Grow’s Staged Self-Directed Learning Model & Persistence

Where am I on Grow’s Staged Self-Directed Learning Model and what implications does the model have for me as an online teacher?

Grow’s Staged Self-Directed Learning Model (SSDL) is a model introduced and described by Grow in 1996. According to Stavredes (2011) “Grow proposes a four-staged model […] which suggests how you can support learners in becoming more self-directed in learning.” (p. 15) Those stages are Dependent Learner, Interested Learner, Involved Learner, and Self-Directed learner.

Based on the descriptions of the four stages of Grow’s SSDL, I find that where I fall in that model may vary. The variance may be accounted for due to the subject matter which is being learned. In many cases, I find that I could be classified into the fourth stage, or Self-Directed Learner. For many of the subjects that I attempt to learn, I have at least some basic skills and knowledge in the matter. However, like many learners, I sometimes find myself in a situation where I am learning something in a subject that I lack skills and knowledge in, or that I lack confidence in the skills and knowledge that I do have. In these cases, I find that I likely fit best into the third stage of the SSDL, or the Involved Learner.

In those cases where I lack confidence in the skills and knowledge on the subject, I may need the instructor or fellow classmates to be more assertive in how my learning is guided towards a more confident place.

My current position as an adult education instructor in a correctional institution where I mainly teach adult students who have not attained a high school diploma or GED certificate means that I regularly am teaching students who fall into one of the first two stages of Grow’s SSDL. Many of my current students do not have any idea what it means to be self-directed in their learning. They may be capable of learning things for themselves, but they have no concept of the idea that they are self-learning. In many cases, the learning is done out of necessity; brought on by some external motivational factor.

The crossroads of my own position in the self-directed learning spectrum, and that of my students, makes the implications clear. My purpose, as instructor, is to assist my students in moving from the lower stages of the SSDL to the higher stages. Weill-Cornell (n.d.) argues that “the ability to learn on our own is absolutely critical, in a world that keeps changing and producing new information and knowledge every day.” I agree. Ours is a world that is constantly changing and evolving the way that we process data and perform tasks. It’s imperative that we are able to learn the new processes and procedures of that world. Moving from the early stages of a model like Grow’s, to the later stages that are indicated by a higher confidence in their ability to self-learn can make a great deal of difference for a student.

Challenges in Persistence of Online Learners

Stavredes (2011) describes persistence as the continuation of a student from one one year to the next and through the culmination of their degree. Some of the identified factors are likely to be consistent between both traditional learners and online learners, however there may be additional challenges that are particular to online learners.

Hart (2012) lists barriers to persistence in online courses as:

• Auditory Learning Style – Students who have a preference for auditory learning have a lower persistence in the typically textual online coursework.
• Basic Computer Skills – This particular result may have been an anomaly as it showed that the more advanced a student’s computer skills, the less likely they were to persist.
• College Status and Graduating Term – Directly related to the amount of experience the student has with education.
• Difficulty in Accessing Resources – Inadequate or vague instruction and description of resources.
• Isolation and Decreased Engagement – Overall lack of engagement in the coursework
• Lack of Computer Accessibility – Student has an inability to access a computer on a regular basis to complete their coursework.
• Non-Academic Issues – A myriad of issues that have roots externally to the course or setting. Largely out of the control of the instructor
• Poor Communication – Lack of communication on the part of the instructor, or an inability to contact the instructor.

The challenges for persistence, regardless of the listing source, seem to largely include those that effect traditionally attending students with some additional challenges that are concentrated around the delivery of the coursework of an online course. Particularly, the challenges of persistence for online students, in addition to those of a traditional student, are those of delivery, communication, and engagement.

As an instructor of an online course, addressing those challenges of delivery, communication, and engagement should be at the forefront of how you curate the curriculum. Providing a variable means of delivery with variety among textual, video, and multimedia methods may assist with overcoming the needs of students who have varying preferred styles of learning. Ensuring that communication is clear, the coursework is clearly labeled and laid out with clear deadlines and methods of submission, and that any resources that a student may need are readily described and easily accessed should improve persistence in the cases of communicative breakdown. Lastly, finding ways to increase engagement of the student such as breaking down the work to more incremental pieces, or adding more interactive work such that they don’t pull back from the coursework should help to solve the challenge of poor engagement.

Persistence, in my view, isn’t a wholly achievable goal in every student’s case. There will be cases where there are external challenges present that are insurmountable by any action that the student or instructor can do. However, I see many of the other challenges as just that; Challenges that can be deconstructed and overcome by being an aware instructor who attempts to keep a close eye out for students who are having these challenges and manipulating the coursework to be more adaptive for those students. Some of this can be done in a more preventative way through more universal course design and instructional variance.

References

• Hart, C. (2012). Factors associated with student persistence in an online program of study: A review of the literature. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 11(1), 24.
• Self-directed learning (SDL): A brief comprehensive analysis. (n.d.). Weill Cornell Medicine – Qatar. Retrieved January 18, 2020, from https://qatar-weill.cornell.edu/continuing-professional-development/topic-of-the-month/archive/self-directed-learning-sdl-a-brief-comprehensive-analysis
• Stavredes, T. (2011). Effective online teaching: Foundations and strategies for student success.