ERIC Number: EJ1323373
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0729-4360
EISSN: N/A
The Predictive Role of Prior Achievements and Conceptions of Learning in University Success: Evidence from a Retrospective Longitudinal Study in the Italian Context
Vettori, Giulia; Vezzani, Claudio; Pinto, Giuliana; Bigozzi, Lucia
Higher Education Research and Development, v40 n7 p1564-1577 2021
This study focused on the transition from upper-secondary school to university. Specifically, it examined whether prior academic achievements and conceptions of learning at the time of completion of upper-secondary school predicted short- and long-term university success (grades at the bachelor's and master's levels). A total of 171 psychology students (M[subscript age] = 23.99) participated in this retrospective longitudinal study. At the end of upper-secondary school, they completed the self-report instrument Learning Conceptions Questionnaire. Subsequently, their upper-secondary school-leaving certificate grades and grades at the bachelor's and master's degree levels were retrieved from their university database. The analytic results of Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) revealed that upper-secondary school-leaving certificate grades and grades at the bachelor's and master's degree were significantly associated with each other. Furthermore, the conception of learning as 'Opportunities and self-efficacy' significantly predicted both upper-secondary school-leaving certificate grades and grades in bachelor's and master's degrees. Upper-secondary school students' conception of learning was linked to psychological engagement and personal agency, as well as high school-leaving certificate grades increasing the likelihood of attaining successful university performance.
Descriptors: Prior Learning, Academic Achievement, Grades (Scholastic), High School Students, Undergraduate Students, Graduate Students, Student Adjustment, Late Adolescents, Maturity Tests, Personal Autonomy, Self Efficacy, Performance Factors, Foreign Countries, Predictor Variables
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Italy
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A