Goal self-concordance moderates the relationship between achievement goals and indicators of academic adjustment

This study examined whether the good or bad outcomes associated with mastery- and performance-approach achievement goals depend on the extent to which these goals are pursued for self-concordant reasons. A sample of 220 undergraduate students completed measures of achievement goals, goal self-concordance, academic satisfaction, and academic anxiety before mid-term exams. A total of 115 participants completed a follow-up measure of their semester GPA. Results of moderated regressions revealed that mastery-approach goals were positively associated with academic satisfaction and performance, but only for students with high levels of mastery goal self-concordance. Performance-approach goals were also associated with higher performance, but only for students with high levels of performance goal self-concordance. Both types of goals were positively associated with anxiety for individuals with low levels of goal self-concordance. This study illustrates the importance of considering the joint influence of goal content and goal motivation in their association with consequential educational outcomes.     

The impact of diversity,prior academic achievement and goal orientation on learning performance in group capstone projects

ABSTRACT

Capstone projects are common in undergraduate programmes, providing students with a culminating educational experience designed to draw on the knowledge and skills accumulated over the course of their studies. While there are many benefits to capstone projects, they are not without challenges. In particular, when these projects are conducted in groups, forming groups to optimise the learning outcomes and managing group dynamics can be challenging. In this article, we report on the analysis of data collected from 346 undergraduate business students who completed capstone projects at a Hong Kong university. Measures included students’ learning goal (mastery and performance), satisfaction with their supervisor and group diversity in relation to gender, prior academic achievement, self-report nationality and programme of study. Analysis of this data in conjunction with student grades for the project was conducted to inform improvements in design and delivery of the capstone subject to improve students’ learning outcomes. The results showed that for groups consisting of three students, group diversity in respect to prior academic achievement as measured by grade point average (GPA) is positively related to the grade achieved in the capstone project. However, diversity in respect to the nationalities in the group was related to poorer performance. Furthermore, the more teacher-focused the group supervisor’s approach was, the worse the grade achieved for the project. The results suggest that groups made up of students of different nationalities tend to have lower grades compared to homogeneous groups. In contrast, having a group with a mix of GPAs can result in higher grades on the project. While these findings have informed our understanding of group performance on capstone projects, work is needed to fully understand what underlies the diversity effects identified which will be explored with future cohorts.     

Self-fulfilling prophecies in media-based learning: Content relevance moderates quality expectation effects on academic achievement

In the present paper a model of self-fulfilling prophecy effects in media-based learning was developed and tested. The central model assumption was that information about an instructional medium's quality affects students' academic achievement depending on the instructional content's relevance to the student. Experiment 1 (N = 100) demonstrated higher achievement in response to positive compared to negative information, but not the predicted moderating effect of content relevance. Using a revised relevance manipulation, Experiment 2 (N = 199) identified the following moderating function of content relevance: Under moderate relevance positive information led to higher achievement, under high relevance negative information resulted in higher achievement. No differences appeared under low relevance. Path analyses revealed students' cognitive effort as significant mediator for these effects.     

Endorsing achievement goals exacerbates the big-fish-little-pond effect on academic self-concept

The big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) model predicts students’ academic self-concept to be negatively predicted by the achievement level of their reference group, controlling for individual achievement. Despite an abundance of empirical evidence supporting the BFLPE, there have been relatively few studies searching for possible moderators. Integrating the BFLPE model with Achievement Goal Theory, the present study aims to determine whether the negative effect of class-average achievement on academic self-concept is moderated by individual and class-average achievement goals. Our sample comprised of 2987 students (50% boys) from Grade 6 in 112 elementary schools in the Flemish region of Belgium (174 classes). Applying multilevel modelling, we found a stronger BFLPE when students’ individual achievement goals were higher, regardless of the specific nature of these goals. The BFLPE was not moderated by class-average levels of achievement goals. Overall, our findings demonstrate that the BFLPE is moderated by individual goal-related factors.     

The effect of social grounding on collaboration in a computer-mediated small group discussion

There is a tremendous amount of pressure on educators to incorporate highly advanced computer-mediated communication (CMC) into the classroom, but the research shows that this is not an easy task. Part of the difficulty learners experience within current network applications is a lack of support from the design of the software for the development of a common ground. This paper reports on a study of how a group of online students used a software application specifically designed to mediate a threaded discussion. Results of the study show that properly designed software had a significant impact on the creation and maintenance of the common ground necessary to create and foster a community of talk. Nonetheless, the data also shows that specialized software is not enough. An important factor in using online interaction well is for the teacher to closely monitor students online. These two factors, suitably designed software that is appropriately implemented, are closely related and will result in optimum experience for students.     

