Motivational Factors of Online vs. Face-to-Face Learning Environments
Abstract: Motivation is one of the popular topics in education. There are many different factors that may affect motivation, so it is critically important to know what these factors can be. This study surveyed 95 undergraduate students from an instructional technology department to understand their motivational factors for participating in learning environments. The data collection instrument consisted of: (a) gathering demographic information about participants such as age, gender, etc. ; (b) understanding students’ perceptions of motivation in education; (c) understanding motivational factors for college students; (d) understanding motivational factors in online learning environments. The results showed that there are four main categories of motivational factors in class: instructors, content, environment and personal interests. The results also show that some of the characteristics of instructors are more important than feedback, such as attitudes, content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, assignments, and grading style.