This dissertation examines and analyzes the work of two sections of basic writing over the course of one semester. I explore relevant research in Writing Studies, Cognitive Psychology, and Educational Psychology to build a framework within which to discuss pedagogical strategies implemented to support student’s self-directed learning behaviors and to positively affect their efficacy beliefs. Through an analysis of students’ written work, I determined whether and how this pedagogy facilitated students’ articulation of efficacy beliefs as evidence through the language of their reflective writing assignments. Analysis of the data suggests three major arguments: first, that while self-efficacy is a complex construct to identify and analyze qualitatively, the multi-causal construct of goal articulation serves as a helpful tool with which to measure it; second, that students’ development and discussion of personal learning objectives – in which students break down those objectives into component parts making the monitoring of their learning accessible and task-based – appears to facilitate students’ use of multi-causality in their writing; third, that identifying task-based learning throughout the course of a semester can lead teachers and researchers to see students’ own language as it relates to their perceptions of success in a writing classroom.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation examines and analyzes the work of two sections of basic writing over the course of one semester. I explore relevant research in Writing Studies, Cognitive Psychology, and Educational Psychology to build a framework within which to discuss pedagogical strategies implemented to support student’s self-directed learning behaviors and to positively affect their efficacy beliefs. Through an analysis of students’ written work, I determined whether and how this pedagogy facilitated students’ articulation of efficacy beliefs as evidence through the language of their reflective writing assignments. Analysis of the data suggests three major arguments: first, that while self-efficacy is a complex construct to identify and analyze qualitatively, the multi-causal construct of goal articulation serves as a helpful tool with which to measure it; second, that students’ development and discussion of personal learning objectives – in which students break down those objectives into component parts making the monitoring of their learning accessible and task-based – appears to facilitate students’ use of multi-causality in their writing; third, that identifying task-based learning throughout the course of a semester can lead teachers and researchers to see students’ own language as it relates to their perceptions of success in a writing classroom.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Latawiec, Amy Ann"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Open Access Dissertation","degree_discipline":"English","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Gwen Gorzelsky"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:00:26Z","subjects":["Composition","Self-Directed Learning","Self-Efficacy","Self-Regulated Learning","Writing Studies","Cognitive Psychology","Curriculum and Instruction","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/1457","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Gwen Gorzelsky"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Latawiec, Amy Ann"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2016-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Composition","Self-Directed Learning","Self-Efficacy","Self-Regulated Learning","Writing Studies","Cognitive Psychology","Curriculum and Instruction","Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/1457"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation examines and analyzes the work of two sections of basic writing over the course of one semester. I explore relevant research in Writing Studies, Cognitive Psychology, and Educational Psychology to build a framework within which to discuss pedagogical strategies implemented to support student’s self-directed learning behaviors and to positively affect their efficacy beliefs. Through an analysis of students’ written work, I determined whether and how this pedagogy facilitated students’ articulation of efficacy beliefs as evidence through the language of their reflective writing assignments. Analysis of the data suggests three major arguments: first, that while self-efficacy is a complex construct to identify and analyze qualitatively, the multi-causal construct of goal articulation serves as a helpful tool with which to measure it; second, that students’ development and discussion of personal learning objectives – in which students break down those objectives into component parts making the monitoring of their learning accessible and task-based – appears to facilitate students’ use of multi-causality in their writing; third, that identifying task-based learning throughout the course of a semester can lead teachers and researchers to see students’ own language as it relates to their perceptions of success in a writing classroom.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Self-Directed Learning And The Development Of Self-Efficacy In Basic Writing"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Gwen Gorzelsky"],"dc:creator":["Latawiec, Amy Ann"],"dc:date.available":["2016-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This dissertation examines and analyzes the work of two sections of basic writing over the course of one semester. I explore relevant research in Writing Studies, Cognitive Psychology, and Educational Psychology to build a framework within which to discuss pedagogical strategies implemented to support student’s self-directed learning behaviors and to positively affect their efficacy beliefs. Through an analysis of students’ written work, I determined whether and how this pedagogy facilitated students’ articulation of efficacy beliefs as evidence through the language of their reflective writing assignments. Analysis of the data suggests three major arguments: first, that while self-efficacy is a complex construct to identify and analyze qualitatively, the multi-causal construct of goal articulation serves as a helpful tool with which to measure it; second, that students’ development and discussion of personal learning objectives – in which students break down those objectives into component parts making the monitoring of their learning accessible and task-based – appears to facilitate students’ use of multi-causality in their writing; third, that identifying task-based learning throughout the course of a semester can lead teachers and researchers to see students’ own language as it relates to their perceptions of success in a writing classroom.
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