Out-of-school learning levels prior achievement and gender differences in secondary school students’ motivation

Abstract

Motivation for school generally declines over the years. At the same time, self-determined motivation is most beneficial for learning, achievement, and well-being. Therefore, it is crucial to support and maintain student motivation in the school context. This holds especially for science, where motivation is often low. Out-of-school learning settings may support self-determined motivational regulation. However, not every out-of-school learning setting motivates in the same way, and additional factors like gender and prior knowledge might interact with the way a learning setting motivates. We investigated differences in self-reported motivational regulation and predictors of intrinsic motivation between N=88 German secondary school biology major students (M=17.71 years, SD=0.74, n=60 women) at a biological-ecological out-of-school learning setting and during regular biology classes. We found complex main and interaction effects of the learning setting and gender on motivation. Differences in higher- and lower-achieving males’ intrinsic motivation were leveled in the out-of-school learning setting. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in light of self-determination theory.