Participants Sought for Research Project on Self-Directed Learning
ATTN Home School Parents:
Would you like to help your child become an organized
self-directed learner? Would you like
your child to become officially certified as a self-directed learner? Would you
like your child to be involved in an at-home project that will teach learning
organization tools while also exposing your child to the professional research
process? If so, you and your child may want to participate in a research project
being conducted by the Education Division of the American Society for Quality.
As a participant, you will receive one-on-one, step-by-step
guidance (by e-mail and phone) on how to help your child become an organized
self-directed learner. This means your child will eventually be able to set
learning goals, design learning processes, and consistently achieve objectives.
Your child will have these lifelong tools to accomplish any goal he or she
sets.
The approach, known as Quality Assurance, is a proven
methodology for optimizing any set of processes. But while it has proven highly
successful in many fields, this project is its first application to
self-directed learning by individual students.
You will not have to learn much initially about the underlying science
of Quality Assurance, just as you don’t need to study engines to learn to drive
a car.
You and your child will select a learning objective such
as ‘Double typing speed,’ ‘Complete a
set of math units,’ or ‘Read one novel a month.’ You will then define the steps in the process, and your child
will follow them and document progress.
You’ll improve the process until it runs like clockwork. You’ll then add a second process for
another key learning objective.
Eventually, all key processes will be defined and running smoothly. As your child learns this approach, he or
she will take control of these processes, start designing new ones, and
eventually be managing his or her own learning.
An
initial trial has resulted in a home schooled child successfully implementing a
first process and looking toward others.
We are now opening the project to other home school families and will
eventually introduce it into traditional schools. You are invited to join this research project.
Participation
is free, and you will not be locked into any commitments. We will provide step-by-step guidance that
you can choose to follow. We believe
you and your child will see benefits early on and will want to continue. Your feedback will help our professional
society draft a guidance document designed to help others apply this approach.
The
optimum student age range for this first pilot is probably 10-15, but younger
children may be able to partially implement the approach. All interaction will be with the parent, not
directly with the children.
A paper entitled, “Structured Approach to Self-Directed
Learning -- Home School Perspective,”
is attached below. To inquire further,
please send your name, e-mail address, and any questions to James Schoening at
Jim.S3@juno.com.
James Schoening
American Society for
Quality
Jim.S3@juno.com
Structured Approach to Self-Directed Learning
-- Home School Perspective --
James Schoening
Kris Pepper
April 13, 2003
Introduction
Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.
Teach him to fish and he will eat for life.
Teach him to learn and he will excel in the 21st
Century.
A growing number of career fields require continuous
learning, often referred to as Lifelong Learning. It is widely accepted in the field of education that children
need to become self-directed lifelong learners. Yet, no viable or comprehensive approach has emerged for what
this capability is, how to achieve it, how to measure it, or how to certify its
achievement.
This project introduces an approach to meeting this challenge. The core concept is known as the ‘Process
Approach.’ The underlying scientific approach, which this paper will touch on,
is known as ‘Quality Assurance.’
The goal of this approach is to help students become organized
self-directed learners and to optimize all aspects of their learning. It is flexible enough to allow its unique
application to individual learning styles and objectives. It provides concrete measurement of
progress. It has the means to provide
the discipline all students need. It
even can lead to formal certification as a ‘Self-Direct Learner,’ something
colleges and employers will greatly value.
An initial trial has been completed, and additional participants are
now being invited to join a follow-on trial.
Core Concept
The core concept of the
Process Approach is rather simple, and follows:
a.
Define
a process
b.
Follow
the process
c.
Measure
results
d.
Improve
the process
e.
Repeat
above steps until process runs smoothly
Start with one process, optimize it with the steps above, and then add
another process. Keep adding processes
until all key processes are optimized. Drop those processes that run smoothly
on their own or don’t make a difference.
Do this in a structured and methodical way, and you will optimize your
overall self-directed learning.
Examples of Key Processes
Examples of home school processes could include:
a.
Read
novel
b.
Write
book report
c.
Complete
text chapter
d.
Complete
experiment
Examples of management processes could include:
a.
Review
career goals
b.
Store
key documents
c.
