MEDICAL EDUCATION

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Notes for Primary Care Teachers

SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING: WHAT IT IS, AND HOW TO PROMOTE IT

MI Nurjahan FRACGP, FAFPM, International Medical University, Seremban, Malaysia

Address for correspondence: Assoc Prof Nurjahan Mohd. Ibrahim, International Medical University, Jalan Rasah, 70300 Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Tel: 06-7677798, Fax: 06-7677709, E-mail: nurjahan_ibrahim@imu.edu.my

Nurjahan MI. Self-directed learning: what it is and how to promote it. Malaysian Family Physician. 2008;3(1):45-50.

“The only man who is educated is the man who has learned how to learn...” CR Rogers, 1983

INTRODUCTION

General practitioners (GPs) should develop sound learning habits to ensure successful independent, life-long learning throughout their professional life. However, GPs with their busy schedules usually face numerous daily demands leaving considerably little time for effective self-study.¹ Trainees need to realise that learning is not merely to pass examinations but to continually keep up-to-date with the ever-increasing knowledge and developments in medicine to remain a competent medical practitioner.

Think of self-directed learning (SDL) methods that you may have used successfully and share these with your students. As their teacher or mentor you can certainly guide students to learn in a better way. Picking up these skills early, for example during the vocational or masters training period, will be advantageous to the learner. The following sections suggest some strategies to encourage and hone SDL skills in learners under your supervision.

WHAT IS SDL?

As defined by Knowles, SDL is a process in which students take the initiative to recognise their learning needs, put together learning goals, identify human and material resources for learning, choose and implement appropriate learning strategies and evaluate learning outcomes.^{1, 2} During undergraduate years, the course is more structured and medical students are usually given direct guidance by their teachers. The learning environment in SDL is such that students are given a great deal of responsibility for learning. Therefore, as the student matures, e.g. during vocational training as well as while undertaking Continuing Professional Development (CPD), the reliance on SDL will increase.

At each phase of study, the ability to accurately identify learning needs is a challenge. If the learner assesses his or her needs erroneously; poorly directed SDL may result. As a teacher we must be aware that a major limitation of SDL is that some learners may continue to learn more of what they are already familiar with whilst ignoring areas in which they are uninformed or uncomfortable.³

Thus, appropriate and timely guidance by the teacher is a key element for success. Students could also be encouraged to undertake regular self-assessment to determine their learning needs, e.g. appropriate tests. Box 1 outlines the six key principles of SDL.⁴

Box 1: Key Principles of Self-Directed Learning (SDL)

LEARNING ON THEIR OWN

Students will spend considerable time learning on their own. Determining the way that suits them best will be invaluable. Other than self-assessment of learning needs mentioned above, self-evaluation of a student’s learning styles will be useful for SDL. Learning style is defined as how one acquires and processes information. Research has shown that each person learns in a particular way. 4, 5 There are self-assessment tools which can help learners determine their personal learning style. 6

Therefore, student should decide the ‘what’, ‘where’, ‘when’, ‘for how long’ and ‘how’ for individual study and accordingly plan their study time. It would be useful to develop personal learning plans to aid this process.7
 

1. What?
   Firstly, the student must decide what he or she wants to learn. If it is knowledge, then this is usually acquired through listening to lectures or reading a relevant book or journal. Nevertheless; interactive modes of learning promote better retention of knowledge compared with passive reading or listening to lectures.4 Behavioural aspects like attitude however are best adopted from role-modelling.
2. Where?
   Encourage the student to find the place where it feels most comfortable to study. It is best to have an area specifically for study. This area should have comfortable furniture, lighting and most importantly minimal distractions. As we age, the ability to concentrate can be enhanced by adopting a more conducive learning environment.8
3. When?
   Different individuals study best at different times of the day. It is important to find the best time to suit the student’s needs, as well as making sure the student puts aside enough time for family and self. When the day-to-day family obligations are in order, the student will then have peace of mind. This will enable the student to concentrate on his or her work. Students must also put aside time for themselves; to have adequate sleep, exercise and to eat sensibly.
4. For how long?
   It is useful to plan a time table; listing out all that the student needs to learn for a week or a fortnight. The student may plan to study for a one- or two-hour period at a time as well as making sure that they have short breaks in between when the period is long.
5. How?
   Well-planned learning is an active process. The student must seek and utilise methods that assist in learning effectively. Some learn best by reading while others may do so by watching audio-visual material. A significant proportion do learn by actively doing a task and then interacting and discussing with a colleague at the workplace to better understand the subject matter. Methods that promote deep learning where the student undertakes an active search to better understand what is being learned are most useful. Finally, encourage the student to stick to his or her plan!