Unlocking the Potential in a Gamification-Based MOOC: Assessing Autonomous Learning and Self-Directed Learning Behaviors
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.12.19Keywords:
autonomous learning, gamification, MOOC, self-directed learningAbstract
Massive open online courses (MOOCs) have significantly advanced online education. Yet, MOOC instructors still grapple with the ongoing challenge of low learner engagement while striving to foster autonomous and self-directed learning (SDL). Integrating gamification into these courses could be a promising solution. However, the extent to which gamification shapes autonomous and SDL behaviors within MOOCs remains underexplored. This mixed-methods sequential explanatory study investigates the interplay between MOOC, gamification, autonomous learning, and SDL behaviors to harness the potential of online education. We address this research void by delving into the intricate relationship between gamification and learners’ engagement in autonomous learning and SDL behaviors. Drawing upon self-determination theory (SDT) as a theoretical framework, we scrutinize how gamified MOOCs influence intrinsic motivation and SDL behaviors. Our study utilizes questionnaires and structured interviews to comprehensively examine the users’ experiences within a gamified MOOC. The findings suggest that thoughtfully integrated gamification elements not only enhance learner engagement but also stimulate autonomous learning and SDL behaviors. However, it is crucial to approach the integration of gamification thoughtfully, ensuring a balance that promotes intrinsic motivation without undue reliance on extrinsic motivators. These findings hold significant implications for educators, course designers, and policymakers leveraging gamification to enrich online learning experiences and cultivate self-directed educational pathways. They offer valuable insights for educators, course designers, and policymakers aiming to leverage gamification for enriching online learning experiences and nurturing self-directed educational pathways in MOOCs.
Read the corresponding ISSOTL blog post here.
References
Afrilyasanti, Rida and Bambang Yudi Cahyono. 2022. “Gamification as a Helping Hand for Students’ Learning Adaptation due to Covid-19 Pandemic.” Journal of Asia TEFL 19 (4): 1301–10. https://doi.org/10.18823/asiatefl.2022.19.4.11.1301.
Agonács, Nikoletta, João Filipe Matos, Daniela Bartalesi-Graf, and David N. O’Steen. 2020. “Are You Ready? Self-Determined Learning Readiness of Language MOOC Learners.” Education and Information Technologies 25 (2): 1161–79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-019-10017-1.
Ahmad, Ishteyaaq, Sonal Sharma, Rajesh Singh, Anita Gehlot, Neeraj Priyadarshi, and Bhekisipho Twala. 2022. “MOOC 5.0: A Roadmap to the Future of Learning.” Sustainability 14 (18). https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811199.
Al-Imarah, Ahmed A., and Robin Shields. 2019. “MOOCs, Disruptive Innovation and the Future of Higher Education: A Conceptual Analysis.” Innovations in Education and Teaching International 56 (3): 258–69. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2018.1443828.
An, Yunjo Meina Zhu, Curtis J. Bonk, and Lin Lin. 2021. “Exploring Instructors’ Perspectives, Practices, and Perceived Support Needs and Barriers Related to the Gamification of MOOCs.” Journal of Computing in Higher Education 33 (1): 64–84. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-020-09256-w.
Aparicio, Manuela, Tiago Oliveira, Fernando Bacao, and Marco Painho. 2019. “Gamification: A Key Determinant of Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Success.” Information and Management 56 (1): 39–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2018.06.003.
Azevedo, Jose, and Margarida Morais Marques. 2017. “MOOC Success Factors: Proposal of an Analysis Framework.” Journal of Information Technology Education: Innovations in Practice 16 (November): 233–51. https://doi.org/10.28945/3861.
Borrás-Gené, Oriol, Margarita Martínez-Núñez, and Luis Martín-Fernández. 2019. “Enhancing Fun through Gamification to Improve Engagement in MOOC.” Informatics 6 (3). https://doi.org/10.3390/informatics6030028.
Buckley, Patrick, and Elaine Doyle. 2016. “Gamification and Student Motivation.” Interactive Learning Environments 24 (6): 1162–75. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2014.964263.
Cheng, Yung-Ming. 2021. “Can Gamification and Interface Design Aesthetics Lead to MOOCs’ Success?” Education + Training 63 (9): 1346–75. https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-09-2020-0278.
Conole, Gráinne. 2016. “MOOCs as Disruptive Technologies: Strategies for Enhancing the Learner Experience and Quality of MOOCs.” Revista de Educación a Distancia 50: 1–17. https://doi.org/10.6018/red/50/2.
Costello, Eamon, Tiziana Soverino, and Richard Bolger. 2022. “Mapping the MOOC Research Landscape: Insights from Empirical Studies.” International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning 17 (14): 4–19. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i14.28721.
Czerniewicz, Laura, Andrew Deacon, Michael Glover, and Sukaina Walji. 2017. “MOOC-Making and Open Educational Practices.” Journal of Computing in Higher Education 29 (1): 81–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-016-9128-7.
Fiş Erümit, Semra, and Türkan Karakuş Yilmaz 2022. “Gamification Design in Education: What Might Give a Sense of Play and Learning?” Technology, Knowledge and Learning 27: 1039–61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-022-09604-y.
