The Effects of Meta Cognitive Strategy Instruction on Academic Achievement, Meta Cognition, Intrinsic Motivation, and Self-Efficacy of College Students

"Strategy instruction" is quickly becoming one of the most common — and perhaps the most commonly misunderstood — components of adolescent literacy research and practice. In this essay, veteran teacher educator Mark Conley argues that a particular type of strategy instruction known as cognitive strategy instruction holds great promise for improving adolescents' reading, writing, and thinking across content areas. However, he further suggests that we do not yet have the research needed to adequately understand and maximize the potential of cognitive strategy instruction in secondary content-area classrooms. After situating cognitive strategy instruction in the larger context of research on adolescent literacy and school-to-work transitions, Conley provides classroom examples of cognitive strategy instruction, demonstrates the need for meaningful integration of cognitive strategies in teacher education, and recommends specific directions for future research needed to understand and maximize the benefits of cognitive strategy instruction for adolescents.

Download Full-text

First steps in the physician-scientist pipeline: a longitudinal study to examine the effects of an undergraduate extracurricular research programme

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-048550 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (9) ◽

pp. e048550

Author(s):

Belinda W C Ommering ◽

Floris M van Blankenstein ◽

Friedo W Dekker

Keyword(s):

Academic Achievement ◽

Intrinsic Motivation ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Medical Training ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Motivational Factors ◽

Control Group ◽

Grade Point ◽

Research Engagement ◽

Physician Scientist

ObjectivesMedicine is facing a physician-scientist shortage. By offering extracurricular research programmes (ERPs), the physician-scientist training pipeline could already start in undergraduate phases of medical training. However, previous studies into the effects of ERPs are mainly retrospective and lack baseline measurements and control groups. Therefore, the current study mimics a randomised controlled trial to examine the effects of an ERP.DesignProspective cohort study with baseline measurement and comparable control group.SettingOne cohort of 315 medical undergraduates in one Dutch University Medical Center are surveyed yearly. To examine the effects of the ERP on academic achievement and motivational factors, regression analyses were used to compare ERP students to students showing ERP-interest only, adjusted for relevant baseline scores.ParticipantsOut of the 315 students of the whole cohort, 56 participated within the ERP and are thus included. These ERP students are compared with 38 students showing ERP-interest only (ie, control group).Primary outcome measureAcademic achievement after 2 years (ie, in-time bachelor completion, bachelor grade point average (GPA)) and motivational factors after 18 months (ie, intrinsic motivation for research, research self-efficacy, perceptions of research, curiosity).ResultsERP participation is related to a higher odds of obtaining a bachelor degree in the appointed amount of time (adjusted OR=2.95, 95% CI 0.83 to 10.52). Furthermore, starting the ERP resulted in higher levels of intrinsic motivation for research, also after adjusting for gender, age, first-year GPA and motivational baseline scores (β=0.33, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.63). No effect was found on research self-efficacy beliefs, perceptions of research and curiosity.ConclusionsPrevious research suggested that intrinsic motivation is related to short-term and long-term research engagement. As our findings indicate that starting the ERP is related to increased levels of intrinsic motivation for research, ERPs for undergraduates could be seen as an important first step in the physician-scientist pipeline.

Download Full-text