The ultimate active learning experience...
I was recently inspired by a quote by Howard Gardner — “ You learn at your best when you have something you care about and can get pleasure in being engaged in”.
This should be the principle for anyone engaging in any self-learning routine. If you’re studying in some kind of institution, you may have classes that you have a lack of interest in. But, despite your lack of interest, you end up studying the different classes because you need to get your diploma.
When you’re self-studying something you like, there isn’t any type of diploma waiting for you at the end of the line. This is especially true if you’re studying for entertainment purposes and not because you’re going to self-apply for some kind of exam or test.
If you’re going to study something on your own, you need to find a purpose or enjoyment in the process. Without these, you’ll fail sooner or later.
In my opinion, self-directed learning is the ultimate active learning experience. We tend to encode information and retain it better because nothing is being handed out to us. This type of learning is very special because each step of the learning process is ours to decide. Our progress is ours to evaluate and the methods and time management we employ is ours to choose.
However, self-learning is very challenging. It requires a specific set of skills that allow the learner to actively engage in the required activities without external stimuli. Although it may not come naturally to everyone, it’s definitely achievable through the right means.
You really need to identify the purpose of your self-learning before you start thinking about anything else. Are you learning to prep for an exam but can’t afford the prepping program or are you learning because you enjoy engaging in the activity of learning — such as playing an instrument?
It’s important to be practical and really understand where you really want to go with this journey and establish smaller goals. Maybe you want to be able to have a conversation with someone from another country when you go travelling next summer, or maybe to want to be able to play the opening song to that show that you really like. Either way, there should be a smaller goal there and it should have a date. You could write down a list of these goals and mark on your calendar when you should achieve these goals.
Since you won’t have any professors looking at you with disappointment and there’s no possibility that you might end up being the laughing stock of your class when you end up with a poor grade, it’s a good idea to come up with an accountability system for yourself. You can tell a friend or a family member about your self-learning and communicate your goals. Build a spreadsheet that allows you to periodically check in with yourself and monitor your progress. This will turn you into your self-accountability system because no one likes to break a streak or leave those check marks empty for too long.
Learn how to self-learn. There may be information on the internet that tells you how to self-learn your topic specifically. Language learning is an example of this, but you can also find specific information for other skills and subjects.
Consistency is key and so is your calendar. Self-learning is difficult because you need to build your own system and be consistent. Your calendar can be your best friend in this instance. Being consistent means scheduling your learning or practicing sessions in your calendar at a time that will allow you to exploit the maximum capacity of your brain.
Find help and share. By searching the internet, you can find platforms and communities created and managed by people learning the exact same things you are currently learning. Send out emails with your questions and try to be more engaged. This will help you find tips and tricks to speed up your progress.
Don’t forget the basics. Every so often, go back and review the basics of the subject you’ve chosen to study. It’s important to make sure that whatever the foundations of your area of knowledge are, they’re set in stone. This means you can continue pursuing your self-directed learning journey without anything holding you back.
Be skeptical. This is ridiculously important if you’re self-learning. The information you come across may not be verified. You need to be able to challenge the data you find, especially if you’re not taking your information from recognized sources. A good way to find this out is to submit your information to the community of self-learners recommended earlier or trying to find information about the author who wrote it.
Although it can be overwhelming at times, this freedom can be immensely positive. You’re allowed to delve into subjects at a much deeper level instead of looking at the tip of the iceberg as it happens in most college level studies.
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