Forum Spring 2000: Self-Directed Learning

Because of a FIPSE grant GateWay received last year, I went through a week-long, intensive training session to become a tutor. This training gave me the knowledge to use the problem-based learning approach first devised by Howard Barrows at the Southern Illiois University School of Medicine. One of the key elements of problem-based learning is to use real-world problems to motivate student learning; their need and desire to solve the problem will inspire them to become self-directed learners.

In the pilot project we learned that students cannot suddenly become self-directed learners in one semester. We needed to slowly guide them from dependent to independent learning.

Because one of our goals as teachers is to help students become more independent learners, I am now applying my knowledge about self-directed learning to my first year composition class. On the first day of any new writing assignment, I no longer ask students about the reading they were supposed to do for that class. Instead, I ask them to tell me what they know about that particular writing assignment, such as a persuasive essay. Usually, the students bring up most of the ideas that I want to discuss: thesis, topic sentences, rhetorical strategies, introductions, conclusions, transitions, research skills, documentation, etc. For each idea, I ask a student and anyone else in class to explain the idea to the class. If I do not think the explanation is clear or detailed enough, that idea becomes, according to problem based learning, a "learning issue." By the end of the period, we have a whole list of learning issues for the class. Students then select one or more of the leaning issues and are charged to find out more about those issues so they will be prepared to discuss those ideas in more detail, and explain how that information will help solve the problem of writing an essay.

When students return to the next class, some have completed outside reading on their learning issues and others have not. They hope that I will give them the answer. At this point, I will either give them some time to do reading in class or ask them to do more research on their own time. If another day passes and they do not have the information or understand the information, I will provide the information at that point. My goal is not to keep information from them but to keep the pressure on them, for as long as possible, to find the information on their own. Holding students responsible for finding the information that will help them solve a problem should help them retain the information.

This approach is helping students become more self-directed and makes them more confident learners. As one student wrote in her evaluation essay last semester, "I think this is a method that should be taught more often to allow students to learn things on their own and become more independent learners."