Assessing the validity of a learning analytics expectation instrument: A multinational study

To assist Higher Education Institutions in meeting the challenge of limited student engagement in the implementation of Learning Analytics services, the Questionnaire for Student Expectations of Learning Analytics (QSELA) was developed. This instrument contains 12 items, which are explained by a purported two-factor structure of Ethical and Privacy Expectations and Service Expectations. As it stands, however, the QSELA has only been validated with students from UK University students, which is problematic on account of the interest in Learning Analytics extending beyond this context. Thus, the aim of the current work was to assess whether the translated QSELA can be validated in three contexts (an Estonian, a Spanish, and a Dutch University). The findings show that the model provided acceptable fits in both the Spanish and Dutch samples, but was not supported in the Estonian student sample. In addition, an assessment of local fit is undertaken for each sample, which provides important points that need to be considered in future work. Finally, a general comparison of expectations across contexts is undertaken, which are discussed in relation to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, 2018)

The role of individual and social variables in task performance.

This paper reports on a data-based study in which we explored - as part of a larger-scale British-Hungarian research project - the effects of a number of affective and social variables on foreign language (L2) learners’ engagement in oral argumentative tasks. The assumption underlying the investigation was that students’ verbal behaviour in oral task situations is partly determined by a number of non-linguistic and non-cognitive factors whose examination may constitute a potentially fruitful extension of existing task-based research paradigms. The independent variables in the study included various aspects of L2 motivation and several factors characterizing the learner groups the participating students were members of (such as group cohesiveness and intermember relations), as well as the learners’ L2 proficiency and ‘willingness to communicate’ in their L1. The dependent variables involved objective measures of the students’ language output in two oral argumentative tasks (one in the learners’ L1, the other in their L2): the quantity of speech and the number of turns produced by the speakers. The results provide insights into the interrelationship of the multiple variables determining the learners’ task engagement, and suggest a multi-level construct whereby some independent variables only come into force when certain conditions have been met

Self-Regulation in a Web-Based Course: A Case Study

Little is known about how successful students in Web-based courses self-regulate their learning. This descriptive case study used a social cognitive model of self-regulated learning (SRL) to investigate how six graduate students used and adapted traditional SRL strategies to complete tasks and cope with challenges in a Web-based technology course; it also explored motivational and environmental influences on strategy use. Primary data sources were three transcribed interviews with each of the students over the course of the semester, a transcribed interview with the course instructor, and the students’ reflective journals. Archived course documents, including transcripts of threaded discussions and student Web pages, were secondary data sources. Content analysis of the data indicated that these students used many traditional SRL strategies, but they also adapted planning, organization, environmental structuring, help seeking, monitoring, record keeping, and self-reflection strategies in ways that were unique to the Web-based learning environment. The data also suggested that important motivational influences on SRL strategy use—self-efficacy, goal orientation, interest, and attributions—were shaped largely by student successes in managing the technical and social environment of the course. Important environmental influences on SRL strategy use included instructor support, peer support, and course design. Implications for online course instructors and designers, and suggestions for future research are offered

Adaptability, Engagement, and Degree Completion:A Longitudinal Investigation of University Students

© 2018, © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. University entry and the passage through university is a time of great change. The extent to which students are able to adjust to successfully navigate this change (adaptability) is likely to influence their academic outcomes. Prior research has identified a link between university students’ adaptability and academic achievement via behavioural engagement. The current longitudinal study extends this research by examining whether university students’ adaptability predicts degree completion via behavioural engagement. Undergraduate students (N = 186) were surveyed for their adaptability and behavioural engagement at degree commencement. Their completion status was extracted from the University Records System at the end of the degree. Findings showed that adaptability predicts both positive and negative behavioural engagement, and that negative (but not positive) behavioural engagement predicts degree completion. Adaptability was also found to influence degree completion indirectly via negative behavioural engagement. These findings hold important theoretical and practical implications for educators and researchers seeking to understand how students manage the transition to university and the extent to, and mechanisms by which students’ adaptability is associated with university degree completion

The normalisation of Food Aid: What happened to feeding people well?

In the UK, food poverty has increased in the last 15 years and the food aid supply chain that has emerged to tackle it is now roughly 10 years old. In this time, we have seen the food aid supply chain grow at a rate that has astounded many.  Recently that growth has been aided by a grant of £20m from a large supermarket chain. It appears institutionalisation is just around the corner, if not already here. It also appears that there is far greater emphasis on dealing with  the symptoms as opposed to solving the root causes of the problem. As an opinion piece, this paper reflects on some of the prevalent issues, and suggests some ways forward

Using formative assessment to influence self- and co-regulated learning: the role of evaluative judgement

Recently, the concept of evaluative judgement has gained attention as a pedagogical approach to classroom formative assessment practices. Evaluative judgement is the capacity to be able to judge the work of oneself and that of others, which implies developing knowledge about one’s own assessment capability. A focus on evaluative judgement helps us to better understand what is the influence of assessment practices in the regulation of learning. In this paper, we link evaluative judgement to two self-regulated learning models (Zimmerman and Winne) and present a model on the effects on co-regulation of learning. The models help us to understand how students can be self-regulated through developing their evaluative judgement. The co-regulation model visualises how the learner can become more strategic in this process through teacher and peer assessment in which assessment knowledge and regulation strategies are shared with the learner. The connections we make here are crucial to strengthening our understanding of the influence of assessment practices on students’ learnin

Supporting self-regulated learning

Self-regulated learning (SRL) competences are crucial for lifelong learning. Their cultivation requires the right balance between freedom and guidance during the learning processes. Current learning systems and approaches, such as personal learning environments, give overwhelming freedom, but also let weak learners alone. Other systems, such as learning management systems or adaptive systems, tend to institutionalise learners too much, which does not support the development of SRL competences. This chapter presents possibilities and approaches to support SRL by the use of technology. After discussing the theoretical background of SRL and related technologies, a formal framework is presented that describes the SRL process, related competences, and guidelines. Furthermore, a variety of methods is presented, how learners can be supported to learn in a self-regulated way