Massive open online courses (MOOCs) experienced a resurgence in popularity due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this work, we studied participants in an astrobiology MOOC offered on Coursera since April 2019. Using a modified version of the Science Motivation Questionnaire II, we examined the primary motivational factors of the participants, how those…

This study assesses the effects of an educational gamification program on motivation, engagement, and flow for high school students from socially disadvantaged communities. A quantitative comparison was carried out with pretest--post-test measurements with intervention and control groups. A total of 216 students from two high schools in socially…

Several variables associated with motivation toward science learning in preservice elementary teachers, such as relevance to personal goals and self-efficacy, are important factors in preservice preparation. The main objective is to analyze the relationships of these motivational variables with the emotions of boredom and enjoyment, and with…

Important factors in learning science include motivational variables (relevance of science learning for personal goals, self-efficacy for learning science, and interest in a scientific career), emotional variables (boredom and enjoyment in science classes), and engagement variables (vigor, dedication, and absorption towards science studies). Data…

Collaboration is essential for all English for Specific Purposes practitioners, whether they are a part of a Faculty or a Language Centre. Conducting needs analyses to determine students' specific English requirements necessitates interaction with subject specialists within their institution. The present report presents an innovative pedagogical…

The advanced visualisation and interactive capabilities make immersive virtual reality (IVR) attractive for educators to investigate its educational benefits. This research reviewed 64 studies published in 2016-2020 to understand how science educators designed, implemented, and evaluated IVR-based learning. The immersive design features (sensory,…

Motivation cannot be measured directly but has to be evaluated through other indirect measurements, of which questionnaires are the most common. This chapter presents the results from the development and use of a model to approach motivation in the science classroom from multiple theoretical and methodological perspectives. The model emerged from…

Virtual reality (VR) is projected to play an important role in education by increasing student engagement and motivation. However, little is known about the impact and utility of immersive VR for administering e-learning tools, or the underlying mechanisms that impact learners' emotional processes while learning. This paper explores whether…

The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of US schools associated with two measures of scientific literacy (content knowledge and "procedural and epistemic" knowledge) using the 2015 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data. Because outcomes are nested within students, and students within schools, a…

This document presents the proceedings of the 26th Annual Research Forum held June 30, 2022, at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Included are the following ten action research papers: (1) Historical Empathy, Primary Sources, and Subjectivity in History (Camron Alten-Dunkle); (2) Cultivating Classroom Science Outdoors…

Middle school (G5-8) students' cognitive engagement, motivation, and future aspirations in science were quantified within informal contexts (week-long summer camps) with self-reported measures of cognitive strategies, self-regulation, value, self-efficacy, and future aspirations over the course of two phases (N = 152, N =140). The participating…

Previous research from in and outside museums suggests that the haptic exploration of surfaces and objects have various educational benefits and can positively influence the museum visit experience. However, there is still a need for more research on the potential effects of object handling on museum learning, especially in science museums. The…

Problem-based learning using authentic material from the web was used to teach metabolism in a biochemistry course. In place of traditional lectures, students' analyzed health or nutrition articles from newspapers and magazines, which were debatable from a scientific point of view, following the principles of problem-based learning. A mixed method…

It is essential for today's students to learn about science and engineering in order to make sense of the world around them and participate as informed members of a democratic society. The skills and ways of thinking that are developed and honed through engaging in scientific and engineering endeavors can be used to engage with evidence in making…

Most accounts of affect and motivation in the science education literature have discussed them as relevant to, but distinct from, disciplinary pursuits. These include Pintrich's seminal work on affective and motivational factors in learning science (P. R. Pintrich, 1999, 2003; P. R. Pintrich & E. De Groot, 1990; P. R. Pintrich, R. W. Marx,…