Investigating the factors that influence higher education instructors’ decisions to adopt a flipped classroom instructional model

The flipped classroom is an instructional model which allows for more advanced learning activities during in-class time while introduces subject knowledge to students prior to class. To address a gap in the recent research regarding higher education instructors’ experiences, perceptions and adoption decisions of the flipped classroom instruction, this study aimed at investigating the critical factors which were predictive of a higher education instructor’s decision to adopt a flipped classroom instructional model through exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and multiple regression in a US university. The results revealed that performance expectancy and technology self-efficacy were significant predictors. Although facilitation condition was significantly correlated with instructors’ adoption decisions, it was not a significant predictor. This study suggests that in order to improve higher education instructors’ adoption decisions of the flipped classroom and other active learning instructional models, it is of priority for institutions to remove the internal barriers to instructors’ adoption decisions of these instructional models, such as improving their performance expectancy and technology self-efficacy.     

Electronic Versus Print Textbooks: The Influence of Textbook Format on University Students’ Self-Regulated Learning Strategies,Motivation, and Text Anxiety

Because a majority of university students do not regularly read course textbooks, a study was conducted to determine if portable electronic textbooks (e-textbooks) would increase university student motivation to read by enhancing cognitive learning strategies and self-regulation of learning. The participants included 538 university students who self-chose to use either a print or e-textbook throughout the semester. The dependent variables self-efficacy, intrinsic value, cognitive strategies, self-regulation, and text anxiety were measured in each of two groups of participants using the Technology Confidences and Attitudes scale and the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). The results of a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) analysis indicated that there was a significant difference in the students’ MSLQ scores based on their choice of textbook format. These results imply that students who use e-textbooks are more likely to use cognitive and self-regulation strategies than students who use traditional print textbooks in their courses.     

Cross-cultural comparisons of university students’ science learning self-efficacy: structural relationships among factors within science learning self-efficacy

Science learning self-efficacy could be regarded as a multi-factor belief which comprises different aspects such as cognitive skills, practical work, and everyday application. However, few studies have investigated the relationships among these factors that compose science learning self-efficacy. Also, culture may play an important role in explaining the relationships among these factors. Accordingly, this study aimed to investigate cultural differences in science learning self-efficacy and examine the relationships within factors constituting science learning self-efficacy by adopting a survey instrument for administration to students in the U.S. and Taiwan. A total of 218 university students (62.40% females) were surveyed in the U.S.A, and 224 university students (49.10% females) in Taiwan were also invited to take part in the study. The results of the structural equation modelling revealed cultural differences in the relationships among the factors of science learning self-efficacy. It was found that U.S. students’ confidence in their ability to employ higher-order cognitive skills tended to promote their confidence in their ability to accomplish practical work, strengthening their academic self-efficacy. However, the aforementioned mediation was not found for the Taiwanese participants.     

Self-Efficacy and Entrepreneurial Intention: The Mediation Effect of Self-Regulation

Specifying the mechanism through which perceived self-efficacy affects one’s behavior has been one of the main concerns of researchers and educators particularly in entrepreneurship domain due to the critical role that entrepreneurial self-efficacy plays in motivating and enabling individuals to establish a new venture. This study examines the relationship between entrepreneurial self-efficacy, self-regulation and entrepreneurial intention using Bandura’s structural path model for the constructs. The sample was composed of 722 public and private Malaysian university students. The results revealed that students’ entrepreneurial self-efficacy has the most significant and positive impact on their intention to become an entrepreneur. More specifically, entrepreneurial self-efficacy highly affects students’ entrepreneurial intention both directly and indirectly. Furthermore, self-regulation partially mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and students’ entrepreneurial intention. Implications of these findings for entrepreneurship research and education are discussed.     

学业准备对大学生学业收获的影响——人际互动与学业自我效能感的中介作用

近年来,我国高等教育由注重“教”逐渐转向注重“学”,学生的学习过程和学习结果越来越受到重视。以建构主义学习理论关于学习过程的假设为基础,探讨在大学生群体结构日趋多元化和复杂化的背景下,学业准备与学业收获的关系,分析人际互动与学业自我效能感在两者间的中介效应。采用整群抽样对某大学484名大学生进行调查的结果显示:大学生的学业准备情况整体良好,但是学习态度的准备水平不高;学业准备可以显著预测大学生的人际互动、学业自我效能感及学业收获;学业准备通过人际互动、学业自我效能感的链式中介作用影响学业收获,间接效应占总效应的43%。     

