Page 1 of 15
European Journal of Applied Sciences – Vol. 12, No. 1
Publication Date: February 25, 2024
DOI:10.14738/aivp.121.16497
Haasio, A., & Kannasto, E. (2024). Motivational Factors of Online Learning in Higher Education. European Journal of Applied
Sciences, Vol - 12(1). 405-419.
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
Motivational Factors of Online Learning in Higher Education
Ari Haasio
Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences
Elisa Kannasto
Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences
ABSTRACT
Among others, universities were forced to modify their operation when the global
pandemic hit in 2020. Teachers and students worldwide were forced to move online
to continue learning after several lockdown orders. This study focuses on a Finnish
University of Applied Sciences where an extensive survey was sent to all students a
year after their student life had changed completely. Qualitative content analysis
was done to analyze survey responses from 619 students from different fields and
study backgrounds. The results indicate that several motivational factors around
online learning are also related to things other than technology or pedagogical
choices. The factors encouraging or discouraging motivation are divided into five
categories: 1) Life situation, 2) Previous experience, 3) Social relationships, 4)
Technology and internet skills and attitude, and 5) Financial resources. The
proposed model of motivation factors related to online learning includes: 1)
Environmental, 2) Individual, and 3) Pedagogical factors.
Keywords: Covid-19 Pandemic, Higher education, Motivation, Online learning, Online
teaching.
INTRODUCTION
The Covid-19 pandemic forced educational institutions to find new solutions to implement
teaching when the educational institutions had to be closed either entirely or partially due to
assembly restrictions. The pandemic started in China at the end of 2019 and spread rapidly
worldwide in the spring of 2020. Covid-19 was announced as a global pandemic on March 11th,
2020, by the World Health [1]. The State Emergency Act was given in Finland on March 18th,
2020 [2] Because of the Emergency Act, all schools and universities were closed immediately
[3]. This forced all educational institutions to organize teaching in a completely new way: all
teaching was transferred online. The current pedagogics related to online solutions between
universities and also between individual teachers varied a lot, so coping with the situation was
very different for everyone.
Central concepts in this study are online teaching and learning, remote teaching, and
motivation. According to Moore et al. [4], online education has many different definitions. As a
term, it is used when referring to both purely online teaching and using online resources as part
of other teaching. In this study, we understand online teaching as pedagogics that takes place
purely online and requires technological solutions. It can also be divided into entirely
Page 2 of 15
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom 406
European Journal of Applied Sciences (EJAS) Vol. 12, Issue 1, February-2024
independent working with, for example, pre-recorded lectures and online exams or tasks, and
online teaching, including real-time exercises, lectures, etc.
Remote teaching describes online teaching that happens in real-time and requires participation,
for example, by being present on the online platform where teaching and learning activities
take place at a set time. Mayer [5] has defined this, or more precisely hybrid teaching, as location
asynchrony to separate from the idea of something happening asynchronously or
synchronously timewise.
Hybrid teaching refers to courses in which the student can participate either online or follow
the teaching in the classroom [6; 7]. After the pandemic eased, some teachers started to
organize teaching using this method. This study defines online teaching and online learning as
broader concepts that include all technical and pedagogic solutions performed outside the
classroom. However, our case study focuses on a situation where students and teachers were
often not even allowed to enter the university premises, so the focus is on online learning that
is organized entirely online, whether real-time or free from set schedules.
Motivation can be defined as self-determination [8] or the drive to work to achieve set targets.
It is essential for higher education students who are not forced to study in the university but
are there to achieve a specific goal, more precisely, a degree that will help them in their work.
However, motivation often depends on several factors that are different in their context,
targets, and other elements. This study focuses on motivation related to online learning, which
connects to how motivation is affected by the application of technology and the technical
environment when studying is organized online.
Finland has been regarded as progressive in its pedagogical solutions and education. As a
country, it has been fast in adopting technology in solutions related to all fields in society and
innovating new technologies. Thus, our focus in a Finnish University is fascinating when
studying online education and students' motivation. In addition, within Finnish higher
education institutions, Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences (SeAMK) has earned the
Excellence audit ranking [9]. It has also ranked as the best university of applied sciences in
Finland among students in the student ranking survey sent to all graduating students in Finland
for three consecutive years. This makes SeAMK a compelling case to study when it comes to
online learning and transforming and developing pedagogic solutions during a challenging
situation of the pandemic. In addition, as motivation can also be seen related to cultural factors
and thus dependent on its context, it is important to do research on it also in the Finnish higher
education context. In this article, we analyze the impact of online teaching on university
students' motivation to study. The research perspective is to discover what motivates students
to study online and which factors present obstacles to online study. According to several studies
[e.g., 10; 11; 12; 13], both teachers and students were in a new situation during the pandemic,
which caused problems for both, but also opened new possibilities.
First, we will map out previous online learning and motivation research. Second, we present
our research data and methodology. After this, we will introduce the research problem and
questions. Then we will move on to the results found in the survey data. Last, we will suggest a
Page 3 of 15
407
Haasio, A., & Kannasto, E. (2024). Motivational Factors of Online Learning in Higher Education. European Journal of Applied Sciences, Vol - 12(1).
405-419.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/aivp.121.16497
model of motivation factors related to online learning and discuss the implications of our
findings.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
Adedoyin and Soykan [14] have pointed out that online learning has increased at universities
because of the experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to them, online learning
has several advantages: Flexibility, interactivity, and self-pacing. Several studies have analyzed
the effects of the pandemic and the transition to online teaching from a teacher’s point of view
[7; 10]. Obstacles and motivational factors for students' online learning have also been
discussed in previous research [15; 16]. However, analyzing this perspective offers a valuable
viewpoint for pedagogical development learned from the pandemic and how online learning
can be developed even if the perspective comes from a situation where transition was forced,
and everyone had to move to online learning.
Faridah et al. [17] have studied students’ motivation in online learning during the pandemic.
They found that online learning increased motivation, but the reasons for better motivation
were not found. They recommend that “further research is expected to find out in more detail
about digital learning on student’s motivation in the field of education by using various
questionnaires” [17]. This is where this study contributes to; we explore the motivational
factors behind online learning, thus offering possible practical implications for teachers and
others planning education and curricula.
In the systematic review of the studies concerning student’s motivation towards online
learning during the pandemic, Mohtar and Md Yunus [18] have pointed out that “educators are
recommended to design learning experience that focuses on independent learning and student- centered learning.” Gustiani’s [19] qualitative study, based on the interviews of 22 students
individually and in groups, pointed out that motivating things were the ambition to learn new
things and experiencing new learning methods. On the other hand, the obstacle was poor
facilities. Gillett-Swan [20] has stated that IT competence is essential when transferring to
online education. High-quality tools alone will not achieve good results if one does not know
how to use them.
Several studies have revealed that the use of social media in distance education has increased
significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic [21; 22; 23; 24]. According to previous studies, the
pandemic could affect students' motivation to study and, on the other hand, teachers' ability to
cope. It has been found to have caused anxiety [cf. 25] and other mental problems because
everyday life has been limited, and there is high complexity for teachers in hybrid teaching [5].
Authors [7] have compared the opinions of university teachers and students about the
experiences of online teaching during the COVID pandemic. This article contributes to the
discussion on online learning, focusing on students’ motivation and its causes. As a result of our
analysis, we represent a model of the factors which affect students' motivation to study online.
The background for the significance of online education in Finland is in the joint National
Digivisio 2030 programme, where all of Finland’s higher education institutions collaborate to
digitize society in the education sector. It "requires a change in higher education institutions'
operating methods, teaching organization, and educational content" [26].