Students face a myriad of distractions during their learning process. According to Corno & Rohrkemper (1985), students who can persist at a difficult task or block out distractions such as the internet and television are able to internalize what they have learned and perform better than the others in a self-directed, intrinsically motivated, active mode of learning.
Self-directed learning is a proactive way of learning. Zimmerman (2002) explains that employees who learn new skills such as selling a product by observing others and by practicing for hours on their own tend to develop high levels of skill positioning them for promotions and better jobs.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Active learning, on the other hand, involves more than just listening and taking notes in class. Projects and practical activities such as debates or drama help students interpret and assimilate what they have learned in class into their daily lives. Bonwell & Eison, (1991) found that students who were tutors as part of the college course gained self-esteem and perceived competence.
Last, an intrinsically motivated behavior is propelled by a student’s interest in the activity itself because they find it enjoyable. According to (White, 1959), doing activities, we enjoy the positive experiences has adaptive benefits on an individual. Students who find certain activities highly motivating are more likely to persist at the task than students who do not believe they can perform the task (Pintrich & De Groot, 1990)
Although I love improving my skill set through short courses such as cooking to sales and marketing. I have always found myself engaged in activities such as hiking that give me the chance to meet new people as well as have a new experience. My biggest weakness has been procrastination and inability to do one thing for a very long time. This has limited my opportunity to complete tasks to the best of my capabilities. Doing courses that are directed towards one goal, building on previous skills, researching and including challenging tasks into my daily routine will be part of my growth strategy. The strategy will keep me from procrastination and enable me to work within the set timelines. Having an accountability partner will help keep me on track and remind me how far I have gone. I will also review the results of my actions basing on the goals that I had initially set.
References
Bonwell, C. C., & Eison, J. A. (1991). Active Learning: Creating Excitement in the Classroom. 1991 ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Reports . ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education, The George Washington University, One Dupont Circle, Suite 630, Washington, DC 20036-1183.
Corno, L., & Rohrkemper, M. (1985). The intrinsic motivation to learn in classrooms. Research on motivation in education , 2 , 53-90.
Pintrich, P. R., & De Groot, E. V. (1990). Motivational and self-regulated learning components of classroom academic performance. Journal of educational psychology , 82 (1), 33.
White, R. W. (1959). Motivation reconsidered. Psychological Review, 66, 297–333
Zimmerman, B. J. (2002). Becoming a self-regulated learner: An overview. Theory into practice , 41 (2), 64-70.
