Educational Psychology Research Research Articles

EXAMINING ACHIEVEMENT GOAL ORIENTATION AND SELFCONCEPT AS PREDICTORS OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN MATHEMATICS IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

Achievement goal orientation and academic self-concept to be considered as adaptive learning behaviours have been a debated in educational psychology research. The study aimed to examine achievement goal orientation, and academic self-concept as predictors of secondary school students’ academic achievement in Mathematics in Anambra State. Four research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted predictive correlational research to provide answers to the research questions and testing of the hypotheses. The population of the study comprised 21204 from which a sample of 750 was drawn. Multi-stage procedure was used to select the sample. Standardized research instruments namely; Achievement Goal Orientation Questionnaire (AGOQ) and Self-Description Questionnaire (SDQ) were used for data collection. Students’ Mathematics Achievement Scores (SMAS) from the state-wide promotion examination were used to represent mathematics achievement. Cronbach’s alpha was used to determine the reliability of the items in the instruments. A reliability index of 0.84, 0.72, 0.86, 0.74 and 0.87, for mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-approach, performance-avoidance and academic self-concept respectively. The standard multiple regression was used to analyze the collected data. The research question 1 was answered using multiple regression. Research question 2 was answered using unstandardized β. Research question 3 was answered using adjusted R2. Research question 4 was answered using standardized β. The null hypothesis 1 was tested using the Ftest for the regression model. The null hypothesis 2 was tested using a t-test for adjusted R2. The null hypothesis 3 was tested using a t-test for β at a .05 level of significance. Findings showed that students’ achievement goal orientation and academic self-concept scores jointly predicted their academic achievement scores in mathematics. It was indicated that mastery avoidance, and work avoidance, relatively and significantly predicted academic achievement in mathematics, while mastery-approach, performance approach, performance avoidance and academic self-concept do not relatively and significantly predict academic achievement in mathematics. Finally, it was recommended that students should adopt achievement goal orientation and academic self-concept in their learning process since the variable had jointly predicted achievement scores in mathematics.

Stimulating creativity in the classroom: examining the impact of sense of place on students’ creativity and the mediating effect of classmate relationships

BackgroundAlthough previous studies have found a close relationship between sense of place and creativity, few studies have been conducted considering the micro-environment of the classroom. The mediating role of classmate relationships in the association between students’ sense of place and creativity remains unclear.MethodsThis study explores classmate relationships as a mediating factor in the relationship between sense of place and creativity. Therefore, we considered a sample of 1555 Chinese high-school students and used a paper-based questionnaire survey. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 24.0, PROCESS 3.2 plugin, and AMOS.ResultsSense of place in the micro-environment of the classroom has a significant positive predictive effect on creativity. Sense of place also has a significant positive predictive effect on peer relationships. The mediation analysis reveals that peer relationships play a mediating role in the relationship between the sense of place and creativity.ConclusionsThis study revealed the associations between sense of place, classmate relationships, and creativity. Creativity is better expressed in students with a strong sense of place in the classroom. Moreover, a student’s sense of place can enhance their creativity by influencing their peer relationships. These findings enrich the research in educational psychology within the classroom, providing new insights for fostering creativity.

<p>Learning patterns and social-emotional learning of balkan students in secondary education: a cross-cultural discussion</p>

Introduction. In the present study, components related to learning patterns and socio-emotional learning are measured in a sample of adolescents from the Balkan Peninsula in order to understand the relationship between these two constructs. Method. High school students from Albania, North Macedonia and Kosovo (N = 240) completed surveys designed to measure learning patterns and social-emotional competencies. Participants responded to a modified version of Vermunt's Inventory of Learning Styles (ILS) and the Panorama’s SEL Measures survey. Results. The results show that the responses of high school students in the Balkan peninsula are organized in a three-pattern structure: the first factor is a saturation of the components of the MD and AD patterns; the second factor groups the components of the RD and UD patterns. The third factor is the so-called passive pattern and the result of the combination of several beliefs (conceptions and learning orientations). Moreover, the results suggest that there is an overt connection between learning patterns and social and emotional learning and its interpersonal and intrapersonal competencies. Discussion and Conclusion. The connection between learning patterns and social-emotional learning seems to be relevant for improving future learning strategies and the development of healthier relationships. Moreover, the results suggest that Educational Psychology researchers and educators must understand and work together in the design of learning and teaching models that go beyond the acquisition of knowledge and skills.

