ERIC Number: EJ1223683
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Jul
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1492-3831
EISSN: N/A
Goal Setting and MOOC Completion: A Study on the Role of Self-Regulated Learning in Student Performance in Massive Open Online Courses
Handoko, Erwin; Gronseth, Susie L.; McNeil, Sara G.; Bonk, Curtis J.; Robin, Bernard R.
International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, v20 n3 p39-58 Jul 2019
Despite providing advanced coursework online to learners around the world, massive open online courses (MOOCs) have had notoriously low completion rates. Self-regulated learning (SRL) frames strategies that students can use to enhance motivation and promote their engagement, persistence, and performance selfmonitoring. Understanding which SRL subprocesses are most relevant to the MOOC learning context can guide course designers and instructors on how to incorporate key SRL aspects into the design and delivery of MOOCs. Through surveying 643 MOOC students using the Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire (OSLQ), the present study sought to understand the differences in the use of SRL between those who completed their course and those who did not. MOOC completers were found to have significantly higher applications of one SRL specific subprocess, namely goal setting. Additional SRL subprocesses of task interest/values, causal attribution, time management, self-efficacy, and goalorientation also emerged from an analysis of open-ended responses as key contributors to course completion. The findings from this study provide further support regarding the role of SRL in MOOC student performance and offer insight into learners' perceptions on the importance of SRL subprocesses in reaching course completion.
Descriptors: Goal Orientation, Educational Objectives, Online Courses, Large Group Instruction, Independent Study, Academic Achievement, Time Management, Self Efficacy, Attribution Theory
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A