Browsing by Subject "motivation"

Aims. In the context of computing education, the vast majority of prior research examining achievement goal orientations has been conducted using variable-centred methods. In order to deepen understanding of the student population and achievement motivation, this Master’s Thesis employed person-oriented perspectives. The interplay of different goal orientations was explored by identifying prevalent motivational profiles and investigating profile differences in performance. Normative and appearance performance goals were handled as separate clustering variables in addition to mastery goals for the first time. Methods. The participants were 2059 introductory programming MOOC students. Data were collected by a questionnaire and from automatically assessed programming assignments and final exam. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted for the achievement goal orientation items to examine the factor structure. Using TwoStep cluster analysis, the students were classified into clusters according to their achievement goal orientations. Cross tabulations and analyses of variance (ANOVA) were conducted to investigate profile characteristics and differences in performance. Results and Conclusions. Five distinct achievement goal orientation profiles were identified: Approach-Oriented (31.2%), Performance-Oriented (18.9%), Combined Mastery and Performance Goals (18.0%), Low Goals (17.6.%) and Mastery-Oriented (14.3.%). Students with Combined Mastery and Performance Goals performed significantly better than students with Low Goals regarding two metrics. Consistent with previous findings, the results highlight the positive link between multiple goal pursuit and performance. Further studies are needed to investigate motivational profiles in relation to other educational outcomes in the context of computing education. This kind of knowledge is valuable for designing interventions and new courses. The article ‘Achievement Goal Orientation Profiles and Performance in a Programming MOOC’, which is based on the present thesis, will be presented at ITiCSE 2020 (Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education) conference and published in conference proceedings.

Tässä tutkielmassa tarkastellaan japanilaisten animefanien tekemiä matkoja animesarjoihin ja -elokuviin liittyville paikoille. Tällaisia matkoja kutsutaan usein animepyhiinvaelluksiksi, ja niillä katsotaan olevan uskonnollisia konnotaatioita, sillä niistä käytetään japaniksi usein nimitystä “seichi junrei”, joka alun perin tarkoittaa uskonnollisia pyhiinvaelluksia. Tutkimuksen teoreettisena pohjana toimii Grounded Theory ja metodina narratiivinen haastattelu. Tutkimusta varten haastateltiin viittä japanilaista henkilöä, jotka ovat tehneet animepyhiinvaelluksia. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on selvittää, mikä haastateltavia motivoi animepyhiinvaelluksille, ja millaisia vaikutuksia animepyhiinvaelluksilla on sekä henkilöihin itseensä että Japanin yhteiskuntaan. Tulokset analysoidaan narratiivisen analyysin keinoin litteroimalla ja koodaamalla haastattelut. Tutkimuksen pohjana toimivat myös tutkijan omat vierailut useilla animepaikoilla Japanissa. Tuloksia tarkastellaan lopuksi myös Pearcen Travel Career Pattern -teorian näkökulmasta, sekä kolmesta pyhiinvaellusteoreettisesta näkökulmasta. Tutkimuksessa todetaan, että motivaatio animepyhiinvaelluksille voidaan jakaa kolmeen tasoon: 1) “anime”, joka on matkan ensimmäinen ja tärkein motiivi, ja käsittää paikan, joka on kuvattuna animessa, 2) “ympäröivät alueet”, jotka ovat seuraava motiivi, ja käsittävät ympäröivät alueet, jotka eivät kuitenkaan näy itse animessa, sekä alueella asuvat ihmiset, ja 3) “muut syyt/muistot”, esimerkiksi matkakumppanit tai muut matkalla tavatut ihmiset, sekä muut paikat, joissa vierailtiin esimerkiksi matkalla animepaikoille tai niistä pois, toisin sanoen henkilökohtaiset muistot. Tutkimuksessa todetaan myös, että matka vaikuttaa muun muassa animen katselukokemukseen siten, että siinä missä ennen matkaa ja matkan aikana paikkaa katsotaan teoksen näkökulmasta leviten ympäröiviin alueisiin ja muihin paikkoihin (tasosta 1 tasoon 3), matkan jälkeen teosta aletaan usein katsoa henkilökohtaisesta näkökulmasta (tasosta 3 tasoon 1), sillä katsojalle palautuu mieleen paikat, joissa hän on itse käynyt, ja nämä henkilökohtaiset muistot sekoittuvat katselukokemukseen. Yhteiskunnallisesti animepyhiinvaellukset on alettu nähdä yhtenä matkailun muotona, ja useat alueet ovatkin alkaneet yhä enenevissä määrin käyttää animepyhiinvaelluksia matkailun edistämiseksi. Tutkimuksessa todetaan, että tästä johtuen myös animefanien itsensä sisällä on tapahtunut asennemuutos, jonka ansiosta fanien itsensäkin on aiempaa helpompi tehdä tällaisia matkoja ei pelkästään sen vuoksi, että informaatiota on tarjolla aiempaa enemmän, vaan myös sen vuoksi, että he kokevat olevansa tervetulleita.

