Literature Review

I commented on Scott Kenney literature review 

Developing Self-Directed Learners to encourage Life-Long Learners

Amnah H. Alabdulkarim

Ball State University

EDAC 634

September 26, 2016

INTRODUCTION

            Researchers have shown great interest in self-directed learning.   Self-directed learning is defined as  “ a process by which individuals take the initiative, with or without the assistance of others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating learning goals, identify human and material resources for learning, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes (M. Knowles, Principles of Androgogy, 1972) (“Self-Directed Learning”. 2009).”   People who are curious about a subject, want to improve their knowledge base or learn something new are motivated to learn independently. Self- directed learners encompass all ages, cultures, socio-economic status, gender, and educational levels.  With all these variables, they all have one thing in common:  they take responsibility for learning upon themselves.

GENERAL THEMES

            The major underlying theme of my literature review reflected on different kinds of self-directed learning, what the student chooses to learn, character traits of self-directed learners, and rationale for choosing to learn when it is not required.   The articles I reviewed analyzed various areas related to self-directed learning, and although the studies were different, many of them shared similar conclusions.  This literature review will examine the different studies related to self-directed learning and its implications.

Field Trips as a Form of Self-Directed Learning

             In the first article, How to Make Field Trips Fun, Educational, and Memorable:   Balancing Self-Directed Inquiry with Structured Learning students participated in a field trip to a museum.  According to Rohif, when students participate in a field trip the learning is extended outside of the classroom. Field trips are a form of self-directed learning because there is an element of autonomy, and students can take the initiative to explore different areas of interest. In spite of the fact that the museum focused on a certain topic, there was a multitude of different areas of study for students to focus on. Much of the learning that occurred was due largely to the individual choices of what students wanted to learn about. Although structured learning was part of this study and not a component of the other studies I reviewed, the results were similar.  The field trip demonstrated that students were able to apply what they had learned in the classroom, synthesize information and make self-initiated leaning at the museum part of their educational experience.  A survey completed by students after the field trip showed that students valued self-discovery more, since they had the freedom to choose what they wanted to learn about at the museum.  “This result supports a more loosely structured field trip, particularly if one seeks a long-term impact.” Thus, giving students time to select the areas they wanted to learn about proved to be more productive and had more positive feedback than the guided tour where the entire class had to learn the same content (Gregory, 2015).

Using the Computer for Self-Directed Learning

            “Understanding the Self-Directed Online Learning Preferences, Goals, Achievements, and Challenges of MIT Open Courseware Subscribers” demonstrated the multitude of choices available to learn autonomously online.  Unemployed people or people who cannot afford to go to college, those in prison, injured people, young people, grandparents, and people from around the world can learn new information.  Psychologist Carl Rogers once said that” humans learn best in environments that involve more choice. He believed that those who felt a sense of freedom and openness to new experiences would become more expressive and creative.  From this perspective, learner participation is emphasized over learning consumption of lectures and book materials (Rogers, C. R. (1983).”

Character Traits of Self-Directed Learners

            One of the questions that came to my attention examined the traits a student or self-learner must have. In the article “Exploring Students' Self-Directed Learning in Problem Based Learning the authors identified four components of self-directed learning: 1)  personal autonomy, 2)self -management in learning,  3)independent pursuit of learning, and 4)  learner’s control of instruction (Curtis, Mimi Miyoung, Xiaojing , Shuya and Feng-Ru, 2015 ). Personal autonomy refers to the freedom to choose what to learn. Students assume responsibility for learning what they want to learn.  To go along with the freedom to choose is the student’s own perspective of his\her abilities.  The amount of time and effort to devote to learning is also a consideration.  Often, the learner is the best person in determining if the content can be learned.   The learner knows his strengths and weaknesses.  Self-management refers to the willingness that the student has to be in charge of self-learning.   No teacher is going to be in charge of teaching the subject matter so the student must be the one to make the commitment to learn on his own. The student is in charge of managing his time and in deciding to pursue learning.   Finally, learner control refers to the learner’s decision on how to go about learning.  Learning in an informal setting or learning in a formal setting is up to the learner in choosing how he wants to learn.  It is interesting but not surprising that personal autonomy scored highest for learners seeking information to learn for themselves.

            Students who are self-directed learners perceive themselves as sources of their learning.”  That is, they take responsibility for their own learning without an instructor present.  They make decisions about being a life-long learner in deciding “what to learn and when to learn it, how much to learn, and whether something has been learned well enough.”   These answers to these questions area all determined by the learner. Researchers who studied people who were successful at self-directed learning asked what made the respondents in the study successful.  Most said freedom to learn was the most important factor.  The next most important factors were “a sense of resource abundance, choice, control over the activity or resource, sense of fun, and producing or creating something new” (Curtis, Mimi Miyoung, Xiaojing , Shuya and Feng-Ru, 2015 ).

Rationale for Self-Directed Learning

            People who were engaged in learning on their own gave similar reasons for being in charge of their learning.  Intrinsic motivation was more important that extrinsic motivation. Curiosity, seeking information, self-improvement, and wanting to learn something new were the key reasons. Other factors included novelty, sharing, collaboration, and a sense of adventure.   Some respondents said they wanted to learn more about their hobbies or to contribute to society. Over 40 percent said they felt better about themselves as human beings (Gregory, 2015).

