The high dropout rate of first year students is a major source of concern for the Department of Higher Education and Training and for Higher Education Institutions (HEI’s). Research indicated that students’ Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) skills and strategies play a significant role in achieving academic success at universities. Thus, the main aim of this study was to develop strategies for the development of SRL skills of first year university students. In order to achieve the research aim and objectives an extensive literature review was conducted on SRL and the relationship between SRL skills and the academic achievement of students at HEI’s. For the purposes of the empirical investigation, a mixed-method approach was followed. In the quantitative part of the investigation, the results of the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI), which was administered to the 2007 cohort of first year students (n=2421) at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University, were analysed to determine whether the subscales in the LASSI significantly predicted academic success and to identify variables that related to the first year students’ learning and study skills and academic achievement. In the qualitative part of the research, interviews were conducted during 2010, with a selected group of participants from the 2007 cohort of first year students who were then in their fourth year of study. The questions in the interviews were based on questions in the Self-Regulated Learning Inventory Schedule (SRLIS), and the aims were to explore the participants’ experiences with their studies and to determine which SRL skills, in addition to the skills assessed by the LASSI, influenced their studies and academic achievement. The quantitative analysis of the LASSI results revealed that: • Motivation, Time management and Information processing were the best LASSI predictors of the first year students’ academic success. • The independent biographical variables Grade 12 marks, age and gender correlated better with the first year students’ academic achievement than the LASSI subscales did. The qualitative investigation revealed that: • Successful students realised at the onset of their studies that they had to adapt their study methods to meet the challenges that studying at a university requires. • Successful students could differentiate between the different types of study material and could adapt their study methods accordingly. They could also adapt their study methods when the volume of the study material differed. • Successful students applied a repertoire of study methods in a flexible manner, and managed their time well. • Successful students conveyed knowledge of themselves as students, as well as of the different requirements that study at a university implicates. • Most of the successful students received information from parents, lecturers or principals about different study methods and could describe their learning styles and preferences clearly. • Some of the successful students could accurately infer which questions could be expected in the exam papers, and knew how and why these questions were asked. • Successful students set realistic academic goals for themselves. • Unsuccessful students did not consider their own study preferences or the academic requirements of the university. • Unsuccessful students did not manage their time well and were not motivated. On the basis of the findings, strategies were proposed for the development of SRL skills of first year students at universities. The strategies are presented as a compulsory programme that first year students have to complete in the first semester. / Thesis (PhD (Teaching and Learning))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

The high dropout rate of first year students is a major source of concern for the Department of Higher Education and Training and for Higher Education Institutions (HEI’s). Research indicated that students’ Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) skills and strategies play a significant role in achieving academic success at universities. Thus, the main aim of this study was to develop strategies for the development of SRL skills of first year university students. In order to achieve the research aim and objectives an extensive literature review was conducted on SRL and the relationship between SRL skills and the academic achievement of students at HEI’s. For the purposes of the empirical investigation, a mixed-method approach was followed. In the quantitative part of the investigation, the results of the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI), which was administered to the 2007 cohort of first year students (n=2421) at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University, were analysed to determine whether the subscales in the LASSI significantly predicted academic success and to identify variables that related to the first year students’ learning and study skills and academic achievement. In the qualitative part of the research, interviews were conducted during 2010, with a selected group of participants from the 2007 cohort of first year students who were then in their fourth year of study. The questions in the interviews were based on questions in the Self-Regulated Learning Inventory Schedule (SRLIS), and the aims were to explore the participants’ experiences with their studies and to determine which SRL skills, in addition to the skills assessed by the LASSI, influenced their studies and academic achievement. The quantitative analysis of the LASSI results revealed that: • Motivation, Time management and Information processing were the best LASSI predictors of the first year students’ academic success. • The independent biographical variables Grade 12 marks, age and gender correlated better with the first year students’ academic achievement than the LASSI subscales did. The qualitative investigation revealed that: • Successful students realised at the onset of their studies that they had to adapt their study methods to meet the challenges that studying at a university requires. • Successful students could differentiate between the different types of study material and could adapt their study methods accordingly. They could also adapt their study methods when the volume of the study material differed. • Successful students applied a repertoire of study methods in a flexible manner, and managed their time well. • Successful students conveyed knowledge of themselves as students, as well as of the different requirements that study at a university implicates. • Most of the successful students received information from parents, lecturers or principals about different study methods and could describe their learning styles and preferences clearly. • Some of the successful students could accurately infer which questions could be expected in the exam papers, and knew how and why these questions were asked. • Successful students set realistic academic goals for themselves. • Unsuccessful students did not consider their own study preferences or the academic requirements of the university. • Unsuccessful students did not manage their time well and were not motivated. On the basis of the findings, strategies were proposed for the development of SRL skills of first year students at universities. The strategies are presented as a compulsory programme that first year students have to complete in the first semester. / Thesis (PhD (Teaching and Learning))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF KAREN B. BONTRAGER, for the Master of Arts degree in ENGLISH, presented on June 18, 2009, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: PERCEPTIONS OF WRITING PROCESS: A STUDY OF FIRST-YEAR COMPOSITION STUDENTS MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Lisa J. McClure The purpose of this exploratory study was to ascertain the perceptions of the composing process held by English 101 students at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. Questionnaires were distributed to students in twenty sections of English 101 in the first few weeks and the last few weeks of the fall semester of 2007. The questionnaires invited students to reflect and report on their writing processes. Results of the study indicate that students' perceptions of the writing process are colored by the Current Traditional paradigm: students place a high value on the final product and understand writing as a linear process. There is also evidence that students' perceptions of their revising habits may differ from their actual practices.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree Magister of Education in the Faculty of Education at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology / The core problematique of this study is to establish a collaborative intervention strategy as a model that could facilitate the design and dissemination of appropriate formative feedback during essay-writing practices with at risk ECP and first-year students.

