Does E-Learning Trigger Epistemic Curiosity?

This study aimed to explore the perceptions of tertiary level students about e-learning and determine whether it triggers their epistemic curiosity. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 78 undergraduate students enrolled in a foundation (non-profit, private) university in Turkey. Key them...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Seda SARAC, Enisa MEDE, Ergun AKGUN
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Anı Publishing 2022-03-01
Series:Eğitimde Nitel Araştırmalar Dergisi
Subjects:
Online Access:https://enadonline.com/index.php/enad/article/view/1126
Description
Summary:This study aimed to explore the perceptions of tertiary level students about e-learning and determine whether it triggers their epistemic curiosity. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 78 undergraduate students enrolled in a foundation (non-profit, private) university in Turkey. Key thematic categories including the perceptions of motivation to seek new information in e-learning, desire to cope with challenging information in e-learning, desire to discover new, uncertain, and unpredictable information in learning, and barriers to e-learning were deduced. Digital and traditional tools emerged as motivating resources promoting curiosity in e-learning. E-learning experiences also fostered the curiosity to predict novel, risky, and uncertain information. Situational factors such as timing and workload were perceived as barriers to epistemic curiosity in e-learning. The gathered findings offered suggestions and pedagogical implications for triggering epistemic curiosity through e-learning in higher education.
ISSN:2148-2624