The close connection between interest and learning is by many
seen as self-evident; the more interest a student has in a particular
topic, the more willing he or she is to learn about that topic
(Schiefele, 1991; Schraw, Flowerday, & Lehman, 2001). Alternatively,
those who have little interest in a discipline, tend to learn less. It is
generally assumed that interest is a motivational force in learning: it
induces learners to persist with a task, even if it is a difficult one; it
focuses their attention on the task, and it produces positive affect
regarding the task and the result of this is learning