Magister Educationis - MEd / This study investigates the extent to which the one-year English course that the National University of Rwanda offers equips Francophone students with the linguistic tools they need in order to cope with content subjects offered through the medium of English. It argues that learning English in this context should go beyond foreign language learning to learning English for Academic Purposes, and beyond language learning to the understanding of content subjects. For the purposes of this study, the focus fell on students in the Management Faculty.

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Colleges and universities are focusing on graduating students who will succeed in careers (Braxton, Smart, & Thieke, 1991; Erwin, 1991; Quinn, 2004). Numerous skills have been identified as important to employers, including leadership skills (Gale, 2002; Gerber, 2003; Kerka, 1990; Stronge, 1998; Santosus, 2003). As a result, institutions have introduced programs designed to train students on those leadership skills (Freeman, Knott, & Schwartz, 1994; Posner & Brodsky, 1993; Riggio, Ciulla, & Sorenson, 2003). Despite the interest in leadership skills, very little research has been done to look at baseline leadership skills that students possess when they matriculate. The purpose of this study was to examine the pre-college leadership skills of first year students and examine differences by race and gender on eight distinct scales. These eight scales were defined by the Student Leadership Outcomes Inventory (SLOI) (Vann, 2000). A total of 550 participants of various racial and gender classifications were chosen to participate in the study from a population of all first-year students at a large, public, research institution in the United States. Participants reported moderately high levels of leadership skills on all eight scales. Differences by race were not revealed. However, differences by gender were found on the technology scale of the instrument. An interaction effect between race and gender was also revealed on the technology scale. Overall, it would seem that students matriculate with some intact leadership skills. Administrators might use this baseline skill level when designing leadership development opportunities for students. / Master of Arts

Published Article / First-year university students make judgements about their capabilities in mathematics which mainly stem from their past school experiences. It is against this background that the researchers decided to conduct a study with the aim of assessing the academic behavioural confidence of first-year students enrolled in the B.Ed. (FET): Natural Sciences programme and the B.Ed. (FET): Economic and Management Sciences programme offered by the School of Teacher Education at the Central University of Technology, Free State. Bandura's (1986) Social Cognitive Theory is the overarching theoretical framework of the self-efficacy construct and therefore also for this study. A quantitative approach was followed and the Academic Behavioural Confidence scale (ABC) designed by Sander and Sanders (2006), was adopted for use in the study. The study sought to first of all determine whether a significant difference in the academic behavioural confidence of the first-year students within the Natural Sciences and Economic and Management Sciences programmes does exist. It furthermore wanted to determine if a significant difference in the academic behavioural confidence between male and female students within these two programmes exists. The results indicated that there is a significant difference in the academic behavioural confidence of the NS and EMS groups. There is, however, no significant difference between male and female students within and between the two groups. Based on the findings some recommendations on dealing with first-year students have been made.

