Exploring creativity in self-regulated learning and its association with academic performance

Background: Despite global acknowledgment of the importance of fostering creativity in education, there is a gap in understanding creativity in learning process. Aims: This study examines how creativity manifests in students’ use of learning strategies within self-regulated learning (SRL) and how it relates to self-efficacy and academic performance. Specifically, we explore the relations between four indicators of creativity (fluency, flexibility, originality, and usefulness) and self-monitoring, and examine how these indicators influence self-efficacy and academic performance. Sample: Participants were 100 undergraduate students (M_age = 19.48 years; SD = 0.86; 70 % female) from a first-year psychological statistics class. Methods: Using a diary approach over 14 days before the final exam, participants documented their learning strategies and assessed their self-monitoring and academic self-efficacy daily. Final exam scores were recorded as academic performance. Creativity in the application of learning strategies was codified into four indicators: fluency (number of strategies used), flexibility (number of strategy categories and category switches), originality (uniqueness of strategies), and usefulness (perceived effectiveness of strategies). Results: Dynamic structural equation models indicated that fluency and flexibility (category number) positively predicted next-day self-monitoring, while self-monitoring predicted next-day flexibility (category switch) and usefulness. Regression analyses showed significant positive relations between fluency, flexibility (category number and switch), usefulness, and academic performance. Academic self-efficacy mediated the relation between fluency, flexibility (category number), originality, usefulness, and academic performance. Conclusion: This study illuminates the creative dimension in the application of learning strategies within SRL, highlighting how creativity dynamically interacts with self-monitoring and self-efficacy to enhance academic performance.