the effects of teacher feedback on student motivation in an online

THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER FEEDBACK

ON STUDENT MOTIVATION

IN AN ONLINE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

Trabajo Fin de Máster

Máster Universitario en Enseñanza del Inglés

como Lengua Extranjera

Presentado por:

Dª Lyndsay R. Buckingham

Dirigido por:

Dr. Antonio García Gómez

Alcalá de Henares, a 15 de junio de 2012

Action Research Project L Buckingham

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Index

Page

Introduction 2

Literature Review 3

Views on Motivation 3

Motivation Related to Education 5

Motivation in Computer-Based Learning Environments 6

Methodology and Work Plan 8

The Study 10

Context 10

Data Collection 12

Data Analysis 13

Findings 14

Plan of Action 20

Conclusions 21

Outcomes 21

Implications 22

References 26

Appendices 27

Appendix A: Self Assessment 27

Appendix B: Feedback Key 29

Appendix C: Mid-course Feedback 31

Appendix D: Mid-course Feedback Results 32

Appendix E: End of Course Feedback 33

Appendix F: End of Course Feedback Results 35

Appendix G: Participation Report 39


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Introduction

Motivation is an important aspect of any learning environment, because a student who is

unmotivated will find it difficult to initiate or persist in learning activities. In fact, students will decide

whether they will pay attention and be engaged or simply dismiss the teacher and the learning as

unimportant or irrelevant. Marzano (2007), in Walker (2010, page 3), states that “learning does not

begin with cognitive processes, but rather, it begins in the self-system,” meaning that each person will

decide whether or not to learn. If we want to teach effectively, we must first help motivate our students

to listen to our instruction and coaching. If we are able to influence the growth of our students’ intrinsic

motivation, they will see the value of learning and they will work to achieve these goals, which have

been made their own (Walker 2010). A sense of motivation should increase class participation and effort

toward learning.

Motivation in an online environment may be more difficult than in a traditional classroom

because many of the traditional techniques cannot be employed online. We cannot, for example,

control the learning environment because students may access it from anywhere. They may be at home

or in a public place with many distractions or negative influences. In my experience, adult online

students often have many responsibilities outside of class that include full-time jobs, family and other

commitments, that may lessen the time and effort they can dedicate to their studies. They also have less

contact with their classmates and will be less influenced, positively or negatively, by them. As a teacher,

we may be in contact with our students regularly, but an empathetic or encouraging tone is not easily

achieved through email and forum posts. As Song (2000) mentions, the distance between teacher and

students may result in student feelings of isolation and dropouts. Therefore, we must look for other

ways to motivate our online students.

My research addresses the following question: How can a teacher effectively and positively

impact adult learners’ motivation in an online environment? There are many articles available that make

suggestions to teachers hoping to motivate their online students, which include suggestions on course

design, relevant course materials, setting student expectations and objectives, and more (Cull et al.

2010; WPI Academic Technology Center 2009; Dennis et al. 2007). Timely and effective feedback is often

suggested as an important aspect of faculty behavior (WPI Academic Technology Center 2009; Dennis et

al. 2007). In fact, human interaction and teacher feedback has been valued as very important by

participants in different types of studies on motivation in online courses (Kym 2004; Bonk 2002). Despite

the importance placed on teacher feedback, I could not locate a study that was focused on the positive


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impact of meaningful teacher feedback on student motivation. Therefore, this study focuses specifically

on the effects of teacher feedback on student motivation in an online environment.

The above research led me to the following hypothesis: Specific and detailed teacher feedback

that is related to student objectives will maintain and increase student motivation, and consequently,

participation in online classes. The objectives of my research include several steps. First, students will

complete a self assessment to reflect on their abilities in a positive way and identify their own personal

goals. Next, they will receive meaningful and detailed feedback from the teacher involving marks and

detailed comments on their work that will be related to those goals. This specific feedback will help

build their confidence and self efficacy, causing them to maintain participation and engagement in the

course. Intrinsic motivation will be maintained, and a dimension of extrinsic motivation will be

introduced by the marks, complementing intrinsic motivation and creating a feeling of satisfaction.

What follows is a brief explanation of previous research related to motivation, motivation

related to education, then motivation in an online learning environment. I will explain the methodology

employed in this study and the development of the project, basing my reasoning on motivational views

and previous research. I will analyze the quantitative and qualitative results of my study in order to draw

conclusions about the effectiveness of my actions in influencing my students’ motivation. Finally I will

discuss the implications of this study for future research and effective classroom practices.

Literature Review

In order to understand what is meant by motivation, a working definition is needed. This

definition is backed by different psychological views, which will be explained in order to see what factors

may influence an individual’s motivation. Finally these factors are analyzed and related to education in

order to apply psychological theory to student motivation, first in general then more specifically in an

online learning environment.

Views on Motivation

“Motivation can be defined as the selection, persistence, intensity, and direction of behavior.”

(Fulmer & Frijters 2009 in Biehler & Snowman 1997, page 367) Biehler and Snowman go on to

summarize motivation in a more practical way as “the willingness of a person to expend a certain

amount of effort to achieve a particular goal under a particular set of circumstances” (page 367).

Motivation comes from within a person, and one person cannot directly motivate another, s/he can only

influence factors that allow for and encourage personal motivation. There are several views of


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motivation stemming from the different views of psychology: Behavioral, Cognitive and Humanistic.

These views are not mutually exclusive, and in fact, both the cognitive and humanistic views stem from

the more traditional behaviorist theory.

As a behaviorist, B. F. Skinner believed that a person who answered a question correctly, and

was told his or her answer was correct, was automatically motivated to continue (Biehler & Snowman

1997). Albert Bandura, a social learning theorist whose theories are also based on behaviorism, places

importance on self-efficacy, which stems from mastery experiences (having done well at something),

vicarious experiences (seeing others do well), verbal persuasion (encouragement from others) and

physiological state (effects of nervousness that affect perceptions) (Wang 2001). The cognitive view

explains the influence of the way people think of themselves and others on human behavior. An

example of this view lies with Jean Piaget, who placed the origins of motivation in the desire to maintain

a sense of equilibrium in one’s perception of his or her environment by continually re-organizing schema

to accept and master new ideas. Later, Atkinson described the need for achievement as a possible

explanation of motivation. Those who feel the need for achievement are driven to master new tasks

because they feel a greater expectation of accomplishment than fear of failure. Others experience more

fear and expect less success, which often causes them to avoid the task altogether (Biehler & Snowman

1997). This expectation of accomplishment is closely related to one aspect of the behaviorist idea of self

efficacy in that it’s a person’s judgment of his or her ability to perform a certain task.

Abraham Maslow began studying behaviorist psychology but due to influences from

anthropological study became what was known as a humanistic psychologist. He considered it necessary

to investigate need gratification in order to study motivation, and he created a five-level hierarchy of

needs that reflects all human needs in order of strength. Physiological needs have to be met before

safety needs are activated, then those of belongingness and love, esteem, and finally self-actualization,

which cannot be activated until all other needs are previously satisfied. Apart from this hierarchy he also

describes cognitive needs (to know and understand) and aesthetic needs (for order, symmetry, or

harmony) (Biehler & Snowman 1997). This classification and hierarchy of needs will be important in

order to understand students’ behavior in our classes.

Another classification of motivation that is important for this study is the dichotomy of intrinsic

and extrinsic motivation, related to the goals of mastery and performance, respectively. Intrinsic

motivation describes the reasons for actions taken where there is no apparent reward, or the reward is

individual pleasure, knowledge, satisfaction or challenge. In contrast, extrinsic motivation results from

the desire for praise or high marks, or the avoidance of punishment (Wang 1997). In other words,


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intrinsic motivation comes from within a person, while extrinsic motivation is related to external

outcomes. In the classroom, it is important for teachers to find ways to help students develop intrinsic

motivation in order to cultivate long-term learning strategies and the drive to succeed in school and life.

