LASSI - For Teachers

What is LASSI - An Overview

Learning & Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) is a 10-scale, 80-item assessment of students' awareness about and use of learning and study strategies related to Self-Regulation, Skill and Will components of strategic learning. Research has repeatedly demonstrated that these factors contribute significantly to success in college and that they can be learned or enhanced through educational interventions such as learning and study skills courses. LASSI can be used as:

A basis for improving student learning and study strategies.
A diagnostic measure to help identify areas in which students could benefit most from educational interventions.
A counseling tool for college orientation programs, developmental education programs, learning assistance programs, and learning centres.
A pre-post achievement measure for students participating in programs or courses focusing on learning strategies and study skills.
An evaluation tool to assess the degree of success of intervention programs or courses. The LASSI is easily administered (30 minutes) and self-scored. Each LASSI packet includes the instrument and score interpretation information.

LASSI provides standardized scores (percentile score equivalents) and national norms (USA) for ten different scales (there is no total score since this is a diagnostic measure). LASSI is both diagnostic and prescriptive. It provides students with a diagnosis of their strengths and weaknesses, compared to other students, in the areas covered by the 10 scales and it is prescriptive that it provides feedback about areas where students may be weak and need to improve their knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and skills in. LASSI measures three main areas of what is termed 'strategic learning':

1. The SELF-REGULATION Component of Strategic Learning

These scales measure how students manage, or self-regulate and control the whole learning process through using their time effectively, focusing their attention and maintaining their concentration over time, checking to see if they have met the learning demands for a class, an assignment or a test, and using study supports such as review sessions, tutors or special features of a textbook.

2. The SKILL component of Strategic Learning

These scales examine students' learning strategies, skills and thought processes related to identifying, acquiring and constructing meaning for important new information, ideas and procedures, and how they prepare for and demonstrate their new knowledge on tests or other evaluative procedures.

3. The WILL Component of Strategic Learning

These scales measure students' receptivity to learning new information, their attitudes and interests in college, their diligence, self-discipline, and willingness to exert the effort necessary to successfully complete academic requirements, and the degree to which they worry about their academic performance.

The above document is adopted from LASSI, H&H Publishing
https://www.hhpublishing.com/index.html

Helping Students to Better Manage their own Learning

Administering the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI)

To help students become good learners and be successful in their University education, it is pertinent that we, the teachers, and the students themselves, understand how they learn and assess the strengths and weaknesses in their learning strategies. Then we can provide resources and academic support to help our students to better manage their own learning.

By administering the LASSI assessment to all our freshmen, we will have a better picture of their strengths and weaknesses in learning. Empirical evidence has shown that resources and academic support provided in the freshman year can be critical in helping students to transform into motivated and proactive learners, enabling them to benefit more from tertiary education in their ensuing years as well as remaining active as life-long learners.

With the LASSI data is collected from undergraduate freshmen during the registration days. Aggregate student LASSI scores at college, school and department levels are made available to Dean of College/School and Head of academic units respectively through the Executive Information System administered by Office of the Provost and Deputy President. For credit-bearing courses, these undergraduate students’ LASSI scores would also be aggregate and made accessible to respective teachers through the Class List function in CityU’s Canvas system. The information is hopefully expected to enrich the student profile and helps inform respective units and parties to consider relevant and appropriate remedial and instructional decisions and actions to address students’ learning needs.

All academic units and individual teachers are all welcome to contact us at edgelassi@cityu.edu.hk to discuss the use of student LASSI scores.