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عنوان فارسی مقاله:
انگیزه برای یادگیری در دوره آزاد انبوه آنلاین: جنبه بررسی زبان و تعامل اجتماعی
عنوان انگلیسی مقاله:
Motivation to learn in massive open online courses: Examining aspects of language and social engagement
سال انتشار : 2016
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مقدمه انگلیسی مقاله:
1. Introduction
Massive open online courses (MOOCs) provide people from all over the world the opportunity to expand their education for free without any commitment or prior requirements. The growing number of MOOCs has given rise to a growing body of research that explores various aspects of online learning. Following this trend, recent studies analyzed attrition and dropout rates in MOOCs (Halawa, Greene, & Mitchell, 2014; Ho et al., 2015; Jordan, 2014; Sinha, 2014). Other studies examined social engagement (Ferguson & Clow, 2015; Li et al., 2014) and motivational patterns of MOOC enrollers (Kizilcec & Schneider, 2015). However, little is known about what motivates those who complete the online courses (Onah, Sinclair, & Boyatt, 2014). Given that MOOCs are becoming more and more popular worldwide, learners' motivation should be further studied from various aspects (Barak & Watted, 2015; Kizilcec & Schneider, 2015; Sinha, 2014). In light of the aforesaid, this papers addresses thestudy of participants' motivation to learn by analyzing the impact of language and culture. The variables under study are the participants' motivation and their social engagement. The following literature review addresses the topics of motivation to learn in online learning environments and the impact of language and culture on motivation. 1.1. Motivation to learn Motivation is perceived as a reason or a goal a person has for behaving in a given manner in a given situation. It is part of a person's objectives and beliefs about what is important or not (Ames, 1992). Motivation is conceptualized as an internal state that arouses, directs, and sustains goal-oriented behavior (Bandura, 2006). It is defined as “the process whereby goal-directed activity is instigated and sustained” (Schunk, Pintrich, & Meece, 2008, p. 4). It determines whether or not a person will have a certain interest or be engaged in a certain activity. In the context of learning, motivation is conceptualized as an internal source which enhances, maintains, or mediates cognitive development (Brophy, 2004; Slavin, 1987). It is also conceptualized as an integration of cognitive and affective components which result in intentional behavior (Slavin, 1987). Brophy (2004) defined ‘motivation to learn’ as the inclination to find relevant academic activities and obtain the intended benefits from them. Some researchers view motivation as a personality trait; however, this approach ignores the fact that learners can be motivated, depending on time or context (Schunk et al. 2008). Glynn and colleagues indicated several motivational components that influence learning (Glynn, Brickman, Armstrong, & Taasoobshirazi, 2011). Among them: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, personal relevance, self-efficacy, and selfdetermination. Intrinsic ‘motivation to learn’ involves an inherent gratification prompted by the feeling that learning is interesting and enjoyable (Duda & Nicholls, 1992; Glynn et al., 2011). On the other hand, extrinsic motivation involves external incentives for learning, such as obtaining a reward or avoiding punishment (Black & Deci, 2000; Glynn et al., 2011). Another component is personal relevance that indicates the significance of learning to the learner's goals (Duda & Nicholls, 1992). Selfefficacy refers to learners' confidence that they can achieve high outcomes (Bandura, 2006), and self-determination refers to the control learners' believe they have over their learning process (Black & Deci, 2000). 1.2. Motivation to learn in online learning environments Understanding motivation to learn in online environments is gaining much interest among researchers. For example, Shroff, Vogel, and Coombes (2008) found that online learners were more intrinsically motivated than their on-campus counterparts. Cho and Heron (2015) found that online learners' intrinsic motivation is positively related to their learning performance. Studies on online learning suggest that unmotivated students may fail to use cognitive and meta-cognitive strategies, such as mastery learning or self-monitoring (Cho & Heron, 2015). In the context of MOOCs, because it is an open and free learning environment, participants tend to choose only segments of the learning environment, following their goals and interests (Kizilcec & Schneider, 2015; Wang & Baker, 2015). For example, Wang and Baker (2015) found that course completers tend to be more interested in the course content, whereas non-completers tend to be more interested in MOOCs as a type of learning experience. In a wider perspective, Kizilcec and Schneider (2015) found that different motivational goals (e.g. relevant to job, career change, meet new friends), may predict different behavioral patterns for MOOC learners. In specific, they found that learners who enrolled with friends were more likely to be engaged with course materials than their counterparts (Kizilcec & Schneider, 2015). These results correspond with other studies, showing that MOOC participants who were engaged in significant interactions with peers were less likely to dropout (Ferguson & Clow, 2015; Halawa et al., 2014; Jordan, 2014; Onah et al., 2014). Research on MOOCs, as described above, examined social engagement via large online groups (Alario-Hoyos et al., 2013; Jordan, 2014; Kizilcec & Schneider, 2015). Research also examined social engagement via small face-to-face groups, indicating a positive effect on MOOC completion (Li et al., 2014). To date, MOOC research lacks knowledge about the relationships between motivation and learning in small online groups. In addition, given that social engagement is mediated by language, this construct may also play a significant role in MOOC participants' motivation to learn. 1.3. The impact of language and culture on motivation Language, whether written or spoken, plays a significant role in the development of cognitive, social, and motivational factors (Ragupathi, 2014; Slavin, 1987; Vygotsky, 1978; Wertsch, 1991). According to the sociocultural theory, learners are not ‘blank slates’; they bring with them a set of ideas and belief systems, adopted from the social and cultural group to which they belong (Lemke, 2001; Palincsar, 1998; Vygotsky, 1978). Learners, coming from different cultural backgrounds, can differ in terms of learning methods, communication style, and rules of behavior. This calls attention to the significant role of language in participants' motivation to learn in online environments. Language mediates learning by facilitating communication among learners and the manifestation of thoughts, ideas, and knowledge. Proper use of language and good communication is feasible when meaning is correctly interpreted by the learner (Lemke, 2001; Palincsar, 1998). However, improper or ineffective use of language might lead to miscommunication, misunderstandings, thus hinder students' learning outcomes and motivation (Slavin, 1987; Vygotsky, 1978). In higher education, English has become an international medium for communication among learners who do not share the same native language (Altbach, 2014; Vinkea, Snippea & Jochemsa, 1998). Nowadays, many MOOCs, even from non-
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