Self-Regulated Resource Management in Emergency Remote Higher Education: Status Quo and Predictors

Abstract

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring term 2020, students faced a sudden change from on-campus learning to online learning with synchronous and asynchronous online courses (emergency remote teaching). To study successfully, students not only needed to be prepared in terms of digital readiness (workspace, IT equipment, previous online learning experiences, and sharing information online), they also faced challenges that pertained to the self-regulated management of external resources (environment structuring, time management, and help-seeking). In the current study, we investigated students’ digital readiness for the sudden switch to online learning; differences between students’ intended and actual use of external resource management strategies; and the influence of students’ digital readiness on their actual use of resource management strategies. Students enrolled in a full-scale, German university (N = 662) answered two online questionnaires (before and in the middle of the term). Descriptive statistics indicated that students seemed to be ready to study online. However, repeated measures ANOVA showed that students were not able to manage their resources during the term as frequently as intended. Finally, separate regression analyses revealed that availability of workspace and IT equipment predicted the use of environment structuring strategies. Additionally, IT equipment and information sharing behavior predicted students’ help-seeking. Based on the current results, we discuss implications for the promotion of student self-regulated learning (SRL) in online emergency remote teaching based on both external resources and digital readiness.

Factors Influencing Pre-service Teachers' Intention to Use Digital Learning Materials: A Study Conducted During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany

“…Besides the administrative difficulty of procuring and installing appropriate technology, this “emergency remote teaching” (Hodges et al, 2020 ) has required university educators to manage the switch from traditional, in-class settings to various forms of distance education to ensure the continuation of lessons. At the same time, reduced access to the support systems and fixed structures that typify campus instruction has demanded higher levels of autonomy, self-regulation, and intrinsic motivation from students (Naujoks et al, 2021 ; Pelikan et al, 2021 ).…”

“…In contrast to planned and well-designed online learning environments, emergency remote teaching during COVID-19 has been characterized by a fast, temporary shift of instruction to an alternate delivery mode (Hodges et al, 2020 ). This mode was viewed as a specific form of online instruction in which neither teacher educators nor student teachers participated voluntarily (Hodges et al, 2020 ; Naujoks et al, 2021 ).…”

“…The nature of this new digital learning environment has obstructed the learning process in various ways and thus has affected students' learning experiences. For students, the lack of in-class settings and fewer direct interactions may have required greater self-regulation and self-motivation, with reduced levels of support (Littlejohn et al, 2016 ; Naujoks et al, 2021 ). Pre-service teachers were required to plan, monitor, and control their learning processes more autonomously in order to follow self-study materials, organize participation in asynchronous and synchronous events, and communicate with peers and lecturers (Naujoks et al, 2021 ).…”

“…For students, the lack of in-class settings and fewer direct interactions may have required greater self-regulation and self-motivation, with reduced levels of support (Littlejohn et al, 2016 ; Naujoks et al, 2021 ). Pre-service teachers were required to plan, monitor, and control their learning processes more autonomously in order to follow self-study materials, organize participation in asynchronous and synchronous events, and communicate with peers and lecturers (Naujoks et al, 2021 ). Thus, the use of adequate self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies can be considered essential to the academic success of such students (Zimmerman, 2002 ; Naujoks et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Resource management is divided into external strategies (e.g., seeking help) or internal strategies, such as regulation of effort and attention, time management, and motivation (Dresel et al, 2015 ). SRL is crucial in learning environments that provide low levels of support and guidance (Wong et al, 2019 ) and in distance learning in particular (Zawacki-Richter, 2020 ; Naujoks et al, 2021 ). Prior studies have demonstrated that SRL strategies are positively correlated with academic success in online learning environments that afford high levels of learner autonomy (Broadbent and Poon, 2015 ; Broadbent, 2017 ).…”