No description available.

No description available.

ABSTRACT In educational psychology and first language writing, many studies have established a link between self-regulation, key motivational factors associated with self-regulation, and academic achievement, but only a handful of research has examined this relationship in the context of L2 first-year writing. Using a sample of 170 non-native English speakers enrolled in different sections of two levels of first-year writing courses at an American university in Japan, the present study tested a hypothesized model of L2 first-year writing achievement using Structural Equation modeling. The model examined the impact of SRL strategy use, Academic Writing Self-Efficacy, Goal Orientation, Writing Attitude—key motivational factors associated with self-regulated learning—and general English proficiency, as measured by TOEFL iBT, on the writing achievement of students’ final essays, measured by their essay grades. The impact of gender on the hypothesized model of writing achievement was also investigated by conducting two separate Structural Equation modeling analyses on the hypothesized model for males and females. The study also examined the impact of SRL Strategy Use and Academic Writing Self-Efficacy on four levels of Writing Achievement, as well as the impact of four levels of Writing Experience on SRL Strategy Use and Academic Writing Self-Efficacy. The results of the study indicated that the hypothesized model had adequate fit to the data, and was, therefore, interpreted as being representative of the sample population examined in the current study. Statistically significant relationships in the model were found among the following variables: (a) English Proficiency and Essay Grade, (b) Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and Essay Grade, (c) Writing Attitude and Academic Writing Self-Efficacy, (d) Mastery Goal Orientation and SRL Strategy Use. These results corroborate findings in first-language and second-language writing research, which have reported statistically significant positive relationships among these variables, and lend support to the notion emphasized in socio-cognitive models of SRL that self-efficacy is a strong predictor of writing achievement. However, statistically significant relationships were not found among: (a) SRL Strategy Use and Essay Grade, (b) Writing Attitude and SRL Strategy Use, (c) Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and SRL Strategy Use, (d) Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and Goal Orientation. Possible explanations for the lack of statistically significant findings among the relationships between SRL and the other variables were attributed to the small sample size, and methods used to assess the use of SRL strategies. While the importance that the participants’ attribute to earning credits for the courses, as opposed to mastering writing skills, was considered a reason for the lack of a statistically significant relationship between Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and Goal Orientation. The examination of the influence of Gender on the hypothesized model of writing achievement indicated that the model for females had more adequate fit to the data than the model for males, suggesting that the model was more representative of the female participants. Differences in the models were found in the relationships between English Proficiency and SRL Strategy Use and the relationship between Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and Essay Grade. The results were in line with previous findings that have reported that female students use more SRL strategies and hold higher self-efficacy beliefs than male students. With regards to the influence of SRL Strategy Use and Academic Writing Self Efficacy on levels of Writing Achievement that ranged from Poor to Excellent, statistically significant differences were only found between the mean scores of the Poor and Excellent groups with regards to Writing Self-Efficacy. SRL Strategy Use did not exert a statistically significant difference on the mean scores of the groups. The results were in line with previous findings that reported the predictive influence of self-efficacy on writing achievement, but the results did not corroborate previous findings in relation to the predictive strength of SRL Strategy Use. The methodology used to assess the use of SRL strategies in the present study was considered a possible explanation for the lack of statistically significant results. In relation to the influence of Writing Experience on SRL Strategy Use and Academic Writing Self-Efficacy, the results also yielded non-significant differences between four groups with different levels of Writing Experience and SRL Strategy Use. This result was attributed to the broad nature of the method used to assess Writing Experience in the current study. Statistically significant differences were found between Academic Writing Self-Efficacy and Writing Experience, and the results supported previous findings in first language writing research, which have shown that learners with less experience often report higher levels of efficacy due to perhaps to overestimation of their skills. Overall, in the current study SRL did not predict the participants’ essay grades, and did not mediate the influence of other variables on essay grade. However, Academic Writing Self-Efficacy emerged as a powerful predictor of Essay Grades, and writing achievement. Therefore, while the current study supported social cognitive views about the predictive nature of self-efficacy on writing achievement, it did not corroborate theoretical assumptions about the relationship between the use of SRL strategies and writing achievement. / Teaching & Learning