Motivation Related to Education

Motivation is a broad psychological concept with many facets and applications. It can be applied

to many different aspects in our lives, but here we are focusing on education and the effects of

motivation on our students. By studying the influences of our students’ motivation, we can make our

teaching practice more effective.

There are three main models of the application of motivation theory to the teaching practice,

and though none of them is related to the online learning environment, there is much we can learn and

apply to this new arena. Raymond Wlodkowski developed the Time Continuum model that focuses on

learner motivation throughout the learning period, divided between Beginning, During, and Ending. For

each time period, he assigns two general motivation factors that are most influential at that time. At the

beginning, Wlodkowski signals student attitude and his or her basic needs; during the learning process

stimulation and affect are most important; and at the end, student competence and reinforcement will

have the greatest impact. He suggests that by influencing each of these factors negatively or positively

at the proper time will have a significant effect on learner motivation (Wlodkowski 1978).

John Keller developed the ARCS model to help teachers develop motivation among their

students in the classroom. He suggested that it is necessary to first gain the learners’ attention in order

to stimulate curiosity. Then the teacher will need to demonstrate the relevance of the material by

connecting it to students’ lives. Next, confidence will have to be built by providing opportunities to

succeed, therefore establishing positive expectancies. Finally, teachers will help learners to feel

satisfaction in the form of recognition, praise, marks, etc. that will ideally feed into both intrinsic and

extrinsic motivation. The process of lesson planning according to the model includes ten steps and is

rather time-consuming, and for this reason Keller also suggests a simplified approach which he and

Suzuki applied to a computer-based course in Japan. The important lesson learned from their study is

that learner motivation changes over time, and sometimes unpredictably. It is feasible for a classroom

teacher to constantly measure motivation and adjust methods as necessary. However, in a self-directed

computer-based program, this is not possible since each learner will be working independently at

his/her own pace. Several motivational tactics could be put in place, but this seems detrimental to

motivation as learners do not want to waste time on unnecessary and irrelevant tasks (Keller 2000).


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Song (2000) discussed Keller’s ARCS model, but like Wlodkowski, he stressed the importance of

dividing the learning process into the beginning, middle and end. Song assigned motivational factors to

each of these time periods: motivation to initiate, motivation to persist, and motivation to continue.

He pointed out that motivation will tend to change throughout the learning process, and that the

reasons for a lack of motivation at one stage will not necessarily be the same at another stage. For

example, a student who registers but does not start the course may not be motivated due to personal

factors, but a person who drops out of a course mid-way may have been affected by his or her

experience in the course (Song 2000).

Smith (2008) also references Moshinskie’s more recent model from 2001, which is reminiscent

of Atkinson’s view on motivation. Moshinskie divides learners into two types: people with active

attitudes who have a lot of intrinsic motivation and therefore need little extrinsic motivation, and

people with passive attitudes who are less motivated internally and need more extrinsic motivation in

order for them to engage in the learning process. His model is also divided between the three phases of

a learning process (before, during and after) and he gives specific advice to teachers and instructional

designers in order to enhance motivation for both types of learners.

Motivation in Computer-Based Learning Environments

The motivational frameworks for educational situations described above can be directly applied

to an online learning environment. By extrapolating the classroom situation to an online classroom,

many of the same concepts apply. Wlodkowski’s suggestions for specific techniques at the beginning,

middle and end of the learning process is easily translated to an online course. Keller’s ARCS method is

also applicable, and in fact he and Suzuki did so in a later study. And Smith’s dichotomy of two different

types of learners applies to any learning situation, whether online, in the classroom or in the workplace.

Nonetheless, it is important to consider the implications of more specific studies that directly

refer to computer-based learning and others on online learning environments, some self-directed and

others with tutors. The factors regarding learner motivation will be very similar among these studies

since motivation comes from within the learner. The major difference will be seen in the possibilities for

modifying the learning environment and methods so as to influence learner motivation.

In a study on motivational influences in self-directed online learning environments, Kim (2004)

found that 66% of participants found human interaction to be an important for their learning, and a lack

of human interaction probably negatively affected their motivation. Some found the animations and

simulations helpful because they added this dimension of interactivity. However, 66% thought that


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human interaction would have helped their learning process because they would have the opportunity

to ask questions. The flexibility and convenience offered by an online learning environment was the

attraction, but in the middle of the course, some dropped out due to boredom and/or lack of time. One

participant dropped out because the course navigation was too difficult.

In order to compensate for this lack of flexibility in computer-based instruction, S. Song and

Keller (2001) performed a study in which they developed a prototype of motivationally adaptive

computer-aided instruction (CAI) software. They administered three types of software-based lessons to

three groups of students: motivationally adaptive, motivationally saturated, and motivationally

minimized. They found that the motivationally adaptive CAI resulted in increased motivation in terms of

attention and relevance, though not for confidence and satisfaction. Those students also performed

better in the posttest and demonstrated higher efficiency, though continuing motivation was not

affected. This study suggests that an adaptive approach that a personal intervention can have can result

in higher motivation, and consequently, better learning outcomes. Likewise, L. Song et al. (2004), while

studying learner perceptions on success in an online environment, found that motivation was one of the

keys to success. In fact, 76% of the learners considered that motivation impacted their success of online

learning. Other factors were also found to be important: the design of the course (83%), comfort with

online technologies (78%), and time management (75%). Despite the fact that motivation was third in

importance, a large majority of learners finds motivation to be vital, which makes it necessary to

research effective ways to influence learner motivation in an online environment.

The ARCS model is one possibility for influencing motivation, though there are many articles

available that suggest how online teachers can motivate students. One article from the WPI Academic

Technology Center seems to follow a similar model, suggesting specific techniques for gaining students’

attention (stating objectives and varying teaching methods), demonstrating the relevance of the content

(demonstrating practical application and relating to learner interests), instilling confidence in students

(providing encouraging individual feedback), and providing students with a sense of satisfaction

(employing both extrinsic and intrinsic reward systems). Another article by Cull, et al. suggests details

regarding the pedagogic design in order to engage students, then goes on to propose collaborative

learning techniques; setting explicit goals and expectations; enthusiastic, quick, and continuous

communication; and carrot and stick assessment.

In another article with motivational strategies for online teachers, Dennis et al. (2007) place

special emphasis on faculty behavior as a motivational factor. They suggest that performance feedback

is the perfect opportunity to enhance motivation, though it can also quickly decimate motivation.


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Because this feedback may be considered high-stakes, the authors stress that they manner in which the

feedback is presented is of vital importance. They recommend personal interaction such as using names

in posts, sharing relevant anecdotes and encouraging interaction between students. They also advise

that “feedback is best delivered respectfully, tactfully and constructively, so as to save face,” explaining

that if students feel threatened they are likely to withdraw and motivation will fade. In a study on

corporate Web-based training, 78% of participants judged timely and responsive feedback as an

important factor in their online training. Only one other factor was more highly rated, with 88% of

participants considering very important relevant and meaningful course materials (Bonk 2002). In fact,

all articles referenced placed importance on the communication between teacher and student,

especially during assessment. It is important to provide timely communication and encouraging

evaluation, while giving specific advice on areas for improvement.

In my project, I’ve chosen to follow the ARCS model, and study the effects of teacher feedback

and assessment on student motivation in an online learning environment, while keeping in mind other

motivational views and techniques. Though the ARCS model is comprehensive, it is important to

consider the timing of each stage, and to consider the difference between learners with stronger or

weaker intrinsic motivation. Due to the demonstrated significance of communication and feedback in

online learning and the lack of research in this area, I’ve chosen to focus this study on assessment and

how it can help to enhance motivation in adult students in an online learning environment.

