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Dunlap, 2003); in fact, many universities provide
criteria to potential students so they can self-assess
if online education is for them, such as:
•
Identifying and defining a problem or
learning need;
•
Establishing goals and objectives for ad-
dressing the problem or learning need;
•
University of Illinois's website asks, “Do
you have self-discipline and motivation?”
(http://www.online.uillinois.edu/students/
well_suited.asp)
•
Developing action plans and timelines to
guide learning activities;
•
Identifying, finding, using, and critiquing
resources for solving the problem or meet-
ing the learning requirement;
•
The Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities System notes, “Online learn-
ing is often accelerated and requires that
you are motivated and can work indepen-
dently” (http://www.mnonline.org/started/
rightforyou.html)
•
Capturing and applying information from
resources to the problem or learning need;
and
•
Critiquing information, skills, and process-
es used to solve problems or meet learning
requirements.
•
The College of Nursing at University of
North Carolina Chapel Hill lists self-mo-
tivation, self-direction, self-discipline, and
initiative as the first four skills of success-
ful online learners (http://nursing.unc.edu/
current/rn-bsn/program/)
A common misconception though about self-
directed learning is that it happens alone; self-
directed learning, however, does not mean learning
in isolation (Brookfield, 1985/1991). Self-directed
learners—in addition to using direct instruction,
print materials, and technology-delivered materi-
als—take advantage of a variety of human-oriented
resources including peers and colleagues, teams,
informal and formal social networks, and com-
munities of practice (Kerka, 1994). However,
self-directed learning is not enough: to truly be
able to learn, unlearn, and relearn, students must
be metacognitively aware (Dunlap, 2005; Dunlap
& Grabinger, 2003).
•
Colorado State University shares, “If you
are an independent learner, self-motivated,
and interested in accelerating your course
of study, online learning may be appropri-
ate for you.” (http://www.learn.colostate.
edu/answers/faq/index.dot?tag=Online+L
earning&tagCount=11#online_right)
As these assessment tools illustrate, there is a
clear expectation in distance and online learning
programs that require students to take on a high
level of responsibility and initiative for their own
learning (McLoughlin & Marshall, 2000). There-
fore, to be successful online students, students need
the skills required for effective online learning,
and those skills need to be explicitly taught and
supported in the online learning environment.
Self-directed learning focuses on how students
internally and psychologically control their own
learning (Candy, 1991; Hancock; 1993; Long,
1989; Overly, McQuigg, Silvermail, &Coppedge,
1980). Some ways that students accomplish this is
through (Barrows, 1985; Burak, 1993; Hancock,
1993):
Metacogntive Awareness
Students must possess metacognitive awareness
if they wish to become effective lifelong learners
who are able to learn, unlearn, and relearn in the
21st century (Dunlap, 2005; Dunlap & Grabinger,
2003). Metacognition is essentially the learner's
knowledge and regulation of cognitive process.
More specifically, metacognition, according to
Biggs and Moore (1993), is the “awareness of
one's own cognitive process rather than the con-
tent of those processes together with the use of
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