Supporting the Motivation of Higher Education Tutors : Revising the Tutoring Handbook of the Student Union of Metropolia UAS – METKA
Kaija, Veera; Qvist, Mira (2022)
2022
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022103021716
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022103021716
Tiivistelmä
The purpose of this functional thesis was to identify factors that support the motivation of higher education tutors and apply them into revising a new edition of the Tutoring Handbook of the Student Union of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences – METKA. As Student Union METKA’s tutoring has been developed significantly over the past few years, the old handbook does not meet current requirements. The tutoring practices have evolved due to changes of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences’ campuses, personnel changes in the tutoring sector, and challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
To revise the handbook, we collaborated with METKA’s tutoring operators by collecting information about current practices and tutors’ motivation. For theoretical support, Richard Ryan and Edward Deci’s self-determination theory was presented and utilised: the theory’s concepts of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and the relation between motivation and the three basic needs (autonomy, competence and relatedness) were applied in developing the new edition of the handbook.
In the revision process, we composed a draft of the handbook based on discussions with METKA’s tutoring specialist, our own personal experiences in tutoring and Metropolia’s student community, and a literature review about tutoring and motivation. Feedback of the draft was collected from the operators of tutoring with an online survey. We also organised Tutor Workshop where we trained tutors on motivation and facilitated discussions about the topic and the handbook.
As a result of the functional thesis, we produced a handbook aimed to support the motivation of higher education tutors. The revised handbook aligns with the current practices and meets the current needs. During the process, we collected information on what motivates METKA’s tutors and what kind of support they desire. Connections to the self-determination theory were found in the tutors’ motivation conversations. Tutors named social factors (related to relatedness), challenges in resources and possibilities to develop (related to competence), and possibilities to have an impact and to express oneself (related to autonomy) as factors that affect their motivation. In the revised handbook, we emphasize the aspects of tutoring that support motivation and offer solutions to the challenges that reduce motivation. The knowledge on supporting the motivation of higher education tutors that was collected during this thesis process can be utilised in developing operations of METKA and similar organizations in the future.
To revise the handbook, we collaborated with METKA’s tutoring operators by collecting information about current practices and tutors’ motivation. For theoretical support, Richard Ryan and Edward Deci’s self-determination theory was presented and utilised: the theory’s concepts of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and the relation between motivation and the three basic needs (autonomy, competence and relatedness) were applied in developing the new edition of the handbook.
In the revision process, we composed a draft of the handbook based on discussions with METKA’s tutoring specialist, our own personal experiences in tutoring and Metropolia’s student community, and a literature review about tutoring and motivation. Feedback of the draft was collected from the operators of tutoring with an online survey. We also organised Tutor Workshop where we trained tutors on motivation and facilitated discussions about the topic and the handbook.
As a result of the functional thesis, we produced a handbook aimed to support the motivation of higher education tutors. The revised handbook aligns with the current practices and meets the current needs. During the process, we collected information on what motivates METKA’s tutors and what kind of support they desire. Connections to the self-determination theory were found in the tutors’ motivation conversations. Tutors named social factors (related to relatedness), challenges in resources and possibilities to develop (related to competence), and possibilities to have an impact and to express oneself (related to autonomy) as factors that affect their motivation. In the revised handbook, we emphasize the aspects of tutoring that support motivation and offer solutions to the challenges that reduce motivation. The knowledge on supporting the motivation of higher education tutors that was collected during this thesis process can be utilised in developing operations of METKA and similar organizations in the future.