SELF-REGULATED LEARNING AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF ONLINE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

Abstract

Online learning is student-centered. The online learning environment demands learner-centeredness and self-regulation. The ability of utilizing self-regulatory skills, to set up learning goals, to monitor their learning progress, to seek help when needed and to manage the time are important characteristics of online learners. Recent studies also revealed the effect of self-regulation on student achievement and performance, showing that self-regulated learning is positively related to achievement in online settings. The present study aims to investigate the associations between self-regulated learning and academic achievement in online settings. Another aim was to examine the self-regulated learning skills profiles among learners enrolled in an online course. The participants were undergraduate students at the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, enrolled in online Moodle courses. For an entire semester, students completed their assignments for the statistics course in the Moodle format, including quizzes, formative and summative assessment, forums, and electronic resources. The Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire (OSLQ; Barnard, Lan, & Paton, 2008) was administered. We also used a Computer Self Efficacy Scale. The OSLQ consists of six subscale constructs, including environment structuring, goal setting, time management, help seeking, task strategies, and self-evaluation in online learning. The scales were translated and adapted in Romanian. The results showed that The Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire - the adapted Romanian version - has good psychometric properties. Results also revealed two groups of students: self-regulated learners and learners with a low level of self-regulation. Self-regulated learning is positively related to achievement for the online courses. The linear regression analysis showed that online self-regulation and computer self-efficacy predict efficiently the grades at the end of the semester, for the online courses. Future research should also examine other factors, such as epistemological beliefs, computer anxiety, learning motivation which can explain the processes of self-regulated learning in online environments.