Critical culturalized comprehension: Exploring culture as learners thinking about texts

We examine the role of culture in comprehension. Prominent theories of comprehension conceptualized the outcome of reading as learners’ construction of a cognitive representation of texts. We emphasize that such representation reflects not only texts’ content, but also individuals’ understandings of the real world, as described in texts. We suggest that, thus, individuals should be supported to question and analyze the mental representations that they form; we use the term “culture” to capture such questioning and analysis. Rather than an individual difference factor, we argue for conceptualizing culture as a way of thinking, or as individuals’ reasoning about the commonalities and differences in their and others’ worldviews and the linking of these to underlying values. When such reasoning is engaged in reference to texts, we refer to this as culturalized comprehension; when such reasoning is further engaged to resist or recast the values introduced in texts to generate counternarratives, we refer to this as critical culturalized comprehension. In emphasizing the importance of culturalized and critical culturalized comprehension and describing the set of cognitive processes involved, we argue for research in educational psychology to examine how learners may be consciously, reflectively, and critically engaged in using texts to understand their world.

A Parallel Process Growth Curve Analysis of Teacher-Student Relationships and Academic Achievement

Teacher-student relationships (TSR) have been a key focus of study for developmental and educational psychology researchers interested in improving proximal and distal academic outcomes for children and youth. Although prior empirical work suggests some degree of association between TSR and achievement, the co-development of TSR and achievement during elementary grades remains unclear with most findings limited to reading and mathematics achievement. The current study used parallel process growth curve models (PPGCMs) to examine the longitudinal growth trajectories of teacher-student closeness and conflict, and science, reading, and mathematics achievement simultaneously for children followed from kindergarten to third grade in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (N = 13,490). Findings from the final PPGCM showed teacher-student closeness in kindergarten was positively associated with science, reading and mathematics achievement in kindergarten (r = 0.234 to 0.277) and the linear growth of achievement through third grade (r = 0.068 to 0.156). Teacher-student conflict in kindergarten was negatively associated with science, reading, and mathematics achievement in kindergarten (r = −0.099 to −0.203) and the linear growth of achievement through third grade (r = −0.081 to −0.135). Child biological sex, family socioeconomic status, and child racial and ethnic identity predicted TSR and achievement developmental trends. Implications of the findings and future directions for research are discussed.

Misconceptions in Science

Abstract Disagreement in science exists in a variety of strengths, from doubt-raising articles and issues of non-reproducibility up to raging disputes and major controversies. An often-latent form of disagreement consists of misconceptions whereby false ideas are held that run contrary to what is commonly accepted as knowledge. Misconceptions have been the focus of much research in education science and psychology. Here we draw attention to misconceptions that may arise in the very practice of science. We highlight formal features that can be used to characterize misconceptions and distinguish them from controversies, in addition to how they relate to knowledge creation.

Flipped classroom application in an advanced research methods course: Insights from social cognitive theory and self-determination theory

Flipped classrooms have gained considerable momentum in educational psychology research. Their application to management courses has been scant, however. This paper introduces the application of flipped classrooms to an Advanced Research Methodology course. The paper also draws on insights from Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) and Self-Determination Theory (SDT). Together with the use of flipped classrooms, these insights are useful for management scholars and educators interested to teach postgraduate research methodology courses in business schools.

A framework for approaching policy-oriented educational psychology research

As a community of practice, educational psychologists are unpracticed in considering how educational policies might affect the phenomena they study. One reason is the traditional focus of educational psychology research on cross-contextual individual processes, to the practical exclusion of the political context that frames teaching, learning, motivation, development, and achievement. In this article, I argue that policy-oriented educational psychology research is imperative, not only for the relevance of educational psychology to educational policy and practice, but for generating ecologically valid educational psychology theory. To support policy-oriented educational psychology research, I offer a straightforward framework that incorporates policy and the lived educational context into the classic facets of educational psychology research projects. I end with an illustrative example of implementing the framework in designing a proposal for a small-scale investigation around a district policy concerned with a controversial and impactful educational practice—grading.

