AUTONOMOUS LEARNING: CHARACTERISTICS, TYPES AND STRATEGIES - PSYCHOLOGY - 2024

The autonomous learning is a way to gain knowledge, ideas or attitudes produced independently by the trainee. Traditionally it has been considered synonymous with self-learning or self-learning, although in recent decades this term has been increasingly differentiated from other similar ones.

Autonomous learning is considered to occur when an individual decides to proactively and independently acquire new knowledge. Thus, he takes responsibility for all aspects of learning, such as what topics to focus on, what methodology to follow, how to organize his time and how to internalize what he is studying.

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The idea that individuals should be autonomous in their learning was first proposed in 1981 by Henry Holec, who is considered the father of the theory of autonomy of learners. Since then, there has been a great debate about what exactly this characteristic means, and how it is possible to instill it in students.

Some authors consider that autonomous learning can only be carried out by individuals with a series of specific personality traits. Others, on the contrary, understand that we all have this capacity, and that it is only necessary to promote it through teaching and education in values.

characteristics

The learner chooses his own goals and method

In most types of learning, students cannot choose what knowledge they want to acquire or what they want to do it for. In some cases, this is due to the fact that the goals are imposed on them from outside, as can happen for example in the formal educational system; and in others, that learning is not conscious.

However, in an autonomous learning process, the individual himself has to be able to choose what he wants to learn and set specific goals related to it. In this way, when autonomous learning is promoted, each person will acquire different knowledge based on their interests and abilities.

Something similar happens with the learning process itself. Once the educational goals to be achieved have been established, the person will have to choose in which way they will acquire the new knowledge, ideas or attitudes that they are interested in internalizing.

These two factors imply that a person who embarks on an autonomous learning process will have to be proactive, be motivated to learn, and be able to investigate on their own in order to internalize the knowledge they want to possess.

Generates greater intrinsic motivation

One of the factors that most influence all types of learning is motivation. When a person wants to learn, their results will be better, and the process easier.

In this sense, research on the matter shows that autonomous learning is one of the ones that most increases student motivation.

In a regulated learning process, in which both the goals and the method and pace of study are imposed from outside, students generally have great difficulty in wanting to acquire new knowledge. Because of this, they tend to depend on external reinforcements, such as having good grades.

On the contrary, when a student decides to learn something autonomously, he is doing it because his intrinsic motivation is very high. Because of this, it will be easier for you to acquire new knowledge quickly, and you will feel less frustrated and more cheerful throughout the process.

3- Puts the responsibility on the student

In most traditional educational approaches, teachers or mentors are responsible for good learning. These can take the role of transmitters of information, experts, or mentors, who provide students with all the knowledge they have to internalize.

In autonomous learning, by contrast, students are the ones who play the most important role. The whole process of acquiring new ideas, data or skills depends on them. The teacher, unlike the other types, limits himself to helping students when they request it, moving to a more secondary level.

Works better for some individuals

All the types of learning that exist are more or less useful depending on certain psychological characteristics of the students, such as their intelligence or their sense of responsibility. However, in autonomous learning these differences are especially marked.

Thus, studies in this regard show that in order to correctly carry out an autonomous learning process it is necessary to have at least relatively high levels of a series of characteristics. Some of the most important are intelligence, confidence, personal responsibility, curiosity and the capacity for self-motivation.

In addition, it has also been found that people with good levels of self-regulation (both emotional and cognitive) generally achieve better results when they carry out an autonomous learning process.

Featured Authors and Ideas

The first author to talk about autonomous learning was Henry Holec, in 1981. For this educational psychologist, the most important thing so that a process of this type could take place is the student's taking responsibility for what he wants to work on, be it skills, knowledge or attitudes.

In the following decades, a number of authors have emerged who have tried to better understand why some students are capable of learning on their own, and how it is possible to foster this ability in all students. Some of his most relevant ideas are the following:

- For Holmes and Ramos, the students who manage to carry out good autonomous learning are those who can identify the strategies that they were using unconsciously.

- The author David Little thought that autonomy depends to a great extent on the psychological relationship of the student both with the content that he wants to internalize and with the learning process itself.

- For Dickinson, the key to autonomous learning is the student's taking full responsibility for all the decisions involved in their learning process.

In general, all the authors who have studied the subject of autonomous learning agree that the most important factors are those that allow us to focus not only on the content to be acquired, but on the process of internalizing them. However, today there is still a need for more research on this topic.