Methodology and Work Plan

In order to study the effects of feedback and assessment on student motivation, I implemented

a work plan consisting of four main steps: course welcome, student self assessment, announcement and

presentation of feedback rubric, consistent and meaningful feedback. First, I was able to personally

welcome the students to the online course. In a brief presentation, I asked them what they expected to

see in the course and how they felt about beginning an online course. I introduced myself as the tutor of

the course, and asked them to feel free to direct any questions, difficulties or suggestions to me at any

time throughout the course. I also showed them how to log into the course, access the activities,

respond to the tasks, and provided other basic navigation instructions. Following Keller’s ARCS model

this step was meant to attract their attention and begin to demonstrate relevance.

The second step consisted of the self assessment, which was done online. The statements (See

Appendix A) were related to their profession as teachers and the application of their English language

skills in their jobs, and students chose true or false regarding their assessment of their abilities. This


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activity served as a way for students to recognize their current English level and teaching methodology,

and identify potential gaps which could be translated into personal goals and objectives for the course.

This step was meant to provide relevance to students’ lives and work in order to create a meaningful

link to the course content.

For the third step, I presented the rubric for the feedback that I would give in response to their

tasks (See Appendix B) in the News forum of the course. This rubric is an example of analytic scoring, as

it draws students’ attention to individual aspects of their writing and allows them to consider their

strengths and weakness (Lázaro 2012). I explained that for each task I would be using rubric to provide

them with marks in each of the four categories. I suggested that they keep track of their marks in order

to see their progress, and I explained the meaning of the marks. I chose to use letter grades (A, B, C, D,

F) in order to give a different reference than what they were used to. Generally in Spain students are

given marks on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being a perfect mark, and I wanted to avoid the stigma attached to

this system. By using the traditional American grading system, I hoped to attach a different type of value

to their marks that would serve as a reference between them, but not to past experiences. The language

of the rubric was kept positive, and in this way, this step was meant to help students build confidence in

themselves and their English communication abilities.

The rubric is divided into four categories: Content, Overall communication, Grammar and

Vocabulary. The first category of content is related to their thoroughness in answering the tasks. It is

important to be sure that they have read and understood the instructions, and are structuring their

answers so as to reply to the question. Also, they would need to properly support their ideas and

opinions with appropriate facts and reasoning. The category of Overall communication was necessary in

specifically addressing issues that are important for fluid communication, as this is a necessary aspect of

their work and their personal English communication. This category refers to the organization of their

answer and the presentation of their ideas. If their communication is generally easily understood, even

though it may not be 100% correct, this mark may be high. In order to also focus on correctness, I

included the next two categories of Grammar and Vocabulary. In this case, grammar refers to verb

tenses, subject-verb agreement, prepositions, punctuation and other similar aspects. Vocabulary is

related to word choice in appropriateness and meaning. Again, these two categories are divided

between marks that reflect the effectiveness of communication in each case, rather than an exact

percentage of correct and incorrect words and sentences. In this way, fluid and correct communication

is still the priority and overall goal.


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Finally, I began to mark their tasks using the previously presented rubric, taking care to be

consistent in my marking and explain the marks given through examples of errors, comments and

general suggestions to improve their communication skills. When the content did not properly address

the question, I clarified the task with further explanation and referred them to the reading texts when

they could clear up misunderstandings. With errors in vocabulary and grammar, I made suggestions of

better structures or word choice, and made comments on errors that they often made, suggesting they

review certain grammatical points. When communication was impeded, I made suggestions to restate

their ideas and asked them for clarification. I did my best to answer their tasks in a timely fashion,

usually within the same week they completed the tasks. I also was always positive in my comments,

praising the better aspects and suggesting ways to improve, rather than focusing on the negative

aspects of their work. This last step of my work plan refers to students’ satisfaction, which they

hopefully experienced when they received feedback on their tasks. They will also feel satisfaction when

completing the course and receiving a certificate of attendance that states the number of in-house and

online hours of the course.

The Study

Context

My students are a group of Pre-primary and Primary English teachers throughout Andalusia,

Spain. They all work for a congregation of schools through which they are offered professional

development courses, including the one I am tutoring. The professional development supervisors of the

congregation are interested in their progress and will request a final report on their participation.

Students are aware of this and may sometimes worry about causing a good impression, though neither

their job nor salary depends on course results. There are 16 students in the course and they range in

ages from about 25 to 60 years old. The majority of them have done a similar online course in the past

with a different tutor, but this is the first time they have me as a tutor. The control group is a very

similar group from the same congregation of schools, though they are Secondary English teachers and

there are 14 of them, most of which had previously done a similar online course. The tutor of the control

group has previously worked with several of these students on a similar course, and will teach three in-

house sessions with his group. The three in-house sessions for my group will be taught by another

teacher trainer.

The course is held over 16 weeks in an online setting on a Moodle platform. There are three in-

house sessions that will take place at the beginning of the course, at the middle and at the end. Most


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students will have to travel to attend these courses as they are held in Seville, a central place in

Andalusia. The online activities are designed in an intuitive way in order to help those that have less

experience in an online educational setting. The course content is made up of activities including reading

and oral comprehension, multiple choice, gap fill, and true/false quizzes that will be automatically

scored, plus group forums and finally the written and spoken tasks that I will mark using my rubric. The

objective of the course is to help improve students’ English communication skills as well as provide them

with updated methodology to help them in their classrooms. The reading and oral comprehension

activities serve as a refresher on these classroom techniques, and the forums as a place for sharing

experiences and ideas that the students offer so that they may learn from each other. The in-house

session content is meant to complement the online content and be more practical and hands-on in

nature, allowing them to try out activities as if they were students and discuss alternatives and possible

results.

Motivation is essential with our students, as they are all adults with busy professional and

personal lives. All of them work full-time as teachers, and many have children and families at home that

demand of their time. It is important to boost and maintain motivation in order to help them enjoy and

get the most out of this professional development course that is important for their work. As English

teachers, it is crucial for them to continue improving their English communication skills as well as keep

up on the latest methods and techniques for the classroom. Though they are aware of this importance,

it can be difficult to find the time to dedicate to the course and the self motivation to participate

consistently. Past experience as shown that some teachers never start the course, some do not finish,

and some will do almost every activity.

Because my students will not experience any direct results of their performance in my online

class, such as maintaining or losing their teaching position, a raised or lowered salary or bonus, etc.,

there is no real extrinsic motivation for them, except for a simple certificate of attendance with an

estimated number of in-house and online hours. The main expected positive outcome will be personal

and professional development, which only appeals to intrinsic motivation. Therefore, for those students

who have a low need for achievement, there is little reason to participate and do well in my course.

Those with a higher need for achievement will be challenged by my course and want to do their best in

order to gain the feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction in improving themselves personally and

professionally. Professional development may lead to better results from their own students, but since

this is difficult to quantify as a result of their participation in my course, it will not be enough extrinsic

motivation for the majority. For this reason, my study focuses on adding a dimension of extrinsic


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motivation. Even though these marks will not “count for” anything concrete, it may appeal to those

students who need an external reason for participating and performing well.

Because my course is an online course, motivation becomes more difficult due to the lack of

personal contact that happens in a face-to-face context. From a social perspective, students lose the

possibility of vicarious experiences because they can’t see the results of their classmates as applied in

their classrooms or as quantified in their marks. Forums help with this aspect, and are meant to be a

place where students share their experiences and results, but they do not replace the value of personal

contact in a classroom. Verbal persuasion is also affected since it occurs in a different way. Students will

not have direct contact, though their verbal persuasion might come from the forums and my feedback.

Even so, removing the possibility of constant face-to-face contact will negatively affect this aspect of

motivation. As mentioned above, Kim (2004) found that 66% of participants found human interaction to

be an important for their learning, and a lack of human interaction probably negatively affected their

motivation. Furthermore, they may not have mastery experiences due to the relative novelty of online

courses, since many of them have not previously participated in an online course. They may feel

overwhelmed by this new environment and be unsure of their expected results. Similarly, their

physiological state may even be affected due to nervousness about participating in an online

environment and lack of confidence with the use of technology.

