Bondarenko Irina N.

Background. A decrease in cognitive activity and the occurrence of various deficits with a general decrease in a positive attitude to learning creates difficulties in learning during the transition to high school. It becomes important to identify regulatory resources for development of cognitive activity and engagement during the period before the 9th grade, as well as at the beginning of high school.

Objective — to identify the dynamics of cognitive activity and engagement during the transition from middle to high school and to assess the contribution of conscious self–regulation of eighth graders to this dynamic in the 9th and 10th grades.

Sample. 156 eighth graders aged M=13.88; SD=0.445. In the 9th and 10th grades, repeated examinations were carried out using the same methods. As a result, longitudinal data was collected at three points.

Methods. "Attitude to learning in middle and high school" (I.N. Bondarenko, I.Yu. Tsyganov, V.I. Morosanova). "Multidimensional scale of school engagement" (T.G. Fomina, V.I. Morosanova). Questionnaire of V.I. Morosanova "Style of self-regulation of learning activity, SRLAQ-M" (V.I. Morosanova, I.N. Bondarenko).

Results. We revealed between individual differences in the trajectories of cognitive engagement, but they were not revealed for cognitive activity. It is shown that in order to successfully maintain cognitive activity and engagement in high school, it is important to achieve the maximum level of their development in the 8th grade, a year before the state exams. Longitudinal analysis has shown that school engagement is more associated with conscious self-regulation in comparison with cognitive activity, which significantly depends on external factors. Conscious self–regulation, fulfilling its resource role, on the one hand, makes a direct contribution to the level of development of these characteristics, on the other hand, prevents their sharp decline in case of difficulties or temporary failures.

Conclusion. The development of conscious self-regulation in secondary school is able to compensate for the negative trends of falling cognitive activity and engagement that occur in high school students.

The aim of this study is to find out the reason why intellectually gifted adolescents may have poor academic achievements. Comprehensive analysis of psychometric intelligence, conscious self-regulation of learning activities and academic achievements relationships was carried out on a sample of 87 students aged 14—16 years. All of them attended school for gifted adolescents Sozvezdie and enrolled in a special academic program (A Gifted Child). A comparison of KFT and SSUDM questionnaires average values (on standardization and study samples) showed that gifted adolescents have higher levels of conscious self-regulation and regulatory processes of planning, modeling, and programming than their ordinary peers. The relationships between all regulatory processes, overall level of conscious self-regulation and IQ level with academic achievements in humanities and sciences were established. It was also proved that conscious self-regulation mediates students’ academic achievement. It can be concluded that high self-regulation of educational activity is as important for academic achievements as high IQ-level. Only the students who are initiative in regulating learning process as well as their activity in school can achieve the highest results. Thus, initiativity and autonomy are the link between the motivational sphere, IQ and the system of conscious self-regulation of educational activities.