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IntroductionSelf-regulated learning (SRL), or learners’ ability to monitor and change their own cognitive, affective, metacognitive, and motivational processes, encompasses several operations that should be deployed during learning including Searching, Monitoring, Assembling, Rehearsing, and Translating (SMART). Scaffolds are needed within GBLEs to both increase learning outcomes and promote the accurate and efficient use of SRL SMART operations. This study aims to examine how restricted agency (i.e., control over one’s actions) can be used to scaffold learners’ SMART operations as they learn about microbiology with Crystal Island, a game-based learning environment. MethodsUndergraduate students (N = 94) were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: (1) Full Agency, where participants were able to make their own decisions about which actions they could take; and (2) Partial Agency, where participants were required to follow a pre-defined path that dictated the order in which buildings were visited, restricting one’s control. As participants played Crystal Island, participants’ multimodal data (i.e., log files, eye tracking) were collected to identify instances where participants deployed SMART operations. ResultsResults from this study support restricted agency as a successful scaffold of both learning outcomes and SRL SMART operations, where learners who were scaffolded demonstrated more efficient and accurate use of SMART operations. DiscussionThis study provides implications for future scaffolds to better support SRL SMART operations during learning and discussions for future directions for future studies scaffolding SRL during game-based learning.
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Subtopic-specific heterogeneity in computer-based learning behaviors
Abstract BackgroundSelf-regulated learning (SRL) strategies can be domain specific. However, it remains unclear whether this specificity extends to different subtopics within a single subject domain. In this study, we collected data from 210 college students engaged in a computer-based learning environment to examine the heterogeneous manifestations of learning behaviors across four distinct subtopics in introductory statistics. Further, we explore how the time spent engaging in metacognitive strategies correlated with learning gain in those subtopics. ResultsBy employing two different analytical approaches that combine data-driven learning analytics (i.e., sequential pattern mining in this case), and theory-informed methods (i.e., coherence analysis), we discovered significant variability in the frequency of learning patterns that are potentially associated with SRL-relevant strategies across four subtopics. In a subtopic related to calculations, engagement in coherent quizzes (i.e., a type of metacognitive strategy) was found to be significantly less related to learning gains compared to other subtopics. Additionally, we found that students with different levels of prior knowledge and learning gains demonstrated varying degrees of engagement in learning patterns in an SRL context. ConclusionThe findings imply that the use—and the effectiveness—of learning patterns that are potentially associated with SRL-relevant strategies varies not only across contexts and domains, but even across different subtopics within a single subject. This underscores the importance of personalized, context-aware SRL training interventions in computer-based learning environments, which could significantly enhance learning outcomes by addressing the heterogeneous relationships between SRL activities and outcomes. Further, we suggest theoretical implications of subtopic-specific heterogeneity within the context of various SRL models. Understanding SRL heterogeneity enhances these theories, offering more nuanced insights into learners’ metacognitive strategies across different subtopics.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2202481
- PAR ID:
- 10561934
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer Science + Business Media
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- International Journal of STEM Education
- Volume:
- 11
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 2196-7822
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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