What Factors Make a Multimedia Learning Environment Engaging

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate students’ engagement with a multimedia enhanced problem-based learning (PBL) environment, Alien Rescue, and to find out in what ways students consider Alien Rescue motivating. Alien Rescue is a PBL environment for students to learn science. Fifty-seven sixth-grade students were interviewed. Analysis of the interviews using the constant comparative method showed that students were intrinsically motivated and that there were 11 key elements of the PBL environment that helped evoke students’ motivation: authenticity, challenge, cognitive engagement, competence, choice, fantasy, identity, interactivity, novelty, sensory engagement, and social relations. These elements can be grouped into 5 perspectives of the sources of intrinsic motivation for students using Alien Rescue: problem solving, playing, socializing, information processing, and voluntary acting, with problem solving and playing contributing the highest level of intrinsic motivation. The findings are discussed with respect to designing multimedia learning environments.

Learning in a mobile age: an investigation of student motivation

“…When considering motivation within multimedia learning environments, both an individual's sensory or cognitive curiosity can be stimulated. Multimedia effects such as videos, audio, music, animation and interactive capabilities afforded by mobile devices evoke sensory curiosity (Liu, Toprac, & Yuen, ). Mobile devices such as the tablet also afford greater opportunities for haptic modality, a new channel for communication through mobile technology by utilizing the sense of touch (Wong, Chu, Khong, & Lim, ).…”

“…Cognitive curiosity is also aroused when learners discover that their knowledge is incomplete or inconsistent, and they have the desire to explore and attain new information and competence with the technology (Malone & Lepper, ). Technology‐enhanced environments afford individuals with almost limitless opportunities for exploration and ready access to information to support both sensory and cognitive curiosity (Liu et al ., ). This desire for new information can lead to deepening levels of interest and vice versa (Malone & Lepper, ).…”

Generating Internal Motivation through Mobile Application Technology

“…It can be categorized into sensory curiosity and cognitive curiosity. According to Liu et al [18], the interactive multimedia capabilities of mobile devices can easily stimulate an individual's sensory and cognitive curiosity. Finally, the freedom of choice over one's learning can offer an illusion of control.…”

Cognitive Load in Solving Mathematics Problems: Validating the Role of Motivation and the Interaction Among Prior Knowledge, Worked Examples, and Task Difficulty

“…There is ample evidence indicating the correlation between learners' interest and performance in complex learning (Hosbein & Barbera, 2020). It is found that learners who are motivated are more likely to engage in deeplevel thinking (Liu, Toprac, & Yuen, 2009;O'Conner & Domingo, 2020). Evidence from empirical research further suggests that the status of cognitive load and mental effort investment are closely associated with learner's motivation (Plass & Kalyguga, 2019;Schnotz, 2010).…”