Effects of the Online VOD Self-learning on English Ability of Taiwanese College Students: The ARCS Approach

This study investigated the effect of the Live DVD self-learning system on English learning movitvation of students of a Taiwanese technological university. Modeled on on the ARCS motivation model of Keller (1987), this study validated the ARCS model, examined the effects of Majors and English Levels on motivation, and tested the proposed structural model invovling the effect of the ARCS model on self-assessed English skills. Five hundred and twenty-seven students of three English ability groups completed a survey questionnaire. Statistical procedures including confirmatory factor analysis, factorial ANOVA, and structural equation modelling were performed to address the research questions. The participants were found to have overall positive motivation toward the Live DVD System in terms of the ARCS model. English Levels had significant influence on Attention, with students of Mid and Low-level groups having higher attention to the Live DVD system than High-level group students. For Satisfaction, aside from the main effect of English Levels, the English Levels*Majors interaction effect was also found to be statistical; for non-engineering majors, students of mid and low English abilities were found to have higher satisfaction with the Live DVD System than high proficiency students, while for Level B groups, non-engineering had higher satisfaction with the self-learning system than engineering students. Only Confidence of the ARCS in the proposed structural model was found to have significant effect on Self-assessed Skills, students with stronger confidence tending therefore to have higher self-rated English abilities.