The effect of web-based portfolio use on academic achievement and retention

The web-based portfolio emerged as a result of the influence of technological developments on educational practices. In this study, the effect of the web-based portfolio building process on academic achievement and retention is explored. For this purpose, a study platform known as a computer-assisted personal development portfolio was designed for 30 Turkish students who participated in a web-based portfolio process. The academic achievements of the students were examined through an experimental design in which participants were divided into an experimental group and a control group and given a pre-test and a post-test. The results of the study revealed that the levels of both academic achievement and retention in the experimental group were significantly higher than those in the control group. Similar practices can be applied to the teaching of medicine, economics, physical sciences, humanities and other subjects in order to extend students?? performance and achievement levels.     

论教育学识的习得与教育学派的创生

对教育学科学习者来说,学习是解构的过程,因此教育学派成为学科成熟的标志;对教育研究者来说,研究是建构的过程,因此教育学识的科学性与实效性才是学科成熟的标志。但教育理论科学性与实效性评价标准的缺位,既为社会大众利用个案对教育理论体系进行证伪提供了机会,也为教育研究个体利用个案对自己的研究成果予以证实提供了机会。走向教育实践,既是确定教育理论研究科学性与实效性评价标准的过程,也是教育研究者在实践问题的解决中,逐渐达成研究共识并进而形成学派的过程,也是通过教育学派间的理论竞争并最终形成教育研究范式的必然选择。     

The effect of teacher strikes on academic achievement: Evidence from Colombia

International literature on the effects of teacher strikes on academic performance is scarce. Colombia offers a unique opportunity to study these effects given the high frequency of stoppages and the availability of high-quality data. Exploiting the exogenous variations of teacher strikes at school, municipality and department level, we find that those students who have been exposed to more and longer strikes obtain on average, lower scores in math and reading. We also find that students who were exposed to more strikes during secondary school score on average 41 % and 29 % of a SD lower in math and reading, respectively.     

Examining the effect of positive behaviour support on academic achievement of students with disabilities

Students who engage in challenging behaviour compromise the fundamental ability of schools to educate children. Consequently, teachers face the daunting task of designing effective strategies to promote positive educational outcomes for their students. Since the 1997 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act amendments, the use of positive behaviour supports (PBS) to address the behavioural needs of children challenged by disabilities has expanded. There is evidence to support the utility of PBS in reducing challenging behaviour among students. However, successful schools are also gauged by the academic achievement of their students. Hence, it is important to examine the extent to which behavioural outcomes are related to academic outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which PBS interventions aimed at reducing challenging behaviour result in corresponding improvement in academic achievement. A meta‐analysis of extant research indicated a positive correlation of 0.40 between improvement in problem behaviour and academic achievement. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at: http://youtu.be/c9OUU0GkGrw .     

Examining the impact of capital on academic achievement

While a growing body of literature on education production looks at the impact school inputs have on academic achievement, virtually no research is examining the impact capital is having on academic achievement. In this study, we take an initial step towards that end. By using school districts' level of bond indebtedness as a proxy for capital, we find evidence that capital stock does affect academic achievement. In light of these findings along with the general lack of research on capital inputs, we conclude that capital expenditures should be given greater attention in future research.     

Examining the impact of prior academic achievement on moral reasoning development among college students: A growth curve analysis

Moral reasoning is concerned with making decisions regarding the appropriate course of action in particular situations and has been highlighted as a critical factor that may facilitate (or impede) the effectiveness of educational programs in promoting positive outcomes. This study examined the trajectories of moral reasoning as measured by the Defining Issues Test (DIT2) for college students and to what extent there are intra-individual (within student) and inter-individual (between student) changes in moral reasoning during this developmental period. The results suggest that moral reasoning was best represented by a linear increase on the mean level and non-signi?cant variability across students. The relationship between moral reasoning and students’ prior academic attainment was also examined.     

高中生成就动机与学业情绪、学业成绩的关系研究

为探讨高中生成就动机与学业情绪、学业成绩的关系,采用问卷对285名高中生进行调查.结果显示,趋近动机(Ms)与积极学业情绪和学业成绩呈正相关,且对两种积极学业情绪和学业成绩均有正向预测作用,对消极低唤醒学业情绪有负向预测作用;回避动机(Mf)与积极学业情绪和学业成绩呈负相关,而与消极学业情绪呈正相关,并能正向预测消极低唤醒学业情绪,负向预测积极低唤醒学业情绪和学业成绩.积极低唤醒情绪和消极低唤醒情绪在成就动机和学业成绩之间起部分中介效应,积极高唤醒情绪只在趋近动机和学业成绩间部分中介效应.     