Types

Autonomous learning can be applied in a wide variety of different situations, to acquire virtually any type of knowledge that exists. In fact, some authors believe that autonomy in learning is more of an attitude, and that it can be integrated with any of the other ways of acquiring knowledge.

Here are some examples of different ways to learn independently.

Acquisition of a second language

One of the fields in which autonomous learning seems to be most effective is the command of a foreign language. When they want to learn a language, most individuals join an academy or hire the services of a private teacher; But studies on the matter show that these strategies are usually not very effective.

On the contrary, in recent times the data indicates that the best way to learn a language is through independent study. People who choose what they want to learn and the pace at which they want to do it tend to achieve better results in the medium and long term than those who put their learning in the hands of others.

How can autonomous learning be applied to the acquisition of a foreign language? The most effective strategies will vary based on factors such as the person's level and circumstances. However, some examples might be the use of language apps, or engaging in conversations with foreign individuals.

Information learning

In today's educational system, most subjects focus on the transmission of data and information by a teacher to his students. This system is known as "passive learning"; And most studies on this show that it is one of the least effective ways to achieve good results.

A self-learning alternative is the independent search for information by students, who will later have to elaborate it in some way. Thus, the students themselves will not only have to choose what to study on a specific topic, but they will also have to select the information and work on it.

This alternative system to traditional education has been tested for decades in some experimental schools, with very good results. Apparently, the mixture of autonomous learning with constructionist and active learning techniques causes students to internalize information more easily.

Acquisition of skills

Autonomous learning works differently when it comes to acquiring new skills than if what you want to learn is theoretical data. The main problem when carrying out this process is that developing a new skill usually requires someone to show it to us beforehand, and to correct our mistakes.

Traditionally, these two roles were carried out by a teacher, who not only showed the student what to do but also detected his faults and told him how he could change them. Today, however, tools such as the Internet or video courses have allowed many people to acquire new skills on their own.

Thus, skills such as playing an instrument, learning to program or performing illusionist tricks can be developed by anyone with sufficient discipline and patience and a good Internet connection. However, the truth is that these processes tend to be much easier if you have the help of a good teacher.

Influential factors

Despite its many advantages, autonomous learning may not be the most appropriate option in certain contexts or for certain people. To achieve the best possible results with this strategy, certain conditions must be met, which have to do both with the individual herself and with what she wants to learn.

Characteristics of the person

We have already seen that not all individuals will achieve equally positive results when they carry out an autonomous learning process. Certain psychological and personality traits correlate with greater success in this area, while the absence of these can make learning extremely difficult.

One of the most important traits in this regard is intelligence. This is because highly intelligent people tend to be easier to solve problems, can find the information they need without too much difficulty, and are generally more logical and analytical, which helps them in this process.

However, intelligence is not enough to be able to carry out a correct autonomous learning. It is also necessary for the person to have characteristics such as cognitive flexibility, self-discipline, responsibility, creativity, and the ability to self-evaluate and detect their own mistakes.

Finally, despite not being as important as the other factors, certain emotional skills such as the ability to self-motivate or resistance to failure can be very useful when carrying out independent learning.

Learning type

Not all apprenticeships are equally easy to do alone. In some subjects, having a traditional teacher or a teacher can be very helpful and speed up the process. In others, mentors will tend to hinder learning rather than encourage it.

In general, learning pure information is easier to do independently, while physical and mental skills are best developed with the help of a teacher.

Strategies for autonomous learning

Various researchers have tried to find out what is the most effective way to carry out good autonomous learning. Although a system has not been found that is valid for all possible situations, some basic principles have been detected that can help in this process.

Some of the most useful strategies for good independent learning are:

- Create a series of clear and specific goals that are intended to be achieved with the learning process.

- Look for models who have already achieved these goals, and detect what skills or knowledge they have that have allowed them to achieve them.

- Investigate the most efficient way to achieve each of these skills, attitudes or knowledge.

- Create an independent action plan for each of the learning that you want to carry out, based on what has been detected in the previous phases.

- Focusing not only on results, but on the learning process itself, for example creating intermediate goals that increase intrinsic motivation when reaching them.

References

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3. "Autonomous learning" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: April 22, 2019 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org.
4. "Top tips for independent learning" in: Bright Knowledge. Retrieved on: April 22, 2019 from Bright Knowledge: brightknowledge.org.
5. "Learner autonomy" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: April 22, 2019 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.