TDG – Self-directed Learners’ Community: Developing an IT Based Interactive Self-learning Environment

Abstract

Self-directed learning is being increasingly adopted by many curricula; particularly by professional education programmes due to its certain salient features such as developing confidence, level of responsibility, self motivation, independence, improving life long learning skills and creative, critical and analytical thinking. Student-directed learning pedagogies such as problem-based, studio-based and case-based learning have proven their success in the University of Hong Kong for many years. The design studio incorporates these pedagogies successfully forming a rich environment of interaction among students and tutors. In terms of administration, self-directed web-based learning can be very effective. It leads to more efficient use of resources and manpower as it can happen anywhere, any time and without teachers’ presence. This project aimed to develop an IT supported learning environment that facilitates students’ self-learning initiatives. This system is based on stimulating and challenging students towards problem solving through multiple attempts at various tasks to achieve solutions of varying levels of success. Learning is expected to occur through processes of solution seeking. Outcomes included an expectation that students’ self-directed learning initiatives be improved, reduction achieved in teachers’ contact hours and a higher level of educational discourse and enthusiastic participation, system to be eventually customized to other curricula.

Deliverables