Encouraging student motivation
19 Dec 2008-pp 45-57
TL;DR: In this article, the authors were confronted with the problem of how to measure student motivation, and they were struck by how little research had been done in this area, by how few measures of student motivation there were, and in particular by how difficult it was to obtain a quick and readily usable indicator of what students' motives were in studying at university.
Abstract: A few years ago one of us was involved in a programme of research on student cheating
in higher education. The research team had a strong suspicion that incidents of cheating
were related to student motivation and wanted to test out this hypothesis. We were thus
faced with the problem of how to measure student motivation. We were struck by how
little research had been done in this area, by how few measures of student motivation
there were, and in particular by how difficult it was to obtain a quick and readily usable
indication of what students’ motives were in studying at university. This led us to
consider how we could identify, first, what motivates students, and second, differences
between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
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TL;DR: The use of audio feedback seemed to have overcome the problems reported by the NUS survey, and students are at least 10 times more likely to open audio files compared to collecting written feedback.
Abstract: Feedback on students' work is, probably, one of the most important aspects of learning, yet students' report, according to the National Union of Students (NUS) Survey of 2008, unhappiness with the feedback process Students were unhappy with the quality, detail and timing of feedback This paper examines the benefits of using audio, as opposed to written, feedback in an attempt to overcome student criticisms Using the Audacity audio software MP3 feedback files were created and sent to 60 students either via a VLE or email The students were asked to complete an online survey on audio feedback Twenty‐six students responded The results were, generally, very positive The use of audio feedback seemed to have overcome the problems reported by the NUS survey Students are at least 10 times more likely to open audio files compared to collecting written feedback The paper concludes with reflections, and advice, on introducing audio feedback
195 citations
28 Feb 2008
TL;DR: This authoritative reference source offers researchers, scholars, students, and professionals worldwide, access to the latest knowledge related to research on computer-enhanced language acquisition and learning.
Abstract: Language learning is one of the most rapidly changing disciplines. Along with changing perspectives in learning in the field of Second Language Acquisition, information communication technology (ICT) has also created many learning paths to assist the process of learning a second language (L2). In such an ever-evolving environment, teachers, researchers, and professionals in a diverse number of disciplines need access to the most current information about research on the field of computer-enhanced language acquisition and learning. The Handbook of Research on Computer-Enhanced Language Acquisition and Learning provides comprehensive coverage of successful translation of language learning designs utilizing ICT in practical learning contexts. This authoritative reference source offers researchers, scholars, students, and professionals worldwide, access to the latest knowledge related to research on computer-enhanced language acquisition and learning.
64 citations
TL;DR: A need to change the approach to learning in clinical practice and to conduct further research to improve understanding of mechanisms to support the development of cognitive skills is suggested.
39 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that college students can be motivated to be active participants in their own education if made aware of the direct correlation between college learning and corporate work settings, and that through the natural course of college learning, they are acquiring valuable core skills or transferable competencies that will be of later use in their corporate lives.
Abstract: . This article argues that college students can be motivated to be active participants in their own education if made aware of the direct correlation between college learning and corporate work settings. Students can be shown that through the natural course of college learning, they are acquiring valuable core skills or transferable competencies that will be of later use in their corporate lives. The article expounds on this theme by analyzing and elaborating on four main competencies, the same skills needed in corporate structures, which are naturally acquired during the course of college learning.
37 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a case study based on an undergraduate level-one marketing module and reports on the experiences of the teaching team over three years is presented, where the approaches adopted have been successful in focusing attention on student learning, leading to more continuous professional development.
Abstract: Managerialism doesn't work in Higher Education, but collegiality does. (Ramsden, 2004) This article argues that developing a team‐based approach to teaching and learning provides the basis for building commitment and continuous professional development in teaching practice among staff in higher education. A team approach that is grounded in practice leads to open communication and opportunities for formal and informal professional development. The article presents a case study based on an undergraduate level‐one marketing module and reports on the experiences of the teaching team over three years. Key issues faced by the module leader and teaching colleagues are discussed. The approaches adopted have been successful in focusing attention on student learning, leading to more continuous professional development.
37 citations
Cites background from "Encouraging student motivation"
...Bogler and Somech (2002) highlight motivations for undertaking studies can be instrumental learning, where there is a need for vocational qualification; scholastic learning, that is intellectual stimulation; and social factors, relating to campus life (Newstead & Hoskins, 2000)....