Our learning environment has become more and more digitalised and thus our society is trying its best to keep up with the technical development. The digitalisation of education is a trending topic as the new Finnish curriculum took effect on August 1st 2016. The question is whether the digitalisation really affects learning and motivation. Previous studies have shown that the use of IT in education can tribute to increased student engagement and higher study motivation. The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to find out if there is a connection between the use of IT in education and the study motivation among matriculation candidates. The field study has been conducted using six semistructured depth interviews with matriculation candidates. The results have been analysed deductively. As a theoretical framework I have used Ryan and Deci’s Self Determination Theory. The results of this thesis indicates that IT has a positive impact on the matriculation candidates study motivation as the use of IT makes learning more fun, more versatile and facilitates schoolwork.

Research shows that motivation is an important part of mathematics learning. Without motivation to learn math, learning outcomes would be significantly worse. The purpose of the study is to find out what the motivation factors are during the mathematics lessons for grades five and six. Since previous studies also show that the teacher has a central role in creating and maintaining the motivation for mathematics, the teacher's significance for the motivation is also examined in this study. In the survey, 28 pupils from grade five and 24 pupils from grade six participated. In total, 52 pupils from three different schools in Itä-uusimaa participated. The material was collected during the spring of 2019. The survey is mainly quantitative where the material was collected through a questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of two open questions, which were analyzed through qualitative content analysis. According to the results, the students were motivated during the mathematics lessons, they perceived mathematics as important and useful. The biggest motivating factor was the teacher's activity, where the students mentioned that a good mathematics teacher is kind, happy and helpful and has good subject and educational skills. A student with high internal goal orientation experiences the mathematics lessons as meaningful. High internal goal orientation was also associated with high values of one's own mathematical skills. The differences between the sexes and the grades were small.

Syftet med denna kandidatavhandling är att beskriva, analysera och tolka svensk- och finskspråkiga barns språkattityder och förhållningssätt mot det andra inhemska språket och engelskan, i en flerspråkig verksamhet som tagit plats inom forsknings- och utvecklingsprojektet DIDIA. Studien grundar sig på teori om motivation och attityder med närmare fokus på negativa och positiva språkattityder och vilka faktorer som påverkar språkattityderna. Ytterligare söker studien svar på flerspråkiga arbetssätt i skolan som kan förändra språkattityden. Kandidatavhandlingen baserar sig på kvalitativa, tematiska och halvstrukturerade fokusgruppintervjuer kring språkanvändning, språkkunnande och språkattityder. I fokusgruppintervjuerna deltog totalt 17 elever från årskurs tre, var av tio elever från en svenskspråkig skola och sju elever från en finskspråkig skola, båda belägna i en tvåspråkig kommun i Finland. Data analyserades med hjälp av tematisk innehållsanalys och strävar till att demonstrera barns språkattityder och förhållningssätt mot det andra inhemska språket och engelskan på basis av intervjuer som utfördes år 2018 och 2020. Materialet bjöd på rikligt med resultat om barns språkattityder till det andra inhemska språket och engelskan. De ofta förekommande förhållningssätten till engelskan var att engelskan som språk värderades och eleverna hade i stor allmänhet en vilja att lära sig engelska. Främst bland de finska eleverna märkte man att engelskan värderades högre än det andra inhemska språket. Förhållningssätten till de andra inhemska språken var varierande bland eleverna. Ofta upplevde både de finsk- och svenskspråkiga eleverna att ifall språket var svårt att lära sig, tyckte eleverna automatiskt inte om språket. I allmänhet hade de finskspråkiga eleverna en negativare språkattityd mot det andra inhemska språket än vad de svenskspråkiga eleverna hade, men det fanns vissa undantag bland eleverna. De svenskspråkiga eleverna hade en vilja att prata och försöka lära sig finska även fast det ibland kändes utmanande, medan de finskspråkiga eleverna visade ett mindre intresse för svenskan.

