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Approaches to Learning (AtL) is widely included in many state standards for preK, as a process-oriented disposition that describes how children learn. Play is one pedagogical strategy teachers can employ to support the development of AtL. This paper uses Vygotsky's depiction of two kinds of play, object play and socio-dramatic play, to provide the theoretical framework to articulate the links between play and learning. Exploration, i.e., object play supports children's curiosity and problem-solving. Sociodramatic play, dramatizing, helps children develop symbolic representation necessary for imagination and creativity. Both kinds of play require intentional teacher structuring and interaction. This paper concludes by presenting ways teachers can encourage object and socio-dramatic play in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on the data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010–11 (ECLS-K:2011), this paper used structural equation modeling to investigate the relations among emotional capital (behavioral engagement, school belonging, grit, peer social support, and life satisfaction), approaches to learning, and reading achievement of 942 fifth graders who speak a home language other than English. Results first endorse the five components as indicators of emotional capital. Additionally, participants' emotional capital is significantly associated with their fifth-grade approaches to learning, controlling for background variables, instructional variables, and previous approaches to learning. Furthermore, participants' emotional capital significantly, directly predicts their fifth-grade reading achievement, and indirectly predicts their reading achievement through their fifth-grade approaches to learning, controlling for background variables and previous reading achievement. Finally, gender and being identified as an English Language Learner at school are significant predictors of participants' emotional capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approaches to Learning (AtL) is an umbrella construct describing children’s attitudes, habits, and learning styles as they engage in learning. First introduced by the National Education Goals Panel to indicate a child’s readiness to learn in school, AtL includes openness to new tasks, initiative, task persistence, and imagination. Over the years, this construct has been studied in various ways, leading to inconsistencies in terms, operationalizations, and measurements. This paper examined the issues surrounding the inconsistencies in previous research on AtL in studies focused on prekindergarten children. One consistency included the broad set of characteristics attributed to the construct of AtL, resulting in a jingle fallacy. Another inconsistency occurred when researchers used different terms to describe similar constructs, resulting in a jangle fallacy. In this case, adjustment, behavioral engagement, and classroom participation were reported as separate constructs in the literature yet were measured using AtL measurements. The paper concluded by offering ways to reduce the conceptual clutter surrounding AtL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study examined relationships of students' access of e‐learning (learning analytics) for a healthcare psychomotor skills course, approaches to learning (R‐SPQ‐2F psychometric) and academic achievement (summative examination results). An understanding of the relationships may help in supporting students learning. Methods: Two consecutive cohorts of 5th year dental students were asked to complete the R‐SPQ‐2F questionnaire and permission to access data of online videos and associated quizzes and two summative written examination results were examined. The summative assessments were an OSCA and a written‐paper question both in prosthodontics. Multiple linear regression and correlation analysis were performed. Results: Students (n=98) performed a total of 10470 video access events and 7714 attempts in online quizzes. Deep learning approach was the strongest predictor variable (β=0.270; P=.004) on written‐paper question result. While video and quiz access were moderately correlated (r=0.600; P<.001) to each other, video access was not a significant predictor to either of the examination results. Quiz access was negatively associated with academic achievement for the written‐paper question results (β=−0.349; P<.001). Conclusions: Only deep approach to learning appeared to be relevant for the written‐paper question examination grades. Conversely, the number of video and quiz access did not relate to either examination results. This suggests e‐learning access and examinations do not appear to relate under the conditions explored. Other attributes of learning management access may need to be explored to determine if access to learning management systems may be useful in offering remedial support to students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing deep approaches to learning can enhance students' engagement with academic material and result in improved analytical and conceptual thinking skills. A deep approach to learning occurs when students engage meaningfully with key concepts to gain meaningful knowledge and skills. Understanding how students learn can provide a firm basis for the most effective means of teaching and assessment. Consistent with calls for improvements to the pedagogy for higher research degrees, this study introduces changes to the learning environment for postgraduate research students in an interdisciplinary journal club and reports on the observed effects of the changes. We consider postgraduate students’ views and experiences of learning in an interdisciplinary journal club and the outcomes of the new taught component introduced. Pre-to-post intervention data were analysed to determine students’ self-assessed knowledge regarding study design and interpretation. In addition, the revised Study Process Questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F) was used to assess changes in students’ deep and surface approaches to learning across the course of the intervention. Qualitative descriptive text data were also analysed using observations from the journal club and appraisals of research papers. The findings point to greater awareness of knowledge