Data Collection

My main goal when collecting data was to quantify the motivation felt by my students through

questionnaires that resulted in statistical facts from which I could later draw reliable conclusions. I

wished to measure student motivation at the beginning, middle and end of the course in order to

compare that with the motivation of the control group and identify and explain the differences. The

method used to measure motivation was the questionnaire and two were given, one at the middle of

the course, and one at the end. For each question, participants were given several controlled possible

responses, though a space for open response was provided in hopes of gaining some insight into the

reasons of motivation or lack of motivation. (See Appendices C, D, E and F for those questionnaires and

the results.) Another part of the analysis was to measure participation, since this is often an indicator of

the level of motivation. The level of participation was quantified at the end of the course, and included

the percentage of activities and tasks that were completed, plus the frequency of forum posts that they

shared on the platform. (See Appendix G for the participation report.)


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The online portion of the course began on 23 January 2012 and lasted 16 weeks, until 13 May.

There were three in-house sessions on 18 January, 16 March, and 17 May, which took place in their

group’s facilities in Seville, a central location for most participants. The self assessment was available

online from the beginning of the course, and meant to be the first activity. The feedback rubric was

announced online in the News forum, and explained on 6 February, when my feedback and assessment

began. The first (mid-course) questionnaire was given to both groups at the second in-house session on

16 March and the second (end-course) at the final session on 17 May. The inclusion of in-house sessions

has been vital to this study as it is extremely difficult to achieve an appropriate participation in online

surveys. It may be supposed that the questionnaires are optional and not required for the course, and

for this reason students do not complete them. Or another possible explanation is the fact that online,

students assume that these surveys are connected with their names and profiles. Although I have

created the surveys to be anonymous, students may not realize this and may not want their opinions to

be linked to their profile, suspecting that they may have an effect on their course assessment. This is

only speculation, as it has been impossible to ask participants why they do not complete online surveys.

In this final session I was also able to have an informal discussion with my group of participants in order

to ask them their opinions on the course and their motivation, which yielded some interesting results,

described below.

Most data that was collected is subjective, and necessarily so as it is related to motivation,

which is a very personal feeling. I attempted to quantify these feelings by using a scale of 1 to 5 to

represent the degree of motivation, in order to make analysis easier and more accurate. To

counterbalance the subjective data, I am also taking into consideration their participation, which is more

easily quantified and more objective. Participation is normally directly related to motivation, and may be

used as a continuous measure of motivation throughout the course. This data is taken directly from the

Moodle platform, and represents an advantage to online courses, as it makes measurement easier for

the instructor. The results are seen in Appendix G.

Data Analysis

In order to analyze the mid-course questionnaire data received, I took an average of the scores

from 1 to 5, 5 being the highest, for the relevant categories (I find my tutor’s feedback helpful.; I

understand my tutor’s feedback criteria.; I feel motivated to continue this course.; The activities are

appropriate and helpful to my professional development.). I also calculated the standard deviation (SD)

for each item, which measures the variation among the responses, in relation to the average. A higher


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SD means there is more variation in responses, and a lower SD means there is less. In other words, a

higher SD means that in general the group was more in agreement, and a lower SD means there were

more mixed feelings.

Analyzing the end of course feedback was very similar, since the scores were the same: 1 to 5, 5

being the highest, for each category (My motivation at the beginning of the course, at the middle, and at

the end). The standard deviation was again calculated for this feedback questionnaire, and other

questions were also taken into consideration to mark the tendencies of reasoning for higher or lower

motivation. They were able to mark as many as applied for each section (motivation at the beginning, at

the middle, and at the end) of the following: Time (other personal or professional obligations); Technical

problems; Interest in materials/activities; Relevance of materials/activities; Difficulty of

materials/activities; Tutor feedback and comments; Peer/colleague interaction. By analyzing their

responses and calculating the percentages, we can estimate the reasoning behind a rise or fall in

motivation, and later attempt to adjust the offending aspects in future courses. Their comments for

each section are also very telling and lead us to understand the same reasoning, expressed in a freer

way. In the same way, their comments from our informal discussion also give insight into the reasons

behind their motivation and/or lack thereof.

Finally, participation was analyzed at the end of the course to see what percentage of

automatically-scored activities, and tasks with tutor feedback were completed, and whether they

participated actively (more than 1 post), minimally (only 1 post), or not at all (0 posts) in the forums. I

calculated the average participation in the activities, tasks and forums in both cases in order to compare

between the test group and the control group, as well as to the results of the motivation questionnaires.

By relating the participation to the motivation questionnaires we can draw conclusions regarding the

relationship between participation and personal motivation.

Findings

At the middle of the course, the findings were not promising; there was no evidence that

specific and meaningful tutor feedback was helping increase motivation among students. Table 1 shows

the results of the mid-course feedback where it is clear that the Primary group is slightly less motivated

than the Secondary group. They also value the tutor’s feedback slightly less and understand the

feedback criteria slightly less. The results are not completely decisive, however, since we can see that

the standard deviation in Primary for question 3 is higher, and therefore, there is more variation, or

some people more motivated and some people less motivated. However, the lower evaluation of


15

questions 1 and 2 for Primary suggests that my feedback rubric could be too complicated, or that the

participants are still getting used to this form of feedback on their tasks. Still, there is not a large

difference between the average evaluations in Primary to those in Secondary, though this mid-course

feedback gives us an indication of what to expect in the final feedback questionnaire.

Table 1. Mid-course student feedback analysis comparing average value answers from test and

control groups on a scale of 1 (completely disagree) to 5 (completely agree)

Primary (test group) Secondary (control group)

Average SD* Average SD*

1. I find my tutor's feedback helpful. 4.29 0.59 4.58 0.76

2. I understand my tutor's feedback criteria. 4.14 0.91 4.50 0.76

3. I feel motivated to continue this course. 4.21 0.77 4.25 0.60

4. The activities are appropriate and helpful

to my professional development. 4.29 0.80 4.42 0.56

*SD = Standard deviation

At the end of the course, the feedback questionnaire analysis is much more telling, as can be

seen in Table 2. The Secondary group starts with a lower motivation average than the Primary group,

but they maintain a similar motivation average throughout the course. Meanwhile, the Primary group’s

average motivation drops rather drastically at mid-course and continues to fall slightly toward the end

of the course. There is not much difference between the standard deviations in the two groups to make

up for the difference in averages, and it is clear that motivation is lacking in the Primary group. I

considered the reasons behind this phenomenon.

Table 2. Average motivation values from end-of-course student feedback analysis comparing

test and control groups, on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high)


Average SD* Average SD*

My motivation at the beginning of the

course 4.25 0.60 4.10 0.70

My motivation in the middle of the course 2.83 0.69 3.90 0.83

My motivation at the end of the course 2.42 0.95 3.90 0.94

*SD = Standard deviation


16

We can see from Table 3 that the reasons behind the Primary group’s motivation and/or lack of

motivation are not directly related to the tutor feedback. At the beginning of the course they are mostly

motivated by their interest in the materials and activities that they expect to, or begin to, see. Tutor

feedback occupies the third place on the list, and succeeds in motivating 25% of the participants. Later

on in the course, most participants’ motivation decreases due to a lack of time and other personal or

professional obligations. The majority of the participants also felt that the materials and activities were

too difficult, and this presumably decreased their motivation due to a lack of confidence. This is

reminiscent of Atkinson’s expectation of accomplishment in which many people will refrain from doing

something if they do not expect to succeed. The majority of the participants may not feel a strong need

for achievement, or the fear of failure may overpower their wish to do well, and so they avoid the task

in order to avoid failure.

In the free answer portion of the questionnaire, there were some comments such as, “Too hard”

and “Too many activities, not enough time. I felt obligated rather than interested to do the course.”

