Matching learning tasks with students’ conative stages in badminton: Effects on situational interest

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which matching three learning tasks with students’ conative stages in badminton can increase their situational interest. Method: Ninety-seven secondary school students (Mage = 13.0, SD = 1.4, 50.5% girls, aged 11-16) practiced three learning tasks in badminton, designed to reflect the game intentions associated with their conative stages. They responded to the 15-item situational interest scale after practicing each of the three learning tasks. Results: According to the differences related to the SI dimensions scores between the learning tasks, matching the design of three learning tasks with the students’ game intentions results in higher scores in the SI dimensions. Conclusion: Using the conative stages to characterize students’ expertise levels in badminton, this study fine-tunes the connection between the students and the learning tasks by exceeding the common criterion related to the students’ technical skills. This study also confirms that instant enjoyment, exploration intention, attention demand, and challenge were key dimensions underlying students’ motivation in badminton in relation to its technical, tactical and physical components.