Independent Learning focuses on creation of the opportunities and experiences necessary for students to become capable, self-reliant, self-motivated and life-long learners. What is desired are students who value learning as an empowering activity of great personal and social worth. All of the other C.E.L.s contribute to the goal of developing independent learners.
"Independent Learning is that learning in which the learner, in conjunction with relevant others, can make the decisions necessary to meet the learner's own learning needs." (Kesten, 1987, p. 3)
In this process, independent learners develop the values, attitudes, knowledge and skills needed to make responsible decisions and take actions dealing with their own learning. Independent learning is fostered by creating the opportunities and experiences which encourage student motivation, curiosity, self-confidence, self-reliance and positive self-concept; it is based on student understanding of their own interests and a valuing of learning for its own sake.
Independent learning is part of an ongoing, lifelong process of education that stimulates greater thoughtfulness and reflection and promotes the continuing growth of students' capabilities and powers. More than the rote learning of facts and skills, this approach to learning encourages students to make meaning for themselves, based on their understanding of why and how new knowledge is related to their own experiences, interests and needs.
Independent learning is a direction for the process of education, not an absolute standard; this process takes different forms for different students and it varies according to subject matter and students' interests and abilities in the subjects. Independent learning involves the teacher and learner in an interactive process that encourages students' intellectual development and their capacity for independent and reflective judgment.
Independent learning is fostered by a school environment which is sensitive, flexible, democratic and responsive to the needs of students. This encourages a strong sense of purpose and motivation on the part of students. Independent learning makes full use of the resources of the school and the community and fosters the development of independent learners in every grade and in every subject.
The development of Independent Learning - from rationale to processes to goals - is outlined in Figures 7.1 and 7.2.
Independent learning addresses the needs of individual learners for independence and active participation in their own learning, both in school and in the larger society. This approach to learning is an important part of core curriculum:
| "It is essential for schools to reduce students' dependence on schools and teachers for their learning and increase students' capability to set and meet their own learning goals." (Core Curriculum Advisory Committee, 1986, p. 13) |
Since learning extends beyond the school context, learners require independence as a life skill, to assist them in preparing for new situations and experiences. Independent Learning can assist students in acquiring the knowledge, abilities, skills, values and motivation that enable them to analyze learning situations and develop appropriate strategies for action.
Independent learning requires that people take responsibility for their own learning. Individual responsibility stems from the belief that learning can be affected by effort, and this belief is the critical factor which leads to individuals' perseverance in the face of obstacles. Teachers can help students take responsibility for their learning by providing opportunities and strategies for learning independently and by encouraging them to initiate and actively participate in their own learning.
Students need to explore issues that have meaning and relevance for them. Individual students bring ' different perspectives and experiences to learning situations, and in the final analysis, it is the learner who achieves learning and creates meaning from any new material or experience. A sense of social responsibility will be fostered by teaching which supports the examination of new knowledge in terms of its relevance and meaning for students in particular and human purposes in general.
An important motivating factor in independent learning is the encouragement of students' own interests and their desire to learn. Students will be motivated to learn if the learning activity is meaningful, and if the knowledge is useful and provides a means of achieving a desired goal. Such learning activities provide a stimulus to reflective inquiry and continuing intellectual development. In contrast, learning activities in which the student has no interest lead to increasing dependence on external motivation and extrinsic rewards. This approach to teaching has the effect of diminishing student initiative, rather than encouraging student participation in learning for its own sake.
Students will move towards independence in varying degrees, depending on factors such as age, skill level and ability in a particular subject. It is important to establish the conditions for enlarging student learning in all its variety, thereby encouraging the growth and development of all students towards greater responsibility for their own learning.
Independent learning cannot be achieved in isolation. Learning is an interactive process among students and between teacher and students. Students engage in learning activities as individuals who are interdependent with other individuals in the classroom and in the wider society.
Independent learning has implications for ~ responsible decision making, as individuals are expected to analyze problems, reflect, make decisions and take purposeful actions. To take responsibility for their lives in times of rapid social change, students need to learn on a life-long basis. As most aspects of our daily lives are likely to undergo profound changes, independent learning will enable individuals to respond to the changing demands of work, family and society. For example, changes in work life will require retraining, job change and life-long learning, and technological change will demand the values, attitudes and skills associated with independent learning.
As in the case with Critical and Creative Thinking, Independent Learning is an important foundation for maintaining democracy and promoting social justice. Citizens are called upon to independently assess problems, make rational decisions and take actions - not based on what others decide is best for them, but based on an assessment of their own interests and the interests of others in Society. As guardians of the future, today's youth require the independent learning abilities that will empower them to act in accordance with the principle of social justice and for the survival of our planet.
Finally, it is through Independent Learning that all the other Common Essential Learnings become an integrated whole. Independent Learning is a vehicle for consolidating the understandings developed through all of the Common Essential Learnings.
In summary, Independent Learning:
| — | is based on meaningful learning activities; |
| — | enables individual learners to take responsibility for their own learning; |
| — | is essential for life-long motivation and growth; |
| — | prepares students for their role as responsible citizens in a changing society; |
| — | is a tool for the achievement of all the Common Essential Learnings. |
Three aspects of the teacher's role in fostering Independent Learning are: the learning environment created by the teacher; the relationship established between teacher and learner; and the teaching and modelling of skills needed for independent learning.
Children enter the formal education process as intuitive independent learners. It is important to create a learning environment which furthers this process of independence, and enables students to consciously accept responsibility for and make decisions about their own learning. The teacher plays an important role in providing a supportive environment that encourages students' motivation, self-confidence, curiosity and desire to learn. Independent learning will be fostered by a climate that is sensitive, flexible and responsive to the learners' needs.
