The present study investigated relationships between students' conceptions of constructivist learning on the one hand, and their regulation and processing strategies on the other hand. Students in a constructivist, problem-based learning curriculum were questioned about their conceptions of knowledge construction and self-regulated learning, as well as their beliefs regarding their own (in)ability to learn and motivation to learn. Two hypothesized models were tested within 98 psychology students, using a structural equation modelling approach: The first model implemented regulation and processing variables of the Inventory of Learning Styles [ILS, Vermunt (Learning styles and regulation of learning in higher education -towards process-oriented instruction in autonomous thinking, 1992)], the second model of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire [MSLQ, Pintrich and de Groot (Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 33-40, 1990)]. Results showed that structural relations exist between conceptions of constructivist learning and regulation and processing strategies. Furthermore, students who express doubt with regard to their own learning capacities are at risk for adopting an inadequate regulation strategy. A three-tiered structure of conceptual, controlling, and operational level appeared valid for the MSLQ variables, but not entirely for those of the ILS.Education involves the interplay of learners, teachers, and learning environments. In contrast to a few decades ago, the learner has received a more central role. Students themselves decide to a larger extent what and how to learn and they actually need to take responsibility for their own learning in order to become more effective learners (e.g., Kuhn 2007). One view on learning that considers the learner as an active agent in the process of
123Instr Sci (2008) 36:445-462 DOI 10.1007 knowledge acquisition is constructivism. Constructivism is an umbrella term for various views on learning (Gijbels et al. 2006), which focus on how learners create meaning and which argue that this knowledge construction process requires active engagement of the learner. A working definition of constructivism could be: A theory of how we learn, grounded in philosophy, that has led to the development of several educational applications (e.g., problem-based learning). Constructivism is, however, embodied in numerous ways (e.g., Windschitl 2002). Nevertheless, most views share four core features or constructs that should be considered while creating learning environments for students. These constructs can be labelled as (1) knowledge construction, (2) cooperative learning, (3) selfregulated learning, and (4) the use of meaningful, authentic problems in education (e.g., Driscoll 2005; Marshall 1992). In short, knowledge construction refers to the use of prior knowledge when new information is interpreted. Second, cooperative learning embodies the idea that social interaction and negotiation can help learners in their knowledge acquisition process. A third construct...