How Do Motivational Profiles Influence Students’ Perception of Adaptive Learning Support?

Abstract

Abstract: Given the increasingly heterogeneous learning prerequisites of students, teachers’ adaptive learning support (ALS) represents a key factor in effective instruction. The present study investigated how students in upper secondary German language classes perceive their teachers’ ALS and to what extent these perceptions are influenced by students’ motivation. To this end, 807 students were surveyed at two measurement points. At the beginning of the school year, subject-specific interest, academic self-concept, and mastery as well as performance goal orientations were assessed. Based on these variables, four characteristic motivational profiles were identified using latent profile analysis. After one semester, students’ perceptions of six dimensions of ALS were measured (usefulness and accuracy of feedback, instructional and emotional support, achievement- and motivation-oriented adaptivity). The results showed that students’ perceptions of ALS varied systematically across motivational profiles, with students’ who exhibited more favorable motivational profiles reporting higher levels of ALS.