Jan J. Elshout

Intellectual ability, learning style, personality, achievement motivation and academic success of psychology students in higher education.

This study is directed towards an integration of intellectual ability, learning style, personality and achievement motivation as predictors of academic success in higher education. Correlational analyses partly confirmed and partly disconfirmed our expectations in a sample of 409 first-year psychology students. Consistent with the literature, intellectual ability and achievement motivation were associated positively with academic success. For the meaning directed, reproduction directed and application directed learning style, no positive association with academic success could be detected. The undirected learning style, however, appeared to be a consistent negative predictor. For the Big Five personality factors (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experience), a consistent, positive association for conscientiousness with academic success was found. The very first examination at the university came out as the most important predictor for academic success, even after two and three years of study. The implications of the results are discussed in relation to the literature and the policy of the Dutch Ministry of Education.

The relation between learning styles, the Big Five personality traits and achievement motivation in higher education

Abstract In his dissertation, Vermunt [Vermunt, J. D. H. M. (1992). Leerstijlen en sturen van leerprocessen in het hoger onderwijs. (Learning styles and guidance of learning processes in higher education) . Amsterdam/Lisse: Swets and Zeitlinger] postulated four different learning styles: a meaning directed, a reproduction directed, an application directed and an undirected style. Aim of this project is to investigate the relation between these learning styles, the big five personality traits and achievement motivation. Subjects were about 900 university students. Extraversion correlated positively with the meaning directed, reproduction directed and application directed learning style. Conscientiousness was associated positively with the meaning, reproduction and application directed learning style, and negatively with the undirected learning style. Openness to experience correlated positively with the meaning and application directed learning style, and negatively with the undirected learning style. Besides, it was found that neuroticism correlated positively with the undirected learning style and negatively with the meaning and reproduction directed learning style. Agreeableness was associated positively with the reproduction and application directed learning style. Positive correlations were found for achievement motivation with the meaning, reproduction and the application directed learning style, and a negative one with the undirected learning style. Regression analyses confirmed these patterns. Although there was some systematic overlap for the four learning styles with personality variables and achievement motivation, the conclusion is that it certainly makes sense to measure these three groups of variables separately in educational settings.

The Generality vs Domain-Specificity of Metacognitive Skills in Novice Learning across Domains.

Abstract A first objective of this study is to determine the generality versus domain-specificity of the metacognitive skills that students bring into new learning situations. Additionally, this study addresses the relationship between intelligence and metacognitive skillfulness as predictors of novice learning. Fourteen high or (relatively) low intelligent psychology freshmen (novices in the domains of physics and statistics) participated in the experiment. Subjects passed through three different simulation environments representing physics, statistics, and a fictitious domain. Both the subjects metacognitive skillfulness and learning performances were assessed for each domain. Results support the generality of novice metacognitive skills across domains. Furthermore, metacognitive skillfulness contributes to novice learning partly independent of intellectual ability. Implications for metacognitive skill training are being discussed.

Changes in the relation between cognitive and metacognitive skills during the acquisition of expertise

