Motivating students towards self-directed learning

Embedding motivation in the self-directedness of first-year teacher students

“…De Vos (2014) and Zimmerman and Schunk (2011) further argue that learning motivation plays an essential role during teaching-learning (all the more for self-directed learning), because a) motivated students are more involved in their own learning processes than students that are not motivated; b) motivated students show more academic progress; c) motivated students achieve better results in reaching higher levels of competence; and finally d) motivated students demonstrate more satisfaction with the objectives they have reached and react positively to the teaching-learning opportunities offered to them. From the literature (Mulube and Jooste 2014;Regan 2003;Van Bommel, Boshuizen and Kwakman 2015) it can be concluded that when students demonstrate a lack of learning motivation while implementing a self-directed activity it can possibly lead to anxiety, which hinders the promotion of selfdirectedness in learning and that learning motivation is the incentive that enables students to implement a learning activity in a self-directed manner. Learning motivation can thus be seen as an essential 'aid' and 'instrument' for learning (Ginsberg 2005 plays during teaching-learning, and further point out that learning motivation is the HEART of any teaching-learning situation.…”

IRRODL Volume 15, Number 3

“…The self-management of learning (SML), which refers to "the extent to which an individual feels he or she is self-disciplined and can engage in autonomous learning" (Wang et al, 2009, p. 101), has several synonyms such as autonomous, self-directed, self-regulated, and independent learning (Regan, 2003). SML has received much attention in prior research mainly because it could have a positive impact on learning (Hsu & Lin, 2008;Yuen & Ma, 2008) and IT system usage (Van Raaij & Schepers, 2008).…”

Development and delivery of a distance education disability management course

“…Feedback obtained from University students involved distance learning initiatives via the world-wide web has shown that clear directions and guidance, along with unitized, well organized, and structured learning materials, facilitates student learning (Kanuka, 2001). The fact that 100% of surveyed students noted the importance of a good lecture in promoting self-directed learning (Regan, 2003), reinforces the need to ensure weekly topics and discussions are well organized and interesting. Although weekly content, readings, and questions would be pre-determined and therefore "structured," the intent was not to constrain students but to provide a framework to stimulate thinking and participation.…”

“…These results were echoed by a later study on students involved in an on-line health promotion module who reported that the sense of interdependency and responsibility created by discussion expectations motivated their participation (Black et al, 2003). The results of research conducted by Regan (2003) revealed that 85% of students indicated that a "lively class discussion" was a motivating factor in their learning. When reflecting on my own experience with discussion forums , the fact that my peers were privy to my posts and would be reflecting on and responding to them, created not only a sense of personal responsibility to maintain a certain level of participation, but increased my sense of accountability for providing accurate, thorough, and stimulating responses.…”

“…With the Discussion Forum as the principle means of student and instructor interaction on weekly material, and motivation as one of the key psychological factors involved in learning (Regan, 2003), it was important to examine whether discussions would sufficiently motivate learners. Feedback from participants involved in asynchronous computer-mediated communication found that in addition to providing improved access to group knowledge and support, it lead to increased motivation (Harasim as cited in Black et al, 2003).…”