gaps, actual research knowledge, an increase in deep approach and a decrease in surface approach to learning for some students. It is concluded that the journal club provides an authentic learning environment suitable for postgraduate students from different disciplines to collaborate, co-operate and generate new ideas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents play a central role in supporting the early learning that positions young children for success when they enter formal schooling. For this reason, efforts to engage families in meaningful collaboration is a long-standing goal of high-quality early childhood education (ECE). Family–school engagement can take multiple forms; in this review, we focus on universal preschool-based outreach strategies that help parents support growth in child social-emotional and self-regulation competencies and prepare them for the transition into formal schooling. Recent research has expanded understanding of the neurodevelopmental processes that underlie child school readiness, and the impact of parenting (and the social ecology affecting parenting) on those processes. These new insights have fueled innovation in preschool-based efforts to partner with and support parents, expanding and shifting the focus of that programming. In addition, new approaches to intervention design and delivery are emerging to address the pervasive challenges of reaching and engaging families, especially those representing diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds. This paper reviews developmental research that underscores the importance of prioritizing child social-emotional learning (with attention to self-regulation and approaches to learning) in universal preschool-based parenting programs targeting young children. We highlight the intervention strategies used in programs with strong evidence of impact on child readiness and school adjustment based on randomized controlled trials (RCTs). New directions in intervention design and delivery strategies are highlighted, with the hope of extending intervention reach and improving family engagement and benefit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes the discourse on student ratings of teaching in higher education. It reconceptualizes student ratings within a larger process of promoting quality in teaching and student learning. As students engage in productive dialogue with teachers and administrators, metrics drawn from decontextualized surveys are admittedly a vital resource. Our paper contends, however, that student ratings can only become a tool for enhancement when they feed reflective conversations about improving the learning process and when these conversations are informed by the scholarship of teaching and learning. We illustrate this view with a case study of an Engineering Faculty that uses three interconnected initiatives to support an evolving conversation on quality among teachers in partnership with students. The role of student engagement in enhancement efforts is discussed as well as potential challenges to implementation. Our purpose is to spark wider discussion of a systems perspective on student ratings that supports a coherent discourse towards positive change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of the present paper is on the contribution of the research in the student approaches to learning tradition. Several studies in this field have started from the assumption that students' approaches to learning develop towards more deep approaches to learning in higher education. This paper reports on a systematic review of longitudinal research on how students' approaches to learning develop during higher education. A total of 43 studies were included in the review. The results give an unclear picture of the development of approaches to learning and, thus, do not provide clear empirical evidence for the assumption that students develop towards more deep approaches during higher education. Neither methodological nor conceptual aspects of the studies investigated explained the ambiguity of the research results. Both theoretical and empirical implications for further research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on teaching from a student learning perspective has identified two qualitatively different approaches to university teaching. They are an information transmission and teacher-focused approach, and a conceptual change and student-focused approach. The fundamental difference being in the former the intention is to transfer information to students, while in the latter the intention is to change and develop student understanding. Much of our research has been conducted in first-year classes of 100 or more students. The paper begins by outlining a model of teaching and learning based upon this research. It then reviews the quantitative research showing the relationship between teachers' approaches to teaching in large classes and their students' approaches to learning. Further analyses of previously collected data are used to identify the size of the relationship between teachers' approaches and their students' approaches. The paper concludes by discussing how a more conceptual change and student-focused approach can be manifested in large classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Embryology is an essential tool in clinical practice especially for managing various medical disorders. As a course in medical schools, it is neither easy nor straightforward to understand and teach in the 21st century curriculum, as such, it is easy to overlook. As a discipline, embryology has entered a phase of unparalleled transition in its understanding base. This translates to a phase of abundant modification in the medical curriculum. A main critical issue of learning embryology is how extensively newer molecular medical embryology can be paired with the traditional approach to developmental of anatomy. Another issue would be which venue to be considered most effective in embryology instruction. The medical curriculum in during 21st century have different objectives, as well as different educational approach. As a consequence, this paper outlines a variety of aspects in which embryology could be presented as well as how it may be incorporated within the medical curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to