This paper focuses on the transformation of general metacognitive skills of novices into domain-specific regulatory procedures of experts, and the relation of those skills to intelligence. Research has shown that the general metacognitive skills of novices, although partly correlated to intelligence, additionally contribute to learning outcome on top of intelligence. The metacognitive skills of experts appear to be domainspecific and unrelated to intelligence. Two experiments were conducted. The objective of the first experiment was to confirm and generalize these earlier results concerning the relation of intellectual ability, metacognitive skillfulness and learning of novices vs. advanced subjects. The objective of the second experiment was to investigate this relation under different conditions of task complexity. It was hypothesized that advanced subjects would regress to more novice-like behavior under very complex learning conditions (i.e., general metacognitive skills and intelligence would re-appear as combined predictors of learning outcome). On the other hand, low intelligent novices, irrespective of their metacognitive skillfulnes, were expected to fail on very complex problems. Results partly confirmed these hypotheses. Implications for the conditions under which metacognitive experiences should be implemented, are being discussed.RésuméCet article porte sur la transformation des capacités métacognitives générales des novices en des procédures de régulation propres à des domaines qui sont celles des experts, ainsi que sur les relations entre ces capacités et l’intelligence. La recherche a montré que les capacités métacognitives générales des novices, faiblement corrélées à l’intelligence, ajoutent leurs effets à ce dernier facteur dans la réussite aux apprentissages. Les capacités métacognitives des experts sont spécifiques à des domaines et indépendantes de l’intelligence. Deux recherches ont été conduites. L’objectif de la première était de confirmer et de généraliser les relations antérieurement constatées entre aptitude intellecturlle, capacité métacognitive et apprentissage, chez les novices et chez les experts. L’objectif de la deuxième recherche était d’étudier les mêmes relations dans des conditions variable de complexité de la tâche. L’hypothèse était que dans les conditions d’une tâche très complexe, les sujets plus experts reviennent à des comportements proches de ceux des novices (i.e., capacités métacognitives générales et intelligence réapparaîtraient, dans ces conditions, comme prédicteurs associés de la réussite de l’apprentissage). D’autre part, des novices de faible intelligence, devaient échouer face à des problèmes très complexes, indépendamment de leurs capacité métacognitives. Les résultats vont en partie dans le sens de ces hypothèses. Les implications concernant les conditions d’exploitation des capacités métacognitives sont discutées.

Metacognitive mediation in learning with computer-based simulations

The objective of this study was to determine whether providing students with metacognitive instructions during experimentation in a computer simulation environment results in better learning outcomes than unguided discovery learning. High and low intelligent students worked in either a metacognitive-mediated (MM) or unguided discovery (UD) environment for learning principles of electricity. Analyses of thinking-aloud protocols showed that MM subjects exhibited a better working method than subjects in the UD condition. MM subjects performed better than UD subjects on a posttest tapping qualitative knowledge, but on a posttest of quantitative problems only low intelligent MM subjects showed enhanced performance. No learning effects of metacognitive instruction were detected in the analyses of the retention tests. These results are discussed in relation to the nature of metacognitive activities.

Initial Inductive Learning in a Complex Computer Simulated Environment: The Role of Metacognitive Skills and Intellectual Ability.

Abstract The aim of this study was to examine the role of metacognitive skillfulness and intellectual ability during initial inductive learning with a complex computer simulation. It was hypothesized that adequate learning behavior and performance is initiated by a high quality of metacognitive skillfulness. Theories proposed by Elshout [Elshout, J. J. (1987). Problem solving and education. In E. de Corte, H. Lodewijks, R. Parmetier, & P. Span (Eds.), Learning and instruction (pp. 259–271). Oxford: Pergamon Books Ltd. Leuven: University Press] and Raaheim [Raaheim, K. (1988). Intelligence and task novelty. In R. J. Sternberg (Ed.), Advances in the psychology of human intelligence (Vol. 4; pp. 73–97). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum] predict that the impact of intellectual ability on learning performance is at most moderate during initial inductive learning. Students with a low or high intellectual ability were asked to induce rules of optics by conducting experiments with lights and lenses in a computerized Optics Lab. Learning performance was assessed using both qualitative and quantitative measures. Results showed that metacognitive skillfulness was positively related to learning behavior and to scores on the qualitative tests. As predicted by Elshout (1987) and Raaheim [1988; Raaheim, K. (1991). Is the high IQ person really in trouble? Why? In H. A. H. Rowe (Ed.), Intelligence: reconceptualization and measurement (pp. 35–46). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum], the impact of intellectual ability on learning performance was moderate during initial inductive learning. Metacognitive skillfulness and intellectual ability appeared to be unrelated. This study shows that during initial inductive learning with a complex computer simulation learners draw heavily on their metacognitive skillfulness, which results mainly in qualitative knowledge. Consequently, complex computer-simulated learning environments are only appropriate for novice learners with high metacognitive skillfulness.