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01 Jan 1997TL;DR: SelfSelf-Efficacy (SE) as discussed by the authors is a well-known concept in human behavior, which is defined as "belief in one's capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments".
Abstract: Albert Bandura and the Exercise of Self-Efficacy Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control Albert Bandura. New York: W. H. Freeman (www.whfreeman.com). 1997, 604 pp., $46.00 (hardcover). Enter the term "self-efficacy" in the on-line PSYCLIT database and you will find over 2500 articles, all of which stem from the seminal contributions of Albert Bandura. It is difficult to do justice to the immense importance of this research for our theories, our practice, and indeed for human welfare. Self-efficacy (SE) has proven to be a fruitful construct in spheres ranging from phobias (Bandura, Jeffery, & Gajdos, 1975) and depression (Holahan & Holahan, 1987) to career choice behavior (Betz & Hackett, 1986) and managerial functioning (Jenkins, 1994). Bandura's Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control is the best attempt so far at organizing, summarizing, and distilling meaning from this vast and diverse literature. Self-Efficacy may prove to be Bandura's magnum opus. Dr. Bandura has done an impressive job of summarizing over 1800 studies and papers, integrating these results into a coherent framework, and detailing implications for theory and practice. While incorporating prior works such as Social Learning Theory (Bandura, 1977) and "Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency" (Bandura, 1982), Self-Efficacy extends these works by describing results of diverse new research, clarifying and extending social cognitive theory, and fleshing out implications of the theory for groups, organizations, political bodies, and societies. Along the way, Dr. Bandura masterfully contrasts social cognitive theory with many other theories of human behavior and helps chart a course for future research. Throughout, B andura' s clear, firm, and self-confident writing serves as the perfect vehicle for the theory he espouses. Self-Efficacy begins with the most detailed and clear explication of social cognitive theory that I have yet seen, and proceeds to delineate the nature and sources of SE, the well-known processes via which SE mediates human behavior, and the development of SE over the life span. After laying this theoretical groundwork, subsequent chapters delineate the relevance of SE to human endeavor in a variety of specific content areas including cognitive and intellectual functioning; health; clinical problems including anxiety, phobias, depression, eating disorders, alcohol problems, and drug abuse; athletics and exercise activity; organizations; politics; and societal change. In Bandura's words, "Perceived self-efficacy refers to beliefs in one's capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments" (p. 3). People's SE beliefs have a greater effect on their motivation, emotions, and actions than what is objectively true (e.g., actual skill level). Therefore, SE beliefs are immensely important in choice of behaviors (including occupations, social relationships, and a host of day-to-day behaviors), effort expenditure, perseverance in pursuit of goals, resilience to setbacks and problems, stress level and affect, and indeed in our ways of thinking about ourselves and others. Bandura affirms many times that humans are proactive and free as well as determined: They are "at least partial architects of their own destinies" (p. 8). Because SE beliefs powerfully affect human behaviors, they are a key factor in human purposive activity or agency; that is, in human freedom. Because humans shape their environment even as they are shaped by it, SE beliefs are also pivotal in the construction of our social and physical environments. Bandura details over two decades of research confirming that SE is modifiable via mastery experiences, vicarious learning, verbal persuasion, and interpretation of physiological states, and that modified SE strongly and consistently predicts outcomes. SE beliefs, then, are central to human self-determination. STRENGTHS One major strength of Self-Efficacy is Bandura's ability to deftly dance from forest to trees and back again to forest, using specific, human examples and concrete situations to highlight his major theoretical premises, to which he then returns. …
46,839 citations
TL;DR: The Elementary School Journal Volume 85, Number 1 o 1984 by The University of Chicago as discussed by the authors was the first publication to address the importance of effort and effort in elementary school education, and found that teachers are more likely to help a student than to blame a student for failing.
Abstract: The Elementary School Journal Volume 85, Number 1 o 1984 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved. 0013-5984/85/8501-0003$0o1.00 Why do some students think success in school means to "get all the answers right" or to "get A's on your report card" while others attach more importance to "improving your work" or "trying your hardest"? When are teachers more likely to help a student than to blame a student for fail-
119 citations