Taking Responsibility for Learning: Implications for Self-Directed Learning
Teaching Professor Conference June, 2009
Phyllis Blumberg, Ph.D. University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
p.blumbe@usp.edu
Six Components of taking responsibility for learning and characteristics of this component to foster self-directed learning
1. Taking Responsibility for Learning (overview)
Instructor provides increasing opportunities for students to assume responsibility for their learning
Instructor creates situations that motivate students to assume this responsibility
Along with the students’ taking responsibility for learning, they meet the learning outcomes of the course
2. Developing skills for further learning
These skills may include:
time management
self-monitoring
goal setting
how to do independent reading
how to conduct original research
3. Self-directed, lifelong learning skills
These skills may include:
determining a personal need to know more
knowing who to ask or where to seek information
determining when need is met
development of self-awareness of own learning abilities
4. Self-assessment of their learning
Instructor provides direction to students in how to self-assess own learning
Instructor motivates students to routinely and appropriately assess their own learning
5. Self-assessment of strengths and weaknesses
Specific characteristics to be assessed vary by discipline, type of course, level of course, etc.
Some characteristics you might consider include:
o writing ability
o ability to lead or work in groups
o ability to handle large or independent assignments
6. Information literacy skills
Association of College and Research Libraries (www.acrl.org) defined information literacy as abilities to:
1. frame questions
2. access sources
3. evaluate sources
4. evaluate content
5. use information legally
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 1: RESPONSIBILITY FOR LEARNING
• How much do you value students accepting responsibility for their own learning?
Completely Mostly Somewhat Not at all
□ □ □
• In an ideal learning environment, how can the instructor provide increasing opportunities for students to assume responsibility for their own learning?
• What opportunities do you provide for the students to assume responsibility for their own learning?
• How do you increase the opportunities for student to assume responsibility for their own learning throughout the course?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 2: LEARNING-TO-LEARN SKILLS FOR THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE
• What learning skills for further learning are appropriate for this course and the level of your students? Possible learning skills might include time management, self-monitoring, goal setting, or how to do independent reading, how to conduct original research, among others.
Skill 1
Skill 2
Skill 3
Skill 4
• What do you do now explicitly to develop these learning skills?
Develop learning skill 1
Develop learning skill 2
Develop learning skill 3
Develop learning skill 4
• What else could you do to develop these learning skills?
Further develop learning skill 1
Further develop learning skill 2
Further develop learning skill 3
Further develop learning skill 4
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 3: SELF-DIRECTED, LIFELONG LEARNING SKILLS
• How would you characterize a self-directed, lifelong learner in your discipline?
• What do you do to promote self-directed, lifelong learning in your courses?
Some possibilities include teaching and giving students practice developing the following skills: determining a personal need to know more, knowing who to ask or where to seek information, determining when need is met and development of self-awareness of own learning abilities.
• What can you do in your courses to promote self-directed, lifelong learning that is similar to what the professionals or practitioners do as lifelong learners?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
Component 4: Students’ Self-Assessment of Their Learning
• What aspects of self-assessment of learning would be appropriate for your course?
• How often do you ask students to assess their own learning?
Frequently Some of the time Rarely None of the time
□ □ □
• How do you increase the opportunities for students to practice assessing their own learning?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 5: STUDENTS’ SELF-ASSESSMENT OF THEIR STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
• What strengths and weaknesses would be appropriate for your students to self-assess in this course?
• How often do you ask students to self-assess these strengths and weaknesses?
Frequently Some of the time Rarely None of the time
□ □ □ □
• How do you increase the opportunities for students to practice assessing their own strengths and weaknesses?
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 6. INFORMATION LITERACY SKILLS. Information literacy skills include: framing questions, accessing sources, evaluating sources, evaluating content, and using information legally.
• What information literacy skills are appropriate for your students to develop and or to use in your course?
Skill #1
Skill # 2
Skill #3
Skill # 4
Skill #5
• What do you do to develop these skills?
Skill #1
Skill #2
Skill #3
Skill #4
Skill #5
• What more could you do to develop these skills?
Further development of skill #1
Further development of skill #2
Further development of skill #3
Further development of skill #4
Further development of skill #5
Planning For Transformation Exercise
Complete this form for the component you wish to start changing
A. Status of your course now Date:
Briefly describe what you do now (for the purposes of documenting your baseline prior to transformation).
