Transforming Experiences Into Expertise: Leveraging Event Cognition to Support Self-Regulation in a Practical Learning System

Abstract

Theoretical and empirical evidence suggests that event cognition influences both the quantity and quality of self-regulatory processes learners deploy. This dissertation examines the relationship between event cognition, self-regulation, and learning from events, detailing the development of a guided reflection tool designed to leverage basic cognitive and perceptual processing to support self-regulation in experiential learning. This tool was empirically evaluated against a control condition in a within-subjects study with 17 Vanderbilt nursing students completing three clinical simulation exercises. The guided reflection tool was hypothesized to support students’ self-regulation, leading to improved simulation memory, metacognitive judgment accuracy, and simulation performance outcomes. Students who engaged with the Reflect System demonstrated significant improvements in metacognitive judgment accuracy and confidence. However, the tool did not significantly impact simulation memory, follow-up performance, or motivation. Additionally, findings diverge from established theoretical predictions, yet the observed link between event segmentation and metacognitive judgment accuracy highlights a promising avenue for future research. This work represents an initial step toward developing a generalized framework for integrating event cognition principles into experiential learning across diverse educational contexts.