Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Edu

1. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance Service (Cal Weatherald; Ester Ehiyazaryan)

2. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • CETL Promoting learner autonomy • Informal sources of support for students – Education Guidance

3. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • Transition and taking responsibility • Student engagement • Students' control over learning • Students' control over assessment and feedback • The role of peers in developing a sense of self in the learner

4. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • Key texts: • McNair, S. 1996, Putting Learners at the Centre - Reflections from the Guidance and Learner Autonomy in Higher Education Programme, Higher Education and Employment Division, DfEE. • Fazey, D. & Fazey, J. 2001, "The Potential for Autonomy in Learning: perceptions of competence, motivation and locus of control in first-year undergraduate students", Studies in Higher Education, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 345-352.

5. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • Key texts: • McNair, S. 1996, Putting Learners at the Centre - Reflections from the Guidance and Learner Autonomy in Higher Education Programme, Higher Education and Employment Division, DfEE. • Fazey, D. & Fazey, J. 2001, "The Potential for Autonomy in Learning: perceptions of competence, motivation and locus of control in first-year undergraduate students", Studies in Higher Education, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 345-352. ‘Guidance is not about telling people what to do: rather it is a process of finding and interpreting evidence, self-exploration, planning and review. Above all it is a process of helping individuals to learn to be autonomous, to take control of their own decisions and to make decisions wisely… This is a very different notion from the common perception of it as a kind of welfare service, picking up the pieces when students or systems fail.’

6. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • Key texts: • McNair, S. 1996, Putting Learners at the Centre - Reflections from the Guidance and Learner Autonomy in Higher Education Programme, Higher Education and Employment Division, DfEE. • Fazey, D. & Fazey, J. 2001, "The Potential for Autonomy in Learning: perceptions of competence, motivation and locus of control in first-year undergraduate students", Studies in Higher Education, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 345-352. 'Autonomous people are intrinsically-motivated, perceive themselves to be in control of their decision-making, take responsibility for the outcomes of their actions and have confidence in themselves. Many authors link these characteristics to the sense of self which enables autonomous people to act within a personal belief system, providing them with the framework for their decision-making and personal planning.'

7. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service • Methodology • Grounded theory; constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss; Strauss & Corbin, 1998); • In-depth, semi-structured interviewing; • Sampling • Convenience sample: 30 students who had used the Education Guidance Service • Interview questions • Motivation for learning • Goals in learning • Skills in managing learning • Noticing issues and taking action

8. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Transition

9. Student 1 ‘In the first year I found the course was quite unorganised.But then I realised it was actually me who was unorganised, not the course. Because you have to - from A level you have been spoonfed. You get the notes - what you are going to be reading, you get the homework, and what date it is supposed to be in.Whereas at university you have to go on Blackboard, print off your notes, find out what you have to do for the next seminar. And I think - now I am quite organised, I realise it is not an unorganised course, but in the beginning I was really confused about everything.’ Student 2 Student: Obviously it depends on your personal relationship. And obviously you are still going to - if you are going to contribute to the lesson your tutor will help you think - if you are willing to learn they would be more ready to support you at the same time, and then you start to negotiate - if I meet you outside of lesson time etc. Researcher: Do you think that has developed over time? Student: Yes because in my first year I didn't know I could do that. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Informed reflection

10. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Engagement

11. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Engagement Student 1 ‘Student: I felt there were some lecturers the way they present the lecture is not interactive. They are not aware whether the student understands or not, but they keep delivering. So I feel that interactivity is very important if you want the student to join the discussion. When the lecturer goes into the lecture room then the lecturer will start to read, sometimes just reading the lecture slides. Researcher: So what do you do about this? Have you approached the tutor? Student: Actually I didn't approach this tutor, because during the seminar I felt this lecturer was very friendly. If you approach the lecturer personally she will explain a lot of the things, which is very helpful. But when she delivers the lecture this is not the case because ... may be she needs more training in terms of the delivery.'

12. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Engagement Student 2 ‘They don’t practice what they preach. They tell us things and they don’t do it themselves. They say how we have to be interactive in school and then they just talk to us for two hours in a lecture and we just make notes. It’s just still very theory based.’ Student 3 ‘Well the first year I just had such a good time - my results were fantastic, at the end that was fantastic, but the actual lessons that we had were so much fun. The lecturers made it - I seemed to laugh all the time.’

13. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Engagement Student 4 ‘Student: I do think I should have an option to ask questions. I think no one ever knows anything a hundred percent themselves and by asking you share your ideas and you just make that point to make sure you are on the right track. So then you know what is expected of you. I think you should always be allowed to ask questions, and sometimes you find you are not allowed to ask. Researcher: You are not allowed to ask questions? Student: No you can't - you can ask at a certain point, like if you want someone to help you with your draft. I think everyone should have that choice.’

14. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control

15. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 1 “Student: But a lot of people thought why is that anything to do with what we are studying. Because it has a whole new way of marking a new way of referencing. Researcher: If everyone on the course felt this way, did you not feel you had to say something to the tutor, say ‘look we don't understand how this relates to our course? Student: I think it's just the hierarchy, I think we didn't feel like we could say that because at the end of the day it came down to the tutors they choose the course, they choose what they are teaching us.”

16. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 2 “Researcher: But you mentioned an issue there with lecturing time - have you approached your tutors regarding this? Student: No, we try not to do that as students. We always think it will affect our grades and you always keep quiet about it. But you notice there are lots of lectures being cancelled. For example on one week I think it was something like three lectures cancelled. And some people are coming from Barnsley, from Doncaster, and they are coming for an hour's lecture and it is cancelled. Researcher: Well this is obviously a problem and you feel like if you complained it might affect your grades? Student: Yes, I would prefer not to complain. I mean it is natural that we cannot complain about the tutor.”

17. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 3 ‘Student: It is difficult in a sense when deadlines are arriving and they are marking and I am sort of trying to get back for whatever reason it is difficult to sit down and talk to them about it. But then again I don't want it to be an issue. Because I do find that if you challenge certain issues I feel that you get penalised for it. And that has reflected on me.

18. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 4 Researcher: Ok so if you needed to see your tutor outside of lectures, would you do that - would you approach them? Student: I was too scared to do it to be honest. Researcher: Right. But you are allowed to do that. Student: Yes, I am allowed to do it but I just find it very scary, because obviously you don't get to see them that often in a big lecture theatre… It is very difficult to approach them it's like a fear.’

19. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 5 “Researcher: So going back to taking action about this - what action did you take? Student: First of all I spoke to a lecturer - the lecturer I think I have the best relationship with. And raised the concern with her what she thought I should do. I then spoke to my course leader. And he then spoke to the head of student services, and arranged to meet with myself and her. And then basically they just asked me what the issues were for me and how I thought we could resolve them for this module.”

20. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control Student 6 Researcher: What was the triggering event, what made you realise you had to... Student: ...Come and talk to guidance? Ok - I had been working on my dissertation and it's just - it's a difficult process, and I was hitting a wall and I needed to talk it out with somebody.And my tutor's really great and he's very supportive but he always - he's spent so much time with me and I didn't want to take up more of his time and -I don't know I wanted to talk out my ideas with someone else to see what they thought. And so I came into guidance I figured - ok if I could get someone else's opinion, someone else's view. This could hopefully get me more back on track.

21. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Experiencing control ‘Learners will only be prepared to take control of their own learning when they feel confident to do so. They will only participate freely in learning activities when they are not threatened by failure and the risk of appearing incompetent in front of others. If the aim is to encourage students to think for themselves, explore the subject, become involved in debate about contentious issues, be divergent in their thinking, writing and project work then we must give them the confidence – the perception of personal competence – that will encourage them to do this.’ (Fazey, 1996)

22. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Control over assessment and feedback

23. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Control over assessment and feedback Student: I got feedback and then I went to speak to her. I said 'I'm not happy with this result'. The amount of hours, the amount of time, and effort that went into it deserved more than a 54%. I know that for a fact. And it's not just because of the time and effort, because obviously you don't mark somebody on the time and effort. But the content that I had put into that assignment was quite a lot and the word count on that question was very low. So as much as we put in we had to meet that word count and I think that was one disadvantage of that assignment. An assignment of that quality - they are after quality, not quantity - the word count needs to be much higher. And when I got the result from that assignment it really put me down in a sense that - why even bother. Because in previous years I may not have even tried as hard, but this year I have tried very hard. Researcher: Ok so you spoke to the tutor and what did she say? Student: Exactly what she said was that “I can't mark you on your effort, I can't mark you on your time. I can only mark you on what's there.You suggested proposals but you didn't critically evaluate them.” And then she said 'in some sense you had', which was pretty confusing to me, that one minute you are saying to me I haven't and in the other minute you are saying that I have. So it is pretty confusing.’

24. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Control over assessment and feedback ‘If the student is seen as a self-determining person, and thereby significantly self-assessing, then assessment will include the process of learning as well as work done on the content of learning…We are therefore immediately presented with the importance of process assessment, as well as content assessment. Assessing how I learn and how I provide evidence of what I have learned is really more fundamental than assessing what I have learned. The shift to self-direction and self-assessment starts to make process more important than content. Procedural competence is more basic than product competence, since the former is a precondition of providing many good products, while the latter is one off – each good product is strictly a witness only to itself.’ (Heron in Boud, 1998: 86)

25. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service The role of peers in developing a sense of self

26. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service The role of peers in developing a sense of self 'Autonomous people are intrinsically-motivated, perceive themselves to be in control of their decision-making, take responsibility for the outcomes of their actions and have confidence in themselves. Many authors link these characteristics to the sense of self which enables autonomous people to act within a personal belief system, providing them with the framework for their decision-making and personal planning.' (Fazey & Fazey, 2001)

27. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service The role of peers in developing a sense of self an uncritical environment... Researcher: What do you talk about? Student:I mean the tutors are there but for me I think I'd feel stupid going right back to the tutor after we just came out of the class and trying to clarify things with them again.I prefer first talking to the other students to find out what they think, because... I guess it's a personal thing - if I'm going to look like an idiot I'd rather have my fellow students, fellow colleagues to see me as that instead of the tutor.

28. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service The role of peers in developing a sense of self personal development planning... Student: Yes I do. I think because you have such strong bonds - we've all lived together for three years and we've grown up, and I think we've seen a big change in all of us. In the beginning we didn't know what to do - we all did these courses and - we didn't - well we were just doing them because we didn't want to go into work. But now we are all thinking - we've done this, we are going to have a degree, we all know what we want to do and we are all very different, but I think we are all helping each other. I mean we talk about the future and help each other decide - 'oh, you're good at this' and 'you're good at that'. And it is that relationship which helped us...

29. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service The role of peers in developing a sense of self knowledge of each other... Student: Sometimes if things crop up my friends would say ‘That would be good for you, because you want to work with children.’ There was a vacancy in the nursery at Hallam and my friends told me about that because they were thinking of me getting experience. And my housemate she wants to be a teacher so we help each other out because I found out about a teaching fair and I told her about that so we help each other out.

30. Transition • Do we place enough emphasis on the kind of reflection and transition which happens in 2nd and 3d year? Is the role of guidance recognised as supporting students in actively generating questions on their learning? research • Engagement and the experience of control • Do we recognise the relationship between engagement and affording students control over their learning? • Are informal sources of support such as education guidance and peer support promoted and supported within an HE institution? education guidance • How do faculties interpretthe factors which students have described as affecting their learning? • How can they contribute faculty efforts to enhance the student experience? faculties Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service Summary

31. Students managing their learning: an investigation into perspectives and patterns of behaviour of students using the Education Guidance service References • Fazey, D. (1996). Guidance for learner autonomy. In S. McNair (Ed.), Putting learners at the centre - reflections from the guidance and learner autonomy in higher education programme (pp. 25-47). Sheffield: Higher Education and Employment Division of the DfEE. • Fazey, D., & Fazey, J. (2001). The potential for autonomy in learning: Perceptions of competence, motivation and locus of control in first-year undergraduate students. Studies in Higher Education, 26(3), 345-352. • Glaser, B., & Strauss, A. (1967(b)). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis. The discovery of grounded theory (pp. 101). New York: Aldine Publishing Company. • Heron, J. (1988). Assessment revisited. In D. Boud (Ed.), Developing student autonomy in learning (2nd ed.) Kogan Page. • McNair, S. (1996). Putting learners at the centre - reflections from the guidance and learner autonomy in higher education programme. Higher Education and Employment Division, DfEE. • Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of qualitative research (2nd ed.). London: SAGE Publications.