Self-efficacy, task complexity and task performance: Exploring interactions in two versions of vocabulary learning tasks

The present study aimed for better understanding of the interactions between task complexity and students?? self-efficacy beliefs and students?? use of learning strategies, and finally their interacting effects on task performance. This investigation was carried out in the context of Chinese students learning English as a foreign language in a university in China. The participants were 78 second-year university students (mean age?=?20.9?years). This study used a repeated-measures design with task complexity as the within-participants factor, and task sequence as the between-participants factor. Results indicated a significant task effect for self-efficacy beliefs and task performance, and a significant interaction effect of sequence with task complexity for learners?? self-efficacy beliefs in learning for both task versions, learners with higher self-efficacy beliefs had better task performances than learners with lower self-efficacy beliefs. The results also revealed a strong correlation between self-efficacy and the use of learning strategies for both tasks.     

Does computer confidence relate to levels of achievement in ICT-enriched learning models?

Employer expectations have changed: university students are expected to graduate with computer competencies appropriate for their field. Educators are also harnessing technology as a medium for learning in the belief that information and communication technologies (ICT’s) can enliven and motivate learning across a wide range of disciplines. Alongside developing students’ computer skills and introducing them to the use of professional software, educators are also harnessing professional and scientific packages for learning in some disciplines. As the educational use of information and communication technologies increases dramatically, questions arise about the effects on learners. While the use of computers for delivery, support, and communication, is generally easy and unthreatening, higher-level use may pose a barrier to learning for those who lack confidence or experience. Computer confidence may mediate in how well students perform in learning environments that require interaction with computers. This paper examines the role played by computer confidence (or computer self-efficacy) in a technology-enriched science and engineering mathematics course in an Australian university. Findings revealed that careful and appropriate use of professional software did indeed enliven learning for the majority of students. However, computer confidence occupied a very different dimension to mathematics confidence: and was not a predictor of achievement in the mathematics tasks, not even those requiring use of technology. Moreover, despite careful and nurturing support for use of the software, students with low computer confidence levels felt threatened and disadvantaged by computer laboratory tasks. The educational implications of these findings are discussed with regard to teaching and assessment, in particular. The TCAT scales used to measure technology attitudes, computer confidence/self-efficacy and mathematics confidence are included in an Appendix. Well-established, reliable, internally consistent, they may be useful to other researchers. The development of the computer confidence scale is outlined, and guidelines are offered for the design of other discipline-specific confidence/self-efficacy scales appropriate for use alongside the computer confidence scale.     

University students’ conceptions of learning across multiple domains

Research on students’ conceptions of learning is a growing and complex area of interest in the field of psychology of education. Even though much of the investigation addressed to explore conceptions of learning at the university level, still less research has considered how naïve (i.e. ‘learning as reduction of deficit knowledge through individual effort’) and sophisticated (i.e. ‘learning as opportunity and self-efficacy’) conceptions of learning are related to personal and contextual factors. This research investigated how gender, academic area, and level of study influence university students’ conceptions of learning. Three hundred forty-six university students participated in the study. They were either from humanities (240) or technical-scientific (106) areas of study and they were attending either a Bachelor (140) or Master’s degree (206) course. Conceptions of learning were explored using a self-report instrument (Learning Conceptions Questionnaire; LCQ). A MANOVA revealed that females show conceptions of learning more related to social and motivational aspects of learning with a greater personal involvement, compared with males. No typical pattern of conceptions of learning was found for humanities students or for technical-scientific students. Increasing with the level of study, students showed both naïve and sophisticated conceptions of learning increased, since both ‘learning as reduction of deficit knowledge through individual effort’ and ‘learning as opportunities and self-efficacy’ were more likely. Implications of these results and future lines of research will be discussed.     

Technology-enhanced learning and research using databases in higher education: the application of the ODAS model

Abstract

Research databases are a significant contributing aspect of modern technology, and, as such, innovation has enhanced learning and research outputs using online databases introduced by authorities in charge of higher education. However, databases have been rarely investigated from the perspective of psychological assessment. Therefore, this research examined databases using structural equation modelling and the Rasch model to explore contributing factors of learning and research in higher education. To measure databases, this research adapted the online database adoption and satisfaction (ODAS) model and analysed the responses of 300 postgraduate students, from a double first class university in Shanghai, collected using a stratified random sample technique. The results of the ODAS model showed that the postgraduate students’ perceived usefulness and ease of use of databases played mediating roles in establishing connections between their computer self-efficacy and intention to use and satisfaction with databases for research and learning. However, the ODAS model also showed that the students’ satisfaction was indirectly explained by their perceived usefulness of databases through ease of use and intention to use. The results of our investigation contribute to a better understanding of the ODAS model and suggest assessment strategies for learning and research through databases for researchers, academicians, and librarians.     

