The Effects of Teaching Presence on Students’ Motivation and Performance in A Long-term Online Gamified EFL Listening Course

Abstract

Studies have proven that gamification in learning can increase motivation and engagement, however, since the pandemic broke out and instruction was held fully online for a long time, its effectiveness has been under question. The motivation was also reportedly decreased in long-term gamified classes. Nonetheless, in gamification research, teaching presence (TP) as the predictor of success in distance instruction has not adequately been included. The study investigated the effects of TP on students’ motivation and performance in a long-term online gamified EFL listening class. Teaching Presence and eMUSIC motivation framework were used to guide the research. A mixed-method with quasi-experimental design and thematic analysis was employed to mine quantitative and qualitative data respectively. Two groups of treatment and control of 42 freshmen, 28 females and 14 males aged 17-19 taking Listening for General Communication 2 were involved in the study. Independent samples t-test and one-way repeated measures ANOVA by SPSS 27 were used for the analysis of quantitative data; meanwhile, thematic analysis with NVivo 12 was used for the analysis and interpretation of qualitative data. The study revealed that TP was relatively able to maintain students’ motivation and enhance performance in a long-term gamified EFL listening class. The findings recommend similar research focusing on three other language skills and Caring subscale of eMUSIC motivation.