Invigorating Student Learning: How Should Students Study? Regan A. R. Gurung Ben J. & Joyce Rosenberg Professor of Human Development & Psychology
September 2st, 2011 13th Annual UW-L Conference on Teaching & Learning UW-La Crosse, WI
The Issue YOU & Your Assignments /Class Design
Encoding
Studying
Testing
LEARNING
Agenda
Amalgamated Model of Motivation (Svinicki, 2004) Motivation is influenced by:
• Value of the • Expectation that goal can be Goal – Perceived need achieved: – Intrinsic quality – Utility
– Difficulty, Prior experience – Beliefs/attitudes about learning
How do we Increase Motivation for Learning? 1. 2. 3. 4.
Align Objectives, Assessment, Instruction Challenge (At Appropriate Level) Allow Flexibility & Control Be Clear, Firm, Fair
5. Make Lectures Interesting
• Real-Life Examples • Be Enthusiastic • Allow Student Input
“No student wants to be in a class where the teacher wants to be there LESS than the students do.”~
6. Show Your Concern For Students • Be Respectful • Reward • Connect Material
Percentage of Learning Variance Teacher
Students Home Peers
Others
(Hattie, 2009)
Studying: Key Definitions • SKILLS: knowledge of appropriate study strategies and methods, time management • HABITS: engagement in acts of studying • ATTITUDES: acceptance of goals of college and attitude towards act of studying
The Story So Far Study-Habits Inventory (Wren, 1933) Student Skills Inventory (Locke, 1940) Survey of Study Habits & Attitudes Learning and Study Strategies Inventory
(Brown & Holtzman, 1955)
(LASSI; Weinstein & Palmer, 2002)
Study Behaviors Checklist (Gurung 2005; Gurung, Weidert & Jeske, 2010)
A measure of Learning Styles ? Context
Learning orientations
Mental learning models Richardson, 2011
Why Should We Care? GPA/Ability
Student Characteristics
Study Behavior
Teacher
Learning
How do Students Study?
2 .9 iew Re v
lic s Ita
Bo ld
Ke y
2 .2
2 .7 Su m
Ou t.
1 0.5 0
m.
1 .9
3 2.5 2 1.5
3 .5 2
4 3.5
3 .1
Use of Pedagogical Aids
(Gurung, 2003; 2004)
Does using Pedagogical Aids Help? 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 -0.05 -0.1 T ey K
R
ev ie
w
e df ac ol B
O
ut
lin
es
-0.15
(Gurung, 2004)
How do Students Study?
(Gurung, 2005)
Use of Study Technique ( 1= Never 5=All the Time)
4.01
Read your notes
[Repetition]
3.37
Read the text
3.33
Think of mnemonic devices
3.25
Re-write notes
3.15
Review highlighted info.
[Repetition]
3.11
Memorize through repetition
[Repetition]
2.96
Review figures and tables in text
2.89
Make up examples/apply
[Cognitive]
2.62
Test your knowledge.
[Metacognitive]
2.18
Take notes from the book
2.07
Study with a friend
[Repetition] [Cognitive] [Repetition]
[Repetition]
[Cognitive] [Cognitive/Metacognitive]
What Works? Study techniques and Exam Score
0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 -0.05 -0.1 -0.15 -0.2
TV
el f
Te
st s
t dT x
Re a
pl am Ex
M
em
es
o
NOTE: Metacogntive/ Cognitive Skills Significant BUT Less Used (8th and 9th ranked)
(Gurung, 2005)
Successful Study Techniques (N = 125) 0.3 0.2 0.1 0
(Gurung, Weidert, & Jeske, 2010)
Does studying ‘more’ Help? • Yes (Gurung, 2004; Strage et al., 2002) • No (Dickinson & O’Connell, 2001; Gurung, 2005; Gurung, Weidert, & Jeske, 2010)
• Somewhat (Crede & Kuncel, 2008) – More for 1st year than 4th year than individual class
What Works: Hattie (2009) Strategy
Organizing & transforming Self-consequences Self-instruction Self-evaluation Help-seeking Rehearsing and memorizing Goal-setting/planning Reviewing records Self-monitoring Task strategies Imagery Time management
Example
ES
Making an outline before writing a paper Putting off pleasurable events until work is completed Self-verbalizing the steps to complete a given task Checking work before handing in to teacher Using a study partner
.85 .70 .62 .62 .60
Writing a mathematics formula down until it is remembered Making lists to accomplish during studying Reviewing class textbook before going to lecture
.57 .49 .49
Observing and tracking one’s own performance and outcomes Creating mnemonics to remember facts Creating or recalling vivid mental images to assist learning Scheduling daily studying and homework time
.45 .45 .44 .44
What Works? Cog Psych says… • Spaced/Distributed practice • Repeated Testing/Retrieval • Metacognitive-based skills
Assess
Reflect
Apply Monitor
(Ambrose, Bridges, DiPietro, Lovett, & Norman, 2010)
Evaluate
Plan
• On average, when taking the quiz did you: 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Guess
Open Book
Read First
Copy
(Gurung, 2003)
BEWARE THE CURSE
• Curse of (perceived) knowledge: • The Feeling of knowing when material is in front of you (Koriat & Bjork, 2005)
Does it Matter?
Exam Scores
80 75 70 65
Guess/Open
Read First
Self-Assessment is Key • Get a sense of what students are not doing: • Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST, Entwistle, 2009) • LASSI (Weinstein & Palmer, 2002) • Study Behavior Checklist (Gurung, et al. 2010) Exam Wrappers (Ambrose et al., 2010)
Focus on Process of Understanding
Self-Assessment is Key: Tech Helps
What Limits Use? 6 5 4
3 2 1 0
(1-Not at all to 7-Extremely)
Does Online Study Matter? Correlations to Exam Score Connect
MyPsychLab
Psychportal
0.28 0.21 0.18
0.19
0.18 0.15
Online
Online(GPAcontr.)
In Conclusion
YOU & Your Students
Encoding
Studying
Testing
LEARNING
