2.2. Self-regulated Learning (SRL) and self-report measures
Students' control, accountability, and appraisal of their academic accomplishments to take corrective action are self-regulated learning skills [
2]. The superior academic achievement of pupils with greater self-regulation is cited as evidence of the significance of such skills [
19]. In addition, the increased availability of information and the introduction of Internet+ technologies heighten the need for self-control. The cyclical structure of SRL's cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, affective, and behavioral processes enables the student to attain specific learning objectives [
3]. Each of these processes can be studied independently, but their interaction in the learning process can provide a comprehensive picture of learning dynamics. SRL is a skill that can be acquired with practice and is crucial to educational quality and academic achievement [
20,
21].
Methodology has been a constant topic in SRL research [
22]. Self-report measures are commonly used to assess different aspects of SRL, including students' use of cognitive and meta-cognitive strategies, their self-efficacy beliefs and learning motivation. Princh proposed MSLQ model to assess college students' motivation and use of learning strategies for the first time. The reliability and validity of the questionnaire were also assessed [
23,
24]. Ben Eliyahu & Linnenbrink- Garcia demonstrated in the ISRL model how self-regulatory abilities are limited through depletion [
25]. By using the RLQ and weekly journals, McCardle and Hadwin examined the similarities and differences in students' accounts of their metacognitive processes, in which the weekly journals were focused on students' reflections on the previous week and their plans for the next week [
22,
26]. Lichtinger and Kaplan adopted interviews and classroom assignments to track the use of learning strategies, made qualitative classroom observations of engagement processes, and stimulated recall interviews [
25,
27]. As claimed by Karabenick, a more productive approach involves examination of self-reported processes to ensure the validity of the constructs and thus the legitimacy of inferences drawn from these measures [
28].
SRL has become one of the most important areas of research in educational psychology [
29]. At the same time, a considerable number of variables influencing learning (e.g. self-efficacy, volition, and cognitive strategies) are examined within a comprehensive and holistic approach. Panadero explored the commonalities between different SRL theories. Firstly, the SRL model forms an integrated and coherent framework, within which research can be conducted and upon which students can be educated to be more strategic and successful. Secondly, the SRL model exists at different stages of student development or levels of education. Therefore, scholars and teachers need to apply differential effects of these SRL models and theories in order to improve students’ learning and SRL skills [
30,
31,
32].
2.3. Review of the creative process and the creative assessment measurement techniques
The creative process is analyzed as a particular series of thoughts and behaviors that results in a new product [
33,
34,
35]. Some studies divide the creative process into four stages: problem definition, unconscious data processing, idea generation, and conscious idea testing [
36]. Several studies have demonstrated that the creative process comprises various heterogeneous subprocesses, including idea generation and investigation [
37]. It distinguishes between generating and selected subprocesses and involves problem comprehension, idea production, and planning [
38,
39]. It incorporates iteration, experimentation, exploration, intuition, and idea emergence in a more modern model [
18].
In general, existing research on creativity covers predominantly divergent thinking abilities [
40,
41,
42,
43], while consideration of processes that are not included in divergent thinking received much less attention [
44]. The phenomenon is referred to as the defined gap. The sub-processes unrelated to divergent thinking are reported to be active elements of the creative process, and they can most effectively develop creativity in a well-defined sequence [
42].
Divergent Thinking (DT) generates ideas in response to a single problem [
43]. There are many approaches to DT assessments; the most widely used are tests where tasks include open-ended problems in different modalities [
41,
44]. Among these assessment tools, the most popular for many decades have been the Wallach-Kogan Creativity Tests – WKCT [
45] or the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking - TTCT [
46]. The weakness of DT tests is that they use available content and do not reflect open problems and later stages of creativity [
42]. Thus, although the DT score is an empirically confirmed indicator of successful creative activity, it does not fully reflect the creativity phenomenon [
43]. DT tests are not designed to measure the use of specific strategies, processes, or other factors that promote creativity; in fact, DT tests cannot measure the actual creative process [
2].
