Reach - A practical guide to achieving your goals

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Tutors & Teachers

Helping learners to take control

Online learning is often referred to as self-directed learning. But how do we know whether students are ready to take charge of their own learning? A new tool is a useful starting point. Academic research suggests that students who think in certain ways achieve better performance. Two approaches have led to common findings.

The first comes from the work of Rotter. He looked at whether we believe we control the outcomes of our lives or whether we believe outside factors determine the outcomes. He labelled these two approaches internal versus external locus of control. The research findings show that internal locus of control people tend to perform better and are far less likely to quit. However, external locus of control students are less successful because they are rarely proactive and tend not to take responsibility for their own learning.

Albert Bandura has done extensive work on self-efficacy. He looked at whether people believe that they have the capability to have an effective impact on the outcomes of their lives. Unsurprisingly, people who believe they have the power to have an impact succeed, whereas people who have low self-efficacy have a sense of hopelessness. And they tend to underperform.

The good news for online tutors is that you can help your student move from external towards internal locus of control. And it is possible to raise a person’s self-efficacy.

The ‘Take control of your life’ questionnaire that students complete as part of the Reach programme simply aims to show students where their sense of control lies. And to help them reflect on what this means to them.

How can you apply this to online learning?
The aim is to encourage your students to take charge of their own learning, with help and support from you. Here are some ideas:

Remind students that they control when and where they access their course materials. High locus of control students will handle this without a problem. However, low locus of control students, who are used to being ‘chivvied’ in person, are likely to need extra support from you.

Send feedback on activities quickly so that students feel empowered to get on with their course and are not waiting for your ‘permission’ or ‘approval’ to learn. Provide low locus of control learners with a learning plan with weekly reminders to logon and reminders of when work should be submitted.

You may find that low locus of control students complain more, perhaps in the café area, than high locus of control students. Here are some ideas for dealing with students who complain:

Act quickly the first time it happens to nip it in the bud
Telephone and ask them what the real issue is and try to resolve it as quickly as possible
Encourage positive thinking in group discussions
Encourage student peers to support and motivate each other.