Competency-Based Learning for Motivation and Academic Performance in a Pre-calculus Course

This research evaluated the effect of the Competency-Based Learning strategy supported by the Web on academic performance and motivation variables, in a Pre-calculus distance course. Moodle was used as the management platform for the course. The participants in the study were students of recent entry to the university in the careers of Engineering in Teleinformatics and Engineering in Works and Services at the University Center of the South Coast of The University of Guadalajara. The Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) was applied at the beginning and at the end of the instruction to evaluate the significance of the Competency-Based Learning (CBL). Two groups were formed, the experimental group composed of students who participated under the Competency-Based Learning strategy, and the control group, who completed the pre-calculus course in a face-to-face fashion. The data provided in the present study was analyzed using the Statistical Analysis System (SAS), version 9.4. t-tests were performed for independent and paired samples. Parametric Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to evaluate the significance of the academic performance variables and motivation of the students submitted to the CBL strategy. The Motivation variable was evaluated through a pre-test and a post-test. The results showed that the students who participated under the instructional strategy of CBL in the Pre-calculus course obtained higher academic performance than those obtained by their peers in the traditional group. The students who took the course under the CBL showed the same levels of intrinsic motivation throughout the course. The target levels of extrinsic orientation of the students who participated in the experimental group suffered changes in their levels. The results of the analysis supported the hypothesis and showed that the experimental group reached levels of intrinsic motivation superior to those achieved by the participants in the control group