explore Swedish preservice teachers' performance in coursework essays about their observations and analyses of teaching situations. A total of 38 essays were analysed using practical inferences in which the students' written utterances were interpreted as a means to an end. The results show that, in addition to the students who conducted their analyses in accordance with the normative way of understanding the task, there were students who engaged in 'alternative performance'. This was done by negotiating the content of the course and explaining the observed actions of teachers in terms of the course's theoretical perspectives. The results also indicate that, in addition to an analytical interest in understanding and explaining learning, the very engineering of learning becomes a prominent concern in students' essays. It is argued that students who do not distinguish between these approaches face problems related to reductive and circular reasoning. To address these problems, it is suggested that educators mobilise students' critical thinking and self-reflection, which may involve exceeding the administrative boundaries that frame single courses and unveiling the very foundations of teacher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Educación XX1 is the property of Editorial UNED and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The 3P (presage, process, product) model was introduced as a conceptualisation to underpin research into students' approaches to learning (SAL). This paper proposes the refocusing of the 3P model by formulating the initial presage phase as a teaching and learning environment, thus making the 3P model more consistent with SAL research which examines the influence of perceptions of aspects of teaching, learning and assessment on approaches to learning. The method was to use structural equation modelling to test a hypothesised version of the refocused 3P model. Data from a questionnaire administered to students at a university in Hong Kong showed a good fit to the data. The model showed that a teaching and learning environment influenced approaches to learning then impacted on the attainment of graduate attributes. The model showed that a well-designed teaching and learning environment, including teacher-student and student-student interaction, plus a lively co-curriculum had a part to play in promoting deep approaches to learning. Deep approaches then had a positive effect on attribute development in students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning is the property of Society for Teaching & Learning in Higher Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this paper it is suggested that the themes of alienation and engagement offer a productive alternative perspective for characterising the student experience of learning in higher education, compared to current dominant perspectives such as that offered by approaches to learning and related concepts. A conceptual and historical background of the concept of alienation is presented, followed by an overview of some contemporary perspectives. Drawing on this literature, a framework is then developed for characterising student learning. It comprises three categories, referring to the alienation resulting from 1. entering the higher education community, 2. fitting into the higher education community, and 3. staying in the higher education community. Each category has an associated set of theoretical tools that can be drawn upon in analysing this aspect of the student experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the late 1990s failure rates in a first-year introductory calculus course at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology reached peak levels. This paper reports on findings from an action research project that was set up in 2002/2003 to improve the situation. The study confirms that students approach their tasks differently which contributes to qualitatively different learning outcomes. Furthermore, patterns of achievement in mathematics and physics in secondary education keep reoccurring in the calculus course, even though the teaching and learning contexts are different. The paper does not provide any definite answer as to why groups of students get involved in distinctly different learning processes, and it will take further research to decide the nature of commitment to the learning tasks. However, inspired by the notion of ‘practices’ this paper raises a discussion about the role of intentionality in learning processes. When doing mathematics, students are also in a process of being engaged in and developing a practice. It is a major challenge for academic staff to contribute to communities of practice that are conducive to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Keywords: Course experience, Learning environment, Approaches to learning, Accounting education, China, Australia. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate whether learning approaches are impacted by the learning environment across two countries and three accounting student cohorts. This paper utilises a logistic regression based on responses from 1,381 students across five higher education (HE) institutions from China and Australia. The findings provide original empirical evidence of the Chinese accounting students’ expectations of deep learning and show that student perceptions of good teaching is a key determinant to a deep approach to learning for all three student cohorts. In addition, clear goals and standards were significant for Chinese accounting students studying both in China and Australia, while appropriate workload was significant for deep learning for the Australian domestic student cohort. There are practical implications for instructors as the results show that instructors need to adjust their teaching accordingly along with adjusting expectations regarding student workload and assessments.

