Zollars, Jeffrey
(2018)
Flow Theory and Engagement: Observing Engagement through the Lens of Flow in a Middle School Integrated Maker Space.
Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
This is the latest version of this item.
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore engagement as it occurred in the sample of middle school
aged students situated in a learning environment of a Western Pennsylvania public school with an
integrated Maker Space. This study was embedded within a larger two-year NSF study Making
Success: Researching a School District’s Integration of the Maker Movement into its Middle and
High School conducted by the University of Pittsburgh’s Collaborative for Evaluation and
Assessment Capacity (CEAC). Flow theory, also called optimal experience theory first introduced
in 1975 by Mikhail Csikszentmihalyi, played a critical role in this study. The importance of this
study can be framed in the context of increasing the understanding of how students are engaged in
learning within a Maker Space that is situated within a traditionally structured educational setting.
This research explored student engagement from the student perspective as observed through the
lens of flow theory. Flow Theory also informed the development of the research questions
Evidence included data gathered to observe for presence of the nine components of flow (balance
of challenges and skills, merging of action and awareness, clear goals, clear feedback, intense
focus, paradox of control, loss of self-consciousness, autotelic experience, and loss of time).
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
|
| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
30 January 2018 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
25 October 2017 |
| Approval Date: |
30 January 2018 |
| Submission Date: |
28 December 2017 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
161 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
School of Education > Administrative and Policy Studies |
| Degree: |
EdD - Doctor of Education |
| Thesis Type: |
Doctoral Dissertation |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
NSF National Science Foundation Making |
| Date Deposited: |
30 Jan 2018 17:29 |
| Last Modified: |
30 Jan 2018 17:29 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/33700 |
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Flow Theory and Engagement: Observing Engagement through the Lens of Flow in a Middle School Integrated Maker Space. (deposited 30 Jan 2018 17:29)
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