Building a Knowledgeable Student: Emerging Trends in Research on Self-Regulated Learning and Implications for Education

A special issue of Journal of Intelligence (ISSN 2079-3200).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 September 2022) | Viewed by 29112

Special Issue Editors

Department of Psychology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX 76109, USA
Interests: metacognition; self-regulated learning; memory; student learning and achievement; concept formation; cognitive aging
Department of Psychology, Virginia Wesleyan University, Virginia Beach, VA 23455, USA
Interests: metacognition; self-regulated learning; cognition and education; cognitive aging; pupillometry; spatial cognition

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Due to modern challenges in education, more than ever, it is critical that students are knowledgeable about their learning and make effective study decisions. Thus, in this Special Issue, our goal is to highlight recent advances in the study of self-regulated learning and metacognition in education. Self-regulated learning is a multifaceted construct that involves any self-initiated cognitive or behavioral activity used to achieve a learning goal. Self-regulated learning includes goal setting, planning, judgment and decision-making, strategy utilization, and metacognition. Metacognition is knowledge about learning, and the interactive relationship between assessments of learning and control of study behavior. For this Special Issue, we encourage submissions that present empirical research or theoretical work that increases understanding of self-regulated learning and metacognition in education. Additionally, we welcome basic research with implications for educational contexts and applied research conducted in authentic classroom contexts.

Examples of phenomena that are ideal for this Special Issue include:

  • The impact of emerging technologies or course modality on students’ self-regulated learning;
  • Individual differences in students’ metacognitive accuracy, study decisions, and strategy use;
  • The effects of different course designs, learning activities, or assessments of learning on metacognitive monitoring and control processes;
  • Educational interventions targeting self-regulated learning skills to improve student learning and achievement or promote equity in education;
  • Predicting educational outcomes with measures of metacognition and self-regulated learning.

Dr. Uma Tauber
Dr. Robert Ariel
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Intelligence is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • self-regulated learning
  • metacognition
  • education

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Editorial

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3 pages, 224 KiB  
Editorial
Emerging Trends in Research on Self-Regulated Learning and Implications for Education: An Introduction to the Special Issue
by Sarah K. Tauber and Robert Ariel
J. Intell. 2023, 11(3), 52; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence11030052 - 09 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1785
Abstract
Students in higher education face a multitude of challenges when gaining and refining their knowledge [...] Full article

