Strategies for successful learning

The goal of this paper is to describe the process of research action throughout the past two years. It first deals with the initial situation I was faced with when I started to teach two parallel classes - a fact that promised many advantages until I realized how different, if not to say opposing, these two classes were. Being blessed with a class that was extremely enthusiastic, desiring to learn, soaking up knowledge, the gap between them and a class that was quiet, introverted and seemingly not motivated to learn, was not to be ignored. Being the same teacher in both classes, teaching approximately the same material with the same enthusiasm, I was struck by the diverse attitudes I was confronted with.

After moderate success in motivating the latter class to talk more within lessons, but realizing, quiet as they were, they did not have an issue to present a topic in front of the class, I became more interested in the reasons why the two classes were so different in terms of class atmosphere, motivation to study, learning outcome and success. This made me want to find out about different learning and success strategies students pursue on their way to graduate from high school.

With the help of questionnaires and interviews, backed up with acknowledged theories in scientific literature, I aimed at finding out more about students’ strategies and the reasons for the opposing learning atmosphere in both classes.

---

Autor/in: Julia Grafl
Durchführende Institution/en: Bundesgymnasium, Bundesrealgymnasium und Bundesoberstufenrealgymnasium Wien 22 Heustadelgasse (922056)
Fach/Fächer: Englisch

---

Dateien: Langfassung