Also, 100% of the participants answered that the workload was too much on the End of Course

Feedback, as compared to the Secondary group, where 60% answered “too much” and 40% answered

“just right” (See complete results in Appendix F). From these results, it is clear that my group’s

participants felt overwhelmed by the number of activities and the difficulty of the same. Here, we are

reminded by the idea of self efficacy, which Bandura explained as being supported by mastery

experiences, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and physiological state. If students find activities

to be too difficult and realize or feel that they cannot effectively complete them, the mastery experience

is lacking, and so will motivation. The forums were the only public part of the course, and not many

contributed often. Therefore, the individuals in the group were not positively influenced by the rest

through vicarious experiences, another part of self efficacy that was lacking. If participants felt

overwhelmed by the amount and difficulty of the work, this feeling may have negatively affected their

physiological state, also causing a negative effect on self efficacy. Despite my efforts to increase

motivation through verbal (or written) persuasion and encouragement, the negative pull of the other

three factors was too much, and could not be compensated.


17

Table 3. Consolidation of reasoning behind changes in motivation from end-of-course student

feedback analysis comparing test and control groups. The largest trends are

highlighted in bold type.

On the other hand, the Secondary group did not find their materials and activities quite so

difficult. They attributed their initial motivation to their interest in the materials and their relevance.

Later, at mid-course, they felt that time was an issue when completing their tasks, though their interest

seems to have maintained their motivation. Toward the end of the course, their interest was still

maintaining their motivation, and the tutor’s feedback and comments also helped maintain motivation.

There is one possible explanation for the difference in the evaluation of tutor feedback. The tutor of the

Secondary group also had in-house sessions with his group, and may have built up a better rapport with

his students face to face than was possible for me in a strictly online format. This may be related to

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs which states that self-actualization cannot be considered before the needs

of belongingness and love are met. It is possible that the Primary students were not completely

comfortable or did not have a special bond with their online tutor, as the Secondary students may have

with their tutor. This was also seen in Kim’s conclusions as described above, and he stated that 66%

found that human interaction was important for their learning, and a lack of human interaction could

negatively affect their motivation. Though his study referred to self-directed online courses as opposed

to a human tutor, this can also be extrapolated to include face-to-face human interaction as compared

with online asynchronous human interaction.


Reasons (mark all that apply): beginning middle end beginning middle end

Time (other personal or professional

obligations) 50% 92% 100% 20% 60% 40%

Technical problems 17% 42% 17% 10% 20% 10%

Interest in materials/activities 58% 0% 0% 90% 70% 50%

Relevance of materials/activities 17% 0% 25% 60% 50% 40%

Difficulty of materials/activities 17% 67% 67% 10% 0% 10%

Tutor feedback and comments 25% 0% 0% 50% 30% 70%

Peer/colleague interaction 8% 8% 8% 40% 20% 30%


18

However, after the informal discussion with the Primary group, I found it very clear that the

main reason for their lack of motivation was simply their feelings of obligation and overwhelm. Many

found it was an excessive amount of work and time to employ in the online course, as they also have

full-time jobs and families. Some felt overwhelmed and more obligated than motivated to complete the

course, which is of course, not conducive to motivation, which is a self-imposed feeling. They said that

felt it was a chore and not extremely practical, comparing it to the in-house sessions, which they found

more practical. In fact, several participants indicated that they preferred in-house sessions and would

rather travel to attend more sessions than have the online course. There was a tendency to compare the

online portion of the course to the in-house sessions, and it seemed that many participants preferred

the dynamics of the in-house session, where they were able to interact face to face, and join in group

and pair work activities. This preference may stem from a lack of confidence in the online setting of the

course, or a preference for a social learning setting. All learners have different preferences and learn

better in certain settings and in certain ways, and it could be that these learners were more kinaesthetic

learners (they learn better by physically doing things) or social learners (they learn better in a group

than from individual study). In the in-house sessions, they had group discussions, worked in pairs and

small groups, and often physically performed example group activities, acting as if they were the

students that they teach. In contrast, the online environment is much more individually-focused, and

involves reading, listening and writing alone in front of a computer. I don’t have information regarding

their learning preferences, but their partiality to these types of in-house sessions as compared to the

online environment may indicate an inclination toward a more social learning environment. If there had

been time enough for modifications to the study, I might have asked participants to work in groups on

certain tasks to add this social aspect to the course.

In contrast to the majority of comments from our discussion, when I later spoke individually to

the only student that completed 100% of the online work, she said that she very much enjoyed the

online course and found it interesting. She liked that she could complete the course wherever and

whenever she liked. She also thanked me for my positive comments on her work and said that she

enjoyed receiving such encouraging feedback. It was clear that this student had very strong intrinsic

motivation, demonstrated by comments about her desire to improve in her job and continuing to learn.

She said that she found it very important to keep studying and learning new things, and she found the

course extremely practical because she was able to apply some ideas immediately to her own classes as

a teacher. It was clear that she felt the need for achievement that may have been lacking in some of her

colleagues. She experienced the four requirements for motivation, as defined by Keller: attention


19

because she was interested, relevance because she saw the link to her work, confidence because she

thought she could complete the course and was encouraged by my feedback, and satisfaction because

she was able to complete the entire course and receive excellent marks.

Finally, the results of the group’s participation are seen in Table 4. Interestingly, the group

averages of participation are not significantly different. The Secondary group has a slightly higher

average of participation in the self-corrected activities and forums, but a slightly lower average in the

participation in the tutor-corrected tasks. The differences are minimal and no conclusions can be drawn

from this. However, the lack of difference in participation averages may suggest a lack of correlation

between overall motivation and overall participation. On the individual level, it may be more directly

linked, which is impossible to identify here, due to the anonymous nature of the questionnaires.

However, as a group, despite a significantly higher motivation reported in the Secondary group, the

average participation is only very slightly higher.

Table 4. Participation report comparing individual and average participation between test and

control groups

Primary (test group)

Secondary (control group)

Student activities tasks forums


A 50% 65% minimal

A 100% 80% active

B 0% 0% none

B 64% 90% active

C 13% 71% minimal

C 100% 90% active

D 75% 71% active

D 0% 0% minimal

E 69% 82% active

E 93% 70% active

F 69% 71% active

F 86% 90% active

G 94% 65% minimal

G 43% 40% minimal

H 100% 100% active

H 57% 20% active

I 88% 88% active

I 79% 90% active

J 0% 35% active

J 14% 0% minimal

K 69% 29% minimal

K 50% 40% active

L 50% 47% active

L 21% 20% minimal

M 31% 6% minimal

M 100% 80% active

N 69% 53% active

N 43% 10% none

O 63% 71% active

O 71% 90% active

P 88% 100% active

Average 58% 60% active 69%


minimal 31%

minimal 29%

none 6%

none 7%


20

Plan of Action

Based on these findings, it’s clear that a plan of action is needed to adjust the online courses in

an attempt to increase student motivation. However, rather than focusing on tutor feedback, it seems

that we may need to cut back on the volume and difficulty of the work, at least in the Primary course. A

course shouldn’t be overwhelming to the students, and it’s clear that they will learn less if they feel

extreme stress when attempting to complete the course. Therefore, my recommendation is to take the

materials that make up the course and reduce the volume by 30-50%. It would be more effective to

cover fewer concepts, and be sure that participants completely understand the concepts presented and

have time to work with them, rather than asking them to complete an overwhelming amount of work.

This could be done by reducing the weekly activities and tasks, and by reducing the duration of the

course. I think that a duration of ten to twelve weeks may be more appropriate, and allows participants

to see the “light at the end of the tunnel”, and realize that the end of the course is not quite so far.

Along with reducing the number of concepts and the volume of activities, I would recommend

adding a group project to the course in an attempt to motivate participants by working together. A

project could be chosen that will address several themes throughout the course, and participants can be

assigned to groups of four or five to work on a project. For example, each group could prepare a didactic

unit for a certain level of education, in which they incorporate particular aspects that are seen

throughout the course, such as recycling language, classroom language, technology, or project work. In

this way their unit will be created, modified, and improved throughout the course to incorporate

different methodological aspects, and at the end of the course, participants will have several didactic

units (shared by all the groups) to take away for use in their classes. This final product in itself will be

quite motivating, as it is relevant to them, and will save them time in the future, as time is an important

concern. The modification of the course implies the work of the course’s original content designer and

additional work by the online designer to make the changes proposed. Since this course is not regulated

by any specific standard, there will be no need to maintain certain content. This could be done over the

summer and be ready for future courses that may begin in October or November.

