The use of hypermedia for educational purposes gained a great deal of importance for educators. There are many opportunities provided to learners by these environments such as independence from time and place, availability and accessability of the course material, non-linear interaction that provides the learner to regulate his/ her own learning and so on. Although many advantages of hypermedia environment are suggested in the literature, there are also many studies concerning with learning in hypermedia environment concluding that many learners face with problems on these settings. This qualitative study aimed to investigate the affects of three important factors in terms of learning with hypermedia revealed by the literature / cognitive styles, computer competency levels, and domain knowledge levels of the students. To the purpose of the study, participants from a web-enhanced course were selected considering these factors, and interviews and observations were conducted to reveal their learning strategies. Results indicated some differences among the different cognitive style groups of students in terms of their preferred learning strategies. Computer competency levels of the students were also found to be quite important in terms of their patterns to use the hypermedia program. Students&rsquo / prior knowledge levels were also important in this study, since different needs and expectations were revealed related to the domain knowledge levels of the participants. Furthermore, a deep understanding about the behaviors, experiences, feelings, and expectations of the students in an instructional hypermedia environment related to suggested different characteristics were gained at the end of the study.

Le 21ème siècle est considéré comme l’âge du numérique. Les TIC sont devenus des outils identitaires d’une génération désormais définie comme « native du numérique » (angl. digital natives). Equiper les établissements secondaires en matériels coûteux devient une nécessité pour faire face aux besoins nouveaux de la société. Les ressources numériques, qui ont complété puis évincé le manuel et ses périphériques traditionnels, demeurent un atout incontournable pour l’apprentissage d’une langue vivante étrangère, grâce à des contenus linguistiques et culturels le plus souvent authentiques, qui favorisent la mise en œuvre de l’approche actionnelle du Cadre Européen Commun de Référence pour les Langues. On peut néanmoins s’interroger sur la capacité du sujet apprenant à traiter cet input directement extrait d’Internet. La plus-value pédagogique présumée, didactique et motivationnelle, qui associée à ces outils technologiques ne saurait être acceptée sans un questionnement sincère sur les capacités cognitives effectives des apprenants ainsi que sur la réalité de leur engagement. L’accordage entre le sujet apprenant, les méthodes et méthodologies d’enseignement-apprentissage des langues, ainsi que les dispositifs numériques doivent être explorés. Il est nécessaire aujourd’hui de se situer dans un paradigme cognitiviste ou encore connexioniste en envisageant une construction de l’information et l’exposition des apprenants à un environnement stimulant et riche. En effet, en dépit de l’attractivité, de la non-linéarité et de l’interactivité de l’hypermédia, il convient de vérifier que l’apprenant possède bien les ressources cognitives nécessaires pour traiter efficacement l’information issue de l’hypertexte. Car l’enjeu du traitement de l’information ne se situe pas simplement au niveau de l’extraction d’input mais bien de la construction sémantique au sein de la mémoire de travail. Notre réflexion théorique fait donc entrer en dialogue des disciplines telles que la linguistique, la psycholinguistique, la didactique, les sciences cognitives. Elle fait également un état des lieux des différents outils numériques, afin de vérifier la compatibilité entre l’enseignement-apprentissage des langues étrangères et la technologie. Notre posture d’enseignant de terrain nous amène à considérer le numérique comme un facteur de motivation engageant fortement les usagers dans l’apprentissage de la langue étrangère. Cela d’autant plus que le public participant à notre étude est généralement peu motivé pour l’apprentissage des langues étrangères. La mise à disposition à des fins pédagogiques de tablettes tactiles, assimilables à des consoles de jeu, est-elle susceptible de les impliquer davantage et de modifier leur représentation de la langue cible? Pour répondre à cette question, nous menons deux expérimentations. Dans un premier temps, nous réalisons un pré-test permettant d’élaborer des hypothèses sur l’engagement cognitif des apprenants dans un environnement numérique. Nous observons l’usage réel et situé de tablettes numériques censées susciter la motivation par leur caractère ludique. Nous examinons également la posture des apprenants et leur capacité à exploiter l’information. A ce stade, la démarche conserve un caractère intuitif et les pratiques observées ne sont pas strictement encadrées. C’est pourquoi, dans un deuxième temps, nous procédons à une expérimentation plus structurée, en meilleure adéquation avec les critères de la recherche-action en langues vivantes étrangères. Nous en détaillons et en analysons les résultats. / The 21st century is commonly known as the “digital age”. Information technology has become a defining component of a new generation of learners, the so-called “digital natives”. Massive investment in digital learning equipment for schools has become a priority to meet the rising demands of society. Digital technologies, initially intended to supplement traditional course book instruction are fast replacing printed books altogether. Instant access to (mostly) authentic language material is a definite asset for developing linguistic skills and implementing the action-based approach prescribed by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. However, learner ability does not necessarily match all requirements for processing input from the Internet. Educators who believe in the added value of information technology in language pedagogy should therefore consider more carefully the actual cognitive capacities and cognitive engagement shown by learners when exposed to rich stimulus. For digital devices to become efficient pedagogical tools in language pedagogy, learner ability, teaching strategies, and technological implements must be mutually adjusted and integrated within a consistent framework. Although hypermedia is attractive, non-linear and interactive, it is essential to verify that learners do possess the skills and efficiency to process the information obtained from hypertext documents. Information processing is indeed a major challenge since it involves not only searching and retrieving relevant pieces of information, but requires some cognitive processing—a semantic construction within working memory. The perspective adopted here is thus multidisciplinary, with multiple references to linguistics, education, psycholinguistics, and cognitive science. Also needed are an overview of the various digital devices available and an assessment of their true relevance to language pedagogy. As a professional EFL teacher working in a vocational school, I consider digital technologies to be precious in motivating and engaging learners. The secondary school students involved in the current research study usually show little concern for language learning in the first place. The practical issue can thus be framed as “How can the use of tablets engage them as learners and favourably alter their conceptions of the second language?” To answer this question, a pre-test is set up to form preliminary hypotheses on degrees of cognitive engagement in the language classroom whenever digital devices are put to pedagogical use. The concrete, situated use of tablets is observed, their playful nature and expected contribution to motivation assessed. Learning attitudes and the ability to process information are subject to close scrutiny. At this preliminary stage, methods remain largely intuitive, and the activities or learning processes not strictly characterized. A more structured experiment setup must thus be created, based on more established criteria of action-research, the details and results of which are analysed in this dissertation.

