Self-Regulated Learning Guide for Students and Educators
Practical Self-Regulated Learning Guide for Students and Educators
Farah Shakil - Candidate for Master of Education
Queens University, Instructor: PME - 800 - SRL Inquiry, Dr. Michelle Searle
Abstract
“Learning is hard work.” (Anonymous)
Students, parents, and educators may benefit from a practicing Self-Regulated Learning and applying practical strategies from this general toolkit and guide promoting self-regulated learning. While SRL in the education field is a well-studied concept and some educators regularly include SRL based practices into their classroom activities, based on a survey of parents, and students and educators, there is a gap in the awareness for SRL in the larger community. Based on survey conducted for the purpose of this guide, about seventy-percent of the participants were not aware of the meaning of the term “Self-Regulated Learning,” as shown in the survey results.
The aim of this guide is to provide students, parents, and educators with an awareness of Self-regulated Learning and provide an easy to use, practical tool-kit they can utilize in their learning endeavours. It is important to note that SRL is a vast field, based on many research perspectives, and there is no “one-size-fits-all” strategy. Instead, the Self-Regulated Learning approach requires self-reflection on the current state that highlights areas of improvement, a conscious decision to commit to self-improvement using the various self-regulation strategies and tools available in this guide and beyond over a period of time, and the ability to look at the achievement results and reflect on successes and areas of improvement.
Self-Regulated Learning
Introduction: What is SRL?
Background: What do researchers and educators say?
The International Encyclopaedia of Education, third edition, describes Self-Regulated Learning as “The intentional and strategic adaptation of learning activities to change cognition, motivation, and behaviour outcomes.” (P. 503, Encyclopaedia of Education, Winne, Hadwin, 2010)
According to Dr Stuart Shanker, author of the book Calm, Alert and Learning: Classroom strategies for self-regulation (2012), “ self-regulation refers to how efficiently and effectively a child deals with a stressor and then recovers ” (Calm, Alert and Happy, Shanker, Retrieved from https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/Shanker.pdf)
Additionally, Baumeister & Vohs’ Handbook of Self-Regulation (R. F. Baumeister and K. D. Vohs, Handbook of Self-regulation: Research, Theory, and Applications (New York: Guilford Press, 2004), describes self-regulation broadly as:
“The ability to attain, maintain and change one’s level of arousal appropriately for a task or situation”
“The ability to control one’s emotions”
“The ability to formulate a goal, monitor goal-progress, adjust one’s behaviors”
“The ability to manage social interactions, to co-regulate”
“To be aware of one’s academic strengths and weaknesses, and have a repertoire of strategies to tackle day-to-day challenges of academic tasks” (Stuart Shanker, Self-Regulation: Calm, Alert, and Learning, http://www.cea-ace.ca/education-canada/article/self-regulation-calm-alert-and-learning#_ftn5)
What type of SRL models are available based on research?
There are many research theories and models about Self-Regulated Learning. Five widely known ones are:
i) Boekaerts Model of Adaptable Learning emphasizing goal-setting
ii) Winne and Hadwin’s Model of Recursive SRL focused on metacognitive monitoring
iii) Zimmerman’s Social-Cognitive Model focusing on mastery, performance, and collaboration [1]
iv) Stuart Shanker’s Five Domain Model focusing on Biological, Emotional, Cognitive, Social, and Reflective skills [4]
v) Pintrich’s theory based on motivational and affective factors, as well as social contextual factors [6]
So what does Self-Regulated Learning mean for me?
The good news is that Self-Regulation is a process that can be learned through practice and patient deliberation. The research mentioned earlier means that self-regulated learning is a holistic process that involves self-reflection for a deeper understanding of the learner’s personality, learning style, goals, motivations, and then practising self-monitoring and control or regulation at the emotional, cognitive and behavioural levels to achieve the desired results, while utilizing reflective feedback focusing on improvement and learning from any setbacks.
This also means that SRL takes time and effort. For best results, when embarking on the SRL journey, it is a good idea to keep a journal or blog or at least write down the steps you plan on taking as a Self-Regulated Learner.
SRL Strategies Toolkit Guide
Before You Begin - An Honest Look at Myself:
Who am I? What is my personality type? Am I an introvert or extrovert, or somewhere in the middle? Am I emotional, analytical, conservative, or flamboyant?
