Academic Achievement: It Is Not How Smart You Are, But How You Cope With Your Life And Manage Your Time
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24297/jssr.v8i2.6607Keywords:
Previous academic result, time management, time managementacademic achievementAbstract
Previous research suggests that contributing factors such as previous academic result, coping and time management can predict student success at the universities. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between previous academic grades, coping and time management practices on academic achievement among undergraduate students from four of Malaysia public institutions for higher education. 551 university students completed a Time Management Questionnaire (TMQ), COPE Inventory and provided their self-reported high school grades and current Grade Point Average (GPA). Analysis of data from descriptive and inferential statistics was done. Results showed that previous academic grades and the practice of time management (short range planning and attitude toward time) have no direct effect on academic achievement. However, the use of coping strategies (problem focused and denial focused) and the practice of time management (long range planning) showed that there was a significant effect on Grade Point Average (GPA).
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References
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[37] Wilkinson, D., Zhang, J. Z., Byrne, G. J., Luke, H., Ozolins, I. Z., Parker, M. H. & Peterson, R.F. (2008). Medical school selection criteria and the prediction of academic performance. Evidence leading to change in policy and practice at the University of Queensland. Medication Education Journal, 188(6), 349-354.
[38] Wolfe, R.N. & Johnson, S.D. (1995). Personality as a predictor of college performance. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 55(2), 177-185.
[39] Yates, J. & James, D. (2006). Predicting the “strugglersâ€: a case-control study of students at Nottingham University Medical School. British Medical Journal 332(7548), 1009-1013.
[40] Zwick, R. & Sklar. J. C. 2005. Predicting college grades and degree completion using high school grades and SAT scores: The role of student ethnicity and first language. American Educational Research Journal 42(3), 439-464.
[2] Aluja, A. & Blanch, A. (2004). Socialized personality, scholastic aptitudes, study habits, and academic achievements: Exploring the link. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 20(X), 1-9.
[3] Angrist, J., Lang, D. & Oreopoulos, P. (2008). Incentives and services for college achievement: Evidence from a randomized trial. American Economic Journal Applied Economics 1(1), 136-163.
[4] Barefoot, B. O. (2000). The first year experience: Are we making it any better? About Campus 4(6), 12-18.
[5] Belloc, F., Maruotti, A., & Petrella, L. (2010). University drop-out: An Italian experience. Higher Education, 60, 127-138.
[6] Bitsika, V., Sharpley, C. F. & Hartley, L. (2010). The specific environmental antecedents of anxiety and depression among Australian university students: Development of the effects of University Study of Lifestyle Questionnaire. The International Journal of Educational and Psychological Assessment 4(April), 2-18.
[7] Bridgeman, B., McCamley-Jenkins, L., & Ervin, N. (2000). Predictions of Freshman Grade-Point Average from the Revised and Recentered SAT I: Reasoning Test. New York: College Entrance Examination Board.
[8] Britton, B. K. & Glynn, S. M. (1989). Mental management and creativity: A cognitive model of time management for intellectual productivity. In Handbook of Creativity. New York: Plenum Press.
[9] Britton, B. K. & Tesser, A. (1991). Effects of time management practices on college grades. Journal of Educational Psychology , 83(3), 405-410.
[10] Bruinsma, M & Jansen, E. P. W. A. (2007). Educational productivity in higher education: An examination of part of the walberg educational productivity model. School Effectiveness and School Improvement 18(1), 45-65.
[11] Burton, L. J., Taylor, J. A., Dowling, D. G. & Lawrence, J. (2009). Learning approaches, personality and concepts of knowledge of first year student: Mature age versus school leaver. Studies in Learning, Evaluation Innovation and Development 6(1), 65- 81.
[12] Cemaloglu, N. & Filiz, S. (2010). The relation between time management skills and academic achievement of potential teachers. Educational Research Quarterly, 33(4), 3-23.
[13] Chamorro-Premuzic, T. & Furnham, A. (2003). Personality predicts academic performance: Evidence from two longitudinal university samples. Journal of Research in Psychology, 37(4), 319-338.
[14] Claessens, B.J.C., Van Eerde, W., Rutte, C.G., & Roe, R. A. (2007). A review of time management literature. Personnel Review, 36(2), 255-276.
[15] Curtis, D. A., Lind, S. L., Plesh. O. & Finzen, F. C. (2007). Correlation of admissions criteria with academic performance in dental students. Journal of Dental Education 71(10), 1314-
1321.
[16] DeBerard, M. S., Spielmans, G. I. & Julka. D. C. (2004). Predictors of academic achievement and retention among college freshmen: A Longitudinal study. College Student Journal, 38(1), 66-80.