With evidence that arts engagement and nonlinear thinking style both utilize insight, intuition, and emotion in the decision making process, the literature has driven an investigation of the relationship between levels of arts engagement and thinking style preference. This nonexperimental correlational study (N = 101) explored (a) the prevalence of linear, nonlinear, or balanced linear/nonlinear thinking style of professionals working in museums. (b) Whether thinking style has a relationship with (i) age; (ii) sex; (iii) academic major; (iv) occupation; (v) levels of arts engagement. Two theoretical frameworks underpinned this study: (a) new literacies and (b) cognitive styles. A Web-based self-report survey instrument was used to investigate the relation among the variables of interest. Existing literature was used to provide a foundation for the study and guide the research. Correlational, means, and hierarchical regression analysis were used to test the hypothesized model and examine the hypotheses. The means analyses at the descriptive level revealed that females, those in the 60 or older age group, Humanities majors, and those who worked in education demonstrated more balanced linear/nonlinear thinking styles. The correlations results indicated that there was a statistically significant relationship between thinking style and sex and thinking styles and academic major. The hierarchical regression results suggested that after controlling for select demographic variables, only being a Humanities major uniquely predicted significant variance in thinking style. The lack of significant findings of a relationship between thinking style and age did not correspond to existing research that supports a correlation. Additionally, a significant relationship between thinking style and levels of arts engagement was not found during correlational and hierarchical regression analysis. A limitation of this research study was that the Web-based self-report survey version of the Linear/Nonlinear Thinking Style Profile (LNTSP) instrument did not transfer well to online use because the participants had some problem understanding how to score their answers properly. This issue could be handled readily and recommendations are made to revise the Web-base self-report version of the survey for future research use.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / All branches of anatomy (gross anatomy, histology, neuroanatomy, and embryology) involve significant amounts of visual identification. Understanding the spatial relationship and visual representations of anatomical structures forms the basis for much of anatomy education, particularly in laboratory courses. Students in these courses frequently struggle with the visual aspects of identification, and many lack the metacognitive awareness to identify this problem. The research presented here details a series of experiments designed to elucidate the factors involved in students’ difficulties with studying the visual aspects of anatomy. All of the research projects discussed involved surveying students about their specific study habits. Student populations surveyed include first-year medical students and undergraduates in anatomy, physiology. These populations were surveyed about their study habits in each course, and their level of familiarity with visual learning. Additionally some populations were given a mental rotation test to assess their spatial abilities. These survey data were then correlated with course grades in an effort to determine the most successful study strategies. Active learning approaches (including student-produced drawings) were most strongly correlated with high course grades. However, efforts to teach lower-performing students active learning skills did not produce significant results, possibly due to the lack of a metacognitive component in this instruction. The results of each project indicate a lack of good study skills among students at all levels of anatomy instruction, and highlight the need for more instruction in how to study for anatomy, including metacognitive awareness, especially focused on the visual aspects of the course.