Research

Jump to: Editorial

29 pages, 1780 KiB  
Article
Assessing Metacognitive Regulation during Problem Solving: A Comparison of Three Measures
by Cristina D. Zepeda and Timothy J. Nokes-Malach
J. Intell. 2023, 11(1), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence11010016 - 15 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2443
Abstract
Metacognition is hypothesized to play a central role in problem solving and self-regulated learning. Various measures have been developed to assess metacognitive regulation, including survey items in questionnaires, verbal protocols, and metacognitive judgments. However, few studies have examined whether these measures assess the [...] Read more.
Metacognition is hypothesized to play a central role in problem solving and self-regulated learning. Various measures have been developed to assess metacognitive regulation, including survey items in questionnaires, verbal protocols, and metacognitive judgments. However, few studies have examined whether these measures assess the same metacognitive skills or are related to the same learning outcomes. To explore these questions, we investigated the relations between three metacognitive regulation measures given at various points during a learning activity and subsequent test. Verbal protocols were collected during the learning activity, questionnaire responses were collected after the learning tasks but before the test, and judgments of knowing (JOKs) were collected during the test. We found that the number of evaluation statements as measured via verbal protocols was positively associated with students’ responses on the control/debugging and evaluation components of the questionnaire. There were also two other positive trends. However, the number of monitoring statements was negatively associated with students’ responses on the monitoring component of the questionnaire and their JOKs on the later test. Each measure was also related to some aspect of performance, but the particular metacognitive skill, the direction of the effect, and the type of learning outcome differed across the measures. These results highlight the heterogeneity of outcomes across the measures, with each having different affordances and constraints for use in research and educational practice. Full article
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28 pages, 1498 KiB  
Article
Students Can (Mostly) Recognize Effective Learning, So Why Do They Not Do It?
by Stephany Duany Rea, Lisi Wang, Katherine Muenks and Veronica X. Yan
J. Intell. 2022, 10(4), 127; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10040127 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 7154
Abstract
Cognitive psychology research has emphasized that the strategies that are effective and efficient for fostering long-term retention (e.g., interleaved study, retrieval practice) are often not recognized as effective by students and are infrequently used. In the present studies, we use a mixed-methods approach [...] Read more.
Cognitive psychology research has emphasized that the strategies that are effective and efficient for fostering long-term retention (e.g., interleaved study, retrieval practice) are often not recognized as effective by students and are infrequently used. In the present studies, we use a mixed-methods approach and challenge the rhetoric that students are entirely unaware of effective learning strategies. We show that whether being asked to describe strategies used by poor-, average-, and high-performing students (Study 1) or being asked to judge vignettes of students using different strategies (Study 2), participants are generally readily able to identify effective strategies: they were able to recognize the efficacy of explanation, pretesting, interpolated retrieval practice, and even some interleaving. Despite their knowledge of these effective strategies, they were still unlikely to report using these strategies themselves. In Studies 2 and 3, we also explore the reasons why students might not use the strategies that they know are effective. Our findings suggest that interventions to improve learners’ strategy use might focus less on teaching them about what is effective and more on increasing self-efficacy, reducing the perceived costs, and establishing better habits. Full article
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20 pages, 1336 KiB  
Article
Do Domain Knowledge and Retrieval Practice Predict Students’ Study Order Decisions?
by Addison L. Babineau, Amber E. Witherby, Robert Ariel, Michael A. Pelch and Sarah K. Tauber
J. Intell. 2022, 10(4), 122; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10040122 - 09 Dec 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1309
Abstract
Learning complex concepts is necessary for student success, but it is often challenging. Learning such concepts can be influenced by students’ study order choices during learning to switch to a new category (interleaved study order) or stay within the same category (blocked study [...] Read more.
Learning complex concepts is necessary for student success, but it is often challenging. Learning such concepts can be influenced by students’ study order choices during learning to switch to a new category (interleaved study order) or stay within the same category (blocked study order). Students often prefer stay decisions during learning and make relatively few switch decisions; however, an open question is whether students’ switch decisions are related to their level of prior knowledge in the domain and the learning strategy they use (retrieval practice versus study). To examine these relationships, we recruited undergraduate students from an introductory geology course. Prior to the course modules on rock classification, students self-rated their knowledge, took a prior knowledge test, classified rock exemplars by completing study or retrieval practice trials, and made study order choices. Students then completed assignments and attended lectures in their geology course on igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. Next, students self-rated their knowledge, took a new prior knowledge test, completed study or retrieval practice trials, made study order decisions, took final classification tests, and self-reported beliefs about study order choices. Even though students’ knowledge increased after course modules on rock identification, and most students believed that domain knowledge impacts study decisions, prior knowledge did not predict students’ switch decisions. In contrast, students who completed retrieval practice trials made substantially more switch decisions (i.e., interleaved study) than did students who completed study trials. Full article
