The context of this study …
The reason for my enquiry was simply to capture how autonomy (incorporating the key concept of personalisation) can be promoted online. The findings from this study may begin to inform the consideration of how, if at all, online higher education providers, and particularly the Ultraversity Project can improve provision to promote autonomy, if this is desirable.
For me personally this research grew out of seeds set last year with Gina and Ian Terrell in a focus on personalized learning. Ian very kindly fed my imagination with a food parcel of books.
The research questions were:
i. What are the strategies used in online higher education to promote the development of autonomous learning?
ii. How effective are these strategies?
ii. What strategies may be further developed to promote the advancement of autonomous learning in online higher education?
So what was learnt?
A full description of the autonomy promoting conditions existent within Ultraversity was formulated using
PRACTITIONER REFLECTION + RESEARCHER DISCUSSION + CASE STUDY
The triangulation was totally necessary as it threw up factors which were important to researchers (though not recognised in literature or by practitioner LF's) in helping them become autonomous. It also showed that autonomy was not always a desirable quality and should be accepted with a level of caution.
The determinants* of autonomy included :
Community/peer learning & dialogue
Peer review
Team teaching/facilitation
Reflection on learning
Negotiated learning activities
Self-evaluation
Evaluation of performance (though supported by tutor feedback)
* the investigation focused only on external factors and did not attempt to investigate cognitive and psychological intrinsic factors.
In addition it was found through case study that judgements about the effectiveness of the provision's for autonomised learning were intensely personal, fragile and fluid. A researcher (student) may engage in a journey towards achieving autonomy wherein certain points may be more or less positive, and that points within the journey may result in a negative experience. To make for a positive experience provision is important along with an explicit understanding of the value of autonomy. There appear to be levels of autonomy : Degrees of sociability and independence are key governing factors upon these levels.