This study examined how learners construct textbase and situation model knowledge in hypertext computer-based learning environments (CBLEs) and documented the influence of specific self-regulated learning (SRL) tactics, prior knowledge, and characteristics of the learner on posttest knowledge scores from exposure to a hypertext. A sample of 160 undergraduate education majors completed measures of prior knowledge, goal orientation, intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy to self-regulate learning, and a demographic survey. They were trained in the use of nStudy, a learning environment designed to facilitate self-regulated learning from web-based media including hypertext and to trace learners' actions while they learned online. Learners completed a 20-minute study session learning about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and a posttest to assess changes in knowledge scores. Results indicate that employment of individual SRL tactics including tendency to highlight was found to be associated with increased posttest knowledge scores across learners. Goal orientation and prior knowledge also significantly predicted posttest knowledge scores in regression models. These findings can be used to inform the design and use of hypertext in order to individualize computer-based instruction and maximize knowledge acquisition for students, based upon their individual characteristics. / Educational Psychology

In this case study, I investigate the development of first-year Japanese students’ self-regulated learning skills and the role of language learning advising in their transition to college. A great deal of research on the first-year experience has focused on a sense of belonging and the quality of friendships, but few researchers have investigated how learning habits influence first-year students’ successful adjustment to college life. Meanwhile, research on language learning advising has largely focused on learner strategies, a framework that has been met with increasing criticism (e.g., Dörnyei, 2005). Accordingly, for this study I adopt Zimmerman’s self-regulated learning (SRL) framework to examine the participants’ ability to transition to independent learning during their first year at a junior college in Japan. Furthermore, I aim to investigate the relation between SRL and foreign language learning and explore how advising in language learning can help learners to self-regulate their learning. The participants are 15 first-year students enrolled in a women’s junior college in Japan. The data were collected by conducting interviews, recording advising sessions, and obtaining documents. A series of four semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant over the course of eight months in their first year. Advising sessions with seven participants were also recorded. Each advising session lasted for half an hour and the number of advising sessions varied from one to eight times depending on the participant. Documents related to the college and materials relevant to the participants’ self-study were also collected. In addition, key administrators and faculty members were interviewed. The data were analyzed using three coding methods in two cycles: Eclectic Coding, Hypothesis Coding, and Axial Coding (Saldaña, 2013). Following this analysis, single-case and cross-case analyses were conducted (Yin, 2014). The findings suggest that there was a great variance in the level of SRL skill development among the participants. Some learners had already developed some SRL skills prior to entering college and built on their skills in their first year in college. Others experimented with strategies and eventually developed skills based on their mistakes. However, there were many participants who were able to observe and emulate their peers’ learning skills, but failed to utilize these skills independently in other contexts. These behaviors were observed more among the lower proficiency learners. It was also shown that the students who utilized effective SRL skills were good at managing their language studies. Several factors affected their SRL skill development. Emerging demands due to novel academic assignments, new living environments, and additional social obligations proved particularly challenging. Students with less developed self-regulated skills found themselves in a riskier position because in many cases it was difficult for them to understand the demands that new tasks presented. Consequently, they tended to take on more tasks beyond their abilities. The cases of two participants who visited the advisor repeatedly suggested that giving advice only on language learning strategies was insufficient, and pointed to the need for more SRL training. The rich description of the multiple cases in this study contributes to our understanding of the many challenges that students face in their transition to college, and the various strategies, some successful and some less so, that they use in their attempts to address these challenges. This study also provides insight into the processes of SRL development in the Japanese context. In particular, this study elucidates the difficulties that lower proficiency students have in adjusting to college life and developing SRL skills. The importance of understanding the context is re-emphasized and more flexibility on the part of advisors is recommended in order to support the varying degrees of preparedness for self-regulated learning with which first year students come to college. / Teaching & Learning