Using virtual reality in the classroom: preservice teachers’ perceptions of its use as a teaching and learning tool

Virtual reality (VR) platforms act as a potentially transformative tool in learning and teaching. The aim of this study was to examine pre-service teachers’ (PST) perceptions about VR, inclusive of their beliefs about its capacity to be used as a teaching and learning tool. A case-study, conducted at an urban university in Australia involved a sample of n = 41. Participants’ positive perceptions of VR in their teaching relate to its potential to engage learners, the immersive potential of the platform and the scope of VR to offer students experiences they might otherwise not have with other learning tools. Concerns expressed by PSTs include their relatively low self-efficacy to use VR in their teaching, monitoring-related matters, financial cost and implementing the technology in a safe and supportive way. There was a significant difference in PSTs’ amount of self-efficacy to teach using VR when compared to their overall confidence to use digital technologies. PSTs typically had greater awareness of the immersive and engagement potential of VR and less awareness about its potential to foster and promote collaborative learning. This paper contributes to an emerging discourse regarding the possible applications of VR in educational environments and particularly in relation teacher-educator contexts.     

Students’ characteristics,self-regulated learning,technology self-efficacy,and course outcomes in online learning

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship among students’ characteristics, self-regulated learning, technology self-efficacy, and course outcomes in online learning settings. Two hundred and fifty-six students participated in this study. All participants completed an online survey that included demographic information, the modified motivation strategies learning questionnaire, the online technology self-efficacy scale, the course satisfaction questionnaire, and the final grades. The researchers used structural equation modeling to examine relationships among student characteristics, self-regulated learning, technology self-efficacy, and course outcomes. Based on the results from the final model, students with previous online learning experiences tended to have more effective learning strategies when taking online courses, and hence, had higher levels of motivation in their online courses. In addition, when students had higher levels of motivation in their online courses, their levels of technology self-efficacy and course satisfaction increased. Finally, students with higher levels of technology self-efficacy and course satisfaction also earned better final grades. Based on the findings, we recommend that instructors design courses in a way that can promote students’ self-regulated learning behaviors in online learning settings and that students in online classes, as in traditional classes, set aside a regular time to concentrate on the course. Also, institutions should provide user-friendly online learning platforms and workshops for instructors and students to facilitate the teaching and learning experiences.     

Using Community-Based Research to Improve BSW Students’ Learning in Community Practice: Bringing the Macro into Focus for Traditional and Distance Learners

This article describes community–university partnership building, course development/management, and evaluation outcomes related to an intensive community-based research project that was integrated in two sections of an undergraduate course on community practice. Pre- and posttest data were collected from 60 BSW students who were enrolled in community practice and who participated in a community-based research project with their state’s fair housing office. The evaluation outcomes focus on changes in professional interest in macro practice, students’ self-efficacy, and differences in students’ learning experiences, based on traditional bricks-and-mortar or distance learning contexts. Results show that students experience increases in self-efficacy related to community assessment and intervention. Qualitative results show that students experienced shifts in their professional goals related to macro practice, increased competence and understanding, and personal transformation. A number of differences emerged between traditional and distance learners. Results are discussed in the context of curriculum development and next steps for institutionalizing CBR in community practice courses.     

Teachers’ student-specific self-efficacy in relation to teacher and student variables

This study aims to show the importance of explicitly identifying student-specific teachers’ self-efficacy. Data from 43 regular teachers who rated their self-efficacy towards 611 fourth-grade students from inclusive classes in Austria were analyzed. In addition, 15 regular teachers and 15 special needs teachers rated their student-specific self-efficacy levels of 136 students. Teachers’ sense of self-efficacy towards individual students was assessed using a short, adapted version of Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy’s Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale. Results of multilevel-regression analysis showed that the higher the teachers’ general self-efficacy the higher was their student-specific self-efficacy. In addition, teachers’ student-specific self-efficacy was lower for students whose special needs regarded learning or behavioural and emotional disorders. The outcomes of the study imply that measuring teachers’ self-efficacy specifically for individual students compared to a teachers’ general self-efficacy towards inclusion is an important addition to previous research.     

