Investigating Learner Interest and Observation Patterns in a Minecraft Virtual Astronomy Environment

This study explores how student actions in Minecraft-based virtual environments designed to simulate astronomical phenomena shift over time, as their interest in astronomy changes. We analyze observations made by middle school learners participating in the What-if Hypothetical Implementations in Minecraft (WHIMC) project, which adapts the game to immerse learners in scenarios exploring scientific concepts. Combining manual and automated coding techniques, we classify these observations and use epistemic network analysis to investigate how they relate to changes in interest levels as measured by pre- and post-surveys. Our findings show that learners who maintain or increase their astronomy interest produce more complex observational behaviors, such as hypothesis generation and comparisons. Conversely, learners whose interest declines produce more surface-level, factual observations. Results suggest ways to identify and support long-term interest in science education.