This survey study investigated learning beliefs held by distance English language learners in China. Beliefs about the nature of language learning, the role of the teacher, the role of feedback, language learning strategies, and self-efficacy were examined through survey instruments. The main research focus was on the difficulties perceived by…

Self-regulatory skills have been associated with positive outcomes for learners. In the current study, we examined the self-regulatory skills of students who are first-generation online learners over the course of their first semester of online instruction. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the online self-regulatory skills of…

Social Networking Sites (SNSs) such as Facebook are one of the latest examples of communications technologies that have been widely-adopted by students and, consequently, have the potential to become a valuable resource to support their educational communications and collaborations with faculty. However, faculty members have a track record of…

This study investigated attitude changes of 18-year-old first-year college students at a large state-operated institution in the USA during their initial semester in college. Attitudes of 375 students enrolled in a non-science first-year student seminar during the Fall of 2004 were measured, using a new instrument designed to focus on five…

This paper reports the findings of an exploratory study on the use of podcasting in higher education. The study was conducted during 2007 and 2008 and involved students from 20 units of study. Research data was gathered by distributing an in-class survey to 4584 enrolled students, with 39% (1780) of students completing the survey. Qualitative data…

This study examined the assistive technology needs of university students with disabilities and the availability of these technologies. It also explored the attitudes of the students with disabilities toward computers and the extent to which these are used by students with disabilities. Data was collected through a questionnaire, from 22…

In the current climate of shortages of high-quality engineering graduates, exacerbated by reduced high school enrollments in physics and mathematics, engineering faculties are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of K-12 outreach programs. Such programs can result in students being better prepared for and better informed about engineering…

This study explores different perceptions of pre-service and beginning teachers' professional identity in relation to their decisions to leave the profession. Teachers' professional identity was further broken down into six factors: value, efficacy, commitment, emotions, knowledge and beliefs, and micropolitics. This study employed mixed-methods…

This paper draws on some of the findings from a research study which examined the current structure of assessment for citizenship in secondary education in England and considers the rationale for the assessment of citizenship. The research included an empirical evaluation of citizenship assessment from the perspective of the key user groups,…

Blogs have the potential to increase reflection, sense of community and collaboration in undergraduate classrooms. Studies of their effectiveness are still limited. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the use of blogs in a large lecture class would enhance students' perceived learning. Students in an undergraduate nutrition course…

Communication, collaboration and community development are processes that contribute to student satisfaction and learning in online courses. This paper describes a study that investigated how campus and distance graduate students in a library science program communicated with one another outside the official boundaries of their courses. We…

This article reports on an extensive survey administered to advanced heritage language (HL) learners to examine their language behaviors, attitudes, and backgrounds. To date, there have been no detailed categorizations of advanced HL learners to guide classroom instruction and curriculum design. Thus the present study is a first attempt to fill…

Individuals who are self-regulated in their learning appear to achieve more positive academic outcomes than individuals who do not exhibit self-regulated learning behaviors. We suggest that distinct profiles of self-regulated learning behaviors exist across learners. In turn, these profiles appear to be associated with significantly different…

In January 2010, the General Assembly passed the Complete College Tennessee Act (CCTA), a comprehensive reform agenda seeking to transform public higher education through changes in academic, fiscal, and administrative policies at the state and institutional levels. While the higher education landscape has been shaped by the CCTA, it is also…

The 2007 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Survey highlighted how attitudes to mathematics had declined sharply for students in many of the high attaining countries in the survey, England being no exception. There is a notable drop in positive attitudes to mathematics between 9 and 14, as well as a remarkable decline for 14 year olds…