Advancing the debate: The need for policy-oriented activism research in educational psychology

Educational psychology is embracing the call to engage in more policy-oriented research. This special issue focuses on some of the key scholars in the field that are taking up this charge. Building upon their work, I aim to push the field to go even further, providing suggestions for how to engage in policy-oriented activism research within educational psychology. I also provide recommendations when embarking upon policy-oriented activism research.

The optimization effect of the art course of educational psychology on the anxiety of college students

BackgroundAnxiety is a common mental health problem, especially among college students. Anxiety disorders seriously affect college students’ learning and quality of life and may lead to other mental health problems.Subjects and MethodsEducational psychology is integrated into the music appreciation course of public art education in colleges and universities, and an effective psychological intervention method is sought to optimize the psychological condition of students with anxiety disorders. In the experiment, 50 college students with anxiety disorders were studied, and 25 were treated for three months with art and music appreciation courses integrated with educational psychology. The other 25, as a control group, were treated for three months with a traditional art and music appreciation course.ResultsThe anxiety item of the Stanford Acute Stress Response Questionnaire (SASRQ) was used to evaluate the mental health status of the two groups of college students. The higher the score, the more serious the anxiety. The experimental results showed that the pressure of college students in the experimental group was significantly reduced, and their emotions tended to be stable, with a comprehensive score of 11. Some students in the control group still had anxious and impatient behavior, and the total score was 19 points.ConclusionsThe music course of public art education integrated with educational psychology can promote the mental health of college students and relieve anxiety. At the same time, this study provides a new perspective and reference for academic research and practice in educational psychology in universities.

Young children’s science learning from a touchscreen app

ABSTRACT Many technological applications (apps) purport to help children learn academic material. Building on research in developmental and educational psychology, we developed and tested an app to teach biological and physical science content to preschool children. There were 21 children in the control condition (Mage = 50.30 months, SD = 8.61) and 21 children in the intervention condition (Mage = 53.21 months old, SD = 6.36). Children were given pre- assessments and post-assessments of their understanding of living things, inheritance, buoyancy, and balance. Half were assigned to play the app for 3 weeks or to a control condition that only completed the assessments. Based on ANCOVA and ANOVA models, children in the app condition increased in their understanding of living things and buoyancy on a near-transfer task from pre-test to post-test assessment, whereas the children in the control condition did not increase their understanding. The findings suggest that drill and tests apps focusing on science content that take account of folk theories of science can support children’s science learning.

Non-Cognitive Skills- New Perspectives on Educational Psychology Research

Çocukluk çağından başlayarak ergenlik döneminde geliştirilen bilişsel olmayan becerilerin akademik ve sosyal hayattaki başarı üzerinde önemli ve kalıcı bir etkisi olduğu görülmektedir. Bu becerilerin öğrencilerin akademik başarısı, kişisel gelişimi ve gelecek yönelimleri üzerinde olumlu bir şekilde doğrudan etkisinin olduğu belirtilmektedir. Bilişsel olmayan beceriler kavramı yurt dışı alanyazında eğitim alanında farklı konuları içeren araştırmalara sıkça konu olmuştur. Ancak ülkemizde bilişsel olmayan becerileri oluşturan kavramlar bireysel olarak araştırmalara konu olsa da “bilişsel olmayan beceriler” kavramı birkaç çalışmanın konusu dışında alanyazında kullanılmamıştır. Bu kavramın tek çatı altında toplandığı araştırmalara ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır. Yapılan bu çalışma ile alanyazına farklı bir bakış açısıyla katkı sağlanması ve eksikliğin giderilmesi hedeflenmiştir. Konu ile ilgili alanyazın taraması için Web of Science, EBSCO, Scopus gibi veri tabanları kullanılmıştır. Yapılan derleme incelemesinde bilişsel olmayan beceriler ve bu becerilerin akademik performans ile ilişkisi çok yönlü ve bütünsel bir bakış açısıyla ele alınmıştır. Akademik davranış, azim, düşünce yapısı, öğrenme stratejileri ve sosyal beceriler gibi bilişsel olmayan becerilerin akademik performansa etkileri ele alınarak önemli bilgi ve açıklamalara yer verilmiştir. Yapılan bu derleme çalışmasının, araştırmacıların bu konu hakkındaki farkındalığını artırarak gelecekte yapılacak özgün araştırmalara, derlemelere ve meta-analiz çalışmalarına ışık tutması açısından önemli olduğu düşülmektedir.

