that future research should therefore seek to use up-to-date motivational constructs in more targeted interventions

The role of motivational profiles in learning problem-solving and self-assessment skills with video modeling examples

In the current study, we examine the role of situation-specific motivational profiles in the effectiveness of video modeling examples for learning problem-solving and self-assessment accuracy in the domain of biology. A sample of 342 secondary school students participated in our study. Latent profile analysis resulted in four motivational profiles: (a) good-quality profile (high autonomous motivation, moderate introjected and external motivation), (b) moderately positive profile (moderate motivation levels with relatively higher autonomous motivation), (c) moderately negative profile (moderate motivation levels with relatively higher external motivation), and (d) poor-quality profile (moderate external, low autonomous motivation). Findings showed students with good-quality or moderately positive profiles learned more from the video modeling in terms of problem-solving and self-assessment accuracy than students with poor-quality or moderately negative profiles. Furthermore, students with a moderately negative profile outperformed students with a poor-quality profile on problem-solving and self-assessment accuracy. Results further indicated that students with good-quality and moderately positive profiles experienced studying the video modeling examples as less effortful than students with poor-quality or moderately negative profiles. Overall, our results demonstrated that knowing about students’ motivational profiles could help explain differences in how well students learn problem-solving as well as self-assessment skills from watching video modeling examples

The Relation Between Student’s Effort and Monitoring Judgments During Learning: A Meta-analysis

Research has shown a bi-directional association between the (perceived) amount of invested effort to learn or retrieve information (e.g., time, mental effort) and metacognitive monitoring judgments. The direction of this association likely depends on how learners allocate their effort. In self-paced learning, effort allocation is usually data driven, where the ease of memorizing is used as a cue, resulting in a negative correlation between effort and monitoring judgments. Effort allocation is goal driven when it is strategically invested (e.g., based on the importance of items or time pressure) and likel

The Relation Between Perceived Mental Effort, Monitoring Judgments, and Learning Outcomes:A Meta-Analysis

Accurately monitoring one’s learning processes during self-regulated learning depends on using the right cues, one of which could be perceived mental effort. A meta-analysis by Baars et al. (2020) found a negative association between mental effort and monitoring judgments (r = -.35), suggesting that the amount of mental effort experienced during a learning task is usually negatively correlated with learners’ perception of learning. However, it is unclear how monitoring judgments and perceptions of mental effort relate to learning outcomes. To examine if perceived mental effort is a diagnostic cue for learning outcomes, and whether monitoring judgments mediate this relationship, we employed a meta-analytic structural equation model. Results indicated a negative, moderate association between perceived mental effort and monitoring judgments (β = -.19), a positive, large association between monitoring judgments and learning outcomes (β =.29), and a negative, moderate indirect association between perceived mental effort and learning outcomes (β = -.05), which was mediated by monitoring judgments. Our subgroup analysis did not reveal any significant differences across moderators potentially due to the limited number of studies included per moderator category. Findings suggest that when learners perceive higher levels of mental effort, they exhibit lower learning (confidence) judgments, which relates to lower actual learning outcomes. Thus, learners seem to use perceived mental effort as a cue to judge their learning while perceived mental effort only indirectly relates to actual learning outcomes.</p

Building bridges in higher education: Student-faculty relationship quality, student engagement, and student loyalty

This study's aim was to investigate a hypothesized model examining the associations between students' perceptions of the quality of their relationship with their educational faculty and staff (i.e., relationship quality) and students' involvement. The relationship quality measurement included students' experiences with all educational faculty and staff, with the aim of predicting student engagement and student loyalty. Based on data from 454 higher education students, findings indicate that affective commitment and affective conflict are important relationship quality dimensions that influence the student engagement dimensions of absorption, dedication, and vigor. The main conclusion is that a relationship management approach in higher education is fruitful to achieve positive academic outcomes such as student engagement and student loyalty

Микро- и макроскорость роста усталостной трещины в сталях и сплавах под влиянием закрытия трещины

На основе экспериментальных данных показано, что различие между макро- и микроскоростью роста усталостной трещины на втором участке кинетической диаграммы усталостного разрушения обусловлено закрытием трещины в пределах его наличия. Установлены зависимости между макро- и микроскоростью роста усталостной трещины, а также структурой материала на втором участке при разных асимметриях цикла нагружения с учетом влияния закрытия трещины. Создана методика экспертизы разрушения конструкционных материалов по микро- и макроскорости роста усталостной трещины.На основі експериментальних даних показано, що розбіжність між макро- та мікрошвидкістю росту втомної тріщини на другій ділянці кінетичної діаграми втомного руйнування викликана явищем закриття тріщини в межах його наявності. Встановлено залежності між макро- та мікрошвидкістю росту втомної тріщини, а також структурою матеріалу на другій ділянці за різних асиметрій циклу навантаження з урахуванням впливу закриття тріщини. Створена методика експертизи руйнування конструкційних матеріалів за мікро- та макрошвидкістю росту втомної тріщини.On the basis of experimental results, we demonstrate that the disagreement of the macro- and microrates of fatigue crack propagation in the second portion of the fatigue-crack growth diagram is due to crack closure within the region of its presence. Relationships between macroand microrates of fatigue crack propagation and the material structure within the second portion of the curve under various load ratios have been established with account for the influence of crack closure. A procedure is proposed for the expertise of fracture of structural materials according to micro- and macrorates of fatigue crack propagation