B. Desired changes
Describe the desired change(s) you wish to implement in the near future.
C. Tactical planning questions
1. What do you need to do, decide or learn about prior to making changes?
2. What obstacles or challenges do you need to overcome to implement successfully this change? (Resistance may come from your philosophy of teaching, your chair, your peers, your students, or the culture of your institution.)
3. Identify specific strategies (such as learning about successful implementations, trying a small pilot implementation, explaining to your students and other instructors why you are making these changes) for overcoming each obstacle or challenge.
4. What resources (such as time, money, student assistants, or computer software) would help you implement your change?
5. What do you need to do to get your students to accept this change? (Possibilities include repeated explanations for why you are doing what you are doing or having the activity count in the final grade.)
D. Outcomes of the change
1. In what ways (such as increased learning), will your students benefit from this change especially as it relates to students taking responsibility for their learning? How will the students behave differently (such as increased participation in class or greater engagement with the content)?
2. In what ways will you benefit from this change? (For example, - enjoy teaching more, satisfied that your students are learning more, anticipate fewer student complaints)
E. Possible future changes
In the long term, what additional changes, if any, might you make to transform further this component to reach an optimal level of students’ self-directed learning?
"Developing Learner-Centered Teaching is an immediately usable book that provides a clear-cut framework for transitioning to learner-centered teaching. As a college teacher and teacher of teachers, Blumberg skillfully takes the reader step-by-step through a practical system, replete with practical, classroom-tested strategies, for making a course more learner-centered. I'm looking forward to adapting a range of valuable strategies for my own classroom and sharing them with my colleagues." —Mary Deane Sorcinelli, associate provost for faculty development, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
“Regularly now in the presentations I give about my book, Learner-Centered Teaching, I note how much I wish my book offered more on implementation issues. Now there is a whole book to which faculty can be referred – a well-documented book that handles the implementation of learner-centered approaches to teaching with integrity, robustness, and careful attention to detail.”
‐‐From the foreword by Maryellen Weimer, Professor Emeritus,
Penn State University and Author, Learner‐Centered Teaching
Teaching Professor Conference June, 2009
Phyllis Blumberg, Ph.D. University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
p.blumbe@usp.edu
Six Components of taking responsibility for learning and characteristics of this component to foster self-directed learning
1. Taking Responsibility for Learning (overview)
Instructor provides increasing opportunities for students to assume responsibility for their learning
Instructor creates situations that motivate students to assume this responsibility
Along with the students’ taking responsibility for learning, they meet the learning outcomes of the course
2. Developing skills for further learning
These skills may include:
time management
self-monitoring
goal setting
how to do independent reading
how to conduct original research
3. Self-directed, lifelong learning skills
These skills may include:
determining a personal need to know more
knowing who to ask or where to seek information
determining when need is met
development of self-awareness of own learning abilities
4. Self-assessment of their learning
Instructor provides direction to students in how to self-assess own learning
Instructor motivates students to routinely and appropriately assess their own learning
5. Self-assessment of strengths and weaknesses
Specific characteristics to be assessed vary by discipline, type of course, level of course, etc.
Some characteristics you might consider include:
o writing ability
o ability to lead or work in groups
o ability to handle large or independent assignments
6. Information literacy skills
Association of College and Research Libraries (www.acrl.org) defined information literacy as abilities to:
1. frame questions
2. access sources
3. evaluate sources
4. evaluate content
5. use information legally
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 1: RESPONSIBILITY FOR LEARNING
• How much do you value students accepting responsibility for their own learning?
Completely Mostly Somewhat Not at all
□ □ □
• In an ideal learning environment, how can the instructor provide increasing opportunities for students to assume responsibility for their own learning?
• What opportunities do you provide for the students to assume responsibility for their own learning?
• How do you increase the opportunities for student to assume responsibility for their own learning throughout the course?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 2: LEARNING-TO-LEARN SKILLS FOR THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE
• What learning skills for further learning are appropriate for this course and the level of your students? Possible learning skills might include time management, self-monitoring, goal setting, or how to do independent reading, how to conduct original research, among others.
Skill 1
Skill 2
Skill 3
Skill 4
• What do you do now explicitly to develop these learning skills?
Develop learning skill 1
Develop learning skill 2
Develop learning skill 3
Develop learning skill 4
• What else could you do to develop these learning skills?
