Motivated Interactions with Digital Games in a Science Center

Abstract

There is untapped value in adopting motivation theories to inform the design of educational technology. Achievement goal theory explains why students whose primary aim is to learn and understand (mastery goal) think and act differently from those who focus mostly on competition (performance goal). We use self-reports to identify students with different motivational patterns and video analyses to understand how learners' motivational profiles relate to their interactions with a digital science game with hands-on features.