Inspired by the roles of hair cells in nature, this study aims to develop and characterize two new sets of novel flow sensors. One set of sensors developed and studied in this work are flow sensors fabricated using carbon nanomaterials. These sensors are made by embedding carbon nanotubes (CNT) and carbon nanohorns (CNH) into a polymeric substrate and then tested by flowing a conductive aqueous solution over the surface of the exposed CNT and CNH. In response, a flow-dependent voltage is generated. The surface coverage and the electrical relationship between the sensor and water is investigated and the voltage measurements of sensors with different levels of resistance were tested in varying fluid velocities. In response to these fluid velocities, the least resistive sensor showed small, but detectable changes in voltages, while higher resistance sensors showed less response. In addition, plasma treatment of the carbon nanomaterial/PDMS films were conducted in order to render the PDMS on the surface hydrophilic and in turn to pull more fluid towards the carbon material. This showed to improve the sensitivity of the flow sensors. This work also builds on previous research by investigating the flow dependent electrical response of a "skin"-encapsulated artificial hair cell in an aqueous flow. An artificial cell membrane is housed in a flexible polyurethane substrate and serves as the transduction element for the artificial hair cell. Flow experiments are conducted by placing the bio-inspired sensor in a flow chamber and subjecting it to pulse-like flows. This study demonstrates that the encapsulated artificial hair cell flow sensor is capable of sensing changes in flow through a mechanoelectrical response and that its sensing capabilities may be altered by varying its surface morphology. Furthermore, the sensor's response and dynamics as a function of its surface morphology and structural properties are investigated through synchronized motion tracking of the hair with a laser vibrometer and current measurements across the artificial cell membrane. / Master of Science

Trypanosoma brucei species are vector-borne protozoan parasites that cause Human African typanosomiasis (HAT) and nagana in cattle. In humans, the diseases caused by these parasites are fatal if left untreated. Treatments for these diseases are complicated because the approved drugs for treatment are ineffective against the parasites and have many toxic side effects associated with their use. There is a clear need to identify new therapeutics that are less toxic and more effective against T. brucei. Our approach for identifying new therapies is to identify novel targets in the parasite that can be modulated by small molecules. The mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) pathway is a three-tiered signaling cascade that regulates cell responses to stimuli and are involved in essential processes. MAPKs can regulate differentiation, virulence, apoptosis, cell cycle and gene expression, which makes MAPKs interesting drug targets in T. brucei. The extracellular-signal regulated kinase 8 homolog in T. brucei (TbERK8) is essential for survival in bloodstream form T. brucei. The work in this dissertation involves characterizing this T. brucei MAPK to better understand its biological function and identify small molecules that can inhibit its activity to kill the parasite. Here, we report that TbERK8 is an atypical MAPK kinase that is able to autophosphorylate and no upstream kinases that activate TbERK8 have been identified. We have demonstrated that TbERK8 is able to phosphorylate the proliferating cell nuclear antigen homolog in T. brucei (TbPCNA). This is in contrast to the reported function the human ERK8 and PCNA homologs that form a stable complex in normal breast cells which does not result in PCNA phosphorylation. We also report here that TbPCNA is phosphorylated on three residues localized to a unique insertion loop by TbERK8. TbPCNA is tightly regulated in the parasites such that either upregulating or downregulating its expression arrests T. brucei proliferation. Although, this mechanism of phosphorylation is unique to TbPCNA, the role that such phosphorylation has in regulating TbPCNA is not known. Finally, we have identified small molecules that can selectively inhibit either TbERK8 or HsERK8, demonstrating that TbERK8 can be selectively inhibited to kill the parasite. The unique properties of TbERK8 can be exploited by small molecules that can be developed into new parasite-specific therapies that kill T. brucei with fewer side effects to the patients. / Ph. D.