Higher education systems are imperative to social and economic upliftment in any society, the ability of the national labour force and income disparity differentials between members of the populous are directly associated to academic achievement and associated pass rates in higher education. The apparent utility of higher education is however overshadowed by poor student retention, academic performance and consequent pass rates and is an issue of concern at both an international and local level. The identification of factors that could potentially improve student academic performance and consequent attainment of a tertiary qualification is becoming an increasingly important field of research. Research into such factors would have wide reaching implications in South Africa, where high unemployment rates and talent migration plague efforts to build a strong national economy. The primary imperatives of this research undertaking were to investigate the relationship between hope, social support, fluid intelligence and academic achievement in the form of grade point average (GPA), as well as determine the extent to which hope and social support moderate the relationship between fluid intelligence and GPA. The research method is comprised of a literature review and empirical study. Data collection was conducted via a cross-sectional survey design, with an availability sample (N = 308) being taken from first year students at a higher educational institution. The Hope Scale (HS), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Abstract Reasoning Test (ART) and biographical questionnaire were administered. Statistical analysis was carried out with the SPSS 20.0 programme. Principle component factor analysis provided confirmation of a four factor structure for the MSPSS, with the resultant factors being labelled Friend Support, Significant Other Support, Family Support and Lecturer Support. In this study the original 3 factor structure of the MSPSS was supplemented by adding the fourth dimension of lecturer support. A two factor structure for the HS was confirmed, with the resultant factors being labelled Agency Hope and Pathways Hope. All utilised scales indicated acceptable levels of reliability, with the resultant Cronbach alpha statistics ranging from 0,75 to 0,89. Pearson correlation coefficient correlations gave indication of a statistically and practically significant correlation of positive medium effect between fluid intelligence and grade point average. Social support from lecturers showed statistically and practically significant correlations of medium effect with social support from friends. Pathways hope was statistically and practically related to agency hope with a positive medium effect. No practically significant relations in this sample could be established between hope and grade point average and social support and grade point average. Statistically significant relations were established between lecturer social support and fluid intelligence and between agency hope and social support from significant other sources. The ability of fluid intelligence to predict grade point average was proven via regression analysis in which fluid intelligence was found to be a statistically significant predictor of grade point average. Proposed moderating effects of hope and social support on the relation between fluid intelligence and grade point average were tested via multiple regression analysis. Results indicated that within the parameters of the research sample in this study, no statistically significant moderating effects could be established for hope or social support. Based on these findings, a hypothesised cause for such relations was established based on the characteristics of the current research sample and research literature. Recommendations for future research were made, as well as organisational recommendations for the participating higher educational facility. / MA, Industrial Psychology, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

Students’ intention to stay within the higher education system is decreasing by the year, and even though more students are enrolling at universities annually, the percentage of students completing their studies is not satisfactory. The low completion rate is a concern not only in South Africa, but worldwide. Trends are identified as to why students do not complete their studies. This study seeks to focus on perceived social support, the students’ academic fit, the psychological conditions of meaningfulness and availability as well as the students’ engagement levels, and then to investigate if these constructs will influence their intention to stay. The proposed engagement model of May, Gilson, and Harter (2004) originally designed by George Kahn (1990), was used to determine whether social support and academic fit correlates positively with the psychological conditions, which may lead to engagement and increase a student’s intention to stay. A quantitative research design was used to investigate the universal challenge at hand, and it was descriptive in nature in order to gather specific information from the first-year students. A crossectional design was used. The research method consists of a literature review and an empirical study, presented in one research article. A convenience sample was used, and a total of 304 students completed the questionnaires. These questionnaires were based on the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Psychological Conditions Scale, Academic Fit Scale, the Work Engagement Scale and the Intent to Leave Scale. Structural equation modelling methods were used, and implemented in AMOS to test the measurement and structural models. The fit-indices used to test if the model fit the data included the absolute fit indices such as Chi-square statistic, the Standardized Root Mean Residual (SRMR), and the Root-Means-Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA). The incremental fit indices which were used included the Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) and the Comparative Fit Index. It was found that social support did not have an impact on the psychological conditions of meaningfulness and availability, but it had a direct and indirect (via academic fit) effect on intention to stay. This implies that the amount of support students receive has an influence on their intention to stay, and also increased their sense of belonging in their field of study. Academic fit was positively associated with the psychological conditions of meaning and availability, which means that if the student’s personality and field of study is aligned the student will feel that the course is meaningful to him, and he will invest more energy in his studies. Academic fit had direct effects on students’ intention to stay, which means that students who feel they belong in their field of study will also be more likely to stay at the educational institution. It was also found that if students experience a sense of psychological meaningfulness and availability they will be more engaged in their studies, which impact their intention to stay / MCom, Industrial Psychology, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012