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This study presents a newly developed test to assess students’ knowledge of learning strategies that they use when completing complex assignments at the upper secondary baccalaureate school (Gymnasium) level. The sample included N = 2,300 students at 23 baccalaureate schools in Switzerland and also a small sample of university students (N = 58). We tested hypotheses regarding cognitive, metacognitive, and motivational dimensions of learning. In addition, students’ self-reported grades in German were used as an achievement criterion. The analyses included estimation of Cronbach’s alpha and distribution of the test scores on the individual and class level. Furthermore, structural equation modeling was carried out. The findings support the reliability and validity of the new test. We found significant differences in terms of gender and school attendance. Learning strategy knowledge showed a positive relationship with student achievement, students’ learning motivation, and students’self-reported use of habitual learning strategies.

Individuals hold different mindsets encompassing beliefs about trait stability (stable vs. malleable) and goal orientations (performance vs. mastery). These motivational beliefs affect behavioral self-regulation, which is an important predictor of school success and includes both executive functions (EF) and classroom behavioral self-regulation (CBSR). In this study, we examined the structure of mindsets in kindergarteners and the relations with EF and CBSR by interviewing 147 kindergarteners (51% female) aged 5 to 7 years (M = 6.47, SD = .39). We used a multimethod approach with self-report and direct measures of behavioral self-regulation, achievement, and a newly developed mindset scale. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed that trait beliefs and goal orientations represent two different but related motivational beliefs. Results indicated differential effects of trait beliefs and goal orientations on EF and CBSR: Children with a mastery (vs. performance) orientation showed better EF, whereas children with a belief in traits as malleable (vs. stable) showed better CBSR. Structural equation modeling showed significant indirect effects of both motivational beliefs on achievement, with EF and CBSR as mediators. Findings suggest that motivational beliefs are important in fostering behavioral self-regulation for successful adjustment to the demands of kindergarten.

The aim of this study was to investigate the development of metacognitive strategy knowledge (MSK) during schooling at the upper secondary education level and to examine its relation with individual student characteristics. This longitudinal study with two measurement points analyzed a sample of students in grades 10 and 11 from 19 schools preparing students for university in Switzerland. The findings showed no development of MSK within a single year of school. Individual differences appeared in the level and the change of MSK over time. Female students as well as students with higher SES displayed higher MSK than male students and students with lower SES at the first measurement point. Furthermore, SES predicted changes in MSK over time. Between learning motivation and MSK as well as self-efficacy and MSK, high correlations were found at t1. Neither learning motivation nor self-efficacy had an effect on the change of MSK over time. The results show that there is still substantial potential for MSK development at the upper secondary education level. Implications for education and further studies are discussed.

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