Since early creativity studies conventionally viewed the creative process in terms of cognitive operations, self-regulated processes were neglected [
37]. Recent research has aimed to fill this void. It has been observed that a person employs different action strategies and ways of thinking before (setting goals, planning), during (emotion management, control), and after (evaluation) a specific task, which lends credence to the concept of self-regulation phases [
47]. The creative process has begun to be considered within the broader framework of self-regulated learning, which confirms that the creative process can be learned and, second, that creative process strategies can be incorporated into general learning strategies Numerous SRL models have been created, with Zimmerman, Pintrich, Winne and Hadwin being the most influential [
48]. According to Zimmerman's social cognitive model (
Figure 1.a), SRL is comprised of three cyclical phases (forethought, performance, and self-reflection. Self-Regulated Learning, or SRL, is a model developed by Zimmerman that acts as a theoretical framework to describe how individuals govern their own learning process through a variety of cognitive and metacognitive processes. The learner's ability to control their own cognition, motivation, and behavior during the learning process is emphasized by the model. Using the SRL framework developed by Zimmerman and Martinez-Pons recent research is based [
49,
50]. The four phases of Pintrich's social cognitive model (
Figure 1.b) (forethought, monitoring, control, and reflection) suggest that students can control their cognition, motivation, behavior, and learning environment [
22]. Pintrich was one of the first scholars to empirically examine the connection between SRL and motivation [
51], in terms of theory and the absence of a connection between motivation and cognition [
23,
51,
52]. Another significant contribution made by Pintrich to the subject of SRL is the creation of equipment to measure SRL (MSLQ) [
51]. More recently, two evaluations indicated that the MSLQ is the most frequently used instrument for measuring both SRL and self-efficacy, this demonstrates the significant influence of Pintrich's work on SRL [
52]. Winne and Hadwin's model (
Figure 1.c) consists of four phases: task definition, setting of learning goals and plans, enaction of learning strategies, and adapting [
53]. While asserting the goal-directed nature of SRL and the effects of self-regulatory actions on motivation, Winne and Hadwin's model of SRL has a strong metacognitive perspective that recognizes self-regulated students as active learners who manage their own learning through monitoring and the use of (meta)cognitive strategies primarily. [
54,
55]. It has been frequently utilized, particularly in studies utilizing computer-supported learning environments [
56].
DiBenedetto compares Rhodes’s theory of creativity with Bandura’s social cognitive theory. Discusses the nature of creativity using Zimmerman and Schunk’s three-phase model of self-regulation to show how students effectively learn to create art within academic walls [
57]. Boldt studied artistic creativity outside of DT [
43]; graduate students performed a creative drawing task, and their thought processes were explored using the Think-Aloud method. Think-Aloud revealed the activity of many creative sub-processes in students: idea generation, choice, evaluation, clarification, synthesis, comparing to others, and knowledge application in the subject area [
53]. The first four sub-processes (idea generation, choice, evaluation, and clarification) accounted for 82% of the observed processes [
44].
Research on the relationship between self-regulation and creativity confirms that creativity is strongly correlated with time management, self-control in task performance, and persistence and does not correlate with personal disorganization [
58,
59,
60]. Thus, the positive impact of time management skills (a sign of self-regulation) on creativity is reported [
61,
62]. In addition, self-concordant goals associated with creativity, resulting from a student’s independent choice, improve the motivation for learning [
63,
64]. Self-regulated learners develop successful learning strategies and control their behavior to achieve their goals [
59].
Progress in art education depends on improving the work quality so corrective actions can be taken with quantitative data on the development of creativity characteristics in different phases of creative activity [
65]. This research aimed to identify student creativity characteristics through different creative process measurement techniques within SRL, which determine the quality of their final product. It is necessary to study the aspects of creativity at different stages (phases) of the creative competition: before, during, and afterwards.
To reach the objectives, the researcher will answer the following questions:
RQ1: Within a SRL, in different competition phases (Forethought phase, Performance phase, Self-Reflection phase), which creative process measurement technique were chosen?
RQ2: Within a SRL, in different competition phases (Forethought phase, Performance phase, Self-Reflection phase), the distinctive characteristics of creativity.
The Focus of the Present Study
The researchers used two sets of SRL measures: Ability Measures and Event Measures [
2]. Ability Measures include student self-reports, student ratings compiled by teachers, and retrospective interviews. They allow evaluating global or subject-specific aspects of the SRL or the creative process but often not in real-time. Event Measures include event logs or diaries, direct observations, think-aloud protocols, and interview micro-analysis [
2,
66]. Event Measures are task-specific, context-specific, and real-time.
Figure 2 schematically shows the study design based on Zimmerman’s model.