Time Management, External Motivation, and Students’ Academic Performance: Evidence from a Malaysian Public University

Abstract

Societies all over the world have used education as the instrument for the national development while students' academic performance has the real impact on their professional career development. There are many factors which can directly affect students' academic performance. However, after extensive reviews of the past literatures, the researchers argued that time management and external motivation have relatively higher influences on students' academic performance. The quantitative questionnaire survey method was employed for this study. The findings of the study indicated that there is a significant and positive relationship between time management and students' academic performance. In the light of the findings, we discuss the importance of time management in order to improve students' academic performance. Implications, suggestions and recommendations for students, parents, policy makers and educational stakeholders were discussed.Needless to say that the university student is working hard in order to achieve best results in terms of grade point average at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels due to the extreme difficulty in job search competition in the labour market after their graduation. For the case of public universities in Malaysia, Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) was selected where in most cases students are required to take six to seven subjects for each semester of 14 weeks excluding revision/examination weeks. This is quite tight schedule and burdensome especially for those who do not have outstanding photographic memory. As a result, time management is one of the critical factors which will directly influence student academic performance. A proper time management skill may help university students especially UUM students to overcome and manage the tight schedule effectively. www.ccsenet.org/ass

Conceptualizing the Effect of Psychological Capital on the Academic Performance of the Students of Education

“…These results are in line with the existing literature. For instance, Maccon et al (1990), Pehlivan (2013), Dalli (2014), andHamzah et al (2014) support the claim that time management significantly affect the students' academic achievements. Similarly, Greaney & Hegarty (1987), Paulson (2006), Shen (2006), Camp (2007), and Egong (2014) find evidence for the positive association between the reading habits and academic achievements of students.…”

Determinants of Students’ Academic Performance in Higher Learning Institutions in Malaysia

“…According to Macan et al (1990), college students may feel overwhelmed with the idea that they don't have enough time to do all their work well because they are attempting to read all the books and chapters they have been assigned, accomplish paper deadlines and participate in extracurricular activities. Spending hours on social networking sites, not having a suitable schedule, organisation, guidance, targets, missions, objectives or vision, and lack of social involvement are the primary issues or limitations associated with time management (Hamzah et al, 2014). Students could experience distressing feelings of not having enough time to finish all their work in time.…”

“…Effective time management is one of the keys for students to get better academic performance then be judged by the number of tasks completed in that allotted period, and one must prioritize some jobs above others to distribute the necessary time to attain the desired performance (Tesfaye, 2019). Poor time management skills, such as improper time allocation or last-minute preparation for exams, have frequently been identified as a major cause of poor academic performance by several researchers (Hamzah et al, 2014).…”

“…Students also must be able to prioritize which tasks must be completed first among other tasks. Poor time management skills will cause students to attain poor academic performance such as last-minute preparation for exams, and improper time allocation between study and social life (Hamzah et al, 2014). If students fail to manage their time during studies, they will bring that attitude once they work in the industry.…”

Do Time Management Factors Impede Students’ Academic Achievement? : A Casestudy – Sohar University, Oman

“…Good academic achievement every student aims at and is referred by his/her grade. Good time management can lead to good academic performance (Hamzah, Lucky, & Joarder, 2014). Indeed, there is a direct relationship between time management, self-esteem, and GPA (Eid, Safan, & Diab, 2015;Zulauf & Gortner, 1999).…”