The work investigates the cognitive styles of students who are learning in order to be a translator. It compares students from two universities, their cognitive styles and motivation to learn. / Работа посвящена исследованию когнитивных стилей студентов, которые учатся, чтобы стать переводчиком. В ней сравниваются студенты двух университетов, их когнитивные стили и мотивация обучения.

Syftet med denna artikel var att undersöka sambandet mellan efterlevnad av covid-19 restriktioner och tidsperspektiv hos universitetsstudenter. För att undersöka sambandet användes Swedish Zimbardo time perspective inventory (S-ZTPI), utvecklad av Carelli et al(2011) och ett frågeformulär som vi utformat för att gradera efterlevnad av covid-19 restriktioner och rekommendationer (α >.9). Frågeformuläret bestod av 28 frågor där deltagare svarade på en femstegs likertskala. Varje fråga hörde till en av sex kategorier: fysisk distansering, social distansering, vårdbelastning, munskydd, handhygien och personligt ansvar. 92 (54 kvinnor, 38 män) universitetsstudenter från svenska universitet i åldrarna 18-30 besvarade enkätfrågorna. Pearssons korrelationstest visade signifikanta positiva samband mellan framtid positiv (FP), framtid negativ (FN), kvinnligt kön och grad avefterlevnad restriktionerna. Vid en stepwise regressionsanalys kvarstod det signifikanta sambandet mellan FP och totalpoäng för restriktionerna. Framtid positiv verkar vara den starkaste prediktorn för att svenska universitetsstudenter ska följa covid-19 restriktioner och rekommendationer. Därav bör en kommunicera restriktionerna på ett sådant sätt som visar på en positiv framtid vid efterlevnad av restriktioner och rekommendationer. / The aim of this study was to investigate the association between compliance with covid-19 restrictions and the time perspective of university students. Time perspective was established using the Swedish Zimbardo time perspective inventory (S-ZTPI), developed by Carelli et al(2011). In order to gauge participants compliance to restrictions, a set of 28 questions were developed in which participants answer on a five point Likert-scale (α >.9). Every question belonged to one of six categories: physical distancing, social distancing, healthcare load, face masks, hand hygiene and personal responsibility. This survey was answered by a total of 92 (54 women, 38 men) Swedish university students. A Pearson's test showed significant positive correlation between the time perspective future positive (FP) and likeliness to follow covid-19 restrictions. There were two other factors that were also significant in likeliness to follow covid-19 restrictions to a lesser degree. The first of these two factors were the time perspective future negative (FN). The second factor being gender, women were shown to follow covid-19 restrictions significantly better than men. After a stepwise regressionanalysis, future positive remained as a strong predictor of likeliness to follow covid-19 restrictions. Future oriented time perspectives are a strong predictor for likeliness to follow covid-19 restrictions. Future communication of restrictions should focus on a positive future if people comply with the restrictions and recommendations.

