Dysregulated Learning with Advanced Learning Technologies

Abstract

Successful learning with advanced learning technologies is based on the premise that learners adaptively regulate their cognitive and metacognitive behaviors during learning. However, there is abundant empirical evidence that suggests that learners typically do not adaptively modify their behavior, thus suggesting that they engage in what is called dysregulated behavior. Dysregulated learning is a new term that is used to describe a class of behaviors that learners use that lead to minimal learning. Examples of dysregulated learning include failures to: (1) encode contextual demands, (2) deploy effective learning strategies, (3) modify and update internal standards, (4) deal with the dynamic nature of the task, (5) metacognitively monitor the use of strategies and make accurate metacognitive judgments, and (6) intelligently adapt behavior during learning so as to maximize learning and understanding of the instructional material. Understanding behaviors associated with dysregulated learning is critical since it has implications for determining what they are, when they occur, how often they occur, and how they can be corrected during learning.