It can be difficult to find ways to motivate students while teaching a physics course for non-physics students. Students come to class with many different attitudes and preconceptions, some of which are detrimental to their learning. As physics educators, we strive for student engagement and motivation in course material no matter what type of…

Earning Open Badges instead of regular grades and credits can be a motivating factor for high-performing students in terms of attending classes and completing assignments in extracurricular courses, but to what extent? And for what student profiles? To tackle these questions, we conducted a quantitative study with high-performing students. Each…

All content to Wikipedia is added and edited in a crowdsourced model, wherein nearly anyone can click the "edit" button and change content on Wikipedia. An active community of dedicated volunteers is what keeps Wikipedia as reliable as it is today--good, but not complete. More diverse contributors are needed to add more content to…

This case study explored the relationship between levels of content choice in three high school online English language arts courses and evidence of student motivation in student work and students' thoughts about motivation. These courses were designed around the main components of Self-Determination Theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and…

This Quick Fix describes how the emerging "writing for Wikipedia" activity allows replacing a traditional written paper with a more motivating, digital assignment that also allows students to contribute to society. It presents the most efficient ways to incorporate Wikipedia into one's teaching curriculum, while also discussing best…

This study aimed to test three homework models defined in different cultures on Turkish high school students. HLM analyses were conducted on data collected from 1,229 high school students, considering 19 student-level and 7 grade-level variables. The dependent variables of the study were academic achievement and homework completion. The findings…

Renewable assignments are student created artifacts that have value outside of courses. However, more empirical inquiry in renewable assignments grounded in theoretical frameworks is necessary. In this study, students (N = 69) engaged in renewable assignments and were asked to report on their perceptions based on the self-determination theory of…

Course reading completion enhances student learning and helps deepen students' thinking about concepts and ideas presented in class. To better understand the students' reading completion and the factors which impact course reading completion, the researchers engaged in a study with 434 students enrolled in six graduate level literacy courses, or…

The author provides a conceptual framework that illustrates the spectrum of authentic writing assignments and operationalizes authenticity, in an effort to guide practitioners toward crafting writing assignments that are meaningful for students by reflecting and replicating the kinds of writing that occur outside of the academic context. The…

The demand for intensive educational experiences is increasing, necessitating a focus on ensuring quality and providing adequate student support. Increasing opportunities for student collaboration, including teacher/student co-creation of learning materials, has strong potential to increase engagement and support. Given increased interest in…

A variety of factors are associated with the learning difficulty in mathematics in the context of Pakistani schools. This study explored the different causes of learning difficulties in mathematics faced by primary school students in Karachi, Pakistan. Using a quantitative research design, the data was gathered from the parents and teachers of…

This study investigates the extent to which (a) Spanish heritage (HL) and second language (L2) writers' linguistic complexity differs across register contexts and (b) Spanish proficiency and writing motivational beliefs differentially affect HL and L2 writers' performance. Participants were 58 HL and 54 L2 Spanish learners who completed two…

In this "Distance Learning" Special Issue, Errol Craig Sull introduces the "Try This" series of articles to assist with Becoming a Better Distance Learning Instructor. Sull notes, in this article, what the distance learning educator does in the first few days in a course can go a long way in setting the tone for the entire…

Autonomy has been identified as an essential attribute of learner-centered teaching. Allowing learners some choice regarding their learning can positively impact motivation and performance. Some concepts can be illustrated more clearly through film, including agricultural leadership concepts such as the stages of small group development. In this…

Keeping students motivated during an introductory computer programming can be a challenging task. Looking at its varied complexities, many students who are introduced to computer programming for the first time can easily become demotivated. This work looks at the value-expectancy motivational model of student learning and presents our experiences…