Autonomy in Learning: Test Your Knowledge!

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Learning on your own in your spare time is not necessarily self-training, and neither is searching for information on the Web. Moreover, self-training is not an all-encompassing concept that would designate any innovative form of learning other than the traditional lecture.

Self- training is also distinct from individualization in education, experiential learning and distance learning, the three approaches with which it is most often confused.

To find out exactly what self-training is:

• Self-training 101
• Self-Training: The Evolution of a Fundamental Concept

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Self-regulated learning is one of the most interesting and encompassing concepts of autonomy in learning, including for adults. It dynamically integrates the fundamental aspects of the act of learning: cognition, motivation, metacognition and volition. To help you better grasp this concept, here are a few elements drawn from a literature review on the subject by Professor Laurent Cosnefroy.

Formed from the Greek “autos” (self) and the Latin “regula” (rule, law), the term “self-regulation” refers to a system’s ability to regulate itself, without external intervention, in the event of an internal or external disturbance. It can be used to refer to an organism, a process, a system or a machine. Several researchers have examined self-regulation in learning, and various definitions have emerged from this interest. In his literature review “L’apprentissage autorégulé : perspectives en formation d’adultes“, Laurent Cosnefroy favours Shunk’s (1994) definition of self-regulated learning, which describes it as “a set of processes by which subjects activate and maintain cognitions, affects and behaviours systematically oriented toward the achievement of a goal.” This definition thus presents the learner as an autonomous subject who actively participates in their learning at motivational and metacognitive levels, striving to achieve the set goal(s). It assumes that simply triggering the action of getting down to work is not enough to achieve one’s goals.

Find out more:

• Self-regulated learning: a framework for adult learner autonomy
• 3 tips for self-regulated learning

ALL THESE ANSWERS

A is by Flavell (1976); B, by Gombert (1990); C, by Noël (1997); and D, by Deaudelin and Lafortune (2001).

Metacognition in bulk:

• This faculty enables us to identify our mistakes and successes and to understand their origins.
• It develops in childhood, but we can improve it throughout our lives.
• We use it whenever we try to learn something new that goes beyond simple automatism; in other words, in any task that requires planning or self-reflection.
• It can be applied to both abstract and concrete (so-called “manual”) tasks. In the latter case, to illustrate, we often use the example of assembling a piece of furniture from a kit, a task that requires us to reactivate our knowledge and skills in furniture assembly and to plan it to a certain extent in order to complete it successfully (achieve a goal).
• We sometimes associate it with “learning how to learn,” but it’s more accurately summed up as a set of “cognitions about our cognitions” or “knowledge of our own cognitive processes.”

By developing our metacognitive skills, we can hope to improve the quality of our learning and our autonomy as learners, two major assets for success in self-training and elearning.

Find out more:

• [VIDEO] Metacognition 101
• The 3 Components of Metacognition
• Metacognition in 10 points
• Develop Your Metacognitive Skills

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Self-efficacy is derived from Albert Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy, according to which individuals develop and regulate beliefs (or convictions) about their ability to make actions or events happen. Also known as self-efficacy or contextual or situational confidence, the feeling of personal efficacy corresponds “to the judgments people make about their ability to organize and carry out sets of actions required to achieve expected types of performance” (Bandura, 1986). According to Bandura, of all our self-reflective capacities that govern our behaviours, emotions and motivations, the feeling of personal efficacy is the most powerful vector. And for the father of social cognitivism, this feeling is nothing less than the foundation of our motivation, achievement and well-being.

Numerous studies have validated the central premise of self-efficacy theory, which its author sums up as follows: “If people do not believe that they can achieve the results they desire through their actions, they have little reason to act or persevere in the face of difficulties” (Bandura, 1997). Sense of self-efficacy always concerns personal judgments specific to a precise category of tasks or operations, such as being good at drawing; it would, therefore, be inappropriate to generalize into a sense of artistic efficacy a sense of efficacy in drawing.

Find out more:

• At the very heart of the feeling of personal effectiveness
• The Learner and The Feeling of Self-Efficacy

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The simple fact that we now know that the brain possesses this extraordinary capacity to evolve and adapt at any age, a characteristic known as cerebral (or neuronal) plasticity or neuroplasticity, is a factor that should motivate every learner. Driven by cognitive activity (or learning), brain plasticity means that neuronal connections are created or strengthened, weakened or eliminated, modifying both the architecture and functioning of the brain.

There are many other insights that can help learners in their quest for autonomy and success.

To discover some of them :

• [VIDEO] Neuroscience: Learning in 4 Steps
• [VIDEO] The importance of emotions in learning
• [VIDEO] 3 Mistakes to Avoid While Studying
• 5 Factors Influencing Memory Process
• How to deal with the stress before an exam
• Rest and Recuperate Smartly
• How to help your brain “unplug”
• Motivation and Success from the Brain’s Perspective: Test Your Knowledge
• Brain, Learning and Neuroscience: Test Your Knowledge!