With the recent arrival of publicly available AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, and Claude follows a need for knowledge about how students in higher education perceive and use these tools, and what this might mean for their learning processes. This scoping review analyzes 24 empirical articles published between 1 January 2022 and 5 September 2023 on students' perceptions and use of AI chatbots in higher education. The articles were reviewed using a five-stage scoping review methodology. The findings underscore a global research interest in how students engage with AI chatbots, which is especially pronounced in Asia. The studies span diverse disciplines, with a predominance in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. The empirical findings reveal that students perceive AI chatbots as highly useful and motivating as personal task assistants and for getting immediate feedback and help with writing, coding, and academic tasks. However, students are concerned about the accuracy and reliability of the responses from the chatbots, as well as potential negative impacts on their learning processes, critical thinking, discipline, and creativity. The purpose-driven use of AI chatbots among students and their potentially positive influence on motivation and learning processes offer insights for educators and policymakers. Our research concludes that while positive attitudes, perceptions, and critical use prevail, addressing students' concerns is crucial for responsible AI integration in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are various forms of learning, and different learners apply different learning processes to organize learning. Approaches to learning describe what learners do when they are learning and why they should do it. The basic distinction is between a Deep approach to learning (Holistic way) and a Surface approach to learning (Atomistic way). These concepts having been developed in the 1970s and 1980s are now well-established in the higher education literature. In the deep approach to learning (learning with understanding), learners aim towards understanding that allows them to use and reuse the information in a variety of situations. In a surface approach to learning (rote learning), learners primarily memorize material for the tests and exams so that they can pass assessment. There are some factors which influence student learning including perception of the learning situation, background, prior knowledge and experience, motivation, role of teachers and educational context. In this paper, the investigators have focused on the reasons as to why most of the learners apply the surface approach to learning rather than the deep approach. For this purpose, the undergraduate students of a university in Saudi Arabia were chosen as participants in carrying out the study. Some suggestions are there in this paper for both teachers and students focusing on the role of good teachers who understand teaching, what it takes to learn, how to encourage and support deep approaches to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, most college students use the Internet when preparing for exams or homework. Yet, research has shown that undergraduates' information literacy skills are often insufficient. In this paper, we empirically test the relation between information-seeking strategies and grades in university. We synthesise arguments from the literature on information-seeking behaviour and approaches to learning in tertiary education. Building on the distinction between deep- and surface-level learning, we develop a classification of online search strategies and contrast it with traditional information behaviour. Multivariate analyses using a two-wave online survey among undergraduate students at a German university indicate that using advanced online information-seeking strategies is a significant and robust predictor of better grades. However, there are notable differences between subject groups: Traditional information behaviour is still crucial in the humanities. Advanced search strategies are beneficial in all settings, but only one in four students uses these early on, while this share increases to around 50% over the course of studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Entwistle Students' Approaches to Learning framework and Kolb's Experiential Learning Model has been widely used in higher education. Different inventories have been developed in order to adapt to different contexts and / or to supersede reported weakness. Aims. This paper aims to explore the profiles and approaches showed by a sample of Spanish accounting students as well as the relationship of those profiles with the academic performance. Instrument and Sample. The instrument consists of both the short version of the Study Process Questionnaire (SPQ; Fox et al, 2001) and the Problem Solving Style Questionnaire (PSSQ, Romero et al, 1992). The sample is composed by the students enrolled in advanced financial accounting and financial statement analysis at the University of Sevilla. Results. Contrariwise to reported results in our area, but in different countries, Spanish accounting students mainly present diverger learning style, followed by assimilator style. A strong, negative correlation is found between the score on surface approach and the academic performance in the accounting courses. Although there is no difference in grades by style preference, there is a positive correlation in the score CE-AC, which suggest that students scoring high to abstract conceptualization pole tend to obtain higher grades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The individual characteristics of students can have a strong influence on the success of the adopted innovations in terms of their transferability and sustainability. The purpose of this paper is to compare the motivations and approaches to learning on degrees with differing vocational components. Design/methodology/approach -- Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and approaches to learning framework were used as theoretical background. Questionnaires were used to generate data. The sample was composed by 270 students enroled on differing degrees in term of motivation (accounting and nursing). Findings -- The results reveal differences in the approaches to learning and motivation between nursing and accounting students. Nursing degree seem to attract more internally motivated students, presenting significantly higher scores in terms of deep approach and lower scores on surface approach. Significant relationships where found between motivation and approaches. Research limitations/implications -- Data are obtained from students studying at a specific university in two degrees. Practical implications -- The result suggest