Besides modifying the actual course, one change should be made regarding the tutors of this

blended course. The online tutors should ideally also be the in-house session tutors, in order to allow for

more personal contact and a buildup of rapport. This change, along with the group project, will help

participants feel members of a group, and help them work better together and with the tutor. Any

technical problems can also be resolved more easily in the in-house sessions, and online course contents

may be more closely linked and referred to in the in-house sessions. Participants will have a chance to


21

ask questions and resolve any doubts they may have, and more time can be spent clarifying difficult

concepts seen in the online portion. This change will require the selection of an online tutor that is

available to travel to Seville for the in-house sessions. Also, the in-house session materials will have to

be adjusted to more effectively complement the online course materials in such a way that each portion

of the course supports the other. Some of the content eliminated from the online course may be seen in

the in-house sessions, and this content could be chosen according to its complexity, since a face-to-face

explanation and demonstration may help to reduce the difficulty.

Finally, participants should be advised at the beginning of the course what is expected of them,

with clear and precise instructions and indications as to hours employed to complete the course. Though

I explained the technical functionalities of the online course at the beginning, we never discussed the

number of hours that would be employed in completing the online course. If students know what to

expect, they should become less overwhelmed when they see the volume of course contents. It is also

possible that they don’t start the course, if they feel it is unmanageable, due to Atkinson’s expectation

of accomplishment. However, those with a need for achievement, those who believe they can complete

a certain number of hours, will be motivated to begin and complete the course.

Conclusions

Outcomes

Although the outcomes are not those that were expected, much has been learned through this

study. I still believe that teacher feedback does have an effect on student motivation, though it was not

obvious in this course. Because participants were so overwhelmed with the amount of work asked of

them, their motivation was decreased and teacher feedback couldn’t overcome this obstacle. However,

in the case of one student who did complete 100% of the work, she was motivated by teacher feedback

and thanked me for it. She admitted to being discouraged by the lack of participation of her colleagues,

but she knew that this course was relevant to her work and was willing to dedicate time and effort to

getting the most out of the course. These were encouraging comments for this study, since it is clear

that for this type of student, teacher feedback helps immensely. It’s also easier to maintain the

motivation of someone who is already intrinsically motivated. However, if the other participants weren’t

so overwhelmed, I believe that my feedback may have helped to motivate them as well.

One important factor contributed to a lack of motivation was the lack of time due to other

obligations. This was a difficult time for participants to join an online training course, due to many

demands on their time. When they began the course in January, it was somewhat easier, but as the


22

course wore on, more time was also demanded of them at work. In April and May they are preparing

festivities and nearing the end of the school year, and therefore preoccupied with finishing the contents

with their own students in class, correcting papers, and preparing end-of-the-year marks. Due to these

time constraints and additional stressors, participants may have felt increasingly overwhelmed by the

additional obligation of the online course. If the course had been somewhat shorter, they may have

finished in April and had less outside obligations than they do in May. Of course, this is speculation

stemming from my experience with Primary school teachers and their busy times of the year, but it may

have had an influence.

Implications

My objective was to discover how to motivate adult learners in an online training environment,

and specifically prove that teacher feedback could have a positive impact on their personal motivation.

While the results of my feedback on student motivation were not conclusive, much has been learned

about their motivation and factors that have a negative impact. First, we have seen that teacher

feedback will not have a significant impact on student motivation while other, more important factors

have a negative impact, such as the feeling of obligation to complete a course, an overwhelming feeling

of too much work and activities that are too difficult, and other personal or professional obligations that

result in time constraints. This combination of factors has created a negative perception of the course

that resulted in low motivation, which could not be changed by the teacher. As mentioned at the

beginning of this study, motivation is a personal feeling that comes from within, one that others cannot

change, though they may be able to influence factors that allow for and encourage personal motivation.

As seen with one extremely motivated participant, if a person is intrinsically motivated, a teacher may

help her to maintain her motivation through personal attention and effective and meaningful feedback.

To the contrary, it is quite difficult to motivate a person who is not personally motivated, intrinsically or

extrinsically.

Second, from the analysis of student feedback through questionnaires and conversations, it has

become clear that we must first change the demanding nature of the course, reduce content and/or

duration, and add a social dimension, before we can continue to study the effects of teacher feedback.

By reducing the number of hours required to complete the course and effectively communicating the

number of hours required, we can help the students to increase their expectation of success in the

course. This will increase motivation by improving their self efficacy. Explaining exactly what is expected

of them, including an estimation of the number of hours, will attract their attention. We will also


23

maintain the practice of explaining the technical steps of entering the course, viewing and interacting

with the materials, and submitting tasks that I did in this case, for the same objective. Making the

content a bit easier or presenting it in smaller doses and working on the same content in the in-house

sessions will also have a similar effect.

Next, creating an opportunity for participants to work together on a group project throughout

the course will allow them a sense of community and belonging that will help build their motivation.

Generally, participants working in groups will want to do their best and complete their part so as not to

let their group down. In the same way, asking the same tutor to teach the in-house sessions, as was

done with the control group, will help the same community building and allow participants to build a

stronger relationship and confidence with the tutor. They will also be rewarded with a polished, finished

product at the end of the course that will save them time and effort in the future. An explanation of the

objectives of this project, along with their initial self assessment that allows them to identify potential

gaps in their current abilities which could be translated into personal goals and objectives for the course,

will demonstrate relevance. Only then can we create a sense of confidence by demonstrating their

success through meaningful and positive tutor feedback, as was the objective of this study. Finally,

students will feel satisfaction in receiving positive teacher feedback, completing the course, and finally

being presented with a number of final projects to keep, as well as a certificate of attendance.

Finally, though teacher feedback is important and may effectively help motivate and maintain

motivation, it is important to point out that it requires a lot of time and effort on the part of the teacher.

It’s important to give feedback regularly and often to avoid a drop in motivation, as indicated by most of

the articles containing advice to online tutors. However, this requires a large time commitment, which I

found difficult to maintain. I found that it was important to set aside a weekly time that I could dedicate

to feedback on the online course in order to not fall behind or allow too much time between

interactions with the participants. Because of the time that a teacher should dedicate to providing

feedback, it’s important to keep classes as small as possible. In this way, teachers can provide more

individual attention more often, and this will help motivate students throughout the course. Another

possibility for lessening the burden on the teacher could be peer correction, in which participants make

suggestions for each other’s work. Because these suggestions would come from a colleague, I think that

they would also improve and maintain motivation, though the final approval by the tutor will still be

necessary to provide extrinsic motivation. The group work recommended above is one opportunity for

peer correction, as they have to work together and share what each of them has done to create a

common project. Also, the forums are an excellent place for peer correction, though many participants


24

seem hesitant to publicly criticize others’ ideas or work. It may also be due to a lack of time for reading

others’ responses and ideas, but it is difficult to get participants to reply to each others’ posts. When

they do reply, it usually involves a short positive comment, such as “I like this idea” or “I also do this” or

“I agree”. If peer correction is contemplated within the course through group work or sharing of

compositions, it may be more effective than open forums since comments would be somewhat private.

This study is limited by only taking into consideration one online course, and comparing to only

one other. More comprehensive and conclusive results could be obtained by studying courses on a

larger scale. If it were possible, it would be more effective to compare several courses with several

tutors who teach more than one section of the same online course. In my study, the control group was

being taught by a different tutor, who also had the opportunity to share the in-house sessions with his

group. A better comparison could have been drawn had I also been the tutor of the control group,

without sharing the in-house sessions with them. Therefore, to improve upon this study, I would suggest

making the changes described above, then carrying out a similar study on a larger scale. Each tutor

would have two sections of the same course, one of which would receive feedback based on the new

rubric, and the other would receive feedback as they’ve always done, presumably in a less structured

way. By studying several tutors at the same time, more generalizations could be made by comparing

results across the many courses.

