Hands-On Experiments in the Interactive Physics Laboratory - Students’ Intrinsic Motivation and Understanding

Oct 15, 2026

Hands-on experimentation and physics demonstration are examined as two distinct laboratory-based approaches for upper secondary students at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague. Student feedback on immediate attitudes is collected using a questionnaire grounded in the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory, then complemented by a qualitative study addressing how laboratory work influences understanding of selected physics concepts. Results indicate no significant differences in student interest and perceived usefulness; however, laboratory work requires more effort and creates more perceived pressure. Physics grades strongly predict project assessment and pressure during hands-on activities.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Motivating factors and situational interest

Role of experiments in physics education

Study aims and research design

doi: 10.26529/cepsj.319 Hands-On Experiments in the Interactive Physics Laboratory: Students’ Intrinsic Motivation and Understanding Marie Snětinová*1, Petr Kácovský2 and Jana Machalická2 • Experiments in different forms can certainly be suitable tools for increasing student interest in physics. However, educators continuously discuss which forms of experimenting (if any) are the most beneficial for these purposes. At the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague, two different forms of physics experiments are offered to upper secondary students: hands-on experimental work in the Interactive Physics Laboratory, and physics demonstration shows where the students watch experiments conducted by a lecturer. Our research focuses primarily on student feedback about their immediate attitudes towards these two projects. Data collection was undertaken using questionnaire research based on the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory. This research was subsequently supplemented with a qualitative study examining the influence of students’ experimental work in the Interactive Physics Laboratory on their understanding of selected physics concepts. The results of the main research show that the two projects do not exhibit significant differences in terms of student interest and perceived usefulness; nevertheless, students felt the need for significantly more effort and experienced pressure during their work in the Interactive Physics Laboratory. One interesting finding, which goes against our original hypothesis, is that grades in physics are quite a strong predictor of students’ assessment of the projects: better grades indicate more positive assessment of both projects as well as less pressure felt during hands-on activities in the laboratory. Keywords: laboratory activities, upper secondary school students, intrinsic motivation, optics concepts, physics demonstrations 1 *Corresponding Author. Charles University, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Czech Republic; [marie.snetinova@mff.cuni.cz](marie.snetinova@mff.cuni.cz). 2 Charles University, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Czech Republic. 56 hands-on experiments in the interactive physics laboratory: students’ intrinsic ... Preprosti poskusi v interaktivnem fizikalnem laboratoriju: dijakova notranja motivacija in razumevanje Marie Snětinová, Petr Kácovský in Jana Machalická • Poskusi v različnih oblikah so gotovo lahko primerno orodje zapovečevanje zanimanja dijakov za fiziko, vendar učitelji kontinuirano razpravljajo, katere oblike poskusov (če katere) najbolj prispevajo ktemu. Na Fakulteti za matematiko in fiziko Karlove univerze v Pragiponujajo dijakom dve različni obliki fizikalnih poskusov: preprosteposkuse v okviru interaktivnega fizikalnega laboratorija in demonstracijske fizikalne poskuse, v okviru katerih dijaki opazujejo poskuse, ki jih izvaja učitelj. Naša raziskava se primarno osredinja na povratne informacije dijakov o njihovih izkušnjah o teh oblikah. Zbiranje podatkov je potekalo z uporabo vprašalnika, ki je temeljil na vprašalniku The Intrinsic Motivation Inventory. Raziskava je bila posledično dopolnjena skvalitativno študijo, ki je preučevala vpliv eksperimentalnega dela v interaktivnem fizikalnem laboratoriju na dijakovo razumevanje izbranih fizikalnih konceptov. Rezultati glavnega dela raziskave kažejo, da obe obliki ne kažeta pomembnih razlik v smislu zanimanja in dojemanja uporabnosti, vendar so dijaki občutili potrebo po znatno več truda inizkusili pritisk med njihovim delom v interaktivnem fizikalnem laboratoriju. Ena izmed zanimivih ugotovitev, ki je v nasprotju z našo prvotnohipotezo, je, da so ocene pri fiziki precej močen napovedovalec dijakovega vrednotenja omenjenih oblik: boljše ocene kažejo na pozitivnejševrednotenje obeh oblik pa tudi manj pritiska, ki so ga občutili med preprostimi poskusi v laboratoriju. Ključne besede: laboratorijske aktivnosti, dijaki, notranja motivacija, koncepti optike, fizikalni demonstracij

FAQs

What two types of physics activities are compared in the study?

The study compares hands-on experimental work in the Interactive Physics Laboratory with physics demonstration shows where students watch experiments conducted by a lecturer.

How is students’ motivation measured?

Students’ motivation is measured using a questionnaire based on the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory, and the quantitative results are supplemented by a qualitative study.

Do the two activity formats differ in student interest and usefulness?

The results show no significant differences in student interest and perceived usefulness between the two projects.

What role do physics grades play in students’ evaluations?

Physics grades are a strong predictor of how students assess both projects and of how much pressure they report during hands-on laboratory activities.

Oct 15, 2026

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