Adult learners’ perceptions of self-directed learning and digital technology usage in continuing professional education: An update for the digital age

Abstract

Mandatory continuing professional education is accepted across many professions as a re-credentialing mechanism to maintain professional competency. Self-directed learning is a widely recognized type of learning to meet mandatory continuing professional education requirements. The nature and characteristics of self-directed learning has been transformed with the growth in digital and mobile technologies, however there is minimal understanding of the role of these technologies in the self-directed learning habits of adult learners. This study sought to explore the perspectives of adult learners around the effect of digital and mobile technologies on continuing professional education activities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 55 adult learners from four professional groups (9 physicians; 20 nurses; 4 pharmacists; 22 social workers). Key thematic categories included perceptions of self-directed learning, self-directed learning resources, key triggers, and barriers to undertaking self-directed learning. Digital and mobile technologies emerged as important resources supporting the self-directed learning of health and human services professionals. Increasing usage and dependency on these technologies has important implications for organizational and workplace policies that can support effective self-directed learning processes in a digital age. A conceptual model is introduced to characterize the key factors defining the self-directed learning patterns and practices of adult learners in a digital age.

Mobile Phone Utilization for Learning: Physics Teachers' Perception

“…The perception of physics teachers is in line with the opinions of 55 adult learners from four professional groups (9 physicians; 20 nurses; 4 pharmacists; 22 social workers) that digital and cellular technology is emerging as an important resource that supports independent learning for health professionals and human services. The increased use and dependence on this technology has important implications for organizational and workplace policies that can support an effective independent learning process in the digital age (Curran et al, 2019). Almost all respondents have the same perception about mobile phones, namely the use of mobile phones by students, can change the physics learning process from teacher-centered learning to studentcentered learning and can change from content-oriented learning to processoriented learning.…”

Using a multiliteracies approach to foster critical and creative pedagogies for adult learners

“…The work that learners produce in digital spaces requires them to think in very abstract ways with the concepts they build, at times holding up a mirror to them of their own identities, making them think, "this work I have produced in cyberspace is in a small way part of who I am. " Curran, Gustafson, Simmons, Lannon, Wang, and Garmsiri (2019) argue that it would be beneficial to have "a better understanding of the role and the use of digital and mobile technologies as a resource to support the self-directed learning processes of adults in the 21 st century" (p. 79). While their research focuses on continuing professional education for professionals in fields such as medicine and social work, educators who work with both young adult or graduate students in higher education, and adult educators working in community-based contexts such as employment centres, also recognize the need to consider both the benefits and potential exclusionary aspects of a society that is increasingly digitalized.…”

“…They argue thus that technologies have to also be understood as socially situated; technical know-how is only one aspect of working with new technologies. The work that learners produce in digital spaces requires them to think in very abstract ways with the concepts they build, at times holding up a mirror to them of their own identities, making them think, ‘this work I have produced in cyberspace is in a small way part of who I am.’ Curran et al. (2019) argue that it would be beneficial to have ‘a better understanding of the role and the use of digital and mobile technologies as a resource to support the self-directed learning processes of adults in the 21 st century’ (p. 79).…”

Análisis empírico sobre el rendimiento académico de los estudiantes en la asignatura de inglés con el uso de Voscreen

“…En este sentido, el desarrollo de tecnología ha dado pie a desarrollos metodológicos como el aprendizaje del idioma asistido por computador y el aprendizaje móvil de idiomas (CALL y MALL respectivamente, por sus siglas en inglés) en la línea de la llamada clase invertida en búsqueda de una mayor autonomía del estudiante y un incremento en su motivación (Forsythe, 2017). Para el óptimo aprovechamiento de dicha tecnología, se torna necesaria la constante actualización, como lo mencionan Curran et al (2019), el uso creciente de las tecnologías digitales y móviles tiene importantes consecuencias en las políticas de organización, lugares de trabajo y la restricción en su uso y/o acceso puede entorpecer el desarrollo profesional, particularmente en la dinámica de esta clase invertida, de creciente aceptación en la educación superior (Trémion, 2019). Dentro de esta metodología, una de las aplicaciones móviles recomendadas en el aprendizaje de idioma inglés, particularmente en los aspectos de comprensión oral y vocabulario es VoScreen (Tütüncu y Aksu, 2018; Alzatma y Khader, 2020; Boran et al, 2020;Türel y Davudova, 2019).…”