Nomophobia and smartphone addiction amidst COVID-19 home confinement: the parallel mediating role of digital gaming and social media tools usage across secondary school students.

With the inevitable technological boom enforced by the COVID-19 lockdowns and online emergency remote teaching practices, the prevalence of nomophobia (NMP) and smartphone addiction (SA) among adolescents has become a pressing issue, which has come under scrutiny. However, the impact of social media tools usage (SMTU) and digital gaming behavior (DGB) on these phenomena remains unclear since there is little research focusing on the complex interplay among these variables. Regarding this context, the present study aimed to explore the parallel mediating role of secondary school students' SMTU and DGB in the relation between NMP and SA. In line with this aim, we employed a cross-sectional design with a critical case sampling strategy and collected data through an online survey from a total of 427 secondary school students in Istanbul in the 2021-2022 academic year. In order to test the parallel mediation model, we employed multiple linear regression models by utilizing PROCESS models with 5000 BC bootstrap samples and 95% CI. Results illustrated that there was an increase in the prevalence of NMP and SA during the COVID-19 home confinement as consistent with the previous research. The results also indicated that among the multiple mediators, the mediating role of SMTU was significant in the relation between NMP and SA. This means NMP has direct and indirect significant impact on SA through SMTU. However, the mediating role of DGB was found nonsignificant in this relationship. Our results are robust and hold key contributions to both theoria and praxis in educational psychology research realm by disentangling the complex underlying mechanism between NMP, SMTU, DGB, and SA. On the practical side, our results provide insightful implications for school boards and researchers in the development of effective interventions.

Producing transformations to study them

Concepts are at the core of human psychological experience. By means of them, we can communicate, understand and collaborate with each other. Within each community, concepts have been learned and can be taught. They are of capital importance for education in every level and for work activities. Concepts have been the object of study of different disciplines and in different contexts for many years. Despite their importance and the attention they have received, both common sense and psychological science understand concepts in an oversimplified way that has consequences for research and teaching. Early in the past century, Vygotsky studied the phenomena of concepts and their development in what ended up addressing most of the loose ends that remain in current dominant psychological and educational perspectives. In this article, we review the main, hegemonic perspectives on concepts in psychology, particularly one of the mayor research fields in educational psychology (Research on Conceptual Change), to present later some cross-cutting criticisms to those approaches that will become our touchstone for a sound theory of concepts. Then we present the Vygotskian approach to concept development, and the methodological implications derived from the dialectical framework in which it is inscribed. Finally, extending the Vygotskian approach beyond child development, we present a method developed in French work psychology, the Activity Clinics approach, and its potential for studying the development of concepts in work activities.

How Scientific Is Educational Psychology Research? The Increasing Trend of Squeezing Causality and Recommendations from Non-intervention Studies

How Scientific Is Educational Psychology Research? The Increasing Trend of Squeezing Causality and Recommendations from Non-intervention Studies

Visualization Analysis of Global Self-Regulated Learning Status, Hotspots, and Future Trends Based on Knowledge Graph

Self-regulated learning (SRL) has been an important topic in the field of global educational psychology research since the last century, and its emergence is related to researchers’ reflections on several educational reforms. To better study the research history and developmental trend of SRL, in this work, the Web of Science core collection database was used as a sample source, “self-regulated learning” was searched as the theme, and 1218 SSCI documents were collected from 30 September 1986, to 2022. We used CiteSpace software to visualize and analyze the number of publications, countries, institutions, researchers, keywords, highly cited literature, authors’ co-citations, keyword clustering, and timeline in the field of self-regulated learning research, and to draw related maps. It was found that the articles related to self-regulated learning were first published in the American Journal of Educational Research in 1986, and that self-regulated learning-related research has received increasing attention in recent decades, wherein research on self-regulated learning is roughly divided into three periods: the budding period from 1986 to 2002, the flat development period from 2003 to 2009, and the rapid development period from 2010 to 2022. The number of papers published in the United States, China, Australia, and Germany is relatively high, and the number of papers published in Spain is low compared with that in the United States. During this period, the University of North Carolina in the United States and McGill University in Canada were the institutions with the most publications; Azevedo Roger and Lajoie Susanne P were the most-published scholars in the field of self-regulated learning research; the journal publication with the highest impact factor was Computers Education; and the primary research interests in self-regulated learning mainly focused on Performance, Strategy, Students, Achievement, Motivation, and Metacognition. Furthermore, the most-cited study related to SRL research was Formative assessment and self-regulated learning: a model and seven principles of good feedback practice.