The aim of this investigation was to determine the modes of thinking and learning of South African disadvantaged learners as well as to discover whether the teaching methods used by their teachers, encourage diverse cognitive skills and learning styles amongst learners. A survey of existing literature on this subject identifies a number of theories that indicate that learners come to school with diverse modes of thinking and learning. Furthermore, existing literature, indicate that educationally disadvantaged learners tend towards a Field Dependent, socially orientated mode of cognitive processing and a largely visual and kinaesthetic mode of sensory processing information. Research also reveals that teaching methods and teacher expectation of learner potential play a vital role in the academic achievement of disadvantaged learners. Teachers tend to have lower expectations of the academic potential of disadvantaged learners. Moreover, teachers tend to favour teaching methods that meet the needs of learners who use Field Independent cognitive and Auditory sensory processing. Another aspect acknowledged in existing literature that influences the academic achievement of disadvantaged learners is the role of family and the community. Disadvantaged learners generally do not have the support and security of a stable home and are frequently exposed to violence and an educationally impoverished environment. Parents and guardians tend to be less involved in the education of their children. Disadvantaged learners who were part of this empirical study conducted in the Ekhuruleni Metropolitan area, east of Johannesburg, South Africa, showed a more concrete approach to academic activities and revealed a tendency towards Field Dependency and a visual and kinaesthetic sensory approach to processing information. Learners preferred more frequent social interaction during academic activities. The study also found that the teaching method most commonly used in the geographical area mentioned above, took the form of lecturing or `chalk-and-talk' and that teaching aids generally took the form of worksheets. Hence the teaching approach most used by teachers in the study, did not address the modes of thinking and learning of disadvantaged learners in the schools that participated in the empirical study and generally did not encourage deeper cognitive structures. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

The aim of this investigation was to determine the modes of thinking and learning of South African disadvantaged learners as well as to discover whether the teaching methods used by their teachers, encourage diverse cognitive skills and learning styles amongst learners. A survey of existing literature on this subject identifies a number of theories that indicate that learners come to school with diverse modes of thinking and learning. Furthermore, existing literature, indicate that educationally disadvantaged learners tend towards a Field Dependent, socially orientated mode of cognitive processing and a largely visual and kinaesthetic mode of sensory processing information. Research also reveals that teaching methods and teacher expectation of learner potential play a vital role in the academic achievement of disadvantaged learners. Teachers tend to have lower expectations of the academic potential of disadvantaged learners. Moreover, teachers tend to favour teaching methods that meet the needs of learners who use Field Independent cognitive and Auditory sensory processing. Another aspect acknowledged in existing literature that influences the academic achievement of disadvantaged learners is the role of family and the community. Disadvantaged learners generally do not have the support and security of a stable home and are frequently exposed to violence and an educationally impoverished environment. Parents and guardians tend to be less involved in the education of their children. Disadvantaged learners who were part of this empirical study conducted in the Ekhuruleni Metropolitan area, east of Johannesburg, South Africa, showed a more concrete approach to academic activities and revealed a tendency towards Field Dependency and a visual and kinaesthetic sensory approach to processing information. Learners preferred more frequent social interaction during academic activities. The study also found that the teaching method most commonly used in the geographical area mentioned above, took the form of lecturing or `chalk-and-talk' and that teaching aids generally took the form of worksheets. Hence the teaching approach most used by teachers in the study, did not address the modes of thinking and learning of disadvantaged learners in the schools that participated in the empirical study and generally did not encourage deeper cognitive structures. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

The purpose of this thesis is to question the methodological practices of ESL textbooks.

An exploratory study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between emotional intelligence based on Mayer and Salovey's (1990) trait model of emotional intelligence and cognitive thinking styles based on the theory of mental selfgovernment. Emphasis was placed on the influence of emotional intelligence and thinking styles on choice of study field. Participants were 309 students from a Gauteng university. Students registered with the humanities (n=99), management (n=41), sciences (n=131) and engineering (n=38) faculties were compared on the Schutte Self-Report Inventory for emotional intelligence (Schutte et al., 1998) and on the Thinking Styles Inventory (Sternberg & Wagner, 1992). A relationship was found between complex and creative thinking styles and high emotional intelligence. Results from the stepwise multiple regression analysis procedures indicated that the subscales of thinking styles could be significant predictors of emotional intelligence. Students from different faculties were found to have the same level of emotional intelligence and similar thinking styles. / Psychology / MA (Social Sciences) (Psychology)