Self-directed learning by Julee Sims

 Assignment 2: Self-Directed Learning

Goal:

To teach new employees how to use the software program UKG to record their work hours and approve their timecards for their supervisor.

 

Objectives:

Employees will learn:

·       How to punch in and out of their shift.

·       How to submit a change to their supervisor to fix a mistake on their timecard.

·       How to submit a request for vacation or sick time.

·       How to approve their time card for their supervisor to submit to payroll.

 

Rationales:

This online module is utilizing the Self-Directed Learner theory and was created for a Stage 3: Involved Learner according to Grow’s Staged Self-Directed Learning model (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020). An involved learner has the desire to learn and the skills to use a guide on their own time to acquire new skills. I felt that a new employee would have the desire to learn UKG considering this is how they are paid. They also can use this guide on their own time and acquire the necessary skills to approve and submit their timecards to their supervisor. It allows the employees to work through a step-by-step process to learn all aspects of UKG, or to choose a specific topic to reference while learning to resolve a specific problem. So, while the module is linear in nature, the learner can also utilize Spear’s interactive model of SDL. Spears felt that,

"a successful SDL project is one in which a person can engage in a sufficient number of relevant clusters of learning activities and then assemble these clusters into a coherent whole.”
 (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020)

A stage 3 learner should not have a problem with a module that can be done in a linear fashion, or by navigating to specific clusters to gain knowledge. Although, according to the instructional model by Hammond and Collins a Stage 3 learner still works closely with an instructor (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020). As their supervisor, I would still be available to help the employees with any questions or concerns not answered in the module.

 

Design:

 A digital learning module that allows the learner to start at the beginning and work straight through to the end, or skip to specific topics.

 

References:

Merriam, S.B., & Baumgartner, L. (2020). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide  (4th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

 

LM Assignment 2: Andragogy & Self-Directed Learning

Assignment 2: Andragogy & Self-Directed Learning

 

Project Title: Bankers for Better Accounts

Goal: Improve the new account opening process by lessening errors and expanding representatives’ knowledge on accounts

Learning Objectives:

Employees will:

1)     Create and utilize a checklist for usage during and after account opening

2)     Learn the guidelines of every style of account: consumer, business, guardianship, POA, trust, and minor

3)     Partner with a colleague to review accounts for errors

Rationale: 

 

This project was inspired by the lack of account review process at my place of work for New Account Representatives. While representatives are provided with a manual and a week of training, the act of account opening, once an employee is customer-facing, can become overbearing and intense. Representatives also, for the most part, complete this process individually; as a result, mistakes may occur and create the need for corrections of documents or within our online platform. A basic checklist for representatives to use while opening, for both the documents and online, is a proactive approach to minimize errors. Additionally, partnering with a coworker creates educational opportunities and provides a second form of observation that was not previously utilized.

The need for a follow-up process is based within the second assumption of adult learners as resources outlined by Knowles. The amount of information New Accounts Representatives are expected to understand and follow, including the knowledge formed through hands-on practice, makes them a “growing reservoir of experience, which is a rich resource for learning” (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020, p. 118). This project shows there is an understanding that we have a wealth of information necessary for us to memorize, and while we may attempt our best performance, accounts are sometimes overwhelming. In this position, adults must have a readiness to learn, but assistance can be provided as well. My colleagues, especially those in the field for longer, hold experience that is important to explore. Or, assistance can be in a written form as well. Accounts becoming more complicated throughout each year showcases how “learning in adulthood is often a function of changing roles and responsibilities and physical and mental development” (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020, p. 132). As the process requires more details, our responsibility to the job and our customer increases.

Design:

Checklist link here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qDbIBQPfwcD36uJ_P6Dpq7GlFg9m_DZGJ9YjIU5o94g/edit?usp=sharing

 

References

Merriam, S.B., & Baumgartner, L. (2020). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide (4th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

 

Self-Directed Learning

Caroline Everidge

Commented On:

Molly Burns & Abigail Saunders

 

 

Project Title: Bros & Barbells

 

Goal: Improve overall physical health of men in recovery from substance use disorders.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will

©      Learn strategies to meet physical activity recommendations

©      Increase knowledge of planning, preparing, cooking, & eating a nutritionally balanced diet.

 Rationale: 

This curriculum was designed using Self-Directed Learning (SDL) as the guiding framework. Knowles’s definition of self-directed learning is described as “a process in which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating learning goals … choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes (Merriam & Baumgartner, 2020, p. 138). Additionally, Knowles maintains that “there is convincing evidence that people who take the initiative in learning learn more and learn better than people who are passively being taught (Loeng, 2020).

With this foundation, the Bros & Barbells curriculum was developed around the Spear & Mocker model of SDL. This model centers around an “organizing circumstance,” a change in life circumstances, which provides resources and structure for learning. In this case, participants’ entrance into the recovery residence serves as the organizing circumstance for learning healthful behaviors.

Additionally, curricula designed using SDL has great benefit due to the ease of incorporating into daily routines and can occur at the learner’s convenience (USDE 2011). Participants are empowered to make decisions about content and methods of learning, while the instructor supports and encourages the process (USDE, 2011).

 Design:

 

 References:

Centre for Teaching Excellence. (n.d.). Self-Directed Learning: A Four-Step Process. University of Waterloo. Retrieved January 16, 2024, from https://uwaterloo.ca/centre-for-teaching-excellence/catalogs/tip-sheets/self-directed-learning-four-step-process

Loeng, S. (2020). Self-directed learning: A core concept in adult education. Education Research International, 2020, 1-12.

Merriam, S. B., & Baumgartner, L. (2020). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive
guide (4th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

U.S. Department of Education [USDE]. (2011). TEAL Center Fact Sheet No. 11: Adult Learning Theories. https://lincs.ed.gov/sites/default/files/11_%20TEAL_Adult_Learning_Theory.pdf