Personal voices in higher education: A digital storytelling experience for pre-service teachers

Digital storytelling (DST) has recently emerged as a new tool in instructional environments. DST involves the combination of media and technology with traditional storytelling to help students learn. This paper examines the use of DST in a university course and pre-service teachers’ perceptions of their learning experiences using this tool. Thirty-eight pre-service teachers participated in the study, in which DST was employed as a learning activity. In the course, the participants created personal digital stories about their careers. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used for data collection and analysis. The findings indicate that DST is very useful for learning. The pre-service teachers perceived DST as an attractive way to share ideas and feelings, and valuable for using in lessons. DST served as a practical learning tool to present the students’ personal experiences to others, and the process encouraged emotional interactions. Implications regarding these findings are discussed.     

Investigating Students’ Conceptions of Technology-Assisted Science Learning: a Drawing Analysis

This study investigated high school students’ conceptions of technology-assisted science learning via drawing analysis, and explored how students with different degrees of computer experience and science learning self-efficacy may show different conceptions via their drawings. The participants included 335 senior high school students in Taiwan (179 male and 156 female). All of them were asked by guiding questions to make two drawings to represent their conceptions of technology-assisted science learning in actual and ideal contexts, respectively. Their background information including computer experience and science learning self-efficacy were obtained using self-reported questionnaires. Through drawing analysis, seven categories of conceptions of technology-assisted science learning were identified, including types of technology, location of learning, types of learning activities, content of learning, participants of learning activities, affordance of learning technology, and effects of learning technology. The results further revealed that the students’ conceptions of actual and ideal technology-assisted science learning significantly differed in some sub-categories of all categories except the category of participants of learning activities. Moreover, students’ computer experience and science learning self-efficacy may link to different conceptions of technology-assisted science learning. Future research and directions are also discussed.

     

An exploration of Biggs’ constructive alignment in course design and its impact on students’ learning approaches

This paper investigates whether instructors’ adoption of constructive alignment has any impact on university students’ learning approaches, which are highly correlated with students’ achievement of learning outcomes. A multi-method model with a combination of qualitative and quantitative design was adopted, using document analysis, interviews and survey. The analysis of covariance results suggested that regardless of individual differences, students would adjust their learning approaches and study behaviours in response to the classroom teaching and learning environment. Students in more ‘constructively aligned courses’ were more likely to adopt deep learning approaches and less likely to use surface learning approaches in their study of a particular course.     

民航相关专业学生利用语料库进行英语自主学习初探

随着以学生为主体的教学理念的逐步推广,在民航专业英语教学实践中以体现学生主动学习价值为取向的相关理论也在探索中不断发展。本文以班杜拉自我效能理论为据,探讨了民航专业英语教师引导学生运用语料库以提高学生自我效能和持续学习动力的相应技巧,试为民航相关专业学生进行英语自主学习开辟一条新路径。     

Understanding the Influence of Learners’ Forethought on Their Use of Science Study Strategies in Postsecondary Science Learning

Understanding self-regulation in science learning is important for theorists and practitioners alike. However, very little has been done to explore and understand students’ self-regulatory processes in postsecondary science courses. In this study, the influence of science efficacy, learning value, and goal orientation on the perceived use of science study strategies was explored using structural equation modeling. In addition, the study served to validate the first two stages of Zimmerman's cyclical model of self-regulation and to address the common methodological weakness in self-regulation research in which data are all collected at one point after the learning cycle is complete. Thus, data were collected across the learning cycle rather than asking students to reflect upon each construct after the learning cycle was complete. The findings supported the hypothesized model in which it was predicted that self-efficacy would significantly and positively influence students’ perceived science strategy use, and the influence of students’ valuation of science learning on science study strategies would be mediated by their learning goal orientation. The findings of the study are discussed and implications for undergraduate science instructors are proposed.     

Motivational and affective determinants of self-regulatory strategy use in elementary school mathematics

The aim of the study was to investigate the relationships between elementary students’ reported use of self-regulatory strategies in mathematics and their motivational and affective determinants. Participants of the study were 344 fifth- and sixth-grade Greek students. Students were asked to complete self-reported measures regarding the strategies they use to self-regulate mathematics learning, their achievement goals in relation to mathematics, their self-efficacy concerning mathematics learning and achievement, the value they attribute to mathematics as a subject domain and their enjoyment of mathematics learning. Structural equation modelling confirmed a mediation model, that is, students’ mathematics self-efficacy, value beliefs about mathematics and enjoyment mediated the effects of achievement goals on reported strategy use. Results are discussed in terms of implications for elementary students’ self-regulated learning skills.