Strategies for enhancing self-regulation in e-learning: a review of selected journal publications from 2010 to 2020

Researchers have pointed out the important role of self-regulation in learning. The self-regulated learning (SRL) process consists of three stages (i.e. forethought, performance, and self-reflection), each of which could involve different strategies for achieving the aim of SRL. To enable researchers and teachers to have a whole picture of how each strategy could be applied, this study analyzed the 2010–2020 publications in seven SSCI journals of e-learning. In addition, the correlation between each SRL strategy and students’ learning performances was analyzed. It was found that, in 58% of the studies, the potential strategies for individual SRL stages were generally ignored. In addition, 40% of the studies did not clearly state how SRL could be applied to practical applications. By referring to those SRL studies reporting the use of the strategies in each stage in specific application domains, it was found that goal setting and planning, which highly related to students’ learning achievement, has been frequently discussed. Nevertheless, some strategies that highly correlated to students’ cognitive performances and affect perceptions, such as environmental structuring, seeking information and rehearsing and memorizing, are often ignored. According to the findings, some suggestions are provided as a reference for researchers to conduct related research.