Distance Education in Transition - Master of Distance Education ...

Visions of Autonomous Learning
� By 2010 there will be a specialised educational network.
� By 2010 self-directed learning phases will have gained considerably in importance.
� Between 2010 and 2015 the role of teachers will have changed radically in the
direction concerned with educating, moderating, coaching.
When we consider the extent of the reservations even today with regard to autonomous
self-directed learning, these prophecies about the growth in importance of self-directed
learning are remarkable. Many students and teachers are naturally attached to traditional
pedagogical thought, in which expository teaching and receptive learning dominate.
And in developing countries in particular group links prevent the individualisation of
learning. In spite of these circumstances, self-directed learning has acquired a firm place
in the conceptions of the experts who took part in the survey. Obviously they have seen
and understood that the pedagogical structure of online learning must of necessity differ
from that of traditional learning.
The findings on the change in the role of teachers also bear witness to the growing
realisation of the necessity for this change. This consequence, which has been described
again and again and was already regarded as necessary in the discussions on programmed
instruction, is now forecast by a remarkable number of experts (83.5 percent). The
prophesied change in the professional image of teachers is in so far material as it will
lead to considerable difficulties of both an institutional nature, and as far as career and
promotion regulations are concerned. Will these prophecies come true?
5. Origins in Educational Theory and Practice
5.1. Traditional Starting Points
Autonomous learning is not at all alien to our general pedagogical traditions. Elements
of autonomous learning are integral parts of any learning. No learning can take place
without a minimum of active participation and of self-motivation of the learners. They
must make at least some decisions about their own learning. There are also traditional
models with reduced teacher regulation and domination.
We should also recall that the autonomous person is a goal of education which fosters the
establishment of the learner's identity, self-realisation and self-reliance. The personality
perspective is important: it is concerned with intrinsic motivation and personal growth.
Furthermore, there is a tradition going back about a hundred years in which innovative
and reform-minded educationists promoted and emphasised student independence and
responsibility.
Finally, autonomous learning is based on a tradition of about a hundred and fifty years,
if we include distance education, which already requires a substantial amount of selfregulation.
The legacy of distance education must not be forgotten or denied when
online-learning is being developed.
5.2. Educational Visionaries
Even many experts do not know that there were very active proponents of autonomous
learning in the past who promoted this particular format of learning. Autonomous
learning has been a relevant objective of educational theorists and practitioners for
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