The atmosphere, environment and structure of the school itself must support independent learning, with teachers, principals and others in the school modelling independent learning behaviors. The process of education creates the context within which students can progress towards greater responsibility for their own learning.
Working with teacher-librarians in the library resource center program will also further encourage student inquiry. Resource-based learning will enable students to access resources, and will involve them in a process of active learning in the school and community. Strong library programs can offer students guidance, support and freedom as they increasingly take responsibility for their own learning.
In a school system based to a great extent upon competition and grades, it is particularly important to encourage students' intrinsic interest in learning - learning for its own sake, not as a means to an end. Independent learning strategies that address the interests and concerns of students, make the curriculum content relevant to students' needs and demonstrate the purpose of learning will contribute to the development of autonomous learners.
The relationship between teacher and learner should foster increasing learner responsibility. As students grow in maturity and understanding, they are able to take on greater responsibility for their own learning. As this happens, teachers need to relinquish control of decision making. This transfer of control is best supported by a school environment that is "organized to encourage and support a continued, increasingly mature and comprehensive acceptance of responsibilities for one's own learning" (Kesten, 1987, p. 15).
Teachers assist students in mastering the decision making processes as instructors, guides and facilitators. In this role, teachers not only enable students to acquire a solid base of knowledge and experience, but they also help students to discover the personal meaning of this knowledge and experience in terms of their own needs. This process leads to a more meaningful learning experience for students; they are motivated to take greater control over their learning because it is relevant to their needs, both as individuals and as members of society.
As teachers encourage students to take greater responsibility for decision making, they must also judge students' readiness for such responsibility. Such judgments are based on the learner's age, maturity, ability and knowledge, and can only be made by teachers who know their students well.
As in all Common Essential Learnings, teachers' instructional techniques will be an important basis for implementation of Independent Learning. The attitudes, skills and knowledge of independent learning will be fostered in students, in large part, through the ways in which teachers organize their classrooms and instruct their students.
It is important that teachers utilize instructional techniques, strategies and approaches based on collaboration between learner and teacher. This will encourage student participation, both in determining goals and in monitoring the learning process. Also desirable are teaching approaches that foster student self-confidence and empower students to take responsibility for their own learning.
An important aspect of the teacher's role is the teaching and modelling of skills needed for independent learning. Consistent with the discussion of the other C.E.L.s, it is important to note that such skills should not be taught in isolation, but rather developed through school subject matter. Five principles, adapted from Herber and Herber (1987), provide an outline of how teachers can incorporate skill teaching and create a learning environment which frees their students to become independent life-long learners.
The following example outlines this learning process:
Students might undertake a class project on time management in conjunction with doing an assignment. The teacher and students would do the assignment together. As the teacher models the actions involved in time management through thinking aloud, the students are learning ways to manage time during this assignment as well as why this is important. The teacher then models and prompts student action in doing another assignment and attending to the time management needed. This modelling is repeated until the student can do the activity without cues from the teacher, and gradually takes over the actions. As an important part of this process, students are reminded often that there are other solutions to a problem such as time management; they are encouraged to seek the solutions that work best for them. Discussion of students' personal adaptations should follow completion of the assignments.
The teacher-librarian has an important role to play in developing independent learning skills, such as narrowing a topic or identifying sources. See pp. 67 of Learning Resource Centers in Saskatchewan (Saskatchewan Education, 1988) for a more complete description of the place of the school resource center in teaching learning skills.
The pace of this sequence is dependent upon the age and background of the student, the level of the task to be done and the attitudes of both teacher and student. The transfer of decision making responsibility from teacher to student is a key part of the teacher's role in fostering independent learning; the transfer needs to be accomplished without either over- or under-controlling the process. This shift is enhanced by a teachers' positive attitude to independent learning, as well as a good knowledge of the needs, interests and abilities of individual students. This transfer of control is crucial; it leads to students discovering how their efforts can affect their learning. Students then experience control of the learning task, and from this control they acquire motivation to continue learning.
As part of this independent learning process, it is important that teachers know their students well. Teachers need to observe and reflect upon students' learning processes. This role is a proactive one, since in order to help the students succeed as independent learners, the teacher needs to anticipate difficulties and offer support at crucial intervals.
Teachers need to develop a good understanding of their students' strengths and weaknesses - socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically - their exceptionalities, their health, their cultural backgrounds. Students become motivated when they believe that they have the ability to control their own learning. This motivation is enhanced by learning which builds on students' own interests; basing learning experiences on students' needs and interests helps develop enthusiastic learners. For independent learning to proceed, student choice must become a regular part of the classroom environment, including the structuring of assignments, topics, group processes and timelines.
Teachers can also vary the setting, topic, assignment, time, depth and group processes. All variety and choices should include provisions for learning study skills, as well as student input into evaluation.
The teacher's role is to be a patient facilitator, showing students how to learn independently, encouraging them, providing feedback and supporting their efforts. These are all crucial factors in providing a learning environment which fosters independent learning and which motivates students to pursue independent learning skills.
In summary, teachers can foster Independent Learning by:
| — | using a variety of ways to gain understanding of their students' abilities, needs and interests; |
| — | making education relevant to students' needs and interests; |
| — | teaching and modelling independent learning skills; |
| — | providing students with choice in assignments and topics within a range of choices; |
| — | increasing students' responsibility for decision making in the independent learning process; |
| — | utilizing collaborative instructional techniques |
In this way, teachers can create a supportive classroom environment and motivate students to learn. These approaches are based on teachers' understanding of and support for the goals of Independent Learning. Through this process, students will develop into individuals with self-respect, self-direction and self-determination, and be better able to effectively participate in society and interact reflectively with rapid social change.
1. The work of Cyril Kesten (Independent Learning, Saskatchewan Education, 1987) formed an important foundation in the development of this chapter.
