Self-regulated Learning Strategies of Grades 9-12 Students in Design Project: Viewed From Performance and Gender Perspectives

Exploring self-regulated learning skills in grades 9-12 students' design activities promotes a better understanding of how students deal with problem solving. This study focuses on students’ understanding of task demand and Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) strategies including planning, and cognitive and monitoring/fix-up strategies. A mixed-methods approach to research was applied to gather comprehensive and valid information about students’ SRL strategies. The objectives of this preliminary study were to investigate high school students' design activities that reflect their understanding of task demand and SRL strategies to accomplish the design task from the perspective of design performance (i.e., highand lowperforming students) and gender. A better understanding of these issues will specifically benefit technology and preengineering educators as well as the high school curriculum developer. Students at a high school in Colorado participated in this preliminary study (n = 29); 22 students participated in a robotics project and 7 students conducted an architecture project. Based upon a data review process, the researchers accepted 27 data sets for data analysis. Butler and Cartier's SRL model was used to frame a survey questionnaire and design journal. Because SRL is contextual, Dym and Little’s prescriptive model of design process was also used to frame the questionnaire items for this study. Two subsections of survey questionnaire were used at the early and middle stages of the design projects, respectively. Each subsection assessed different SRL strategies. The SRL mean values of each design sub-phase were calculated and compared between highand low-performing students, and also between males and females. For the design journal, participant responses were categorized and tabulated according to SRL features. The class instructor was asked to score the students’ journal based upon clarity and specificity of the journal writing. The findings of the design journal were used to confirm the results of the questionnaire analysis. The results suggested that high-performing students exhibited a better awareness than did lowperforming ones on task interpretation, cognitive strategies, and monitoring/fix-up strategies during the design project. On the other hand, the low-performing students performed very well on planning strategies. From a gender perspective, while males reported a good awareness on task interpretation and planning strategies, females showed a good awareness on cognitive and monitoring/fix-up strategies. The analysis of the design journals confirmed that high-performing students outperformed the low-performers. The findings from design journals also revealed that female students had a good awareness in understanding task demand, executing plans and monitoring and regulating their strategies. In addition, limitations and suggestions for further work on this study will also be discussed.