Unit B.1.2 Specifics of self-directed learning
Specifics of self-directed learning
Specifics of self-directed learning
Specifics of self-directed learning
Specifics of self-directed learning
Self-directed learning is primarily related with adult learning. The creation of self-directed learning theory is associated with educator Malcolm Knowles.
You can read more about Malcolm Knowles here (optional).
Knowles, M. (1975/2004). Self-directed learning: A guide for learners and teachers. New York, NY: Association Press
Knowles was a very influential figure in the adult education field, specifically, in informal adult education, andragogy and self-directed learning. He is one of the first ones who provided a definition of self-directed learning. He said:
Self-directed learning is a process in which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating learning goals, identifying human and material resources for learning, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes (1975/2004, p. 32).
Malcolm Knowles
If you look into the definition of self-directed learning given by Malcolm Knowles, what would be the most important aspects of self-directed learning? Name them for yourself.
Self-directed learning is primarily related to the initiative that goes from learner’s and not from educator’s side.
This is the main difference from pedagogy, where the educator is the main agent who gives instructions for learning and evaluates your learning result you have reached. Meanwhile, in self-directed learning we do not wait for the educator to tell us exactly what we should learn and what should do in order to learn (for example, to read or perform some tasks). Therefore, the educator is not a first person who evaluates our results.
In self-directed learning we are the ones who take an active role from the beginning until end of the learning process.
In self-directed learning we should take as many responsibilities and actions as possible:
– choose a learning goal;
– create and follow a plan for how to reach the goal
– choose methods for reaching the goal;
– find some support, if needed;
– evaluate the result you have reached, and so on.
Why is self-directed learning important to us?
According to Malcolm Knowles (1975/2004, p. 14-15), there are at 3 reasons we should apply self-directedness in our learning:
People who take the initiative in learning (proactive learners), learn more things, and learn better, than do people who sit at the feet of teachers passively waiting to be taught (reactive learners). We “enter into learning more purposefully and with greater motivation. They also tend to retain and make use of what they learn better and longer than do the reactive learners” (p. 14)
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Self-directed learning is more in tune with our natural processes of psychological development. When we are born, we are totally dependent personalities. We need parents to protect us, feed us, carry us, and make decisions for us. But as we grow and mature our lives become increasingly self-directing, i.e. to protect ourselves, to take care of food, to make decisions by ourselves and so on.
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Education now puts a lot of responsibility on the learners, so they should take a good deal of initiative in their own learning. Students entering different programs without having learned the skills of self-directed learning will experience anxiety, frustration, and often failure.
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Thus, self-directedness in learning is not a state that we all have, but a quality that requires our efforts and practice. We need to learn how to take initiative in learning, how to formulate our learning goals, identify and choose sources learn from, plan the learning process and evaluate results that were achieved. Of course here knowing yourself as a learner will help you to make your self-directed process more fun, enjoyable and successful.
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MAIN ASPECTS OF SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING
Your inner motivation and interest to learn. One of the core aspects for self-directed learning is motivation for learning that originates from you and turns into actions performed by you, for example, planning learning steps and following them, searching resources for learning, finding ways to motivate yourself even if you are bored or stressed. If you are not motivated, your learning will not stall or stop altogether before you reach your learning goal.
Knowing what you want to learn. Remember the video How do we learn?. Our learning should be connected with our needs and interests. So, in order to be self-directed learners, we should always ask ourselves “Why do I need to learn this right now? What interest do I have right now to learn it? Where will I use this?”
Learning support. When you think about self-directed learning, it is important to know that your learning does not happen in isolation and not depends only on you.
Self-directed learning is sometimes incorrectly understood as something that you do on your own, alone on a solidarity learning journey. This might be true to some extent, and there might be individual time and work, but in reality, we need others to assist us in our learning. The ideal case is when we know our learning needs and interests as well as the steps planned to reach our goal, and at the same time we still need others to accompany us… Learning happens through trusting relationships, in a safe place where we can experiment, ask for and receive honest feedback (Markovic, Ratto-Nielsen, Kloosterman, 2012).
Depending on your learning goals and activities your learning support can be different,
You can have an educator (teacher, trainer, etc.), who can support the planning of your learning process, listen to you when you need it and give you ideas and tips for activities, offer you resources, or even help you to evaluate the result you have reached etc. Of course, in some cases you might need much more support from educators, especially if you are learning something completely new. In other cases, you might need only some advice for resources.
for example:
Learning support. When you think about self-directed learning, it is important to know that your learning does not happen in isolation and not depends only on you.
You can have a learning buddy or buddies with whom you continuously share your learning experiences and ask for their feedback. You can have reflection groups to share your experiences, have some inspiration to learn further and reach some conclusions.
The VE-Trainer and other people who are learning in this course can be great learning support for you during the online course and also during the planning, implementation and evaluation of your workshop.
Self-directed learning can be very empowering, but in the beginning it can be a frightening process. Therefore, do not forget to include learning support and keep in mind that learning support depends on you.
Go to the self-directed learning forum and start a discussion there. Alternatively, find other discussions which have similar learning style as you and join that discussion.
Discuss the following questions:
1.How would I describe myself as a learner? What are the aspects that show my self-directedness?
2.What do I think about self-directed learning?
3.When exactly have I experienced self-directed learning?
4.How can self-directed learning be important for me now and in the future?
5.Would you say that you are self-directed learners?