Design
learning experience
d.
Select
course and materials
For home schoolers, parents will initially set up the key processes and
provide oversight. Over time, the child
will take control of each process and the management oversight, and eventually
the overall learning system.
If you have done any home schooling, you already have an informal Learning Management System. You know the organizations and people that have requirements that need to be met. You have translated these requirements into objectives. You and your children have processes for meeting the objectives and you do some form of assessment. You work to improve these processes. You do your own assessment of the overall system and are occasionally subject to a third party review. So, even if you are an unschooler, you already have a Learning Management System, or what in the Quality field is called a Quality Management System.
Example of a Learning Process
An example of a key learning process could be ‘Complete Math
Unit.’ The broader objective might be
to master and retain a given subject, such as Algebra I. The strategy could be to complete all
chapters in an Algebra text, score over 93% on each chapter, and retest after
specified periods to verify retention.
The following could be the steps, or procedures, taken to complete each
chapter or unit.
1) Read Introduction
2) Skim chapter
3) Read chapter,
underline key points
4) Complete exercises
5) Study for test
6) Take test
7) Review test results
8) Retest after 1 week
9) Retest after
1-month
You will choose a process with potential for
improvement. The desired improvement
might be faster completion, better test results, or better retention. Checklists are used to ensure all steps are
followed, and charts are used to measure key data such as Time-to-Complete-Step
or Test-Scores. The process is followed
a number of times, and measurements are taken.
Measurements are analyzed, and the process is improved, with some steps
being dropped. The new process is
followed, and the cycle is repeated until things run smoothly and produce the
desired results.
The steps will only be as detailed as necessary to achieve the desired
output. The steps will concentrate on
problem areas, with no control placed on processes that run smoothly
already. For example, if a child loves
to read novels, that process won’t need any control. But if writing book reports needs improvement, the Process
Approach as described above would be used to gain control and produce optimum
results.
Building a Learning Management System
Once one process has been established, additional ones can be added,
one at a time. Eventually all key
processes, the ones that matter, will be under control and continuously
improved. New processes will be quickly
added as needed, and others will be dropped when no longer needed. Management processes will be established to
control all the other processes and documentation. Eventually the learner will
have a comprehensive management system custom designed to manage his or her
unique learning activities.
Transitioning from Parent-Managed to
Self-Managed Learning
The Process Approach should first be implemented in a parent or
teacher-managed mode, where the adult defines the steps, supervises the child’s
completion of the steps, perhaps even takes the measurements, and does the
analysis to improve the process. But
once the child sees how the Process Approach works, and depending on their age
and motivation, they should start taking over some of processes and even
designing new ones. Over time, they will need to take over complete management
of their system. Parents will continue
to provide guidance, support, and incentives, but by definition, for an
individual to become a self-directed learner, they must eventually take over
total management of their own learning.
Incentives will always be needed. After leaving home, these incentives
will be provided by degree goals, career goals, and employers.
Breaking through the Discipline Barrier
Learning requires discipline.
Schools have always provided ample external discipline to spur most
students to completion. But today,
self-directed learning requires substantial self-discipline, which is hard for
most students. The Process Approach can
break through this barrier. The secret
is to define steps in a process that transform self-discipline into external
discipline. For a young home schooled
child, this could be simple as ‘Finish morning assignments to Mom’s
satisfaction and get to break early for lunch.’ A young adult could set a
learning goal in literature of ‘Read two novels a month.’ The external discipline could be to commit
to this goal and ask 5 friends or family members to hold him or her to it. An employee could agree with a supervisor to
complete a learning objective in return for a given benefit. For some, committing in writing to one’s
self will even work. Different things
will work for different people. The Process Approach will lead a learner to
continuously improve all key processes, including the discipline steps, until
they run smoothly.
Successful First Trial
A first trial of the Process Approach has been successfully
completed. A home school family child
chose the process ‘Improve Typing,’ and set a goal of doubling typing speed.
The goal was met using the Process Approach described above. A follow-on goal of 40 WPM is now being
pursued.
The parent started by exploring a few
different goals, such as gaining a full understanding of the scientific method,
completing 7th grade math, passing an important test, and improving typing. The
parent chose improving typing because it was an easily definable goal, and the
child really wanted to achieve that goal.