IMPLICATIONS

            The implications for self-directed learning are greatly beneficial in the classroom.  Teachers can draw from Carl Rogers’ belief that personal autonomy and freedom to choose is of one the best criteria for deciding to engage in learning independently, For example, after studying about a specific topic, students could be given an option to select further study based on choice.  I remember a student in a research class who was asked to write on a historical topic of 1860  or create a project that would represent the era. The teacher encouraged the class to be creative in selecting their projects and to use their strengths and interest areas to draw from.   Tom was not a very strong student but was gifted musically He composed a piano piece representative of the time frame. It took some research of his behalf and many hours spent writing   He later went on to become a student at Julliard School of Music.  Teachers who encourage self-directed learning and allow students to explore areas they are interested in will create life-long learners.  Encouraging and supporting self-directed learning is an opportunity for teachers to promote responsibility for learning that will last years after they leave the classroom. In addition, schools that develop the motivation in students to become life-long learners are beginning to see results. “Nowadays, formal training is only a beginning.  Knowledge is accumulating at such a fast rate that one must continue to learn to be effective.” (Sharan, Rosemary, and Lisa,  2007 , p. 125).

REFLECTION

            I am interested in self-directed because my brother taught himself how to write Arabic script using calligraphy.  He also taught himself how to type without looking at his hands by studying techniques on the computer.  I think that he is a fine example of a self-directed learner and I know that he will continue to learn things on his own.

            The highlights exemplifying the overall theme of the literature review were best written in the words of Carl Rogers.  “Humans do best in environments where they have a lot of choice.” (Rogers, C.) I think that all the articles I reviewed demonstrated that human potential is limited only by ourselves, and we have the ability to use our brains more than we do.  People are capable of learning so much more, and we as educators must encourage our students to explore avenues on their own, especially because there often is not enough time in a classroom to learn the extra things. In a world where we must keep up with new information, people must be responsible for their own learning outside of the confines of the classroom. I thought the articles demonstrated a huge sense of empowerment that learners must feel as a result of doing something new.  I had one question with respect to the field trip however.   I think that the age of the student should be considered when taking students on a field trip.  High school or college students would be more autonomous in choosing to learn about their areas of interest.   I do not think middle school or elementary schools students are responsible enough to learn on their own.  This age group still needs a guided tour since they do not often have the developmental or academic capacities to initiate much self-learning.

            I completed this assignment by reading many articles and then selecting three that answered my questions I was formulating as I read.  I think that the different categories provided me with a strong overview of my topic and I know much more about self-directed learning now. I have always been an advocate of this concept since I observed what my younger brother was able to learn on his own .

Summary of The Literature Review

	The main  themes/ideas in the literature (Check General Themes)	Application of the main ideas in practice (check Implications)
Idea 1	Field trips are a form of self-directed learning. *students need freedom to choose areas of interest * field trips extend learning outside the classroom and make the experience memorable	Field trips are essential for building interest in a variety of subjects. Opportunities to choose what to learn in order to further knowledge should be considered as one of the goals of any teacher. Field trips will continue what the classroom teacher started.
Idea 2	On line learning *technology has created many learning opportunities *Any person can use the computer to further their interests *People learn best when they can choose what to learn	Classrooms have the advantage of extending learning beyond what is learned through books or lectures when students explore topics through technology. Carl Rogers tenet should be one of the leading principles of any classroom because students will explore topics they are interested in
Idea 3	Self-directed learners have 4 traits 1.      Personal autonomy 2.      Self-management 3.      Independent pursuit of learning 4.      Learner control of instruction	Teachers must provide opportunities for students to be self-governing and to give them control over their learning.  If all the information in the classroom comes  from the teacher the learner may not be as efficient in learning the content. The independence and ownership of learning has positive benefits.
Idea 4	There are many reasons for self-directed learning *intrinsic motivation rather than extrinsic motivation *curiosity *seeking information *desire to learn something new *desire to make society better	The teacher should capitalize on the reasons students want to learn independently.  Nurturing and developing the natural desire to learn something for the sake of learning and not because the teacher requires it is at the heart of life-long learners.  The goal of teaching students rests on the belief that not only will students learn what is taught to them, but also to inspire and motivate students to continue learning when they leave the classroom.

References

Rohlf, G. (2015). How to Make Field Trips Fun, Educational, and Memorable: Balancing Self-directed Inquiry with Structured Learning. History Teacher, 48,517-528. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a2991ea5-9a5d-4bf3-b95c-960c19d0c71e%40sessionmgr101&vid=7&hid=107

Bonk, C. , Miyoung Lee, M. , Kou, X. , Xu, S. , & Sheu, F. (2015). Understanding the Self-Directed Online Learning Preferences, Goals, Achievements, and Challenges of MIT OpenCourseWare Subscribers. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 18, 349-368. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=a2991ea5-9a5d-4bf3-b95c-960c19d0c71e%40sessionmgr101&hid=107

 Abraham, R. ,Hassan, S. , Ahlam Damanhuri, M., Salehuddin, N. (2016). Exploring Students’ Self-Directed Learning in Problem-Based Learning. Education in Medicine Journal, 8 ,15-23. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a2991ea5-9a5d-4bf3-b95c-960c19d0c71e%40sessionmgr101&vid=18&hid=107

Merriam, S., Caffarella, R., & Baumgartner, L. (2007). Learning in adulthood a comprehensive guide (3^rd ed.). San Francisco: Joseey-Bass Publishers.  

Self Directed Learning. (2009). SDL Definition – Rationale – Background. Retrieved from http://www.selfdirectedlearning.org/sdl-definition-rationale-background-2