#self-organized learning

When you want to obtain a PhD in the Netherlands, one has to submit not just dissertation presenting your research, but most universities ask for a list of propositions, mostly related with your work. Traditionally, even, a dissertation was not even necessary for obtaining your PhD, and an oral defence (in Latin) on a set of propositions was sufficient. Because I made an effort to prepare my propositions, I would like to publish them here, also to increase the likelihood people with an interest in it, can find my dissertation named “A Pedagogical Design Framework to Engage At-risk Youth”.

I will add all ten propositions to my blog over the coming months, including the background info and reasoning behind it.

Interest based learning approaches require teachers to scaffold from students’ interest to relevance.

In most cases, we saw that students were very eager to share their interests or to propose a topic they thought they liked. However, what was also clearly visible, was that many of these so-called interests were shallow, not very well thought-out, and lacking profoundness. Many students also chose a topic that was socially accepted, for example Cristiano Ronaldo or a particular pop star. A learning process cannot be sustained by shallow interests themselves, and therefore teachers are required to help students determine either their true interests, or to make these shallow interests more relevant as the foundation for their learning process. For example, in several pilots teachers were effective in doing this by letting students reflect on their interests, in front of others, and connect shallow interests with deeper and more meaningful tasks, and to develop relevant learning activities and opportunities based on these interests. A pedagogy that places the learners’ interests at the center does not imply that (young) learners are best placed to make all the decisions and to see teachers as passive observers.

Researchers from the University of British Columbia did an experiment that measured performance of groups of learners over generations (in the experiment: subsequent groups of students) with either one or more experts available.

Here, we test the relationship between sociality and cumulative cultural evolution in two laboratory experiments, where sociality is operationalized in terms of a participant's ability to access and learn from multiple experienced individuals (‘models’ or ‘cultural parents’).

It builds on archaeological and ethnohistorical research that suggests a link between a population’s size and structure, and the diversity or sophistication of its toolkits or technologies. The results are not that surprising, but confirm the importance of sociality and the diversity of a population, and the advancement of knowledge (or innovation).

I think the core issue here might not be sociality but diversity, do you agree? If the models would be exactly the same, the different groups would have more or less the same results (I guess). More teachers means more diversity means more diverse input for solving (complex) problems, resulting in a more diverse set of strategies that can be passed on to the next generation? Also, there were hardly time-constraints, it really was an experimental setting. Many factors have been omitted (obviously), which in 'real life' would also impact learning and innovation across generations. Maybe cognitive load theory would be an interesting theme to consider: more experts might also mean an increased cognitive load...

Michael Muthukrishna et al., Sociality influences cultural complexity, Proceedings of the Royal Academy: Biological Sciences, 2013, doi: 10.1098/rspb.2013.2511

Interview with Black Mountain SOLE about MOOC Campus, a co-working campus for self-directed learners using MOOCs for independent scholarship.

This is a very cool initiative and this interview explains it well. I talked to Chris Hanna yesterday, one of the founders of Black Mountain, about possibilities to start something similar in the Netherlands. It was a very inspiring conversation. There is one thing that was not mentioned in the interview above:

Health metrics rather than Learning metrics. Predicting the learning path of individual students, because it is interest driven, is very hard to do. Thus, metrics primarily focus on health and psychology related factors. Feeling happy and fit is an important element in the program, and all the facilities are there to support that.

Very nice short read in Huffington Post by Blake Boles.

Rather, embracing self-directed learning as an 18- to 23-year-old means embracing your fundamental nature as an entrepreneur at a younger age than most. It means crafting a life of autonomy, mastery and purpose -- the three ingredients necessary for self-motivation -- while also creating value for other people in the process.

What does this look like in real life? To find out, I spent the last two years interviewing dozens of young adults across North America who purposefully chose self-directed learning over college. Many had led highly self-directed lives as teenagers; others floated through the traditional system for years until finally jumping ship. No matter their backgrounds, all these young people followed a similar pattern:

Instead of following someone else's curriculum, self-directed learners begin by asking themselves what fascinates and drives them. Their journey begins -- and ends -- with self-knowledge.

Instead of taking full-time classes, self-directed learners give themselves assignments that they find interesting, eye-opening and challenging. They start businesses, find internships, travel the world, read and write about things that fascinate them, and work for organizations they admire. (Many college students do these things too, but the difference is that self-directed learners don't wait for anyone's permission to begin learning.)

Instead of working on homework, papers, and presentations destined to be seen once and tossed into a trash can, self-directed learners turn much of their hard work into useful products for other people. They write blogs, build startups, create art, record videos, teach their skills, and sell their services. They keep an eye out for the innumerable ways that they can improve someone else's life.

Instead of relying mainly upon professors and college guidance counselors to help direct their educational process, self-directed learners seek the mentorship of a variety of accomplished individuals. They consult family, friends, businesspeople, writers, researchers, working professionals, retirees, or anyone else who might help them. They keep themselves accountable by sharing their goals publicly and asking friends and mentors to keep them on track.

Instead of purchasing peer community through college, self-directed learners meet friends through their work, hobbies, travel, networking, and social media -- just as people do in the real world. They try to surround themselves with as many smart people as they can.

To become financially secure, self-directed learners figure out how to market themselves, get hired in unconventional ways, start their own ventures, and live within their means. They recognize that these abilities -- not a degree -- are the true assets of an economically resilient life.