Relation Between Intellectual Ability and Working Method as Predictors of Learning

Abstract The relation between intellectual ability, working method, and learning was investigated, with simulations, in two different learning environments. By conducting experiments, students had to discover principles of physics theory. A structured condition offered students guided experimentation and a structured learning sequence, whereas an unstructured condition allowed for unguided discovery learning. Thinking-aloud protocols of high- and low-intelligence subjects were analyzed on quality of working method. The results indicated that both intellectual ability and working method are predictors of learning, but that their mutual relation is an intricate one. No learning effects caused by structuredness of learning environment could be detected.

Differential Effects of Instructional Support on Learning in Simulation Environments

This article investigates a complex Aptitude Treatment Interaction (ATI), of intelligence and metacognitive skill as aptitudes with structuredness of learning environment as treatment. A more structured learning environment is usually regarded as beneficial to learning in low intelligence students, whereas it may not affect or may even interfere with learning in high intelligence students. The overall analyses of four studies are presented, including a total of 99 subjects. High and low intelligence novices passed through either structured or unstructured simulation environments in the domains of heat theory, electricity, or statistics. Thinking-aloud protocols were analyzed in order to assess the metacognitive skillfulness of subjects. Several learning tests were administered, assessing both declarative and procedural domain knowledge. The results show that structuredness of learning environment did not affect learning in high intelligence subjects, irrespective of their level of metacognitive skillfulness. However, the structured learning environment yielded enhanced learning performances in low intelligence subjects with a low level of metacognitive skillfulness, while it interfered with learning in low intelligence subjects with a relatively high level of metacognitive skillfulness.

The predictive and discriminant validity of the zone of proximal development

BACKGROUND Dynamic measurement procedures are supposed to uncover the zone of proximal development and to increase predictive validity in comparison to conventional, static measurement procedures. AIMS Two alternative explanations for the discrepancies between static and dynamic measurements were investigated. The first focuses on Vygotskys learning potential theory, the second considers the role of anxiety tendency during test taking. If test anxious tendencies are mitigated by dynamic testing procedures, in particular the availability of assistance, the concept of the zone of proximal development may be superfluous in explaining the differences between the outcomes of static and dynamic measurement. SAMPLE Participants were students from secondary education in the Netherlands. They were tested repeatedly in grade three as well as in grade four. Participants were between 14 and 17 years old; their average age was 15.4 years with a standard deviation of .52. METHOD Two types of mathematics tests were used in a longitudinal experiment. The first type of test consisted of open-ended items, which participants had to solve completely on their own. With the second type of test, assistance was available to participants during the test. The latter so-called learning test was conceived of as a dynamic testing procedure. Furthermore, a test anxiety questionnaire was administered repeatedly. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. RESULTS Apart from emotionality and worry, lack of self-confidence appears to be an important constituent of test anxiety. The learning test appears to contribute to the predictive validity of conventional tests and thus a part of Vygotskys claims were substantiated. Moreover, the mere inclusion of a test anxiety factor into an explanatory model for the gathered data is not sufficient. Apart from test anxiety and mathematical ability it is necessary to assume a factor which may be construed as mathematics learning potential. CONCLUSION The results indicate that the observed differences between a conventional, static testing procedure and an experimental, dynamic testing procedure for mathematics cannot be explained sufficiently by a differential bias towards test anxiety. The dynamic testing approach renders scores which add to the predictive validity of conventional testing procedures. Since this gain in predictive validity is not a result of the removal of bias towards test anxiety, this result should be understood as supportive for the validity of the concept of the zone of proximal development.

Intellectual ability and working method as predictors of novice learning

Abstract A first objective of this study was to clarify the relation between intellectual ability and working method as predictors of novice learning. A second objective was to determine whether instructional aid instead of unguided learning by discovery, might compensate for lack of ability. High and low intelligent students worked in either a structured or unstructured simulation environment for learning correlational principles. Analyses of thinking-aloud protocols showed that high intelligent subjects exhibited a better working method than low intelligent subjects. Working method also appeared to be a strong predictor of learning, independent of intellectual ability. No learning effects due to structuredness of learning environment could be detected.