The main research question was What are the relationships between parenting style, self-regulated learning (SRL) and the academic achievement of selected (upper) primary school students in Ethiopia? The following specific research questions were formulated: • What are the views of the students on the parenting styles, and on parental acceptance and control, the cognitive strategies they use, and their self-regulated learning? • What is the relationship between parenting style and SRL? • What is the relationship between parenting style and academic achievement? • What is the relationship between SRL and academic achievement? • Does SRL moderate the relationship between parenting style and academic achievement? In this study a correlational design was used, but it was also exploratory and descriptive. Data were collected by means of a self-report questionnaire, while the academic achievements of the students were derived from official records. The questionnaire was completed by 477 randomly selected students from two classes in each of five schools in Hawasa, Ethiopia. The analysis of the data was done by means of descriptive, correlation, and ANOVA tests. The major findings included the following: Most of the children experienced acceptance by their parents, in particular from their female parents/guardians. The best levels of acceptance were, for example, “When I get a poor grade at school, my parents encourage me to try harder”, or “I can count on my parents to help me if I have some kind of a problem”, and “My parents keep pushing me to do my best in whatever I do”. However, it was found that the parents seldom spent time merely talking to their children. The female parents/guardians seemed to control their children more than the male parents/guardians, and were more involved with their children. The children, though, also believed that their parents/guardians did not really know how they spent their leisure time. More often the children perceived their parents as being neglectful. Regarding their cognitive strategies, the students particularly made use of memorization. The cognitive strategies of the children whose parents were authoritative were significantly better than those of the other children. When a student’s self-regulation increased, his/her cognitive strategies also increased, and when the cognitive strategies improved, so did the average achievement. The parents’ parenting styles were also significantly related to their children’s achievement, and were moderated by cognitive strategies as co-variants. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

How can one create online educational material that support and motivate students in guiding their own learning and make meaningful instructional decisions? One of the main focuses on designing e-learning is about creating an environment where learners can actively assume control and take responsibility for their own learning with little or no guidance from the tutors. This research aims to discover a new way to design learning that would cater to individual choices and preferences. The idea goes beyond learner-centred design; it is about learner control and direction. As an option, learners should be able to choose to be in the driver’s seat, to direct their own learning journey. As a starting point, this research explores the use of two educational theories - Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) and Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) theory as the underpinning instructional design for a Learner-Directed Model to support students’ online learning in both domain knowledge and meta knowledge in the subject of computer programming. One unit material from an online Introduction to Java Programming course has been redesigned based on the proposed Learner-Directed Model for the experimental design study. The study involved a total of 35 participants divided randomly into one Experimental Group and one Control Group. They were assigned to either a Learner-Directed Model (Experimental Group) or a linear model (Control Group). Pre/post tests, survey, follow-up interview as well as log file analysis were instruments used for assessing students’ domain knowledge, meta knowledge and their attitudes for their overall learning experience. Learning experience is further broken down into perceived ease of use and user satisfaction; system usability; learner experience; and perceived controllability. The results of the study have revealed that there is statistically significant difference between the survey results for the Experimental Group and the Control Group. The Experimental Group reported a higher level of overall learning experience and better attitudes in general. However, there was no statistically significant difference existing between the two groups on the domain and meta level knowledge improvement. Based on these results, I have proposed further research directions and put forward a number of recommendations and suggestions on learner-directed e-learning design.