It has also become clear that the average feeling of motivation may not directly influence the

average degree of participation in the group. On an individual level, it may be clearer that motivation

directly affects the level of participation, which is out of the scope of this study due to the anonymity of

the questionnaires. However, it is quite interesting that an overall lower level of motivation in one group

did not greatly impact the overall level of participation, as compared to the group with an overall higher

level of motivation. This implies that in future studies, participation may be one factor, but it must not

be the only factor studied. It is important to delve deeper into the perceived motivation levels of the

participants and the reasoning behind, as I’ve done here.

In conclusion, this study clearly demonstrates that student motivation is a complicated matter,

and a difficult one to tackle, especially in an online environment. It will depend on a number of factors,

and if some are not accounted for at the beginning, there is little an online tutor can do to increase his

or her students’ motivation. It can be quite difficult to estimate the number of hours that will be

required to complete an online course, but this is one factor that should be studied and somehow

quantified to make expectations very clear to students. They can then decide for themselves whether

they undertake a particular course or whether their other outside obligations impede them from doing


25

so. Also, a major difficulty of online education is the lack of feeling of belonging and social interaction.

This is something that needs to be addressed through group projects, occasional in-house sessions, or

other factors that can be tested. Until students feel a part of their online community, and that there is

someone that cares about their progress, it will be difficult to motivate them, unless they already bring a

strong desire to learn and need for achievement. Finally, more research is needed regarding the type of

teacher feedback that is most effective in an online setting. My rubric may have had positive effects on a

different group, but there may also be better ways to give positive and meaningful feedback. This will

require more study of students’ needs, as well as trial and error with different types of feedback

systems.


26

References

Bonk, C. J. (2002). Online training in an online world. CourseShare.com. Retrieved 2 June 2012 from

http://publicationshare.com/docs/corp_survey.pdf.

Cull, S., Reed, D., Kirk, K. (2010). Student Motivation and Engagement in Online Courses.

Teaching Geoscience Online – A Workshop for Digital Faculty, Course content. Retrieved 16

January 2012 from http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGT/Workshops/online/motivation.html

Dennis et al. (2007) The little engine that could - How to start the motor? Motivating the online

student. Insight2. Retrieved 2 May 2012 from http://www.insightjournal.net/Volume2.htm

Kim, K.-J. (2004). Motivational Influences in Self-Directed Online Learning Environments: A

qualitative case study (pp. 460-467). Indiana University: Association for Educational

Communications and Technology.

Lázaro, L. A., (2012). Unit 2. Writing. UAH Reading & Writing module, course content.

Smith, Ruth. (2008). Motivational Factors in E-Learning. George Washington University. Retrieved on 2

May 2012 from http://www.ruthcsmith.com/GWU%20Papers/Motivation.pdf

Song, L., Singleton, E., Hill, J., Koh, M. (2003). Improving online learning: Student perceptions of useful

and challenging characteristics. University of Georgia: The Internet and Higher Education.

Retrieved on 2 May from

ftp://140.127.40.36/jeromeftp/students%20collection%20and%20work/93CAI/M9253320/Impr

oving_online_learning.pdf

Song, S. (2000). Research Issues of Motivation in Web-based Instruction. The Quarterly Review of

Distance Education, Vol. 1(3), pp. 225-229.

Song, S., Keller J. (2001). Effectiveness of Motivationally Adaptive Computer-Assisted Instruction on the

Dynamic Aspects of Motivation. ETR&D, Vol. 49, No. 2, p. 5-22. Retrieved 2 May 2012 from

http://www.speakeasydesigns.com/SDSU/student/SAGE/compsprep/Adaptive_Instruction_and

_Motivation.pdf

Walker, D. (2010). What every teacher should know about motivation. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Corwin

Press.

Wang, S. (2001). Motivation: General overview of theories. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on

learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved 16 January 2012 from

http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Wlodkowski, Raymond J. (1978) Motivation and Teaching: A Practical Guide. Washington, DC: National

Education Assoc. Retrieved 2 May 2012 from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED159173.pdf

WPI Academic Technology Center (2009). Teaching with Technology Collaboratory: Motivating Your

Students. Retrieved 1 May 2012 from

http://www.wpi.edu/academics/ATC/Collaboratory/Idea/motivate.html


27

Appendix A

Self Assessment

This self-assessment is for your personal reference as you start the course. You can reflect on your

abilities regarding the English language and in your classes. Please take some time to consider each

question and respond honestly. You will have the opportunity to complete this same self-assessment at

the end of this course.

True or False:

1. I can effectively tell a story in English using a text.

2. I can effectively tell a story in English without a text.

3. I can effectively tell a personal anecdote in English.

4. I can use classroom language (giving instructions) in English.

5. I can teach my entire English class in English.

6. I can describe classroom activities in English.

7. I can choose level-appropriate language to use in my classroom.

8. I can give appropriate feedback and praise to my students in English.

9. I can listen to an English language radio program and understand almost everything.

10. I can watch a news program in English and understand almost everything.

11. I can watch a film or TV series in English with English subtitles and understand almost

everything.

12. I can watch a film or TV series in English without subtitles and understand almost everything.

13. I can hold a basic personal conversation with an English speaker.

14. I can ask for and receive information, such as directions or instructions in English.

15. I can express my opinions about a familiar topic in English.

16. I can express agreement and disagreement with others in an appropriate way.

17. I can hold complex conversations about abstract topics and debate issues in English.

18. I can write my lesson plans in English.

19. I can read and understand lesson plans (such as in my Teacher’s Book) in English.

20. I can write personal letters, emails or messages in English.

21. I can effectively browse the Internet for information in English.

22. I can discuss English teaching methodology and theories in English.


28

Note on scoring: Since Moodle requires scoring, I’ve assigned 1 point for each true answer, and the

following feedback ranges. Students receive the following comments along with their score.

80-100% Impressive!

70-79% Excellent! Let's see if this can improve throughout the course.

60-69% Very good! Let's see if this can improve throughout the course.

50-59% Good! Let's see if this can improve throughout the course.

0-49% OK! Let's see if this can improve throughout the course.


29

Appendix B

Feedback Key

I will use these 4 categories to give you feedback on the tasks. If one of the categories does not apply to a

task, I will omit it.

Content: Have you answered the question? Have you taken the readings into account? Have you given

reasons for your opinions?

Overall communication of ideas: Are your ideas presented clearly? Is there a logical order? Is it easy to

follow?

Grammar: Subject-verb agreement, verb tenses, prepositions, punctuation

Vocabulary: Spelling, word choice, variety of vocabulary

Grades (Marks)

I am basing my marks (or grades in American English) on the American system of grading, which involves

the letters A, B, C, D, F. Traditionally A-D are passing grades and F is a failing grade. Please read through

my explanations on page 2 of the grading system for this course.


30

A B C D F

Content Complete answer to

question/task.

Ideas supported logically

by info from readings.

Well reasoned.

Almost complete

answer to task.

Most ideas supported,

but some lacking

specific support from

readings.

Well reasoned.

Answers task, but only

partially.

Only some ideas are

supported by facts.

Some reasons given, but

not complete.

Answer is somewhat

related to task, but

doesn’t respond to

question.

Very little factual

support to ideas.

Little reasoning behind

opinions.

Does not answer

question or task.

Contains no support

from readings.

Reasoning is illogical or

non-existent.

Overall

communication

Very fluid, fluent

presentation of ideas.

Logical order that is very

easy to follow.

Fluid presentation of

ideas.

Somewhat logical order

that may cause a

moment of confusion in

the reader.

Ideas come across, but

require some effort by

the reader.

Ideas are presented in

an order that doesn’t

facilitate

communication.

Ideas are affected by

poor presentation.

There seems to be little

order to the

composition, which

makes reading difficult.

