Independent Learning : Authors: Cathy Dantec and Judy Jowers

Part 1:
What is meant by “independent learning”?

One broad definition of independent learning or “[?]” in learning is:
“the ability to [?] of one’s learning” Holec (1981: 3)

By the time you get to university, you probably already are an independent learner, to at least some degree, and you will have “taken charge of” a proportion of your learning. When you were at school or college you will have found that as you became older, your teachers gave you more choices instead of telling you exactly what to do and when to do it. They expected you to take more responsibility for your work.

Being able to make informed choices and taking responsibility for your own learning activities are two [?] of learning independently. It may be that in the activity above you thought back to an occasion when you decided on your own title for an essay or the topic for a project that you wanted to work on and then completed by a certain deadline. A key word here would be “wanted”: [?] is vital for successful independent learning. Another important element in independent learning is feeling confident enough to actually take decisions and act on those decisions. You also need to appreciate the value of [?] on your learning and deciding whether it has been effective or whether you need to try another approach.

Does independent learning mean working on your own?

No, independent learning does not mean working on your own. You may well find that you share a problem with another student on your course or even in another discipline. Working with someone else, encouraging each other and talking through difficulties may be the most [?] and motivating way of working independently. If you have a problem, explaining it to someone else can help to clarify issues. Explaining a concept to someone without shared background knowledge is a very good way of making sure you understand the full implications of the concept.

How can independent learning help you?

Being able to work independently is a skill highly valued by [?], so it may ultimately help you in securing a job. In the short term, it may help you to feel more “in control” of what you are doing.

• Setting your own [?] and deadlines
• Organising yourself, your work and your time
• [?] your use of time and your work

are some elements of independent learning. They can have immediate benefits in being more efficient and effective.

The general area of “Study Skills” may be an area for independent learning. Weaknesses in any of the skills given in the activity below will mean you are not working as effectively as you might. [?] some time to improving study skills will clearly be helpful. Again it may be better for you to work on these skills with someone else, rather than on your own. From the skills below, decide whether there are any you need to improve.

What [?] rating would you give to the need, from 1 (really need to make changes) to 5 (room for some improvement here but not urgent)

• Organising yourself and your time
• Note-taking
• Gathering and using information
• Reading
• Listening
• Writing
• Speaking
• Remembering
• Working with others

The areas where you need or want to work [?] may relate directly to your particular subject(s) of study. Here, any independent work will increase your confidence and may help you immediately or when it comes to exams or other assessments.

Source: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/student/pdf/StudyAdvice-indlearn.pdf