The parent wrote a document listing first the exact objective and the
reasons to achieve the goal. A copy of
this document is attached. The exact objective was 40 AWPM as measured by Mavis
Beacon software. An intermediate objective of 24 AWPM was also set. The child
had to agree with the reasoning and objectives. This section was changed to
reflect the child's concerns. Seeing the objective and the reasons in writing
helped to cement the ideas in the child's mind.
That document was expanded to include the action planned to achieve the
goal. In this case, the action planned was to work 30 minutes a day, except for
holidays and weekends. It also describes the learning tool, which was the Mavis
Beacon writing program. It even mentioned that the child would start fresh as
needed, as long as the 30 minutes a day was completed.
That document also included the progress measurements. It included
weekly measurements and a daily log. The forms for recording the measurements
were included. A review process was also described.
That review process revealed that although the intermediate objective
of 28 AWPM was met, the process was not working as well as it had one month
earlier. The scores were not improving. The child had stopped implementing the
program fully after the holiday vacation. Having children slide around the rules
of a process is a problem that home schoolers have to deal with in molding a
self-directed learner. Even adult learners slide around their own rules and
need to find a way to keep themselves on track.
The parent acknowledged that the process had lost its appeal and talked
to the child about the original goal and the reasons for achieving it. The
parent changed some of the process to make it more appealing. This is something
adults and even businesses have to do occasionally to keep a process alive. The
important thing is not to drop the measurements. By keeping the measurements in
place, the goal stayed stable.
The weekly typing test that scored the child's AWPM remained. Because
of lost progress, the goal date was changed as well. Changing the documentation
to reflect the new process and the revised goal date re-motivated both the
parent and child. Because of the process, this goal will eventually be
achieved.
The quality method included a written plan and periodic measurements.
Those are the elements that kept this typing project from falling by the
wayside when it started to falter.
Additional Trials Now Being Set Up
Additional trial implementations of this approach are now being set
up. Home school parents and their
children are invited to participate.
Parents will receive one-on-one, step-by-step guidance (by e-mail and
phone) on how to implement this approach.
They will be asked to briefly describe a few current learning goals and
their basic processes. The group will help the parents select a good first
candidate to apply the Process Approach.
The first process should be a small process that is new or not working
well.
The parents will quantify the goal and determine how it can be
objectively measured. The parents will also work with the child to discover why
the goal is important and to whom it is important. This can be critical in
determining what true success is.
The parents will then list the procedures currently followed. The group
will help the parents determine a better process. The new steps will be written into a plan, complete with
measurement worksheets. The child will then follow the steps and write down the
results. The group will help the parents analyze the results and improve the
process. Once one process is
established and functioning, additional ones can be added.
While the primary incentive for following the
Process Approach should be to optimize self-directed learning, an added benefit
is formal recognition. The underlying science of the Process Approach is known
as Quality Assurance. If a learner
follows the Process Approach and builds a Learning Management System in
accordance with the elements defined in the Quality Assurance standard
ISO-9001:2000, he or she can be registered to that standard. This will assure colleges and employers the
learner has a working system in place and follows it. Even more importantly, it
ensures the system will work for future learning objectives.
Students of today need to become self-directed
Lifelong Learners. The Process Approach
(plus the additional elements of Quality Assurance) is a structured approach a
learner can use to establish a system to manage such learning. A learner can achieve ISO9001:2000
registration, which will assure schools, employers and other stakeholders of
this capability. If parents and schools are serious about preparing students
for Lifelong Learning, this is a serious approach to achieving this goal. Interested stakeholders are invited to join
this initiative. To participate,
please e-mail James Schoening at Jim.S3@juno.com.
About
the authors:
James Schoening chairs the Z1.XX Working Group of
the American Society for Quality, Education Division. He also founded and was original Chair of the 4000-member IEEE
Learning Technology Task Force (http://lttf.ieee.org)
and IEEE Learning Technology Standards Committee (http://ltsc.ieee.org ). He is an Electronics Engineer with the U.S. Army
where he has worked in Learning Technology and can be contacted at James.Schoening@us.army.mil.
