Individual student success is influenced by the educational environment and student characteristics. One adaptation of the educational environment to improve student success is the introduction of continuous, or in-course, assessment. Previous research already identified several student characteristics that are related to student success as…

Teaching quality has been observed in large representative samples from Flanders (Belgium), Lower Saxony (Germany), the Slovak Republic, and The Netherlands. This study reveals that measures of "creating a safe and stimulating climate", "clear and activating instruction", and "teaching learning strategies" were…

Adaptive e-learning materials can help teachers to educate heterogeneous student groups. This study provides empirical data about the way academic students differ in their learning when using adaptive e-learning materials. Ninety-four students participated in the study. We determined characteristics in a heterogeneous student group by collecting…

Recently, more students have entered Dutch higher education. This is a consequence of the possibility to offer students to enter higher education, with a certificate from senior secondary education (SSVE). In earlier days most students in higher education had passed senior general secondary education (SGSE), or even pre-university education. It is…

The Statistical Reasoning Assessment or SRA is one of the first objective instruments developed to assess students' statistical reasoning. Published in 1998 (Garfield, 1998a), it became widely available after the Garfield (2003) publication. Empirical studies applying the SRA by Garfield and co-authors brought forward two intriguing puzzles: the…

The relationship between intellectual ability, working method, and learning was investigated with simulations in both structured and unstructured learning environments. High- and low-intelligence college students' thinking-aloud protocols were analyzed on quality of working method. Results indicated that both intellectual ability and working…

Data from 211 adult students (ages 20 to 75) at the Open University, The Netherlands, were used to construct and test an instrument to measure learning styles and regulation processes. Test development was guided by a three-tiered model of self-regulation encompassing: (1) cognitive learning processes (deep, surface, elaborative); (2) regulation…

This book examines embedded support in course material. The focus is on self-study and associated concepts such as independent learning, distance education, and open education, and the general context is adult and higher education. The seven chapters cover: (1) general introductory material, including a description of the future, distance…

Research was performed in lower grade technical schools in the Netherlands to study complex psychomotor tasks requiring integration of several task-dependent skills. In two studies, students were observed performing metal work. They were assigned to instructional conditions of high, intermediate or low structure. Students in the high-structure…