Experiences during three generations of web based learning. Six years of web based communication

This paper tells the story of how a set of university lectures developed during the last six years. The idea is to show how (1) content, (2) communication and (3) assessment have evolved in steps which are named “generations of web learning”. The reader is offered a stepwise description of both didactic foundations of university lectures and practical implementation on a widely available web platform. The relative weight of directive elements has gradually decreased through the “three generations”, whereas characteristics of self-responsibility and self-guided learning have gained in importance. -Content was in early times presented and expected to be learned but in later phases expected to be constructed for examples of case studies. -Communication meant in early phases to deliver assignments to the lecturer but later on to form teams, exchange standpoints and review mutually. -Assessment initially consisted in marks invented and added up by the lecturer but was later enriched by peer review, mutual grading and voting procedures. How much “added value” can the web provide for teaching, training and learning? Six years of experience suggest: mainly insofar as new (collaborative and selfdirected) didactic scenarios are implemented! (DIPF/Orig.)

Technical and Didactical Scenarios of Student-centered Teaching and Learning

In this paper we envision didactical concepts for university education based on self-responsible and project-based learning and outline principles of adequate technical support. We use the scenario technique describing how a fictive student named Anna organizes her studies of informatics at a fictive university from the first days of her studies to make a career for herself.(DIPF/Orig.)

Different Transitions towards Learning at University: Exploring the Heterogeneity of Motivational Processes

Transitions processes in higher education are characterized by new learning situations which pose challenges to most students. This chapter explores the heterogeneity of reactions to these challenges from a perspective of regulation processes. The Integrated Model of Learning and Action is used to identity different patterns of motivational regulation amongst students at university by using mixed distribution models. Six subpopulations of motivational regulation could be identified: students with self-determined, pragmatic, strategic, negative, anxious and insecure learning motivation. Findings about these patterns can be used to design didactic measures that will support students’ learning processes.

Assessment of student engagement among junior high school students and associations with self-esteem, burnout, and academic achievement

The aim of the study was to investigate the structure of affective and cognitive engagement using the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI; Appleton, Christenson, Kim, & Reschly, 2006) and to examine the associations to behavioral engagement, as well as student-reported self-esteem, burnout, and academic achievement among Finnish junior high school students. The analyses were carried out in the main sample of 2,485 students, as well as in an independent sample of 821 students. The results showed that the original five-factor structure of the SEI construed along three affective and two cognitive engagement factors fit the current data relatively well. Affective and cognitive student engagement correlated positively with an independent measure of behavioral engagement. Furthermore, affective and cognitive engagement were positively associated with student-reported self-esteem and academic achievement, and negatively with school burnout. The findings provided corroborating evidence for the psychometric properties and utilization of the SEI instrument for assessing the engagement of junior high school students. (DIPF/Orig.)

Perceived learning environments and metacognitive strategy knowledge at the upper secondary school level

There is evidence that students benefit from teachers’ explicit fostering of metacognitive strategy knowledge (MSK). However, there is insufficient understanding about the effect of implicit promotion of MSK in regular school instruction. This study investigates the relationship between perceived characteristics of learning environments (social climate, support, autonomy, self-reflection) and students’ MSK. A representative cohort of students (Nt1 = 1,272/Nt2 = 1,126) in Grades 10 and 11 at schools at the upper secondary education level (ISCED Level 3A) in Switzerland participated in this two-wave longitudinal study. Multilevel analysis showed effects on both the individual and the class level. Students who experienced higher social integration showed a higher extent of MSK at the beginning of the school year than students who experienced less social integration. Perceived autonomy was also positively related to students’ MSK on the individual level. In contrast, the results showed a negative relationship between perceived self-reflection and students’ MSK. On the class level, there was a negative relationship between self-reflection and students’ MSK. Teachers’ support did not correlate with students’ MSK on either the individual or the class level. Implications of these results for education and further studies are discussed. (DIPF/Orig.)