- What is self-managed learning?
- Motivation
- Self-regulatory attributes
- Self-regulatory processes
- Self-managed learning models
- Previous phases
- Importance of accompaniment
- References
Self- management of learning, also called self-regulated, self-managed or self-managed learning, is the active and constructive process by which students establish and work towards learning goals through the monitoring, regulation and control of motivation, cognition and The conduct.
In other words, it is understood that the student himself manages all these aspects of himself to achieve the objectives that he has proposed and, in addition, the objectives are also fed back with personal aspects of the student. Therefore, it is a dynamic process in which the different components influence each other.
The study of the self-management of learning is complex, because it has been a concept built from contributions from various theories of educational psychology and over many years.
What is self-managed learning?
The self-managed learning process is a dynamic process that implies that the student is active cognitively (and metacognitively), motivationally and behaviorally in their own learning.
To understand this definition of self-managed learning, you must first know the subcomponents within it:
Motivation
It is the central concept of the model and corresponds to the self-generated energy (strength, intensity and persistence) that directs behavior towards a goal.
Self-regulatory attributes
Student's personal learning characteristics (self-efficacy, self-awareness, and resourcefulness).
Self-regulatory processes
Student learning processes: attributions, goals and monitoring.
Self-managed learning models
Different models have been proposed to explain the self-management of learning. Some of those models are as follows:
- McCombs' underlying skills and processes model.
- Winne and Hadwin's four-stage model of self-regulated learning.
- Metacognitive-motivational model.
- Model of the motivational and cognitive components of García and Pintrich.
- Boekaerts heuristic model of self-regulated learning.
- Structure of the cyclical phases and sub-processes of the self-regulated learning of Schunck and Zimmerman.
However, there are some key points shared by these models about how this type of self-managed learning should be approached.
On the one hand, the protagonism of the student stands out, since it is he who really controls the process of self-management of his learning.
On the other hand, it highlights the dynamism of the process, in which the different components influence each other and feed into each other.
Necessary characteristics for self-management of learning
- First, the student must have an interest in learning information or mastering a skill (goal and self-motivation).
- Must have a perspective of the causes and results of the process (attributions) and the ability to monitor the process (self-monitoring).
- You must have positive beliefs about yourself (self-efficacy), awareness of your learning process (self-awareness) and control the resources at your disposal for learning (recursion).
- The student must make a series of choices to reach that goal independently and proactively. For example, choices about how to participate in the process, about your chosen learning strategy, and when you think you have achieved the goal.
- If the student encounters problems, he can carry out different readjustments. For example, you can adjust your goals, change them to others, or even abandon them, and you could also change your study strategy.
Previous phases
To become self-regulated, the student has had to comply with a series of previous stages or phases in terms of the development of their cognitive skills applied to learning.
First, the student will have to observe an expert model, who will show him how to perform that skill or ability that he seeks to teach.
Next, the student must imitate this model person, who will provide feedback to the apprentice.
Third, the student will learn to carry out the activity learned by himself, but still in a rigid way and attached to what he initially learned from the expert.
Finally, the student will be able to self-regulate, being able to adapt what he has learned to different contexts and changes in the environment. In addition, you can do it more automatically.
Examples of self-management of learning
A student who self-regulates his learning will be one who has a clear vision of his goal, who can determine what he needs to learn and how to control his learning environment.
The student must execute his plan and know how to ask for help, monitor his process and, finally, evaluate if he is progressing towards the established goal.
For example, if a self-regulated student decides to study some topics for a class, there are several things to keep in mind:
- Have a desire to learn the content (motivation).
- Establish a specific goal: "I want to understand well these 4 topics for November." This is goal setting.
- Keep in mind the previous similar situations in which you were successful: "I can do this if I try, as I did in the previous course." This corresponds to self-efficacy and internal powers of control.
- Be aware of what your strengths and weaknesses are, and know how to adjust your strategy for this: "I am easily distracted when there is noise, so I'd better study in the library." This responds to self-awareness and choices regarding the learning strategy.
- Know where to look for help if you need it: "I'm not understanding this part, I'm going to ask the teacher for a tutorial." This would be recursion and also self-awareness of the process.
- Plan how to reach that goal and how to monitor the process: “I will test myself regularly with practice tests to see how I am doing with the content of the topics”.
- Follow up on the process: “The practice tests are not giving the results I expected, I am not going at a good pace. What can I do to improve this? I have noticed that when I study at night I do not concentrate as much as in the afternoon; I could try to change this. " This is monitoring.
- If necessary, you should adjust the initial goal: "After seeing my progress, I think it is unrealistic to learn this many topics by November, so I will change the deadline."
Importance of accompaniment
It is important to note that the process not only depends on the student, and the teacher can also influence to maintain or promote motivation in the student, serve as a model and give constant feedback, among other forms of support.
References
- Çakir, R., Korkmaz, Ö., Bacanak, A. and Arslan, Ö. (2016). An Exploration of the Relationship between Students' Preferences for Formative Feedback and Self-Regulated Learning Skills. Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Sciences, 4 (4) pp. 14-30.
- Schunk, D. (2005). Self-Regulated Learning: The Educational Legacy of Paul R. Pintrich. Educational Psychologist, 40 (2), pp. 85-94.
- Schunk, DH and Zimmerman, BJ (1997). Social origins of self-regulatory competence. Educational Psychologist, 32, pp. 195-208.
- Smith, P. (2001). Understanding self-regulated learning and its implications for accounting educators and researchers. Issues in Accounting Education, 16 (4), pp. 663-700.
- Suárez, RJM and Fernández, SAP (2016). Self-regulated learning: strategic, motivational, evaluation and intervention variables. Madrid: UNED.