The potential of biophysiology for understanding motivation, engagement and learning experiences.

Integrative models applied to human learning and performance emphasize the joint operation of biological, psychological, social, and educational processes to fully understand human functioning. Educational psychology researchers have typically emphasized psycho-educational and psycho-social factors in motivation, engagement and learning, but do not often consider the biophysiological factors. This Editorial and Special Issue advances current understanding on the role of biophysiological factors and processes in students' and teachers' motivation, engagement, and learning experiences, by showcasing recent educational research that included biophysiological measures and methods. As we discuss, conducting integrative biophysiological and psycho-educational research has potential to derive vital substantive, methodological, and applied insights that provide a rigorous basis for more effective educational theory, research, and practice.

Racisms of commission and omission in educational psychology: A historical analysis and systematic review

Educational psychology as a field and area of inquiry has gone underexamined in terms of its role in and contributions to racism and antiblackness. We position educational psychology as a racialized organization relative to the institution of education, a widely recognized site of institutionalized racism. We, therefore, explore the role the history, content, norms, and practices of educational psychology have played in creating and sustaining racial inequity in U.S. education. We draw attention to the racism of commission in the field’s origins by tracing the founding scholars’ white supremacist commitments and motives. Using a systematic review, we then describe the contemporary complicity of the field in sustaining racism through the omission of Black lives, perspectives, and scholarship in teaching, research, and publishing. In doing so, we demonstrate that educational psychology, by and large, fails to engage with its racist history and roots and its modern entanglements. The field also has not taken up questions of racism in educational psychology research in engaged and central ways. We conclude with a call for educational psychologists to turn toward critical frameworks, to center equity and justice in their work, and to honestly and intentionally grapple with our collective racist history.

Mind and body in students' and teachers' engagement: New evidence, challenges, and guidelines for future research.

Traditionally, research in educational psychology has neglected the physiological foundations of motivation, emotion, engagement, and learning. Recent studies have made substantial progress to more fully consider physiological processes, as documented in the contributions to this special issue. In this commentary, I summarize their findings, discuss strengths and weaknesses, and outline directions for future research. The studies showcase how physiological indicators can be integrated in research in educational psychology. The resulting findings document links between cardiovascular, electrodermal, and hormonal parameters as well as physical activity and a range of mental and behavioural processes in educational settings. Together, they attest to the critical role of physiological processes in students' and teachers' engagement. However, most of the studies used small samples and correlational designs, and not all of the findings were consistent. To inform theory and practice in evidence-based ways, we need to make further headway in building a cumulative, coherent knowledge base. To this end, it may be helpful to more precisely specify the status of physiological indicators; secure construct symmetry of physiological, mental, and behavioural variables; use causal designs and within-person analysis; include sufficiently powered samples of participants and measurement occasions; employ multiple indicators and assessments to increase reliability and specificity; define the time windows and lags of assessments that are suited to capture physiological processes and their functions; and consider the role of socio-cultural contexts.

Cognitively Loaded: An Investigation of Educational Chemistry YouTube Videos’ Adherence to Mayer’s Multimedia Principles

In an increasingly online world, multimedia content for instructional use in chemistry is abundant. It can be difficult to discern a good resource from a poor one, even if the chemistry content in the video is accurate (which it may not be). Sound chemistry content alone does not guarantee that the videos were made with best principles in mind according to evidence-based research. Multiple authors have proposed guidelines for multimedia use and learning which are supported by research in cognitive and educational psychology. Herein we used Mayer’s Multimedia Principles (MMP) to evaluate instructional chemistry videos across three topics (Chemical Bonding, Acids and Bases, and Intermolecular Forces) from multiple YouTube content creators (51 in total). We found that most videos included extraneous images and sounds which may be distracting to the viewer, in direct violation of Mayer’s Coherence principle. For the three chemistry topics under study, no statistical differences were found in their adherence to MMP. However, there were significant differences regarding the use of extraneous images and sounds when disaggregated by content creator. This work has implications for both teachers and learners of chemistry in selecting multimedia that is cognitively supportive to learning.