Self-regulated Learning and Education: Graduate Students’ Preferences for Online vs. Face-to-Face Learning Formats

As educators the world over acknowledge the value of independent learning, in academia, and especially in college graduates, self-regulated learning (SRL) is expected both as an acquired academic skill and for teaching students, also as a value and skill they are expected to instill in their pupils. We present and test a model that may help understand the role of SRL in students’ learning format. We hypothesize that self-directed learning skills and preferences will mediate the associations between students’ personal characteristics and preferred learning format (traditional vs. distance/online). We asked 122 educators following master’s courses in northern Israel to report demographics, SRL skills and their preferred format of learning (traditional or online). The results provide partial support for the model suggesting that 4 out of the 5 components of SRL indeed mediated the relations between gender, marital status and previous education and preferences for either in-class, traditional face-to-face learning or online/distance learning. The results may help enhance our understanding of the role of SRL in lifelong learning and development as well as teachers’ ability and inclination to teach self-direction and self-regulation in learning.