“Adults have a deep psychological need to be generally self-directing”
(Merriam, 2007, p. 120)
A. Objective: What have you learned from reflecting on this particular quote? What has caught your attention?
“But we are all Seekers. We all want to know why. Man is the asking animal. And while the finding, the belief that we have found the Answer, can separate us and make us forget our humanity, it is the seeking that continues to bring us together, that makes and keeps us human.” - Daniel Boorstein, The Seekers
I did instinctively believe that humans have a deep psychological need to be self-directed, that we are inherently ‘seekers’. It is part of what makes us human. I thought. However I realize this may have been my ‘world-view’, my belief or assumption, based on my own learning experiences as a Canadian who has made her way through the Canadian primary, secondary and tertiary educational systems. As I moved out into the world beyond Canada and beyond ‘western’ education systems, I did have questions. What catches my attention in this quote is the implication that it addresses ALL adults. All around the world. Independent of the social, cultural, political, or dominating religious world they live in.
My questions arise from reflecting on this quote relative to my experience teaching female student nurses in Saudi Arabia, and the challenges faced as far as a significant lack of self-direction in their learning. In Saudi Arabia there has been discussion and measures implemented to reform the educational system, to move it from being based on purely teacher-led didactic rote memory, to one that promotes critical thinking and self-direction. However times move slowly, and students in post-secondary schooling now grew up in a system that was still very traditional, and where self-directed learning was not encouraged.
As discussed in Learning in Adulthood (p.122), the concept of self-directedness is also closely linked with autonomy. Autonomy in western thought “stands for personal liberty, where the individual is free to choose and implement his own decisions, free from deceit, duress, constraint, or coercion” (Rathor, 2011, p. 28). Autonomy is interpreted quite differently under Islamic principles where individual autonomy is subservient to the larger good of the community and public interests take precedence over individual’s private considerations (Rathor, 2011). I recognize that the context of living and learning in an Islamic state will therefore necessarily impact individuals as learners, be they male or female, but obviously, with the increased restrictions on women’s autonomy, independence, and self-direction overall, female adult learners may have even greater challenges.
B. Reflective: What did you realize about teaching as a result of this quote?
The contextual aspect of self-directed learning and the role of society and culture is addressed by Learning in Adulthood (p. 123-124). While autonomy reflects independence and uniqueness, according to Boucouvalas (as cited in Merriam, 2007) homonomy is “the experience of being part of a meaningful whole and in harmony with superindividual units such as family, social group, culture, and cosmic order” (p.124). It seems to me that as a teacher who continues to work within an Islamic country and culture that strongly supports homonomy over autonomy, I must find a way to incorporate the traditionally held value of homonomy, while at the same time support my student’s individual growth towards becoming self-directed in their learning. I don’t think that these two are necessarily mutually exclusive, but I need to find an understanding of how to do this.
C. Interpretive: What was your Aha! moment when you read this quote? In what way(s) did this quote change your mind about being an adult educator? What was one key insight that you now have as a result of this quote?
Aha! Upon investigating further the impact of culture on self-direction, I realize that there is some valuable practical insight for the adult educator. Coming from the realm of teaching problem-based-learning, Frambach and colleagues have explored cultural influences on self-directed learning in their research “Rethinking the globalisation of problem-based learning: how culture challenges self-directed learning” (2012). Started by McMaster medical school in Canada, medical schools worldwide are now increasingly switching to student-centered methods such as problem-based learning to foster lifelong self-directed learning in their students. Nursing schools as well – though not as all encompassing as our medical colleagues. In response to this globalization of a ‘western’ teaching method, Frambach et al explored and compared the culturally influenced challenges students faced in three programs - in the Netherlands, Hong Kong, and the Middle East. They identified uncertainty and tradition, hierarchy, and achievement as cultural factors posing challenges to self-directed learning for Middle East students. “Middle Eastern students expressed more feelings of uncertainty as a cultural factor compared with Dutch and Hong Kong students. Their uncertainty and difficulties in adapting to SDL were related to sharp contrasts between PBL and their prior educational experiences. Rather than feeling motivated, many students felt lost and unable to find appropriate information to address their learning objectives. Uncertainty was related to experiences of traditional, teacher-centered secondary education, but also to a culturally determined focus on tradition. Middle Eastern respondents referred to their society’s respect for the ‘old ways’ and wariness regarding innovations” (p. 742).
The impact of hierarchy was also evident in the Middle Eastern students, manifested in their experiencing of anxiety about the requirement to search independently for the ‘truth’. I can see that this might be a factor in an individual whose whole worldview was shaped by the conviction that there was ‘one truth’. They were also very focused on examination results, and felt so much family and societal pressure to be ‘the best’ that any learning that was not within the pre-set objectives, and therefore not ‘testable’ was considered a waste of time.
I feel extremely validated reading the results of this research, because it is so in synch with my own experience. Now I feel I can actually move forward with coming to grips with this issue.
D. Decisional: How has this quote and the insight you have gained from reflecting upon it, influenced your notion of teaching or how you will teach in the future?
Having confirmation that Middle Eastern students do in fact have specific identifiable challenges related to self-directed learning, I can now move forward towards seeking a constructive approach that may accommodate their needs. I was interested to read about Grow’s Staged Self-Directed Learning model (Merriam, 2007, p. 117). I think this is a helpful way to look at building self-direction into a curriculum especially when serving the needs of learners who have had little exposure to the concept in their previous learning. Grow discusses four stages of learners: Dependent Learner; Interested Learner; Involved Learner; and Self-directed Learner; and how these are parallel to teaching roles: Authority/Expert; Salesperson/Motivator; Facilitator; and Delegator. Interrelated to these stages and roles are the appropriate instructional methods to facilitate growing self-direction in the learner. Grow (1996) gives us a model that looks like the one attached at the bottom of this post.
I can see how these stages would match fairly well to a four year nursing curriculum, with each stage coinciding with an academic year, so that upon initial intake, the students are provided more structure and guidance and by the end of fourth year and in time for internship, they are working independently on projects and self-directing their learning.
Photo credit: bandytAM on Flickr and reproduced under Creative Commons 2.0
References
Jain, M. (2002). Unfolding Learning Societies: Experiencing the Possibilities. Special Issue of Vimukt Shiksha, June 2002. Retrieved August 14, 2013 from http://www.swaraj.org/shikshantar/ls3_intro.htm
Rathor, M., Fauzi, M., Shah, A., Leman, W., Akter, S., and Omar, A. (2011). The Principle of Autonomy as Related to Personal Decision Making Concerning Health and Research from an ‘Islamic Viewpoint’. Journal of the Indian Medical Association, Volume 43, p. 27-34. Retrieved August 14, 2013 from http://jima.imana.org/article/view/6396/43_1-5.
Frambach, J., Driessen, E., Chan, L., and van der Vleuten, P. (2012). Rethinking the globalisation of problem-based learning: How culture challenges self-directed learning. Medical Education, 46: 738–747.
Grow, G. (1996). Teaching Learners to be Self-Directed. Adult Education Quarterly, 41 (3), 125-149. Expanded version available online at: <http://www.longleaf.net/ggrow>.
Retrieved August 14, 2013 from: http://www.longleaf.net/ggrow/SSDL/Apply.html