understanding our learners

7/29/2019 understanding our learners

1/5

UnderstandingOur Learners

Atypical profile of learners in distance education programmes, would be asfollows:

A wide age range as opposed to regular conventional students who would have

asmallagerange;

A mix of male and female students;

A mix of students of married and single status that would create differences in

responsibility and timeavailability;

Students with varied status in society with social commitments and

responsibilities that could affect their learning environment and competinginterests.

It is possible that the general distribution of the students could cover a region, awhole country and for some programmes, many countries. They may be away fromthe institution offering the programme, in urban or rural setting, with varying learningfacilities. The educational background of the learners may also vary. An open

learning institution would bring in students with a wide range of basic education andlanguage competence. On the other hand, in a dual mode system, admissions mighbe standardised on specific examination grades, with a specific minimum cut ofpoint.

In terms of professional/occupational background, it is possible that in the case osome programmes, the students may have undertaken some professional trainingor could already be employed. They may have varied aspirations and motivation fojoining the distance education programme. Considering the varied backgrounds othestudentsof such programmes,it is importantto understand our learners.

Given the wide range, background and interests of the learners, it is important toknow ourlearners so that we understand their:

educational and social background;

present knowledge level;

learningneedsandtheirlearningstyles;

values, attitudes,and theircultural background;

motivationanddesireforlearning.

Why is it important to know our learners?

Objectives

At the end of the section, you will be able toDiscuss the importance of understandingour learners;List various factors that need be knownabout learners;Explain how adults learn; andPrepare a generic picture of the targetlearners.

4


2/5

Information about our learners would be useful in defining our learning objectives

and in determining our mode of communication as well as in designing the learner

support system.

There are different aspects of our learners that we need to know about. But some o

themostimportant ones are:

Whatagegroup?

Whowillbepayingtheirfeesandexpenses?

Howmuchtimewilltheyhavefortheprogramme?

Whataccess do theyhaveto media/facilities?

What accesswill they have to human support - counsellors,otherlearners?

What do we need to know about our learners?

Demographic factors such as,

Motivationfactorssuchas,

Learningfactorssuchas,

Subject backgroundsuch as,

Resourcefactorssuchas,

Whatsex,marital status?

Whatoccupations (if any)?

Whateducationaland income background?

Whydotheywanttolearn?

Whatare theiraspirations?

What are their hopes andexpectations?

Howwouldtheprogrammerelatetotheirlivesandtheirwork?

What learning stylesdo they have?

Whatlearningskillsdotheyhave?

Whatknowledgeandskillsdotheyalreadyhaveinthesubject?

Howdotheyfeelabouttheprogramme?

What personal interestsand experiences do they have that could be relevant?

When,whereandhowwilltheybelearning?

22


3/5

How will we collect information?

How do adults learn?

There are different ways in which we can collect information about our learners

Some of these include thefollowing:

Meeting some of the prospective learners and discussing with them

(individuallyandasagroup)toknowwhattheywouldlikefromthecourseortheprogrammeand what they already know/feelaboutthe subject;

Sending a questionnaire to the prospective learners and trying to elicit the

information we need. If this can be followed up by discussion with the learners

somuchthebetter;Making a summary of the student enrolment and personal data to identify

students' characteristics/profile;

Makinga summary of anysurveys,whichmay have been done by institutionsin

relation to students'characteristics/profile;

Keeping in touch with our learners- through meetings or by reading and

commenting on their assignments-once they start working on thematerials.

An adult learns differently from a child for an adult is a developed individualHowever, there are certain characteristics that are common to the learning of all ofus.Thusitisimportanttounderstandthefollowing:

Adults have a self-concept and, unlike children, they areless dependent and more self-directed as learners. However, there are socialcultural and gender differences. Learners from certain cultural and sociabackgrounds exhibit lack of self-confidenceand have lowself-esteem. By and largewomenprefer collaborative learning ratherthan individualized learning.

With theprocess of growing up, adultsgather experiences whichare their own. These experiences determine the way one learns and these alsofacilitate or hinder one's learning. It is important to recognize the varied experiences

andperceptionsof theadults as they largely affect their learning process.

On the whole, adults tend to be more task-centred orproblem-centred. Problems and tasks that are more related to one's world of workand life generate interest in adult learners. As a result, learning situations that arebased on these problems and tasks contribute to effective learning. People areknown to learn best when learning is based on their lived experience.

Adults learn better by using their psychomotor skills and by

doing rather than by rote learning. As a result, adults need to feel challenged by

giving themopportunities for learning by doing.

Self-directed learning:

Priorexperience:

Problem-centred learning:

Learning by doing:

23


4/5

Preference for democratic style of learning:

Experiencing a sense of progression, a sense of achievement:

Adults prefer a democratic

participatory style rather than an authoritarian style of learning. Rather than the

popular perception that views students as 'empty vessels' whose minds have to be

filled with knowledge, a dialogical, interactive, cooperative style of learning finds

favourwithadults.

Adults learn

best when they feel they are making progress. Adults have varying learning needs

But in order to meet those needs, it is important for them to experience a sense of

achievement, a feeling that theircreative urge is challenged.

It would be useful to have a mental picture of our learners and start identifying thei

attributes and characteristics. Thus, the followingprofile has been drawn of students

who are enrolled as first year students of a Bachelor's degree programme in a dua

modeuniversityinnorthIndia.

Picturing our learners

24

Fig 1: Picturing our learners

Some have joined theprogramme to get aBachelor's degree,

others have also joinedbecause of the

flexibility theprogramme offers

Who areour learners?

Some might needfinancial support,but the rest are

supportedby their families

Some haveacademic support

from familiesothers do not

Mostly18-19 years

of age

Some needconsiderable

learners support

Some have not donewell academically

others haveperformed well

Often withshaky

self-esteem

Either froma Hindi or English

medium

Either from amiddle class or

lower middleclass background

Either a maleor femalestudent


5/5

Implications of understanding learners'

characteristics

The information on the learners would be helpful in developing materials that are

learner-sensitive and learner-friendly and in setting up a Learner Support System

thatisrelevanttotheneedsofthelearners.Specifically,itwouldenableusto:

understand the language level that would be easily understood by the learners

in comprehending concepts,new information, theory, etc.;

understand the entry level of the learners with regard to knowledge and skills soastobuildonwhatthelearnersalreadyknoworpossess;

include examples thatare basedon learners' experiences;

include references and further readings that the learners are able to access

within theirlearning environment;

present informationin a manner thatwouldminimisetheirlearning difficulties;

develop materials that would ensure interaction between the learner and the

text;

evolvea Learner Support Systemthat is sensitiveto thelearners' needs;

develop a system that ensures regular feedback on the quality of materials that

are issued as well as students' perceptions on the efficacy of the LearnerSupport System.

By applying the principles and steps outlined above, it is possible to effect dramaticimprovements in quality and learner centredness of self-learning materialspreparedbymanyanopenanddistancelearningsystem,whethersingleordualmode.

In thenext section we will discuss theconcept of instructional designfor multimedia.

25

understanding our learners

Documents

Transcript of understanding our learners