that different degrees could attract students with different motivations and approaches to learning. Educators must be aware of which type of students are being attracted to their classrooms, because the inconsistencies between the students' motives and approaches, the way the contents are presented, the pedagogy and the assessment system could result in poorer learning and failure to transfer or sustain innovations. Originality/value -- This paper adds to the very scarce literature linking motivation and approaches. The implications for curriculum design and delivery and specifically for assessment design are of interest for educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the value of a research-based student inventory from the quality assurance point of view in two culturally different European higher education institutions for veterinary education. Perceived heavy workload is a wellknown problem in veterinary studies and is a challenge to the quality of learning. First- and third-year students in both institutions responded to an inventory consisting of items regarding their approaches to learning, self-efficacy, study workload and the teaching-learning environment. There were differences in students' approaches to learning and perceived workload between the two institutions. In both contexts, the strongest predictor of the workload turned out to be the surface approach to learning. Self-efficacy showed a positive correlation with the deep approach to learning and organised studying. The strengths of the teaching-learning environment varied between the institutions. Moreover, the present study discusses how the gained information could be used in improving the teaching-learning environment and students' learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With schools closed due to the COVID-19, many children have been exposed to media devices for learning and entertainment, raising concerns over excessive screen time for young children. The current study examined how preschoolers' screen time was associated with their family characteristics and anxiety/withdrawal and approaches to learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 764 caregivers of 3- to 6-year-old children (mean age = 59.07 months, SD = 12.28 months; 403 boys and 361 girls) from nine preschools in Wuhan, China, where the pandemic started. The effects of family characteristics on children's screen time during the pandemic outbreak and the associations between screen time and children's anxiety/withdrawal and approaches to learning were examined using path analysis. The results showed that children who spent more time on interactive screen use (e.g., playing with tablets) showed higher levels of anxiety/withdrawal and fewer positive learning behaviors. Unexpectedly, children who spent more time on noninteractive screen use (e.g., watching TV) showed lower levels of anxiety/withdrawal. Additionally, children's screen time was related to family characteristics: children living in more chaotic families with fewer screen time restrictions spent more time on screen use after the pandemic outbreak. The findings suggest that young children's frequent use of interactive screens, such as tablets and smartphones, might be harmful to their learning and wellbeing during the pandemic. To mitigate the potential negative effects, it is essential to manage the screen time of preschoolers by establishing rules for their interactive screen use and improving the household routines related to the overall screen use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports findings with regard to approaches to learning of Turkish students. The term "approaches to learning" refers to the idea that learners perceive and process information in very different ways. The study is set out to (I) explore and describe the approaches of learning of university students; (ii) explore the relationship between approaches to learning constructs, (iii) explore how the learning approaches of Turkish higher education students in combination with gender and academic discipline, year affect and academic performance; Employing a correlational research design- 44-item 1995 version of the RASI and the cumulative grade point, the study was conducted in two departments in two institutions of higher education: one humanities and one engineering. Total 160 students participated. This paper discusses firstly the findings of this study in the light of other research carried out in this area and secondly, and more importantly, in the light of its contribution towards a better understanding of the learning needs of Turkish university students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the continuing interest concerning both the use of case studies and learning styles in accounting education, the recent papers by Adler, R., Whiting, R.H. and Wynn-Williams, K. (2004), and Wynn-Williams, K., Whiting, R.H. and Adler, A. (2008) in this journal are to be welcomed. They both present evidence of their use of business case studies (BCS) in an intermediate-level accounting course in a New Zealand university, measuring students' learning styles before and after the BCS intervention. Both studies fail to report any statistically significant changes in learning styles on two of those years, and reports that learning styles have a bearing upon performance. The papers present an interesting and topical account of the use of BCS in an accounting course over an extended period. However, in our view their applied use of learning styles and the Learning Styles Inventory II (LSI-1985) in this context is methodologically questionable. This comment indicates how future research might build on their exploratory work. Issues of concern include the literature base, the psychometric properties of scores produced by the LSI-1985, and analysis and disclosure of results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the findings of a phenomenographic research study which sought to identify students' approaches to learning introductory accounting and their conceptions of accounting. The findings reveal that, in common with other disciplines, deep and surface approaches to learning can be identified. However, the main contribution of this study lies in two areas. First, it distinguishes those features that are characteristic of the deep and surface