Ideas are not

understood due to

poor presentation.

There seems to be no

logical order which

causes reader to get

lost.

Grammar Grammar is generally

perfect and does not

cause any problems for

understanding.

Grammar is very good

but has a couple

mistakes which don’t

affect understanding.

Grammar is generally

OK, but there are a few

mistakes that affect

understanding of the

text.

Grammar errors

generally affect the

understanding of the

text, making it difficult

for the reader to

receive ideas.

Grammar errors

seriously affect

understanding for the

reader. Ideas are not

clear due to many

serious mistakes.

Vocabulary Excellent word choice.

Varied and appropriate

use of vocabulary.

No spelling mistakes.

Generally good word

choice with 1 or 2

exceptions that may

affect subtleties.

Appropriate use of

vocabulary that could

be more varied.

Perhaps 1 or 2 spelling

mistakes.

Word choice is OK, but

may affect tone or

ideas.

Vocabulary is often

repeated or not always

adequate.

Spelling mistakes may

affect understanding.

Word choice negatively

affects ideas and/or

tone.

Vocabulary is not

adequate and may be

often repeated.

Spelling mistakes affect

understanding.

Ideas are not clear due

to poor word choice

and inadequate

vocabulary.

Spelling mistakes cause

difficulties for readers

to continue.


31

Appendix C

Mid-course Feedback

Please complete this short feedback questionnaire about your opinions of the course so far. This will

help us to focus the rest of the course in the best way possible. Thank you for your time!

1. I have completed ___ of the activities and tasks proposed.

0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

2. I have participated in __ of the forums.

0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

Please evaluate the following aspects of the course using a scale of 1 (completely disagree) to 5

(completely agree).

3. I find my tutor’s feedback helpful.

4. I understand my tutor’s feedback criteria.

5. I feel motivated to continue this course.

6. The activities are appropriate and helpful to my professional development.

7. The workload (number of activities) is…

Too much Just right Too little

8. My favorite part(s) of the course is(are):

Self assessment

Reading activities

Multiple choice and Fill-in-the-blank activities

Classroom ideas

Methodology explanations and ideas

Writing tasks

Listening activities (recordings, podcasts, etc.)

Speaking tasks

Forums

9. Please include any additional comments or suggestions you may have.


32

Appendix D

Mid-course Feedback Results



0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

I have completed ___ of the activities and

tasks proposed. 29% 21% 14% 36%

42% 25% 8% 25%

I have participated in ___ of the forums. 79% 7% 14%

58% 8% 8% 25%

5=completely agree, 1= completely

disagree 5 4 3 2 1

5 4 3 2 1

I find my tutor's feedback helpful. 36% 57% 7%

75% 8% 17%

I understand my tutor's feedback criteria. 43% 36% 14% 7%

67% 17% 17%

I feel motivated to continue this course. 43% 36% 21%

33% 58% 8%

The activities are appropriate and helpful

to my professional development. 50% 29% 21%

75% 17%

The workload (number of activities) is… 57% 43% 7%

25% 42% 25% 8%

My favorite part(s) of the course is/are…

Self Assessment 14%

33%

Reading activities 29%

33%

Multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank

activities 43%

25%

Classroom ideas 86%

100%

Methodology explanations and ideas 64%

83%

Writing tasks 7%

8%

Listening activities (recordings, podcasts,

etc.) 29%

33%

Speaking tasks 29%

42%


33

Appendix E

End of Course Feedback

Please complete this short feedback questionnaire about your opinions of the course. This will help us to

focus future courses in the best way possible. Thank you for your time!

1. I have completed ___ of the activities and tasks proposed.

0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

2. I have participated in __ of the forums.

0-25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

Please evaluate the following aspects of the course using a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high).

3. My motivation at the beginning of the course 5 4 3 2 1

Reasons (mark all that apply):

� Time (other personal or professional obligations)

� Technical problems

� Interest in materials/activities

� Relevance of materials/activities

� Difficulty of materials/activities

� Tutor feedback and comments

� Peer/colleague interaction

Please explain your reasons___________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

4. My motivation in the middle of the course 5 4 3 2 1










________________________________________________________________________

5. My motivation at the end of the course 5 4 3 2 1






34






________________________________________________________________________

6. The activities are appropriate and helpful to my professional development.

Very not at all

5 4 3 2 1

7. The workload (number of activities) is…

Too much Just right Too little


35

Appendix F

End of Course Feedback Results

Primary (test group):

I have completed ___ of the activities and tasks proposed.

0-25%

26-50% 8%

51-75% 58%

76-100% 33%

I have participated in __ of the forums.

0-25% 42%

26-50% 17%

51-75% 8%

76-100% 33%


5 4 3 2 1

My motivation at the

beginning of the course 33% 58% 8%

My motivation in the

middle of the course 17% 50% 33%

My motivation at the end

of the course 17% 25% 42% 17%

Reasons (mark all that

apply): beginning middle end

Time (other personal or

professional obligations) 50% 92% 100%

Technical problems 17% 42% 17%

Interest in

materials/activities 58% 0% 0%

Relevance of


Difficulty of


Tutor feedback and

comments 25% 0% 0%

Peer/colleague

interaction 8% 8% 8%


36

Comments for beginning -Activities are more long

-I didn't know how to see tutor feedback until 2nd

presential lesson.

Comments for middle -I didn't like the online part.

-I like the presential class.

-Too many activities, not enough time. I felt

obligated rather than interested to do the course.

Comments for end -I didn't like the online part.

-Too hard.

The activities are appropriate and helpful to my professional development.

5 8%

4 33%

3 8%

2 50%

1

The workload (number of activities) is…

Too much 100%

Just right

Too little


37

Secondary (control group):

I have completed ___ of the activities and tasks proposed.

0-25% 20%

26-50%

51-75% 40%

76-100% 40%

I have participated in __ of the forums.

0-25 40%

26-50 10%

51-75 20%

76-100 30%


5 4 3 2 1 My motivation at the

beginning of the course 30% 50% 20%

My motivation in the

middle of the course 30% 30% 40%

My motivation at the end

of the course 30% 40% 20% 10%

Reasons (mark all that

apply): beginning middle end

Time (other personal or

professional obligations) 20% 60% 40%

Technical problems 10% 20% 10%

Interest in


Relevance of


Difficulty of


Tutor feedback and

comments 50% 30% 70%

Peer/colleague

interaction 40% 20% 30%


38

Comments for beginning -Not good at online activities

-I didn't know what it was about. (2)

-Interesting opportunity to improve my English.

Comments for middle -I liked a lot some activities and content.

-Too many responsibilities, family, work.

-I liked a lot my first experience and I learnt.

-Too much work and no time to do it.

Comments for end -I am happy with some feedback

-I didn't give this course priority, there was always something more

important to do.

-I feel more confident.

-I think now I am a better teacher.

-Technical difficulties.

-Teacher's comments are great but lack of time.

The activities are appropriate and helpful to my professional development.

5 50%

4 40%

3 10%

2

1

The workload (number of activities) is…

Too much 60%

Just right 40%

Too little


39

Appendix G

Participation Report





A 50% 65% minimal

A 100% 80% active

B 0% 0% none

B 64% 90% active

C 13% 71% minimal

C 100% 90% active

D 75% 71% active

D 0% 0% minimal

E 69% 82% active

E 93% 70% active

F 69% 71% active

F 86% 90% active

G 94% 65% minimal

G 43% 40% minimal

H 100% 100% active

H 57% 20% active

I 88% 88% active

I 79% 90% active

J 0% 35% active

J 14% 0% minimal

K 69% 29% minimal

K 50% 40% active

L 50% 47% active

L 21% 20% minimal

M 31% 6% minimal

M 100% 80% active

N 69% 53% active

N 43% 10% none

O 63% 71% active

O 71% 90% active

P 88% 100% active



minimal 31%

minimal 29%

none 6%

none 7%

the effects of teacher feedback on student motivation in an online

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