Adolescents' Use of Self-Regulatory Processes and Their Relation to Qualitative Mental Model Shifts While Using Hypermedia

This study examined 148 adolescents' use of self-regulated learning (SRL) processes when learning about the circulatory system using hypermedia. We examined participants' verbal protocols to determine the relationship between SRL processes and qualitative shifts in students' mental models from pretest to posttest. Results indicated that participants who exhibited a qualitative shift displayed differential use of six SRL processes, including metacognitive monitoring activities, learning strategies, and indications of task difficulty. We propose that these SRL processes can account for the participants' shift in mental model. Implications for the design of hypermedia learning environments are presented, including substantive recommendations for the use of trace logs and scaffolding to promote self-regulated learning with hypermedia.