Learners’ web navigation behaviour beyond learning management systems: A way into addressing procrastination in online learning?

From procrastination to engagement? An experimental exploration of the effects of an adaptive virtual assistant on self-regulation in online learning

“…The virtual assistant was developed in 2017, and the first explorative study utilising the tool was conducted on a limited number of online learners in 2018. In our earlier publication (Pogorskiy & Beckmann, 2022), we demonstrated the main functionalities and algorithmic base utilised in the virtual assistant by presenting a detailed examination of a single learner's web navigation behaviour over a nearly one-year period. For the purposes of this study, and based on the results of a pilot study, we refined the virtual assistant to better facilitate and accommodate the collection of self-report measures, in addition to trace data and distributing assistance across the learning cycle.…”

“…To address the problem of an under-utilisation of opportunities offered by online learning, a virtual learning assistant is utilised in this study as an assessment and intervention tool to help online learners to remain engaged with their learning environments. The main assumptions are (a) self-regulation can be developed or learned (Bandura, 1991;Müller & Seufert, 2018;Usher & Schunk, 2018;Zimmerman, 2013), (b) tendencies for procrastinatory behaviour can be identified via behaviour patterns based on trace data (Hadwin et al, 2007;Kizilcec et al, 2017;Maldonado-Mahauad et al, 2018), and (c) failures of self-regulation can be compensated forat least on a behavioural levelby using an adaptive assistance tool, which was designed to help learners to continue to participate in their online course (Pogorskiy & Beckmann, 2022). In our study, theoretical and practical advances into the research on SRL (Panadero, 2017;Panadero et al, 2017;Winne, 2017) and behaviour change (Michie et al, 2013(Michie et al, , 2014 are brought into play, informing the intervention design and the selection of intervention components in order to guide the intervention development and its practical realisation.…”

The Impact of Online Game Users on Student Learning Achievement

“…However, on the other hand, excessive use of online games can interfere with learners' learning process (López-Fernández et al, 2023;Pogorskiy & Beckmann, 2022). Time spent playing online games can shift the time that should be allocated to study, resulting in decreased concentration and motivation to study (Behl et al, 2022;Chowdhury et al, 2024).…”

Challenges and Opportunities of Using Redirection of Activity for Self-Regulation Online

“…Recent research has suggested redirection of activity (automatically redirecting a user to a website which is aligned with their goals or intentions) as a promising intervention strategy to manage and self-regulate behavior while working on a computer [39,61]. An extension which intercepts one activity with another can be used to scafold 'controlled procrastination': where a person uses a self-defned procrastination activity as a reward for engaging in some 'productive' activity, for instance, learning [80].…”

“…In this question, we recognize that taking breaks from tasks is important and useful. We want to investigate is whether people might experience a higher sense of purposefulness and a lesser sense of aimlessness (negative procrastination) if they are redirected towards a learning activity [16,80] before spending time on so-called 'time-wasting' websites.…”