Francisca Maria Ivone and George Jacobs. 2022. “Learner Autonomy and Cooperative Language Learning.” Learning Strategies and Learner Autonomy: Pedagogical Struggles and Opportunities in Language and Literature Education 5–14. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/361288146.
Gameel, Bahaa G., and Karin Gwinn Wilkins. 2019. “When It Comes to MOOCs, Where You Are from Makes a Difference.” Computers and Education 136 (November 2018): 49–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.02.014.
Garrison, D. Randy. 1997. “Self-Directed Learning: Toward a Comprehensive Model.” Adult Education Quarterly 48 (1): 18–33. https://doi.org/10.1177/074171369704800103
Guest, Cheryl, Philip Wainwright, Margaret Herbert, and Iain Murray Smith. 2021. “Driving Quality Improvement with a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC).” BMJ Open Quality 10 (1): 2019–22. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjoq-2019-000781.
Hu, Pingying, and Jiaxiu Zhang. 2017. “A Pathway to Learner Autonomy: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective.” Asia Pacific Education Review 18 (1): 147–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-016-9468-z.
Ivankova, Nataliya V., John Ward Creswell, and Sheldon L. Stick. 2006. “Using Mixed-Methods Sequential Explanatory Design: From Theory to Practice.” Field Methods 18 (1): 3–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X05282260.
Jarnac de Freitas, Marta, and Miguel Mira da Silva. 2023. “Systematic Literature Review about Gamification in MOOCs.” Open Learning 38 (1): 73–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2020.1798221.
Jiang, Yuanlan, and Jian E. Peng. 2023. “Exploring the Relationships between Learners’ Engagement, Autonomy, and Academic Performance in an English Language MOOC.” Computer Assisted Language Learning: 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2022.2164777.
Johnson, Genevieve M., and Sharon. M Davies. 2014. “Self-Regulated Learning in Digital Environments: Theory, Research, Praxis.” British Journal of Research 1 (2): 1–14. http://hdl.handle.net/%0A20.500.11937/45935.
Khalil, Hanan, and Martin Ebner. 2014. “MOOCs Completion Rates and Possible Methods to Improve Retention - A Literature Review.” In Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications, 1236–44.
Khotimah, Khusnul, Utami Widiati, Mutmainnah Mustofa, M. Faruq Ubaidillah. 2019. “Autonomous English Learning: Teachers’ and Students’ Perceptions.” Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics 9 (2): 371–381. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v9i2.20234.
Khulaifiyah, Khulaifiyah, Utami Widati, Mirjam Anugerahwati, and Nunung Suryati. 2021. “Autonomous Learning Activities: The Perceptions of English Language Students in Indonesia.” Pegem Journal of Education and Instruction 11 (3): 34–49. https://www.pegegog.net/index.php/pegegog/article/view/1362.
Klemke, Roland, Maka Eradze, and Alessandra Antonaci. 2018. “The Flipped MOOC: Using Gamification and Learning Analytics in MOOC Design - A Conceptual Approach.” Education Sciences 8 (1): 25. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci8010025.
Lan, Min, and Khe Foon Hew. 2020. “Examining Learning Engagement in MOOCs: A Self-Determination Theoretical Perspective Using Mixed Method.” International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education 17 (1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-020-0179-5.
Landers, Richard N. 2014. “Developing a Theory of Gamified Learning: Linking Serious Games and Gamification of Learning.” Simulation and Gaming 45 (6): 752–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878114563660.
Liyanagunawardena, Tharindu R., Karsten Lundqvist, Richard Mitchell, Steven Warburton, and Shirley A. Williams. 2019. “A MOOC Taxonomy Based on Classification Schemes of MOOCs.” European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning 22 (1): 85–103. https://doi.org/10.2478/eurodl-2019-0006.
Luo, Yumei, Jinping Lin, and Yi Yang. 2021. “Students’ Motivation and Continued Intention with Online Self-Regulated Learning: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective.” Zeitschrift Fur Erziehungswissenschaft 24 (6): 1379–99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11618-021-01042-3.
Mellati, Morteza, and Marzieh Khademi. 2020. “MOOC-Based Educational Program and Interaction in Distance Education: Long Life Mode of Teaching.” Interactive Learning Environments 28 (8): 1022–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2018.1553188.
Mena, Juanjo, Elvira G. Rincón Flores, Raul Ramírez-Velarde, María Soledad Ramírez-Montoya. 2019. “The Use of Gamification as a Teaching Methodology in a MOOC about the Strategic Energy Reform in México.” Paper presented at Methodologies and Intelligent Systems for Technology Enhanced Learning, 8th International Conference, Toledo, 2018, 29–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98872-6_4.
Merriam, Sharan B. 2001. “Andragogy and Self-Directed Learning: Pillars of Adult Learning Theory.” New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education 2001 (89): 3. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.3.
Nissenson, Paul M., and Angela C. Shih. 2016. “MOOC on a Budget: Development and Implementation of a Low-Cost MOOC at a State University.” Computers in Education Journal 16 (1): 8–23. https://doi.org/10.18260/p.24505.