The impact of group design projects in engineering on achievement goal orientations and academic outcomes

This study examined the impact of incorporating group design projects into a second-year engineering class on achievement goal orientations and two academic outcomes: concept inventory and final exam scores. In this study, two sections were taught using lecture format, but one section also completed three group design projects as part of their curriculum. The intervention of incorporating group design projects had a positive effect on mastery goals and a negative effect on performance-approach goals. The effect of the intervention on academic outcomes was mediated by mastery goals but not performance-approach or performance-avoidance goals. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

Collaborative learning tasks and the elaboration of conceptual knowledge

In this article we present the results of an experimental study of the influence of task characteristics on the characteristics of elaboration of conceptual knowledge in social interaction. With a pre-test and post-test we measured individual learning outcomes. We constructed a coding scheme that focuses on the communicative functions and propositional content of utterances and on elaborative episodes. The subjects were 40 students who worked in dyads on a collaborative task about electricity in one of four conditions. We compared a concept mapping task with a poster task and investigated the effect of a phase of individual preparation. The post-test scores were significantly higher than the pre-test scores. Individual preparation created better learning results and the asking of more questions. The concept mapping conditions showed more discussion of electricity concepts, collaboratively elaborated conflicts and reasoning, but no higher individual learning outcomes. In the concept mapping conditions, elaboration was related to individual learning outcomes.     

Components of cooperative learning: Effects of collaborative skills and academic group contingencies on achievement and mainstreaming

The effects of four conditions were investigated: (a) opportunity to interact with classmates, (b) positive goal interdependence, (c) positive goal interdependence with a collaborative-skills group contingency, and (d) positive goal interdependence with both collaborative-skills and academic group contingencies. The dependent variables were achievement, cross-handicap relationships, and voluntary use of collaborative skills. Two subject populations were studied: (a) 83 eighthgrade nonhandicapped students and (b) four socially isolated and withdrawn students (2 eighth grade and 2 eleventh grade). The results indicate that positive goal interdependence with both collaborative-skills and academic group contingencies promoted the most positive relationships with nonhandicapped classmates, most frequent engagement in cooperative skills, and the highest achievement.     

The impact of college football on academic achievement

We revisit a recent study by Lindo, Swensen, and Waddell (2012), who found a negative relationship between the success of the University of Oregon football team and the academic performance of students as measured by grades. Using data from Clemson University, we also find that the football team's winning percentage is negatively related to academic performance. Although Lindo et al. (2012) found that the academic performance of male students was more sensitive to changes in the winning percentage than the academic performance of female students, we find evidence of the opposite phenomenon in the Clemson data. Moreover, the negative relationship between wins and academic performance at Clemson appears to persist into the spring semester.     

英语课堂中小组教学初探

《英语课程标准(实验稿)解读》中提出:“教师尽可能运用合作、小组学习等方式,在培养学生合作与交流能力的同时,调动每一个学生的参与意识和学习积极性。”“英语教学要着重培养学生综合运用语言、词汇、语法进行听、说、读、写的交际能力。”为此,我开展了英语课堂小组教学的探索。一、小组型教学的特点及其在英语课堂教学中的优势小组型教学是把一个教学班的学生按一定要求组合成若干个学习小组,以小组为学生学习的组织形式和教学活动单位,在教师指导下,小组成员通过讨论,共同解决学习问题,并借助小组成员之间的协作,完成教与学的任务。小…     

Prior knowledge moderates instructional effects on conceptual understanding of statistics

This study investigated the effects of different teaching and learning methods for statistics for 2 levels of prior knowledge on cognitive load, propositional knowledge, and conceptual understanding. Teaching methods were whether or not to provide students with propositional information, and learning strategies were self-explaining the learning material and explaining in pairs. The results indicate that prior knowledge facilitates propositional knowledge development and leads to differential effects of teaching and learning methods on conceptual understanding: Only low prior knowledge students profit from additional information in the learning task and/or explaining in pairs. An implication of these findings is that low prior knowledge students should be guided into the subject matter by means of working in pairs on learning tasks that comprise additional information. Once students have developed more knowledge of the subject matter, they should be stimulated to work individually on learning tasks that do not comprise additional information.