Self-Derived Objectives in Private Study

Self-monitoring of attained subgoals in private study.

“…On the other hand, when students are taught to monitor specific learning outcomes, self-monitoring may be more beneficial. In line with this perspective, Morgan (1981) demonstrated significant learning gains with a self-monitoring technique involving specific learned behaviors as the target.…”

“…In other words, the formulation of subgoals may facilitate learning by providing schemata for the integration of diverse items of information. This view is supported by the experiment by Morgan (1981) in which subgoals (framed as behavioral objectives) had an enhancing effect on learning as measured in tests of recall, but not in recognition tests. It seemed that the system of subjective organization resulting from formulation of subgoals provided subjects with a retrieval scheme that facilitated recall.…”

“…It seemed that the system of subjective organization resulting from formulation of subgoals provided subjects with a retrieval scheme that facilitated recall. Further support for the organizational effects of subgoals is seen from the findings that facilitating effects were observed mainly in material that lacked a built-in structural organization (Morgan, 1981).…”

“…However, learning gains from self-monitoring should be expected to depend on the target behavior being monitored, and because time on study is weakly related to achievement (Krantz, 1983), the inconsistency is understandable. On the other hand, when students are taught to monitor specific learning outcomes, self-monitoring may be more beneficiaL In line with this perspective, Morgan (1981) demonstrated significant learning gains with a self-monitoring technique involving specific learned behaviors as the target.…”

“…Because of the centrality of private study in institutions of higher learning, the modification of students' study practices has been a focus of experimentation, particularly by advocates of self-management interventions (Glasgow & Rosen, 1978; McReynolds & Church, 1973; Morgan, 1981; Richards, 1975). A crucial feature of self-management programs is subjects' systematic recording of their own study behaviors (e.g., duration of study), number of pages read, problems completed, pages written, and so on.…”