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While executive functions (EFs) and self-regulated learning (SRL) strategy use have been found to be related in several populations, this relationship has not been studied in adult online distance education (ODE). This is surprising as self-regulation, and thus using such strategies, is very important here. In this setting, we studied the relation between basic executive functions (i.e., working memory and shifting, measured with cognitive tests) and reported SRL-strategy use (i.e., management of time and effort, complex and simple cognitive strategy use, contacts with others, and academic thinking) within a correlational design with 889 adult online distance students. In this study, we performed regression analyses and took age and processing speed into consideration, as processing speed and EFs decrease with age, whereas self-regulation is reported to increase with age. Cognitively measured working memory was not related to reported SRL-strategy use in adult ODE students. Thus, even though the SRL-components within the strategies seem to elicit working memory, reported SRL-strategy use is not related to the functioning of this basic EF (measured with cognitive tests). This means that if SRL-strategy use needs to be increased in adult ODE students, training of working memory might not be an effective manner for achieving that goal. Better shifting and processing speed were related to less reported SRL-strategy use, which might suggest that SRL-strategies might be used to compensate for lower shifting (in academic thinking) and lower processing speed (in simple cognitive strategy use and contacts with others). With increasing age, the number of contacts with peers or teachers decreases. This latter finding might be of relevance during the pandemic since contacts with others is importance during lockdown., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Meijs, Gijselaers, Xu, Kirschner and De Groot.)

Vocational education and training (VET) educates students for a broad range of occupations, which may be associated with differences in habitual physical activity behavior (PAB). Research suggests that physical activity (PA) is positively and sedentary behavior (SB) is negatively associated with cognitive performance. Therefore, we aimed to compare habitual PAB in VET students from different educational tracks and investigate its association with cognitive performance in a cross-sectional study. Students wore an ActivPAL accelerometer continuously for seven days to measure PAB. Cognitive performance was assessed with objective tests for inhibition, shifting, and updating. Hairdresser and Sports students sat significantly less than Administrative and Nursing students. Hairdresser students stood significantly more than other tracks. Admin students stood significantly less than Sports / Nursing students. Sports students moved significantly more than Hairdresser and Nursing students. Time in bed was significantly lowest in Nursing students. No significant associations between any PAB and cognitive performance were found. In general, Admin students showed the unhealthiest habitual PAB. Higher PA or lower SB neither improve nor decrease cognitive performance. Thus, future health interventions focusing on exchanging SB for PA at schools can facilitate a healthier lifestyle of VET students, especially in Admin students, without interfering with cognitive performance.

With modern technological advances, distance education has become an increasingly important education delivery medium for, for example, the higher education provided by open universities. Among predictive factors of successful learning in distance education, the effects of non-cognitive skills are less explored. Grit, the dispositional tendency to sustain trait-level passion and long-term goals, has raised much research interest and gained importance for predicting academic achievement. The Grit Questionnaire, measuring Perseverance of Effort and Consistency of Interests, has been shown to be a reliable instrument in traditional university student populations. However, the measurement and predictive validity of this questionnaire is still unknown for adult distance education university students who differ from traditional students in various ways (e.g., having a wider range of student ages). Based on a sample of 2,027 students from a distance education university, this study assessed the psychometric properties of the two-factor structure grit measured by the Grit Questionnaire. The findings suggest that the short form of the Grit Questionnaire is a potentially useful assessment tool for measuring the grit construct for distance learning higher education and that the Consistency of Interests factor is especially relevant to consider the improvement of learning performance for distance education in terms of courses credit and exam attempts. The measurement precision of the Perseverance of Effort factor, however, should be improved in future research to provide higher measurement accuracy and broader item coverage., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Xu, Meijs, Gijselaers, Neroni and de Groot.)

Consumption of breakfast, fish, or caffeine are each separately often investigated in relation to learning performance in traditional education, but not in distance education (DE). The objective of this study was to investigate whether the relations between the consumption of breakfast, fish, and/or caffeine on the one hand and learning performance on the other are also found in DE students. This population is different from traditional students and characterized by a different profile in terms of age, personal and work responsibilities as well as other demographics. In an observational longitudinal study, the consumption of breakfast, fish, and caffeine of 1157 DE students (18-76 years old, mean 35.8 ± 11.1 years) was used to predict learning performance using multiple regression analysis. In an online digital survey, university students provided information about their consumption of these nutritional measures and on important covariates. Learning performance, measured as study progress (i.e., the number of successfully completed modules), was evaluated objectively after 14 months. Results showed that adding the consumption of breakfast, fish, and caffeine to the covariate model did not fit the data better, χ 2 (3, N = 1155) = 3.287, p = 0.35. This means that neither the consumption of breakfast nor fish nor caffeine predicted study progress in adults participating in DE. This study is important as it is the first to report on these relations in this specific age group and educational setting, which is increasingly important due to the increased preference for this type of education.