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Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 7 October 2021

Maura Pilotti, Halah Alkuhayli and Runna Al Ghazo

In the present study, the authors examined whether academic performance [grade point average (GPA)] can be predicted by self-reported frequency of memorization and recitation…

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Abstract

Purpose

In the present study, the authors examined whether academic performance [grade point average (GPA)] can be predicted by self-reported frequency of memorization and recitation, verbatim memory performance, and self-efficacy in a sample of college students from Saudi Arabia.

Design/methodology/approach

Students' verse memory, word memory, experience with memorization and recitation, as well as general self-efficacy were measured. GPA was provided by the Office of the Registrar.

Findings

Verbatim memory performance for individual words and verses moderately predicted GPA.

Research limitations/implications

To be determined is the extent to which memory skills for different materials are related to memorization and recitation practice as well as encoding preferences.

Practical implications

The findings indicate that even though in college a premium is placed on activities that transform the format of the materials to be learned, activities that replicate materials may still be helpful.

Social implications

In Western pedagogy, memorization and recitation are considered counterproductive modes of information acquisition. The findings of this study illustrate that retention is an essential processing step upon which the complex cognitive activities that are embedded in college-level curricula rely.

Originality/value

The extant literature illustrates the benefits of exceptional memorization and recitation training. The findings suggest that academic success is positively related to what would be judged as moderate practice, thereby supporting the notion that benefits exist.

Details

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Gulf Perspectives, vol. 18 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2077-5504

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 16 November 2021

Maura A.E. Pilotti, Runna Al Ghazo and Sami Juma Al Shamsi

The present field research aimed to assess whether gender differences exist in academic entitlement among college students of a society in rapid transition from a patriarchal…

157

Abstract

Purpose

The present field research aimed to assess whether gender differences exist in academic entitlement among college students of a society in rapid transition from a patriarchal system to one fostering gender equity. It then aimed to determine whether particular dimensions of academic entitlement or a simplified one-factor measure can be used as an early indicator of course-related academic difficulties.

Design/methodology/approach

College students completed a questionnaire about academic entitlement. Records of test and assessment performance, as well as attendance, were collected for the first half of an academic semester. Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, instruction was delivered online synchronously.

Findings

A few gender differences were found that departed from the largely consistent finding in the extant literature of greater academic entitlement in males. For female students, selected dimensions of academic entitlement, but not class attendance, weakly predicted poor performance. For male students, dimensions of academic entitlement were ineffective predictors of both performance and attendance, thereby suggesting that demographic characteristics may define the sensitivity of academic entitlement measures to early, course-related academic difficulties.

Research limitations/implications

The current study has limitations to be addressed in future research. For instance, the insensitivity of male students' academic entitlement to early performance measures needs to be investigated further. It may be the byproduct of the weakening of the view of male superiority typical of patriarchal societies, which arises from top-down interventions intended to promote gender equity. Yet, it may also underline males' reluctance to express a view that is counter to institutional messages of gender equity as well as religious and cultural values of modesty (Al-Absi, 2018), and personal responsibility (Asrorovna, 2020; Smither and Khorsandi, 2009). Another limitation is the extent to which specific items or dimensions of academic entitlement map into specific cultural dimensions, such as individualism and collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity and femininity (Hofstede, 2011).

Practical implications

Academic entitlement is of concern to educators at universities and colleges across the world for several reasons. High levels of stress (Barton and Hirsch, 2016) and frustration (Anderson et al., 2013) usually accompany academic entitlement along with students' self-reports of lower exerted effort (Kopp et al., 2011). In self-reports, academic entitlement is found to be correlated with an external locus of control, lower academic motivation and lower ratings of class attendance (Fromuth et al., 2019). Boswell (2012) has also reported it as linked to lower students' confidence in their ability to complete with success the courses in which they are enrolled (i.e. course self-efficacy). Thus, the availability of early measures of academic risk in core courses, which prepare students for advanced courses in their major, can be particularly valuable to educators and administrators.

Social implications

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) represents a society in rapid transition (Nowak and Vallacher, 2019) from a gender-segregated system to one in which gender equity in educational as well as occupational opportunities and choices is promoted and sustained through top-down institutional changes (e.g. decrees, declarations, investments, etc.; Mansyuroh, 2019). The study’s findings suggest that college students, the main targets of institutional efforts promoting gender equity, may be responsive to such efforts.

Originality/value

The present study is a snapshot of a moment at which the impact of top-down institutional actions for gender equity has become palpable mostly due to its spreading across the large youth population of KSA (Assaad and Roudi-Fahimi, 2007). In this research, the authors asked how the target recipients (i.e. college students) of institutional gender-equity efforts might react.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 14 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 22 February 2022

Christina Gitsaki

673

Abstract

Details

Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Gulf Perspectives, vol. 18 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2077-5504

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