英語為目前使用的最為普遍的國際語言，英語能力已成為每個學生都需要養成的基本能力，而英語字彙的學習，更是學好英語的最重要基礎，因此如何幫助學生學好英語也就越顯重要。 隨者資訊科技日新月異的發展，透過電腦輔助語言學習已成為發展趨勢，近年來利用自律機制輔助數位學習的研究，已證實自律機制有助於提升學習成效，然而目前仍少有研究將自律學習機制應用於英語學習，特別是英語字彙學習。因此本研究所發展一「具自律學習機制支援之英語字彙學習APP」，可以讓學習者監控並提醒自己所設定的英語字彙自律學習目標，希望藉由敦促學習者達成自己所設定的自律學習目標，促進學生利用零碎時間學習，提升學習者的英語字彙學習成效。為了驗證「具自律學習機制支援之英語字彙學習APP」是否有助於提升英語字彙學習成效，本研究隨機選取國小六年級二個班級學生為研究對象，將其中一班隨機分派為採用「具自律學習機制支援之英語字彙學習APP」的實驗組，另一班為採用「無自律學習機制支援之英語字彙學習APP」的控制組，分別進行為期三週的英語字彙學習活動。實驗結果發現： (1).實驗組學習者學習成效及學習動機顯著優於控制組學習者 (2)實驗組場地相依學習者學習成效及學習動機顯著優於控制組場地相依學習者 (3).實驗組男性學習者在學習成效及學習動機均顯著優於控制組男性學習者 (4).實驗組女性學習者在學習成效及學習動機均顯著優於控制組女性學習者 (5).實驗組學習者進行自律學習後的學習成效及學習動機均顯著提升 (6).實驗組女性學習者學習成效及學習態度優於實驗組男性學習者 綜合本研究之研究結果，建議未來可以延長實驗時間，進行自律鷹架的去除，瞭解學生是否會因此養成自律學習的能力。此外根據學生的回應，希望APP中具休閒的功能，故亦可往遊戲化學習方向進行研究。 關鍵字： 自律學習(Self-regulated Learning)、學習成效(Learning Performance)、認知風格(Cognitive Style)、英語字彙學習(English Vocabulary Learning) / English is currently the commonest international language. English competence has become the basic competence of each student. English vocabulary learning is a primary basis to learn English well. How to help students learn English well therefore becomes more important. Following the changeable development of information technology, computer assisted language learning has become a development trend. Research on utilizing self-regulatory mechanisms for e-learning proved that self-regulatory mechanism could enhance learning performance. Nonetheless, there is little research on the application of self-regulatory learning mechanism to English learning, particularly to English vocabulary learning. For this reason, a “self-regulatory learning supported English vocabulary learning APP” is developed in this study, allowing learners monitoring and reminding themselves of the preset English vocabulary self-regulatory learning goal. It is expected to promote learners’ English vocabulary learning performance by urging learners to achieve the preset self-regulatory learning goal and enhance students learning with trial time. To verify that the “self-regulatory learning supported English vocabulary learning APP” could enhance English vocabulary learning performance, two classes of G6 students are randomly selected as the research subjects. A class is randomly assigned as the experiment group with the “self-regulatory learning supported English vocabulary learning APP”, and the other class is the control group without the “self-regulatory learning supported English vocabulary learning APP” for the three-week English vocabulary learning. The experiment findings show that (1) Learners in the experiment group present significantly better learning performance and learning motivation than those in the control group. (2) Site-dependent learners in the experiment group show remarkably better learning performance and learning motivation than those in the control group. (3) Male learners in the experiment group reveal notably better learning performance and learning motivation than male learners in the control group. (4) Female learners in the experiment group appear significantly beter learning performance and learning motivation than femal learners in the control group. (5) Learners in the experiment group remarkably enhance the learning performance and learning motivation after the self-regulatory learning. (6) Femal learners in the experiment group reveal better learning performance and learning attitudes than male learners in the experiment group. Summing up the research results, it is suggested that the future experiment time could be extended and the self-regulatory scaffolding could be removed to understand whether students would cultivate the self-regulatory learning ability. According to the students’ responses, it is further expected that the APP could show the function of leisure. In this case, the gamification of learning could be studied in the future. Keywords：Self-regulated Learning, Learning Performance, Cognitive Style, English Vocabulary Learning