approaches within the discipline of accounting. Secondly, it identifies contextual features surrounding these approaches to learning and which are central to an understanding of them. The paper suggests how these findings can be used immediately to make changes within teaching and assessment practice through a phenomenographic pedagogy which: seeks to make students' conceptions of the subject matter explicit; provides diagnostic tools for the identification of distinctively different conceptions of the subject and approaches to learning; and addresses issues of preconceptions and relevance within teaching and assessment. The findings can also be used as the basis for further research into the identification of statistical variation in approaches to learning between students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers relationships between approaches to learning, learner identities, self-efficacy beliefs and academic achievement in higher education. In addition to already established survey instruments, a new scale, subject area affinity, was developed. The scale explores the extent to which students identify with their area of study and imagine being part of it in future. The new scale showed strong psychometric properties when it was tested on a sample of 4377 students at a research-intensive university. The new scale correlated positively with both the deep approach and self-efficacy scales. The new scale also correlated negatively with the surface approach scale. K-means cluster analysis identified seven distinct groups of students who espoused interpretable combinations of approaches, self-efficacy and subject area affinity. Cluster membership was associated with differences in academic achievement. Implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines students' intention to engage in deep learning with the aim to understand them better. Majority of students practice surface learning approach, defined as having the intention to only meeting the minimum requirements by memorizing important information. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, we relate the components of this theory with our main quest of students' intention to engage in deep learning, where the attainable predictors are students' attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. Our online survey, which was conducted and analyzed both statistically and descriptively, revealed that our students are deep learners. Our model was also found significant, with all three predictors were positive and significantly contributing to students' intention to engage in deep learning. Nonetheless, detailed analysis suggests that none of the predictors appeared to have a stronger effect over the others. The findings from this study confirm the applicability of the Theory of Planned Behavior in explaining students' intention to engage in deep learning. The findings also provide educators with the required knowledge to better design their curriculum with deep learning approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Institutions of higher education generally employ both lecture-based and project-based approaches to instruction. This study aims to investigate which aspects of lectures and project-based instructional environments contribute to "deep" and "surface" approaches to student learning. We collected and compared survey data from undergraduate students taking a civil engineering course in which they were assigned to a section taught with lecture-based instruction (n = 181) or with project-based instruction (n = 142). Data analysis was performed after controlling for the effects of the motivational goal orientations of students. A positive correlation can be found between deep learning and higher levels of investigative culture and student involvement in the projectbased classroom. Additionally, we found that higher levels of task orientation in the project-based classroom had an inverse correlation with a "surface approach". We discussed the value of an investigative and participatory learning atmosphere for student approach to learning and its curricular implications for the design of project-based and lecture-based instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have increasingly considered approaches to learning (ATL) a key indicator of school readiness. Our study purposed to examine the impacts of parental warmth on children's approaches to learning, and the mediating role of self-efficacy, as well as the moderating role of teacher-child closeness in this relationship. Using a whole-group sampling method, 414 Chinese children aged 5-6 years participated this research together with their parents and teachers. Parents of those children were asked to fill out in person questionnaires on parental warmth, children's approaches to learning, and self-efficacy. Children's teachers completed the questionnaire regarding teacher-child closeness. Results indicated that children with high parental warmth were more likely to get high approaches to learning and their self-efficacy played a partial mediating role in this link. In addition, teacher-child closeness moderated the correlation between parental warmth and children's self-efficacy. Specifically, the association between parental warmth and children's self-efficacy was stronger for children with high teacher-child closeness than those with low teacher-child closeness. The results extend our understanding of how parental warmth affects children's approaches to learning, revealing that strategies that could enhance self-efficacy would be effective in improving children's approaches to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista CES Psicologia is the property of Universidad CES and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Educade: Spanish Journal of Accounting, Finance & Management Education / Revista de Educación en Contabilidad, Finanzas y Administración de Empresas is the property of Asociacion Espanola de Contabilidad y Administracion de Empresas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper provides details of a study in which multimedia Learning Objects (LOs) have been designed and built for the field of Graphic Expression and then have been used by 54 students into the subject Graphic Expression Applied to Building Design of Building Engineering Program as a teaching