The use of virtual reality learning environments is rapidly expanding in various disciplines. However, there are only a few comparative studies in education. This thesis explores the effectiveness of a virtual reality (VR) and a physical learning environment on students’ learning outcomes and motivation by comparing the virtual reality and the physical learning environment during one day of studies. The participants were fourth-year mechanical engineering bachelor students (N = 14) at a university of applied sciences in Finland. The intervention was implemented as part of the course module, where students learned the structure and the functioning of the harvester head engine, which was part of a logging machine. A quasi-experimental design was set up, and in the morning, one-half of the students started their studies in virtual reality and the other half in the physical learning environment. In the afternoon, student groups switched learning environments. Motivation and learning outcomes were measured by pre-test and post-test questionnaires. Additionally, students’ learning outcomes were measured by completed study tasks during the interventions and by observing. The teacher assessed the data related to learning as grades. The one-way repeated-measures ANOVA was conducted to analyse the effectiveness of the learning environments on motivation and learning outcomes. The development of learning outcomes was statistically significant (p < .00) in both learning environments during the morning and the afternoon. No difference was observed between the learning outcomes gained in the two learning environments. There was an interaction (p < .01) between intrinsic motivation and learning environments in the morning. While in the afternoon, intrinsic motivation developed positively (p < .01) in both environments. The results suggest that studying in two different learning environments maintains interest and helps to achieve significant learning outcomes during the one-day studies. When studying began in a physical learning environment, intrinsic motivation developed positively throughout the day.

According to statistics, girls generally outperform boys in school. This performance gap is especially distinct in the Western world. Boys’ longtime underperformance is a concern for society, and the gender differences regarding reading ability in particular, have recently widened further. Which factors actually lie behind boys’ underperformance in school? The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to examine which factors previous studies have identified as the reasons to why boys underperform in school. A special focus is on why boys today are unmotivated in the school environment. The study method used in this thesis is literature study. The results suggest that biological, individual and social differences may impact performance in school. The masculine ideal forms a considerable amount of the selected research material. The results also indicate gender differences regarding motivation, maturation and interest. Much of boys’ interest appear to be directed toward video games.

The rise of the information and communication technologies (ICT) has been revolutionary for the societies of the 21st century. From an educational perspective, ICT tools have transformed traditional teaching and learning practices in many fields, including language education. This study aims to explore how ICT tools are used in higher education, specifically in English preparatory classes of universities in Turkey. Structured, online interviews were conducted with six EFL teachers working in different private universities. The interview questions were designed to identify teachers’ ICT use, their attitudes toward ICT tools, and potential advantages and disadvantages related to ICT tools. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze interview data. Overall, EFL teachers used traditional ICT tools, such as computers, projectors, and interactive whiteboards (IWBs) in almost all classes, and used various Web 2.0 tools to enrich their teaching practice. Besides, teachers expressed their confidence in using ICT tools, and this finding was independent of their history of ICT training. Teachers considered ICT tools as beneficial, highlighting multiple teaching- and learning-related benefits. Teachers considered infrastructure problems as the main challenge related to ICT use.