What is my learning style: visual, auditory, or kinesthetic? Do I love group work or self-study? Do I learn best by trying the problem myself or I can learn from the books?
Where am I? What are my current grades, relationships, pressures?
What do I want to Achieve & Improve?
What are my challenges and conflicts? Do I get distracted by social media, or am I missing a proper study environment? Am I too scared to ask for help when I don’t know something? Do I fear failure? Am I too anxious? Do I need to pay more attention to my surroundings? Am I making the right decisions for myself? Do I need to have a mentor who can guide me in my choices?
During the SRL Process
Master-Plan: Make a “MY MASTER MAP” (M3)™ of where you are, your goals, what your challenges are, and where you want to be. The following are SRL processes and strategies that are widely applicable across various study domains, pick at least one from each phase of SRL that you will apply to your MY MASTER MAP (M3)™ Think about what, why, when, where, how. Add this information to your M3.
Step I - Planning & Organization of your work goals
Map out the tasks, set goals (What, When, Where, How, Challenges)
Step II - Analyze, Implement, and Monitor your work
Processes during learning and utilizing strategies
Motivations, aspirations, accomplishments, challenges, strategies used
Step III - Evaluation and Reflection of your achievements and challenges
Were the goals achieved? Utilize observation, judgement, and reaction to self-reflect.
Questions related to the SRL Process:
Step I - Planning & Organization of your work goals
Goal - What learning task do I want to achieve?
Motivation - Why is this learning task important for me?
Conflict - What are the challenges for me in this task?
Time Specific - When is this learning task due?
Step II - Analyze, Implement, and Monitor your work
How can I break down my learning task into smaller chunks?
What parts of my learning task am I comfortable with?
What parts of my learning task will require new learning strategies?
How will I know I am progressing with my learning task in the correct direction?
Who will I reach out to for extra help or information related to my learning task?
Step III - Evaluation and Reflection of your achievements and challenges
Analyze your progress so far. Perhaps you wrote a test and have the results back from your instructor. How did you do in accomplishing your learning task?
What was successful?
What did not work?
How can you improve your self-regulation process for next time?
Conclusion:
Following the steps outlined in this guide and the M3 resource, a student or educator will learn the basics of self-regulated learning processes and techniques they can start applying in their regular studies.
Appendix
Additional Resources:
http://www.studygs.net/index.htm
http://www.howtostudy.org/
VAK test http://www.businessballs.com/vaklearningstylestest.htm
http://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=vak-quiz-visual-auditory-kinesthetic
Myers-Briggs Personalities Test - http://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test
SRL Tools and Steps http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/siegle/selfregulation/section1.html
References:
[1] Pgs. 503 - 508, ‘Self-Regulated Learning and Socio-Cognitive Theory’ (Winne, Hadwin, 2010), The International Encyclopaedia of Education, Third Edition
[2] Calm, Alert and Happy, Shanker, Retrieved from https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/Shanker.pdf
[3] R. F. Baumeister and K. D. Vohs, Handbook of Self-regulation: Research, Theory, and Applications (New York: Guilford Press, 2004)
[4] Stuart Shanker, Article ‘Self-Regulation: Calm, Alert, and Learning’ in Education Canada, Retrieved From http://www.cea-ace.ca/education-canada/article/self-regulation-calm-alert-and-learning#_ftn5)
[5]
[6] Pintrich, P. R. (2000b). The role of goal orientation in self-regulated learning. In Boekaerts, M., Pintrich, P. R., and Zeidner, M. (eds.), Handbook of Self-Regulation, Academic Press, San Diego, CA, pp. 451–502.
[7] A Conceptual Framework for Assessing Motivation and Self-Regulated Learning in College Students, Paul R. Pintrich, 1040-726X/04/1200-0385/0 C 2004 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc, retireved from http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/44454/10648_2004_Article_NY00?sequence=1
[8] Increasing Academic Achievement Study, The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) at the University of Connecticut, Del Siegle and Sally Reis http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/siegle/selfregulation/section5.html
[9]EDUCATIONAL COMPUTING RESEARCH, Vol. 43(2) 207-223, 2010 EMAIL, SELF-REGULATION, SELF-EFFICACY, AND ACHIEVEMENT IN A COLLEGE ONLINE MATHEMATICS COURSE CHARLES B. HODGES Georgia Southern University CHANMIN KIM University of Georgia
