Critically examines the general characteristics of a "discourse" of self-directed learning and considers consequences of assumptions made about adult learning and teaching. Presents and analyzes case studies of practice involving experiential teaching approaches with two groups of adult students. (JOW)

A study was undertaken to determine if identification of learning styles would assist in predicting adult students' success in an independent study program.. Results indicated that regardless of learning style, students can expect to complete the experience successfully. (JOW)

This article examines the nature of student workload and how perceptions of it are formed. Inferences are drawn from five detailed case studies, taken from a wider sample of university students who completed an hourly diary for one week. A subsample was also interviewed. Perceptions of workload are not synonymous with time spent studying, but can…

Online learning can be an effective tool in second language acquisition (SLA) because it can be an efficient and convenient way to provide accurate, understandable material to second language learners. It is crucial for instructors to have online knowledge and skills as well as the ability to choose how, when, and to whom to apply such expertise.…

This study is aimed at investigating students' annotation behaviors and their effects on learning achievement with pre-reading (reading before class) exercises and Web-based sharing mechanisms. An 8-week quasi-experiment was conducted with 125 sixth-grade elementary school students. The study shows the following results. First, a significant…

This experiment investigated orthographic learning via self-teaching in 8- and 9-year-olds learning to read English. Children were exposed to novel words, and following a 1- or 7-day delay interval, orthographic learning was assessed by asking children to select previously seen novel words from an array of visually and phonologically similar…

In this article, the author relates some problem solving work with primary schools to Department for Children, Schools, and Families (DfES) support. In four primary schools in the West Midlands, the focus was teaching mathematics through problem solving, based on materials published on the DfES "standards" website. The author noticed…

All teachers want their students to become independent learners, but even motivated students are reluctant to take responsibility for their own learning. So what every teacher needs is this book's tried-and-true method for gradually enabling students to take on more of the "work" of classroom learning. Two experienced teachers describe a…

Nursing students with second degrees have become the focus of great interest in the last two decades in terms of being an answer to the nursing shortage. They are thought to possess greater ability to critically think and engage in self directed learning behaviours, and possess greater motivation to master clinical skills. The purpose of this…

All students are entitled to a respectful and meaningful education in this decade of No Child Left Behind, and yet attention to the gifted wanes with the emphasis on standards-based education and testing. Educators of the gifted have wrestled with this dilemma for many decades, even as early as the 1920s when Leta S. Hollingsworth, noted…

A portfolio model was developed which can serve as an alternative to the literature study with practical processing, the predominant dissertation model used in teacher education courses in Flanders. Using a pre- and post-test quasi-experimental design with 174 teacher students and 44 supervisors, we examined whether the use of portfolio as a…

Self-regulated learning (SRL) involves metacognition, motivation, and strategic action, and self-regulated learners are successful in and beyond school. Therefore, studies of how SRL develops and, perhaps, how it can be taught, are needed. Our research examines whether and how beginning teachers can be mentored to develop practices that support…

The study in this paper was carried out in the framework of an evidence-based continuous professional development (CPD) programme in which teachers documented evidence about their practice in a portfolio. The context of the CPD was related to the "Learning Skills for Science" (LSS) programme, which advocates the incorporation of…

The self-directed learning (SDL) in all of its characteristics measured in students and in various learning contexts continues to have a very important role in educational research and requires new explorations. Contemporary research indicates that there is a direct positive relationship between the level of student self-directed learning…

Professional societies in the field of medicine have recommended that the traditional model for lifelong medical learning, which had previously focused on attendance at weeklong didactic continuing medical education (CME) courses, should be replaced by individualized study. Self-directed and practice-linked learning are well accepted in principle,…