Kristin Pepper is an adjunct
professor of computer systems at Adelphi University and Molloy College and runs
Octagon, a computer consulting firm. She managed quality assurance departments
for computer software firms. She home schools her two girls. She can be
contacted at kpepper@optonline.net.
Attachment 1
Version: March 3, 2003
This document describes how the student will learn to type 40 AWPM over the next 4 months. She currently types 12 AWPM. This document describes the process and contains the forms for tracking progress. It also outlines exactly how the progress will be measured.
The student wants to type 40 Adjusted WPM as measured by the Mavis Typing Program. The student currently types about 12 AWPM. An intermediate goal is to double her typing speed. This will enable her to type homework instead of writing it. She hopes to reach the main goal of 40 AWPM in 4 months - end of March.
The student is her own customer. She said her mother is not a customer, but her mother will be pleased if her speed increases. She wants to be as fast as her friends. She wants to have an easier time typing things. She wants her writing to look neat.
Type all writing assignments. This has an added value of having the assignments typed and filed away, so they wont be lost. This will be the major practice.
Do at least 3 Mavis Beacon exercises each week. Keep working within the same user, instead of redoing exercises as she had been doing. This will ensure that the student stretches to learn the top and bottom keys well as the middle row.
Take a typing test by Wednesday to see whether the week's goal of 2 AWPM is reached. If it is, no more practice is necessary. If it is not, continue doing exercises and retaking the test until the goal is reached.
Original: Document the time spent every day. the student will write down the minutes spent. If she did other typing, she will write it down. Mom will check mark that she knows it was all done, and check mark another box if this was all done with no reminder.
At the end of every week, retake the typing test by signing on as a new user. Write down the speed, number of errors and adjusted WPM.
Whenever the student wants, she can write down any changes she thinks should be made to this system.
To ensure that all letter keys are learned, measure the number of keys that show as known by Mavis Beacon software in main user profile. The student may have to do extra lessons to achieve that goal.
On Fridays, we were going to check cumulative typing scores to verify that they are in line. Otherwise, we would suspect the measurements criteria. (Note: This has not been a problem since the scores are not going up very quickly.)
The following events will trigger a review process:
- not doing all 3 lessons for 1 week
- not reaching the 2 AWPM gain each week
- not reaching the key goal for weeks that have key goals
- needing a reminder for 3 weeks in a row
Also, review at the end of every two months.
<Name of Learner>
|
|
|
|
|
|
Before Wed Speed Test |
Final Speed Test |
|
reach? |
reach? |
target |
target |
|||||
|
Date |
les#1 |
les#2 |
les#3 |
# Extra |
WPM |
ERRORS |
AWPM |
WPM |
ERRORS |
AWPM |
MOM |
KEY GOAL |
AWPM GOAL |
KEY GOAL |
AWPM GOAL |
|
|
1/31/03 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
30 |
90 |
28 |
|
|
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|
2/7/03 |
2/5 |
2/5 |
2/5 |
|
|
|
25 |
|
|
31 |
y |
|
|
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|
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|
2/14/03 |
2/10 |
2/10 |
2/10 |
|
28 |
98 |
27 |
30 |
|
32 |
y |
|
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|
2/21/03 |
2/21 |
2/21 |
2/21 |
|
33 |
95 |
30 |
|
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|
2/28/03 |
2/25 |
2/25 |
2/25 |
|
34 |
98 |
33 |
35 |
97 |
34 |
y |
y |
y |
9 |
|
|
|
3/7/03 |
3/3 |
3/3 |
3/3 |
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19 |
36 |
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3/14/03 |
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29 |
38 |
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3/21/03 |
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vacation |
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3/28/03 |
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40 |
|
les#1 = date first lesson finished
les#2 = date second lesson finished
les#3 = date third lesson finished
#extra = extra lessons finished
Mom = mom checked and saw this form was filled in
Key goal = Y = key goal was reached form the week
AWPM goal = Y = AWPM goal was reached form the week
target key goal = cumulative number of keys that show as known by Mavis Beacon software in main user profile
target AWPM goal = AWPM goal to reach in final speed test.