This dissertation describes a qualitative research study that grows our understanding of the career development experiences, supports, and barriers of social entrepreneurs who are gifted adults (SEGA) so that we may nurture the career development of future SEGA. Research questions for this study probed the career development experiences, supports,…

Rapid improvements in the capabilities of machine translation (MT) raise questions about possible increases in overreliance on MT among lower-proficiency or novice level language learners. This study investigated how such learners described their use of online MT for independent reading and writing tasks, and whether this included descriptions…

Research has articulated the benefits of autonomy in outdoor programming (e.g., Chang, 2017), and the independent student expedition (ISE) is one type of autonomous experience that has received attention across the literature. Research suggests that ISEs have the potential to foster personal growth and promote group development (e.g., Daniel et…

Higher education continually seeks new approaches to support students with various learning needs. At present, Finland attempts to provide such support through accessibility and reasonable accommodation efforts, but students with learning disabilities may still encounter many barriers in their studies. One approach suggested to meet the needs of a…

The Adult Participation in Learning Survey provides unique insights into adult learning across the UK. It adopts a deliberately broad definition of learning, reflecting the fact that learning is about much more than formal courses and qualifications. The 2024 survey shows just over one half (52%) of adults have taken part in learning in the last…

The main aim of the present study is to assess whether the open learner model (OLM) is capable of promoting students' active thinking by enhancing their self-regulation in online higher education learning environments. To this aim, we systematically reviewed the literature of the last three decades and found 67 articles, of which only a sample of…

Augmenting academic advising in the era of smart cognitive computing technologies creates new dynamics of engagement that can help academic advising evolve toward a learning-centered paradigm. We examined the self-directed learning readiness of students selected through demographic variables. The results indicate that differences in employment…

Included in the discussions regarding the instructional and learning value of massive open online courses (MOOCs) is the question of whether MOOC learners gain much value, if any at all, and has been a continuing debate since MOOCs began. Skeptics argue that MOOCs lack academic rigor and are superficial, while proponents praise them as addressing…

Recent research has linked the development of self-directed learning of building and construction apprentices to the quality of relationship between the apprentice and their sponsor. This relationship was found to be critical for the apprentice to develop the capacity for self-directed learning. The sponsor as a more confident or experienced other…

The changes in educational technology present challenges for K-12 principals leading students and faculty who are more engaged with classroom technology. The role of self-directed learning and how K-12 principals adopt the technology while leading the deployment and implementation of classroom technologies is not known due to a limited amount of…

With the development of science and technology, great changes have taken place in the way of education. To study the influence of network classroom environment on the learning ability of university students, one hundred and fifty students from the same major were taken as the experimental subjects, and they learned in the traditional classroom…

Although physical education (PE) teachers have increased access to digital/online continuous professional development activities, there are few robust accounts of how they engage with and experience these environments. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine PE teachers' participation patterns within self-directed online PE continuous…

Shifting school schedules, small class sizes, and unpredictable instrumentation resulting from the global pandemic necessitated a creative approach to teaching ensemble music classes this year. In response to that challenge, I constructed a curriculum for developing independent musicianship through chamber music. Part independence,…

Despite the increasing use of the self-regulated learning process in the smart learning environment, understanding the concepts from a theoretical perspective and empirical evidence are limited. This study used a systematic review to explore models, design tools, support approaches, and empirical research on the self-regulated learning process in…

This paper explores, from a theoretical basis, the difficulty in defining and assessing learner autonomy in higher education. Although the development of learner autonomy as a key aim of higher education, it is a vague and ill-defined term. As such, the assessment of learner autonomy within university programs of study is highly problematic. The…