Ofosu-Ampong, Kingsley. 2020. “The Shift to Gamification in Education: A Review on Dominant Issues.” Journal of Educational Technology Systems 49 (1): 113–37. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047239520917629.
Ofosu-Ampong, Kingsley, Richard Boateng, Thomas Anning-Dorson, and Emmanuel A. Kolog. 2020. “Are We Ready for Gamification? An Exploratory Analysis in a Developing Country.” Education and Information Technologies 25 (3): 1723–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-019-10057-7.
Onah, Daniel F.O., Elaine L.L. Pang, and Jane E. Sinclair. 2022. An Investigation of Self-Regulated Learning in a Novel MOOC Platform. Journal of Computing in Higher Education 36: 57-90. Springer US. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-022-09346-x.
Palaniappan, Kavitha, and Norah Md Noor. 2022. “Gamification Strategy to Support Self-Directed Learning in an Online Learning Environment.” International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning 17 (3): 104–16. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i03.27489.
Pozo-Sánchez, Santiago, Georgios Lampropoulos, and Jesús López-Belmonte. 2022. “Comparing Gamification Models in Higher Education Using Face-to-Face and Virtual Escape Rooms.” Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research 11 (2): 307–22. https://doi.org/10.7821/naer.2022.7.1025.
Prakash, Deepti, and Parul Manchanda. 2021. “Designing a Comprehensive Gamification Model and Pertinence in Organisational Context to Achieve Sustainability.” Edited by Richard Wickramaratne. Cogent Business and Management 8 (1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2021.1962231.
Rojas-López, Arturo, Elvira G. Rincón-Flores, Juanjo Mena, Francisco José García-Peñalvo, and María Soledad Ramírez-Montoya. 2019. “Engagement in the Course of Programming in Higher Education through the Use of Gamification.” Universal Access in the Information Society 18 (3): 583–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10209-019-00680-z.
Ryan, Richard M., and Edward L. Deci. 2000. “Self-Determination Theory and the Facilitation of Intrinsic Motivation, Social Development, and Well-Being.” American Psychologist 55 (1): 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68.
Saputro, Rujianto Eko, Sazilah Salam, Mohd Hafiz Zakaria, and Toni Anwar. 2019. “A Gamification Framework to Enhance Students’ Intrinsic Motivation on MOOC.” Telkomnika 17 (1): 170–78. https://doi.org/10.12928/TELKOMNIKA.v17i1.10090.
Shah, Jinal, and Monica Khanna. 2022. “What Determines MOOC Success? Validation of MOOC Satisfaction Continuance Model.” Vision, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1177/09722629221131386.
Shi, Lei, and Alexandra I. Cristea. 2016. “Motivational Gamification Strategies Rooted in Self-Determination Theory for Social Adaptive E-Learning.” 294–300. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39583-8_32.
Simons, Robert-Jan. 2000. “Towards a Constructivistic Theory of Self-Directed Learning.” Conceptions of Self-Directed Learning: Thoeretical and Conceptual Considerations, 155–69. http://igitur-archive.library.uu.nl/ivlos/2005-0622-190617/5701.pdf.
Supriyono, Yusup, Ali Saukah, M. Adnan Latief, Utami Widiati and Nunung Suryati. 2020. “EFL Learners’ Self-Regulated Learning in a Technology-Mediated Language Learning Setting.” International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change 10 (10). https://www.ijicc.net/images/vol10iss10/101021_Supriyono_2020_E_R.pdf.
Tang, Hengtao, and Yingxiao Qian. 2022. “Designing MOOCs with LITTLE.” Cogent Education 9 (1). https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2022.2064411.
Torres-Toukoumidis, Angel, Sonia Esther González-Moreno, and Jesús Manuel Palma-Ruiz. 2021. “Gamification in MOOC Context. Documentary Analysis.” In Trends and Applications in Information Systems and Technologies, 267–77. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-72654-6_26.
Van Roy, Rob, and Bieke Zaman. 2018. “Need-Supporting Gamification in Education: An Assessment of Motivational Effects over Time.” Computers and Education 127 (December): 283–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.08.018.
Wei, Xiaomei, Nadira Saab, and Wilfried Admiraal. 2023. “Do Learners Share the Same Perceived Learning Outcomes in MOOCs? Identifying the Role of Motivation, Perceived Learning Support, Learning Engagement, and Self-Regulated Learning Strategies.” Internet and Higher Education 56 (August): 100880. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2022.100880.
Woodcock, Jamie, and Mark R. Johnson. 2018. “Gamification: What It Is, and How to Fight It.” Sociological Review 66 (3): 542–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026117728620.
Zhu, Meina, Curtis J. Bonk, and Min Young Doo. 2020. “Self-Directed Learning in MOOCs: Exploring the Relationships among Motivation, Self-Monitoring, and Self-Management.” Educational Technology Research and Development 68 (5): 2073–93. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09747-8.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Joko Slamet, Yazid Basthomi, Francisca Maria Ivone, Evi Eliyanah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
