Post 1

Reflecting on my own experiences as a student has helped me better understand how the design of learning platforms can be supportive or discouraging on motivation over time. One learning experience that I started with high motivation but did not complete was teaching myself German as a teenager through technology-mediated tools.

When I was 15, I became motivated to learn German so that I could speak to my Oma in her first language. This goal felt meaningful and personal, which initially made the learning experience exciting. I downloaded Duolingo and printed off sheets from a free online beginners course. At the beginning, my motivation was high and I spent multiple hours everyday engaging with the content. After a few weeks, my daily engagement slowly became less frequent until I eventually stopped altogether. One major factor that I believe lead to this shift was starting off on an unsustainable schedule.

Although it felt sustainable and fun to begin, I began putting off other responsibilities and had to eventually put it to the side. Additionally, my progress wasn’t as fast as I was hoping and after only a short break I felt like I had already forgotten so much, which felt discouraging. There was an also few areas of the learning design that played a part in my lack of motivation towards the end. Both Duolingo and the online beginners course were entirely asynchronous, with no deadlines, feedback, or opportunities to interact with others. The lack of feedback and connection made it difficult to assess whether I was progressing.

This experience could have been designed differently to better encourage motivation. I believe using regular feedback, goals, and opportunities to interact with peers or instructors may have helped to maintain engagement. After looking at many of Duolingo’s new features it appears they have started to include some of these elements, including daily reminders, encouragements, and both short and long term goals.

Overall, this experience has highlighted the importance of designing learning environments that actively support motivation rather than assuming learners will sustain it on their own. As I move forward in this course and begin designing my own technology-mediated learning experiences, I will carry this reflection with me.