Further develop learning skill 1
Further develop learning skill 2
Further develop learning skill 3
Further develop learning skill 4
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 3: SELF-DIRECTED, LIFELONG LEARNING SKILLS
• How would you characterize a self-directed, lifelong learner in your discipline?
• What do you do to promote self-directed, lifelong learning in your courses?
Some possibilities include teaching and giving students practice developing the following skills: determining a personal need to know more, knowing who to ask or where to seek information, determining when need is met and development of self-awareness of own learning abilities.
• What can you do in your courses to promote self-directed, lifelong learning that is similar to what the professionals or practitioners do as lifelong learners?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
Component 4: Students’ Self-Assessment of Their Learning
• What aspects of self-assessment of learning would be appropriate for your course?
• How often do you ask students to assess their own learning?
Frequently Some of the time Rarely None of the time
□ □ □
• How do you increase the opportunities for students to practice assessing their own learning?
Responsibility for Learning
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 5: STUDENTS’ SELF-ASSESSMENT OF THEIR STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
• What strengths and weaknesses would be appropriate for your students to self-assess in this course?
• How often do you ask students to self-assess these strengths and weaknesses?
Frequently Some of the time Rarely None of the time
□ □ □ □
• How do you increase the opportunities for students to practice assessing their own strengths and weaknesses?
The following questions will help you determine where your teaching is on a component of the Responsibility for Learning. Your answers should also prepare you to begin to transform this component.
COMPONENT 6. INFORMATION LITERACY SKILLS. Information literacy skills include: framing questions, accessing sources, evaluating sources, evaluating content, and using information legally.
• What information literacy skills are appropriate for your students to develop and or to use in your course?
Skill #1
Skill # 2
Skill #3
Skill # 4
Skill #5
• What do you do to develop these skills?
Skill #1
Skill #2
Skill #3
Skill #4
Skill #5
• What more could you do to develop these skills?
Further development of skill #1
Further development of skill #2
Further development of skill #3
Further development of skill #4
Further development of skill #5
Planning For Transformation Exercise
Complete this form for the component you wish to start changing
A. Status of your course now Date:
Briefly describe what you do now (for the purposes of documenting your baseline prior to transformation).
B. Desired changes
Describe the desired change(s) you wish to implement in the near future.
C. Tactical planning questions
1. What do you need to do, decide or learn about prior to making changes?
2. What obstacles or challenges do you need to overcome to implement successfully this change? (Resistance may come from your philosophy of teaching, your chair, your peers, your students, or the culture of your institution.)
3. Identify specific strategies (such as learning about successful implementations, trying a small pilot implementation, explaining to your students and other instructors why you are making these changes) for overcoming each obstacle or challenge.
4. What resources (such as time, money, student assistants, or computer software) would help you implement your change?
5. What do you need to do to get your students to accept this change? (Possibilities include repeated explanations for why you are doing what you are doing or having the activity count in the final grade.)
D. Outcomes of the change
1. In what ways (such as increased learning), will your students benefit from this change especially as it relates to students taking responsibility for their learning? How will the students behave differently (such as increased participation in class or greater engagement with the content)?
2. In what ways will you benefit from this change? (For example, - enjoy teaching more, satisfied that your students are learning more, anticipate fewer student complaints)
E. Possible future changes
In the long term, what additional changes, if any, might you make to transform further this component to reach an optimal level of students’ self-directed learning?
"Developing Learner-Centered Teaching is an immediately usable book that provides a clear-cut framework for transitioning to learner-centered teaching. As a college teacher and teacher of teachers, Blumberg skillfully takes the reader step-by-step through a practical system, replete with practical, classroom-tested strategies, for making a course more learner-centered. I'm looking forward to adapting a range of valuable strategies for my own classroom and sharing them with my colleagues." —Mary Deane Sorcinelli, associate provost for faculty development, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
“Regularly now in the presentations I give about my book, Learner-Centered Teaching, I note how much I wish my book offered more on implementation issues. Now there is a whole book to which faculty can be referred – a well-documented book that handles the implementation of learner-centered approaches to teaching with integrity, robustness, and careful attention to detail.”
‐‐From the foreword by Maryellen Weimer, Professor Emeritus,
Penn State University and Author, Learner‐Centered Teaching