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31 pages, 1403 KiB  
Article
When Memory and Metamemory Align: How Processes at Encoding Influence Delayed Judgment-of-Learning Accuracy
by Gregory Isaac Hughes and Ayanna Kim Thomas
J. Intell. 2022, 10(4), 101; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10040101 - 11 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1640
Abstract
Judgments of learning are most accurate when made at a delay from the initial encoding of the assessed material. A wealth of evidence suggests that this is because a delay encourages participants to base their predictions on cues retrieved from long-term memory, which [...] Read more.
Judgments of learning are most accurate when made at a delay from the initial encoding of the assessed material. A wealth of evidence suggests that this is because a delay encourages participants to base their predictions on cues retrieved from long-term memory, which are generally the most diagnostic of later memory performance. We investigated the hypothesis that different types of study techniques affect delayed JOL accuracy by influencing the accessibility of cues stored in long-term memory. In two experiments, we measured the delayed-JOL accuracy of participants who encoded semantically unrelated and weakly related word pairs through one of three study techniques: reading the pairs twice (study practice), generating keywords (elaborative encoding), or taking a cued-recall test with feedback (retrieval practice). We also measured the accessibility, utilization, and diagnostic quality of two long-term memory cues at the time of the delayed JOL: (a) retrieval of the target, and (b) noncriterial cues (retrieval of contextual details pertaining to the encoding of the target). We found that the accessibility of targets was positively associated with delayed-JOL accuracy. Further, we provide evidence that when study techniques enhance the accessibility of targets, they likewise enhance delayed-JOL accuracy. Full article
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30 pages, 2134 KiB  
Article
Familiar Strategies Feel Fluent: The Role of Study Strategy Familiarity in the Misinterpreted-Effort Model of Self-Regulated Learning
by Jessica A. Macaluso, Ramya R. Beuford and Scott H. Fraundorf
J. Intell. 2022, 10(4), 83; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10040083 - 12 Oct 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2581
Abstract
Why do learners not choose ideal study strategies when learning? Past research suggests that learners frequently misinterpret the effort affiliated with efficient strategies as being indicative of poor learning. Expanding on past findings, we explored the integration of study habits into this model. [...] Read more.
Why do learners not choose ideal study strategies when learning? Past research suggests that learners frequently misinterpret the effort affiliated with efficient strategies as being indicative of poor learning. Expanding on past findings, we explored the integration of study habits into this model. We conducted two experiments where learners experienced two contrasting strategies—blocked and interleaved schedules—to learn to discriminate between images of bird families. After experiencing each strategy, learners rated each according to its perceived effort, learning, and familiarity. Next, learners were asked to choose which strategy they would use in the future. Mediation analyses revealed, for both experiments, that the more mentally effortful interleaving felt, the less learners felt they learned, and the less likely learners were to use it in future learning. Further, in this study, strategy familiarity predicted strategy choice, also mediated by learners’ perceived learning. Additionally, Study 2 verified that, in contrast to learners’ judgments, the less familiar interleaving schedule resulted in better learning. Consequently, learners are making ineffective learning judgments based on their perceptions of effort and familiarity and, therefore, do not make use of optimal study strategies in self-regulated learning decisions. Full article
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18 pages, 1128 KiB  
Article
Academic Achievement: Influences of University Students’ Self-Management and Perceived Self-Efficacy
by Mohammed Hasan Ali Al-Abyadh and Hani Abdel Hafeez Abdel Azeem
J. Intell. 2022, 10(3), 55; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10030055 - 08 Aug 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 10644
Abstract
Successful students are more than just those who have more effective and efficient learning techniques for acquiring and applying information. They can also motivate, evaluate, and adjust their behavior if they are not learning properly. Thus, the objective of this study was to [...] Read more.
Successful students are more than just those who have more effective and efficient learning techniques for acquiring and applying information. They can also motivate, evaluate, and adjust their behavior if they are not learning properly. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the influence of university students’ self-management during their learning experience and their self-efficacy on their academic achievement. Additionally, the study investigated the differences between the Egyptian and Saudi students’ perceptions of self-management skills and self-efficacy in their academic achievement within the two countries. A total of 889 students from two different Arab countries took part in the study (Egypt and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). The sample was given an online questionnaire to evaluate their self-management abilities, perceived self-efficacy, and academic achievement. A quantitative approach using SmartPLS-SEM was deployed. The findings demonstrate that self-management and self-efficacy have positive influences on students’ academic achievement in both countries. Further, self-management skills have been proven to influence self-efficacy, which in turn highly influences academic achievement. Moreover, the findings of the Multi-Group Analysis (MGA) did not report significant differences between the Egyptian and Saudi students in terms of their perception of self-management, self-efficacy, and academic achievement. Full article
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