aid for the purpose of analysing the affect of motivation on students' approaches to learning following LO use . They were used the instrument "Motivated Strategiesfor Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ)" for measuring motivation and the "Revised Two- Factor Study Process Questionnaire ( R-SPQ-2F)"was used to measure the approaches to learning, Findings show that following the use of LOs in Graphic expression motivation is linked to approaches to learning, independently of their intensity, producing a significant difference between the variables for Approaches to Learning and the variables for Motivation that correspond to Intrinsic Goal Orientation, Task Value, and Control of Learning Beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working memory is an important component of executive functioning, an area of difficulty for many autistic children. However, executive functioning and working memory are highly malleable throughout childhood, and various student-level and environmental factors play important roles in their development. This study used the Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies–Kindergarten Class of 2011. Conditional latent growth models were constructed to identify possible predictors for autistic children's working memory performance upon entering kindergarten and their relative growth throughout their elementary school years. Study results indicate that socioeconomic status and students' approaches to learning were positively associated with autistic children's working memory performance upon school entry. Students' approaches to learning positively predicted their rate of growth during the first 3 years and negatively predicted their rate of growth during the last 3 years of elementary school. Student–teacher relationship was positively associated with the rate of growth during the last 3 years of their elementary school years. Furthermore, autistic students who started at a lower standing in working memory upon school entry were more likely to receive special education services during their elementary school years. Practical and policy implications as well as future directions are discussed. Working memory is an important skill for school success, and it involves holding information in our memory while using it to solve complex problems at the same time. Autistic children often have difficulty with working memory. Because working memory development can be easily influenced by many factors from a young age, it is important to find factors that help with autistic children's development. This study tested the factors that are related to autistic children's working memory when they start kindergarten and the factors that can help with rapid improvement throughout their elementary school. We used a nationally representative data set that followed the same group of children from kindergarten to fifth grade. We found that autistic students from backgrounds with more resources and students with advanced learning approaches such as being organized, being excited to learn, and paying careful attention to their work, started school with strong working memory. Autistic students with advanced learning approaches continued to make rapid improvements during the first 3 years, and then their growth slowed down during the last 3 years. Autistic students who had a good relationship with their teachers made rapid improvements during the last 3 years of their elementary school. In addition, autistic children who struggled with working memory upon school entry were more likely to receive special education services at school. These findings suggest that we need effective ways to teach young autistic children important learning-related behaviors from a very young age through the school system, and teachers must prioritize building positive relationships with their students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning environment is a vast area and varies from time to time and place to place. In the broader spectrum, a learning environment may be teacher-centered or student-centered. The teacher-centered learning environment lacks active participation of students in the teaching learning process, and lecturing is a predominant mode of instruction. Here, there is considerably less interaction among students as well as between teacher and students. In this approach, a teacher acts as a transmitter of knowledge rather than a facilitator of learning. Student-centered learning environment, on the other hand, is characterized by active participation of students in the teaching learning process. This paper is an attempt to examine the relationship between students' perceptions of learning environment, their approaches to learning and the quality of learning outcomes. The paper is mainly based on secondary sources of information and the review of the literature shows the intimate relationship between perceptions and approaches. The findings of this research show that quality of the students' learning is determined by their approaches to learning; the deep approach leads to better quality learning, and the surface approach to poor quality learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on data collected during an evaluation of two higher education courses designed to attract mature entrants aged between 21 and 60 to undergraduate degree programmes. Employing an evaluation design informed by a critical realist approach, the study utilised a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate the outcomes of the two courses through the participants' constructed experiences. Two factors were inferred as being important in determining whether participants on these courses proceeded to higher education: whether participants adopted a deep or surface approach to learning, and the extent to which the experience of being on the courses had generated a shared social identity. Our analysis draws attention to interactions between (psychological) explanations of variation in learning and (social) explanations of participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper investigates dynamics in approaches to learning within different learning environments. Two quasi-experimental studies were conducted with first-year student teachers (N Study 1 =496, N Study 2 =1098) studying a child development course. Data collection was carried