Fostering postgraduate student engagement: online resources supporting self-directed learning in a diverse cohort

Abstract

The research question for this study was: 'Can the provision of online resources help to engage and motivate students to become self-directed learners?' This study presents the results of an action research project to answer this question for a postgraduate module at a research-intensive university in the United Kingdom. The analysis of results from the study was conducted dividing the students according to their programme degree Á Masters or PhD Á and according to their language skills. The study indicated that the online resources embedded in the module were consistently used, and that the measures put in place to support self-directed learning (SDL) were both perceived and valued by the students, irrespective of their programme or native language. Nevertheless, a difference was observed in how students viewed SDL: doctoral students seemed to prefer the approach and were more receptive to it than students pursuing their Masters degree. Some students reported that the SDL activity helped them to achieve more independence than did traditional approaches to teaching. Students who engaged with the online resources were rewarded with higher marks and claimed that they were all the more motivated within the module. Despite the different learning experiences of the diverse cohort, the study found that the blended nature of the course and its resources in support of SDL created a learning environment which positively affected student learning.

‘Students-as-partners’ scheme enhances postgraduate students’ employability skills while addressing gaps in bioinformatics education

“…These lectures were each supplemented by a two hour computer-based practical workshop, where students follow a pre-defined task, whilst being given the periodic class-wide guidance of a single lecturer. The face-to-face element was complemented by online resources/activities to support a self-directed learning approach by students (Mello, 2016 ).…”

Assessing Self-Regulation of Learning Dimensions in a Stand-alone MOOC Platform

“…The learners themselves decide the two main routes of study and they are free to change from one route to another with the support of the features introduced in the eLDa tool. Some studies show that appreciating new features in learning tools could be seen from the perspectives of different learners, as not all learners welcome changes in their routine elearning environment irrespective of the benefits [31,32].…”

Creating technology‐enabled lifelong learning: A heutagogical approach

“…This process runs along a lifelong learning path that may foster lifelong learning skills or tendencies (Tezer & Aynas, 2018). The self‐directedness of the learner becomes critical in navigating along the continuum and a necessary skill of the lifelong learner (Bonk et al., 2015; Mello, 2016; Rivenburg, 2016; Song & Bonk, 2016; Yang, 2016). In particular, the impact of blended and online learning on the development of self‐directed learning has been found to be positive and significant in enhancing learner agency, capability and academic success (Broadbent, 2017; Geng et al., 2019; Hill et al., 2017; Taylor et al., 2018; Vanslambrouck et al., 2019).…”

“…Many interesting explications use the constructs of self‐direction and self‐determination interchangeably to describe the characteristics of a learner's heutagogical disposition. Studies that integrate one or both of the terms focus on multiple related topics, such as learner disposition (Agonács et al., 2020); learner technology readiness (Geng et al., 2019); building learner skills (Mello, 2016); or pedagogical design (Blau et al., 2019; Haworth, 2016; Snowden & Halsall, 2016). Other examples are described below.…”