Learning approaches and high-impact educational practices at university: a proposal for a reduced scale of the student process questionnaire

Abstract

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Research on the relationship between learning approaches and variables such as the perceived impact of some university activities is limited. The present study proposes a reduced Student Process Questionnaire (SPQ) to relate learning approaches to high-impact educational practices (HIEPs). The sample consisted of 893 first and final-year university students of different degrees. As expected, the subscales correlate academic self-concept and self-efficacy positively with the deep approach, and negatively with the surface approach. The results show that students who maintain a deep learning approach obtain a more significant impact on their personal and professional development by HIEPs (especially conferences, workshops and service-learning activities). Women have a lower surface approach and social and humanities students have higher levels of the deep approach.