Daily Before-and-After SRL Learning Diary

Element · All elements
Evidence · 10 claims (1 for, 6 mixed, 3 against) · 7 studies (5 causal, 1 design, 1 theoretical), q2–q3 · 2 of 7 report an effect size · 10 claims rest on one study

Description

A daily online learning diary with two sections per learning day. "Before learning, open-ended questions triggered goal-setting, planning, and self-motivation", asking which chapters, goals, strategies and time were planned. The evening section "triggered reflection and goal-setting for the following day", comparing goals to achievement and naming obstacles. Participants averaged 12.58 entries; used alone, it produced no significant gains in this study.

Design Implications

Context

Requirements

• A morning section choosing chapters, individual goals, intended learning strategies and planned time
• An evening section reporting chapters worked on, time invested, goal attainment, obstacles and plans to overcome them

Constraints

• Used alone it showed no statistically significant gains on any dependent variable in this study; the authors suggest it may need an accompanying tutorial on the benefits of learning diaries

Target Learners

• Prospective university students in mathematically oriented fields (computer science, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, mathematics) taking a voluntary online mathematics preparation course

Target Learning Goals

• Daily goal setting, planning and reflection on learning

Affordances

• Process Model Of Self Regulated Learning Schmitz Wiese

Claims

• A daily learning diary alone (Group D) did not produce statistically significant pre-post gains on any measured outcome in an online mathematics preparation course [-W]
• SRL interventions in a four-week online mathematics preparation course did not significantly change the mathematics overall score (interaction marginal), while the mathematics focus score on self-chosen chapters showed a statistically significant group by time interaction [~W]
• Keeping a structured learning diary without further intervention did not improve university students' self-regulation [-W] — attached 2026-10-15 from Fabriz et al. (2014), which proposed "Standardized learning journal (structured learning diary) for fostering self-monitoring in university courses"; tests this page's relationship.
• Combining a structured learning diary with instruction on self-regulated learning increased students' strategy use and self-efficacy [~W] — attached 2026-10-15 from Fabriz et al. (2014), which proposed "Standardized learning journal (structured learning diary) for fostering self-monitoring in university courses"; tests this page's relationship.
• Prompts increased learners' self-efficacy during learning within the prompted group but did not produce between-group differences at mid-learning or post-learning [~W]
• Self-report measures of SRL capture perceptions of strategy use rather than implementation quality, and a combined trace-data approach may be best [~W]
• The choice of online versus offline measures of SRL moderates the strength of the relationship between SRL processes and achievement [~W]
• A Monitoring and Regulation Strategy delivered online increased university students' exam scores, whereas the Monitoring Exercise alone showed no significant effect [+W]
• The intervention did not increase students' SRL aptitude, yet supported higher course grades [~W]
• Neither diary-keeping nor diary-plus-instruction improved university students' academic performance [-W]

The evidence by question

• Does keeping a learning diary by itself improve learners' self-regulation, or only when it comes with self-regulation training or prompts? Keeping a structured learning diary without further intervention did not improve university students' self-regulation [-M]

Related Elements

• Journal_Reflections
• Goal Setting

Examples

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Key Sources

• Bellhäuser, H., Liborius, P., & Schmitz, B. (2022). Fostering Self-Regulated Learning in Online Environments: Positive Effects of a Web-Based Training With Peer Feedback on Learning Behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 813381. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.813381

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	element
id	daily-before-and-after-srl-learning-diary
title	Daily Before-and-After SRL Learning Diary
description	A daily online learning diary with two sections per learning day.
status	review
canonical	True
generated	by claude/unspecified on 2026-09-24
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
sources	1 — bellhäuser-2022

Frontmatter is the page's machine-readable record — see the Schema & Guide.