Effects of online gamified laboratory course in college students' motivation, self-regulation, and performance in physics during the COVID-19 pandemic

• Main Author: Dela Cruz, Ma. Kristina B
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2023
• Subjects: Gamification; Physics—Study and teaching; Web-based instruction; COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-; Education; Science and Mathematics Education
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdd_scied/22
• Institution: De La Salle University

The implementation of online laboratories during the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on students’ laboratory performance in physics despite providing a more flexible and autonomous mode of learning. This difficulty stems from the lack of motivation and self-regulation of the students. Hence, this study explored the integration of gamification into online laboratory experiences as an intervention to improve student motivation, self-regulation, and academic performance. This action research used a mixed-methods approach to examine the impact of gamifying an online physics laboratory course on the performance, motivation, and self-regulation of two intact classes of engineering technology students. The course was gamified by incorporating elements, such as leaderboards, coins, power rewards, and level ranks. The impact of gamification on the three constructs was assessed using information acquired from pre- and post-tests, survey questions, learning logs, and focus group discussions. The results showed that gamification increased students’ performance between the pre-and post-tests, while the results of the Physics Motivation Questionnaire II (PMQII) and Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire (OSLQ) found that there was a significant difference in students' self-regulation and motivation before and after the intervention. These quantitative results were supported by qualitative data that highlighted the Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) strategies applied by students and revealed their perspectives on the subject. Overall, this study showed that gamifying an online physics laboratory course enhanced the performance, motivation, and self-regulation of learners. Keywords: gamification, performance, motivation, self-regulation, online laboratories, physics education