Introduction: The importance of good nutrition is not always recognized among athletes and their coaches. Young athletes need professional guidance, so they can learn how to execute dietary practices that support their athletic performance and overall well-being. The growing body of scientific evidence on performance enhancing nutrition and its practical applications challenges the Finnish field of competitive sports to invest in professional nutrition coaching among athletes. Aims of the study: The aim of this study was to examine, if eating habits of young endurance athletes can be influenced by a nutrition intervention carried out using a mobile application (MealLoggerTM) with an inbuilt nutrition program. We also examined, whether the motivation towards sports and nutrition and the perceived competence for following a certain diet are related to athletes’ adherence to the nutrition program and to the measured changes in food intake. Materials and methods: 17 young individual endurance athletes followed through a four-week nutrition intervention by keeping a photo food journal and logging their food servings with the smart phone application MealLoggerTM. A common application inbuilt nutrition program with servings goals for different food groups was designed in advance and implemented after a group education session on optimal sports nutrition. During the intervention period, the participants received real-time feedback from the mobile application on their adherence to the nutrition program. In addition, individualized meal photo comments were provided by a nutritionist three times a week. The athletes also received common weekly motivational messages through the application. Food intake was measured at baseline, after the intervention and 8-weeks after the intervention using food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The motivation and perceived competence were assessed with Self-Determination theory (SDT) questionnaires. The adherence to the nutrition program was assessed by comparing the logged food servings to the defined nutrition goals. Results: Twelve participants (71%) completed the post-intervention questionnaires. No statistically significant changes in consumption of food groups included in the nutrition program were detected. The consumption of berries increased 2,36 times per week (SD 4,07 p=0,049). The consumption of skimmed milk decreased 3,00 times per week (SD 4,28, p=0,042) and the consumption of milk/alternatives in total decreased 3,67 times per week (SD 5,82, p=0,034). MealLoggerTM data was retrieved from 15 participants. Most of the participants (n=8) with high adherence (H) achieved at least 3 out of 4 goals on every week. Most participants (n=7) with low adherence (L) failed to achieve any of the nutrition goals on any of the four weeks. No statistically significant differences in motivation or perceived competence were found between the H and L. The overall engagement to the mobile application was lower in L compared to H. The participants in L were mostly female, significantly younger and more likely to be living with a guardian, responsible for the acquisition and preparation of food. Discussion: Despite detecting only small dietary improvements, the application showed good feasibility and acceptability among the high adherence participants. In the future, to provide more effective nutrition coaching an appropriate baseline assessment should be included. The goals of the nutrition program should be adjusted according to the athletes’ individual needs. More democratic coaching styles, with parental involvement should be explored in order to increase engagement and adherence of young athletes.

Background: Management of the COVID-19 pandemic has required behavior change of masses, as governments and authorities around the globe have guided adoption of protective behaviors, such as wearing a face mask and practicing social distancing. Citizens’ volitional engagement in protective behaviors is essential for reducing the spread of the virus, as much of the required adherence is beyond authorities’ control and difficult to supervise. Building on the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) (Ryan & Deci, 2017), this study explores associations between quality of motivation to adhere to protective measures in two situations: when meeting people outside one’s household indoors and inside a café, a restaurant, or a bar. Method: Cross-sectional survey study involving a nationally representative sample of over 18 year-old residents of Finland (N = 2272) was conducted in May of 2021. As part of this survey, data on quality of motivation (autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, amotivation), personal perceived risk, fear towards COVID-19, and situation specific intentions of wearing a face mask or avoiding the situation was collected. The associations between quality of motivation and intention were investigated in a series of multinomial regression analyses, controlling for perceived personal risk and fear towards COVID-19. Findings: Autonomous motivation (range Exp(B) = 1.82‒3.51, p = .001) consistently predicted intention to wear a mask and intention to avoid meeting people. The effects of controlled motivation (range Exp(B) = .66‒.93, p = .001‒.078) and amotivation (range Exp(B) = .65‒1.02, p = .001‒.911) varied across analyses. Control variables' effects diminished or lost significance in models with autonomous motivation. Conclusions: Fostering autonomous motivation could increase adherence to protective behaviors in situations without clear mandates. The results also suggest that increasing perceptions of pressure, personal risk, and fear may not advance adherence effectively. In future studies, it would be beneficial to investigate approach and avoidant components of introjected regulation as separate constructs. Autonomous motivation could be investigated as a mediator for the fear towards COVID-19 and risk perception’s association with protective behavior intention.