Self-Regulation Of Learning

As online learning increases, the characteristic of being a more autonomous learner becomes a more desirable and helpful trait. This is due to the amount of freedom and control the learner experiences with regard to the place, time, materials, when, content , and especially the strategy to study (Cunningham & Billingsley, 2003). A part of what makes an autonomous learner successful is the influence of their self-regulation abilities. Several researchers have explored the connection between self-regulation and the academic performance in traditional face-to-face classrooms (e.g. Zimmerman, 1998; Kramarski & Gutman, 2006; Kramarski & Mizarachi, 2006). Barnard et al. (2009) point out that if self-regulation is a factor in the traditional classroom,

This can include goal-setting, self-efficacy and environment management. For example, students decide how they want to perform and how much they want to learn from the content. Factors such as skill, motivation, and time are also considered when deciding if the predetermined goal can be achieved. Particularly, goal orientation and environment management are examined in this study. Goal orientation considers a student’s attitude in learning a certain subject and their purpose for completing tasks (Pintrich, 2000). Depending on a student’s goal orientation, the student can manage their learning environment to ensure goal attainment. For example, going to a library or coffee shop to study materials with little

Strategic learning is another factor of performance control where the student makes use of metacognition. Rather than thinking and planning how to perform a goal or task like in the forethought phase, the student takes action and uses their current knowledge to work towards task completion. Whipp and Chiarelli (2004) reported how students systematically managed and arranged their course materials to optimize learning. These strategies included printing assigned readings, taking notes and preparing assignments