supervisor: alieke van dijk
Topic
Learning is not something that happens to students; it is something that happens by students. In order to structure and shape their own learning process, students need self-regulation skills (for individual learning) or socially-shared regulation skills (for collaborative learning). However, students differ in the extent to which they have self-regulation skills (i.e., availability deficiency). Even though students do have these skills, it is not clear whether they actually use them (i.e., production deficiency).
Interventions that aim to support self-regulation skills often use an ‘one-size-fits-all approach’. However, to make sure that all students are able to develop and use these skills, it is relevant to investigate students’ current skill-set, possible differences between students in this regard, students’ ability to use self-regulation skills, and whether students’ perceived self-regulation skills are similar to when they are measured using a more objective measurement, like observations.
Method
This is an observational study. You will start with some literature review to familiarize yourself with the topic. You will collect data by observing students’ behavior when working on a task and by asking them to complete one or more questionnaires. The collected data will be used to answer one or more of the following example research questions:
- To what extent do university students have self-regulation skills at their disposal?
- To what extent do university students apply self-regulation skills in conducting a learning task?
- To what extent does university students’ availability of self-regulation skills relate to their own perceived self-regulation skills?
- To what extent does university students’ use of self-regulation skills relate to their own perceived self-regulation skills?
It is possible to create your own research question, focusing on specific sub-skills within the context of self-regulation and/or students’ use of these skills in different contexts (e.g., type of tasks, learning situations).
Interested in an alternative target group? In agreement with your supervisors, performing your research in other education-related contexts is possible.
references
Cleary, T.J. (2006). The development and validation of the self-regulation strategy inventory – self-report. Journal of School Psychology, 44, 307-322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2006.05.002
Hogenkamp, L., van Dijk, A.M., & Eysink, T.H.S. (2021). Analyzing socially shared regulation of learning during cooperative learning and the role of equal contribution: A grounded theory approach. Education Sciences, 11, 512. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090512
Veenman, M.V.J., Kerseboom, L & Imthorn, C. (2000). Test anxiety and metacognitive 716 skillfulness: Availability versus production deficiencies. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 717, 391–412. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615800008248343
Zimmerman, B.J. (2008). Investigating self-regulation and motivation: Historical background, methodological developments, and future prospects. American Educational Research Journal, 45, 166-183. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831207312909