The dynamics of self-regulatory processes within self-and externally regulated learning episodes during complex science learning with hypermedia

Abstract

This paper examines the dynamics of college students' self-regulatory processes within self-regulated learning (SRL) and externally-regulated learning (ERL) episodes during hypermedia learning. We re-analyzed and extended the results from an original study recently conducted by Azevedo and colleagues [1] to address four questions related to adaptivity, based on the temporal and dynamic deployment of self-regulatory processes by learners and human tutors in fostering complex science learning with hypermedia. Our questions include: (1) How does access to a human tutor affect the deployment of various SRL processes during learning?; (2) Which transitions between self-regulatory processes are more likely to occur within SRL and ERL?; (3) Which transitions between SRL classes are more likely or less likely to occur with SRL and ERL learning episodes?; (4) Are there significant correlations between learners' observed likelihood of transitions (between SRL processes) and learning outcomes? Lastly, we discuss implications for the design of MetaTutor, an adaptive hypermedia learning environment. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.