out using a pre-test/post-test design by means of the Approaches to Learning and Studying Inventory. Study 1 compared a lecture-based learning environment with a student-centred learning environment. Results were opposite to the premise that student-centred instruction deepened student learning. Instead, the latter pushed students towards a surface approach. Study 2 investigated whether mixed learning environments consisting of lectures and case-based learning could enhance students’ approaches to learning, compared to learning environments in which either lectures or case-based learning were used. Results showed that the deep and strategic approach decreased in the lecture-based, the case-based and the alternated learning environment, in which lectures and case-based learning were used by turns, while they remained the same in the gradually implemented case-based learning environment. With respect to the surface approach, the strongest decrease was found in the latter learning environment. In conclusion, this paper shows the added value of gradually implementing case-based learning. Nevertheless, it remains difficult to enhance the deep approach, monitoring studying, organised studying and effort management. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copyright of Revista de Investigación en Educación is the property of Universidad de Vigo, Facultad de Ciencias de la Educacion y del Deporte and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The paper reports on an empirical survey aiming to find out what study resources university students use and whether the frequency of the use of specific resources is related to deep and surface approaches to learning. An exploratory survey was carried out using two instruments - the ASSIST questionnaire adapted for Czech students and a newly designed questionnaire The Use of Study Resources. The sample consisted of 2,671 students from six faculties. Results showed that the most frequently used resources were students' own notes from lectures and seminars, presentations created by teachers and course readers. Statistical analysis proved that there is a relation between the frequency of the use of study resources and the student's approach to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language teaching is a very challenging job for language teachers despite their lots of efforts applied in the classrooms to facilitate and ease language learners in the learning process. Before stepping into the classroom, teachers prepare teaching materials, aids, tools, lesson plans, course plan and so on, and set teaching goals, but these teaching objectives and outcomes are rarely fulfilled. This issue has been addressed in this article that is loosely based on Dick Allwright's (1984) Interaction Hypothesis - 'Why don't learners learn what teachers teach?' from the proceedings of a seminar on Language Learning in formal and informal contexts held in Dublin. In this theoretical paper, the researchers have addressed some basic reasons of students' inability to learn what teachers teach, and teachers' failure to achieve their goals in language classrooms especially although they try their best. The investigators have discussed both the linguistic and non-linguistic factors related to learning and teaching such as internal and external factors, students' approach, attitude and motivation toward the target language, and some teaching factors; teaching experience, comprehensible input (Krashen, 1985), teachers' competence and ability to raise awareness, responsibility, motivation and self-regulation among students in achieving the learning outcomes. Furthermore, some very useful tips have been suggested and recommended to be implemented particularly in language classrooms, and in other classes generally such as working on Bloom's Taxonomy (1956) and providing the leaners comprehensible input to get i+1 (Krashen, 1985) for increasing their level of understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores students' conceptions of good teaching in three different disciplines. Moreover, the aim is to explore the relation between these conceptions and students' approaches to learning by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. A total of 695 students from the Faculties of Behavioural Sciences, Law and Veterinary Medicine participated in the study. The students' conceptions of good teaching were analysed using a qualitative content analysis. Furthermore, the students were assigned to homogenous subgroups on the basis of their responses to items measuring approaches to learning and the differences between these subgroups and the students' conceptions were examined. The association between the conceptions, disciplines and approaches to learning were examined using Chi-square tests. Twenty-one dimensions were created from the data and 12 of them differed between the disciplines. Only one dimension differed between the student groups. The study suggests that there is disciplinary variation in students' conceptions of good teaching and universities should take this into account in the development process of the student evaluation system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of RIE: Revista de Investigacion Educativa is the property of RIE: Revista de Investigacion Educativa and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper investigates differences in approaches to learning and teaching English as a second language (ESL) as reported by 324 mixed-ability Grade 7 Hong Kong ESL students and 37 ESL secondary school teachers with different backgrounds. Information about participants' perceived approaches to learning/teaching English were collected through a student questionnaire and a teacher questionnaire. Analysis of the student data suggested significant differences among students of low, medium, and high academic abilities in their reported use of deep and achieving approaches to learning English. Analysis of the teacher data revealed that teachers with different qualifications and number of years of teaching experience performed significantly differently on the Information Transmission Approach and on collaborative approaches to teaching English. Implications for the learning and teaching of English in Hong Kong and limitations of the study are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]