[17] Enns, M.W., Cox, B.J., Sareen, J., & Freeman, P. (2001). Adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism in medical students: A longitudinal investigation. Medical Education, 35,1034-1042.
[18] Evans, M. & Fancy, A. Institutional characteristics and the relationship between students’ first year university and final year secondary school academic performance. Retrieved [11 March 2012] from http://www.aair.org.au/pdf.
[19] Ferguson, E., James, D. & Madeley, L. (2002). Factors associated with success in medical school: Systematic review of the literature. British Medical Journal 324(7343), 952-957.
[20] Fike, D. S. & Fike, R. (2008). Predictors of first year student retention in the community college. Community College Review 36(2), 68-88.
[21] Folkman, S., & Lazarus, R. S. (1985). If It changes it must be a process: Study of emotion and coping during three stages of a college examination. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48(1), 150-170.
[22] Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Dunkel-Schetter, C., DeLongis, A. & Gruen, R. (1986). Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 50(5), 992-1003.
[23] Francis-Smythe, J. A. (2006). Time management. In timing the future. The case for a time based prospective memory. Glicksohn, J. & Myslobodsky, M. (pnyt). hlm. 1-37. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing.
[24] Lassibille, G. & Gómez, L.N. (2008). Why do higher education students drop out? Evidence from Spain. Education Economics, 16(1), 89-105.
[25] Lau, L. K. (2003). Institutional factors affecting student retention. Education 124(1), 126-136.
[26] Lawrence, J. (2005). Re-conceptualising attrition and retention: Integrating theoretical, research and student perspectives. Studies in Learning, Evaluation, Innovation and Development 2(3), 16–33.
[27] Lazarus, R.S. (1993). Coping theory and research: Past, present, and future. Psychosomatic Medicine 55(3), 234-247.
[28] Lazarus, R. S. & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer.
[29] McKenzie, K., & Schweitzer, R. (2001). Who succeeds at university? Factors predicting academic performance in first year Australian university students. Higher Education Research and Development, 20(1), 21-33.
[30] Morisano, D., Hirsh, J. B., Peterson, J. B., Pihl, R, O. & Shore, B. M. (2010). Setting, elaborating and reflecting on personal goals improve academic performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(2), 255-264.
[31] Palmer, M., O‟Kane, P. & Owens, M. (2009). Betwixt spaces: Student counts of turning point experiences in first year transition. Studies in Higher Education 34(1), 37-54.
[32] Parker, J. D. A., & Endler, N. S. (1996). Coping and defense: A historical overview. In M. Zeidner & N. Endler (Eds.), Handbook of coping: Theory, research, applications (pp. 3-23). New York: Wiley.
[33] Rochelle, C. F. & Dotterweich. D. (2007). Student Success in Business Statistics. Journal of Economics and Finance Education 6(1), 19-24.
[34] Rush, B.R, Sanderson. M. W. & Elmore, R.G. (2005). Re-matriculation indicators of academic difficulty during veterinary school. Journal of Veterinary Medicine Education, 32(4), 517-522.
[35] Smith, A, R. & Garton, B. L. (2008). Prior college credit of first semester freshmen: Does it make a difference? NACTA Journal 352(3): 39-45.
[36] Utusan Malaysia. (2009). 4,800 pelajar universiti gagal setiap tahun. http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp [5 November 2011].
[37] Wilkinson, D., Zhang, J. Z., Byrne, G. J., Luke, H., Ozolins, I. Z., Parker, M. H. & Peterson, R.F. (2008). Medical school selection criteria and the prediction of academic performance. Evidence leading to change in policy and practice at the University of Queensland. Medication Education Journal, 188(6), 349-354.
[38] Wolfe, R.N. & Johnson, S.D. (1995). Personality as a predictor of college performance. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 55(2), 177-185.
[39] Yates, J. & James, D. (2006). Predicting the “strugglersâ€: a case-control study of students at Nottingham University Medical School. British Medical Journal 332(7548), 1009-1013.
[40] Zwick, R. & Sklar. J. C. 2005. Predicting college grades and degree completion using high school grades and SAT scores: The role of student ethnicity and first language. American Educational Research Journal 42(3), 439-464.
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Published
2015-06-25
How to Cite
Hamdan, A., Nasir, R., Khairudin, R., & Sulaiman, W. S. W. (2015). Academic Achievement: It Is Not How Smart You Are, But How You Cope With Your Life And Manage Your Time. JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH, 8(2), 1535–1547. https://doi.org/10.24297/jssr.v8i2.6607
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