Publication Date

2026

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Rupnow, Rachel

Second Advisor

Shafer, Mary

Degree Name

Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy)

Legacy Department

Department of Mathematical Sciences

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore what self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies students use in developmental mathematics classes that use self-described inquiry-based learning (IBL) and ALEKS as homework, as well as their perceptions of this course style. An additional purpose is to discover how instructors implement IBL in their classrooms, including the activities the instructors and students engage in. SRL skills and strategies have been shown to be correlated to academic achievement in mathematics classrooms; however, there is a lack of research on students’ SRL strategies in classes that use both IBL and technological support such as ALEKS. In addition, while IBL is a commonly used practice, there is no consistently used definition, and thus the implementation of IBL can vary. This research sheds light on what SRL strategies students use, which will help practitioners focus on improving specific SRL strategies.

This mixed methods study used a self-developed open-ended questionnaire to determine the SRL strategies students employ and used classroom observations to describe how IBL is implemented in the classroom. Six sections of college algebra students participated in the research, with five instructors teaching the six sections. The questionnaire asked students about their strategy usage in different contexts, as well as their perceptions of the course. Eleven class periods of each of the five sections were recorded and coded for practices used in Inquiry-Oriented Instruction, as well as what activities students and the instructors were engaged in, coded in two-minute intervals.

The results of the SRL strategies were that students were focused on peer-assistance, by either asking their peers for help or by working collaboratively with them to learn the content. Students also often used ALEKS to practice, and had generally positive perceptions of the course, describing that they could develop the mathematical ideas in class, and practice at home with ALEKS. Students did not often describe setting goals for themselves, however, and had some negative perceptions of group work and ALEKS, such as group work depended on how well the other members did, and ALEKS feeling overwhelming with the amount of work required. For the classroom observations, some sections had more focus on conceptual ideas, while other sections focused more on procedures. The sections generally elicited student answers, and less commonly their reasoning. The whole-class discussions were often instructor-led with fewer student contributions, although these differed per section.

Some teaching implications include focusing on SRL interventions, especially revolving around goal setting, such as weekly journalling exercises. In addition, while some instructors focused on having students work in small groups, more discussion and student reasoning could be shared at the entire class level, such as by asking more reasoning questions, or asking students to interact with each other’s reasoning, in order to build on a greater variety of student contributions.

Extent

410 pages

Language

en

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

Download

Share

COinS