This article develops the construct of degree purchasing as an instrumental orientation towards education in which students value education primarily as a vehicle for labour market participation rather than as an avenue for learning. This study of 188 Canadian university students found that a substantial proportion of students tended to be more…

This paper builds on my previous research, explaining the differential achievement of boys and girls in secondary education by the fact that boys' culture is less study orientated than girls' culture. The central question of the present paper is whether the presence of girls at school affects the boys' study culture and, by consequence, boys'…

The purpose of the study was to bridge the gap between situational and more general measures in investigating university students' studying. More precisely, the aim was to establish a connection between students' situational reaction tendencies and their general study orientations. Furthermore, situational reaction tendencies were related to the…

College students resist required reading assignments. Likewise, faculty are reluctant to quiz on reading assignments for fear of evoking disapproval. Measurement of reading compliance allows instructors to demonstrate a connection between reading preparation and subsequent success on final exams. The first study suggested that self-reports of…

Burke's own teacher-research has resulted in solutions for real classroom situations. In this, his last contribution as a column editor for "VM," he offers two more practical ideas for helping students achieve, and sends his readers off with advice to look to their own classrooms for solutions to the ever-present challenges of teaching. (Contains…

Students' engagement and persistence on academic learning tasks often require their use of volitional strategies to protect against distractions and facilitate task completion. In this article we discusses factors that both positively and negatively influence students' ability to regulate their learning activities and the supporting role that…

Conceptions of learning and strategies used by 15 indigenous students in three Australian universities were studied longitudinally over three years. Their academic achievements were good, but at a high cost in terms of time and effort. In spite of the fact that almost half of the students expressed higher-order (qualitative) conceptions of…

Previous research has generally failed to find a relation between the way students approach the task of studying and their exam grades. The present study investigated why it is that a deep approach to studying, which has been shown to result in a higher quality of learning, does not consistently result in higher exam grades. The participants in…

It has been shown earlier that while some high school students (younger on the average) do not differentiate between memorization and understanding, others (older on the average) do so (Marton, Watkins and Tang, Learning and Instruction 7, 21-48, 1997). Those who do differentiate impose a sequential ordering on the two: "When you learn you…

Introduction: This study aimed to assess the nature of stress, social support systems and coping styles among adolescents. Methods: 100 students in Pre University College (II year) of both genders in the age range of 16-19 years were assessed with the Adolescent Stress Scale, a semi-structured interview to elicit social support, and a self-report…

This study examines the effect of teacher communication on freshman high school students towards doing their homework assignments and their level of engagement and attitudes in the classroom. It also investigates students' and parents' attitudes toward school work. The researcher randomly selected four Algebra I classes; two assigned to the…

The transition period in Romania has generated a series of important changes, including the reforming of the Romanian tertiary education. This process has been accelerated after the signing of the Bologna treaty. Important changes were recorded in many of the quantitative aspects (such as number of student enrolled, pupil-student ratio etc) as…

We assess students' appreciation and use of various tools designed to extend effective learning beyond the classroom. For a given tool, results vary depending upon the overall pedagogical approach of the course.

It is well known that many pupils are bullied and suffer in a variety of ways as a result. This study looks at a largely overlooked outcome of bullying that may have direct consequences for academic success--disrupted concentration and attention to school work. Using pupil perceptions as the source of data, the two main aims were to quantify the…

This report summarizes results from AISD's high school exit survey of students in the graduating Class of 2009.