Cultivating a Digital Promise: Promoting Reflective and Reflexive Activities to Enhance Self-Directed Learning for the 21st Century

Abstract

Self-directed learning skills are known to influence successful learning outcomes in a higher education environment. Moreover, first year students entering higher education lack self-directed learning skills, as these are not always developed at school level. A digital promise tool was used for a first-year student cohort to reflect on their personal learning experiences and behaviour over a period of two semesters. The researchers used the augmented community of inquiry as the theoretical framework in this study, focusing on the student learning presence. Two cycles of data were collected using student reflective and reflexive responses. The first cycle included developing a digital promise, where students reflected on their typical learning behaviour and commitments during their journey. After this cycle, opportunities were given for students to adjust their digital promise for the second semester. The results from the student reflections indicated an increase in self-motivated and self-directed student learning during the second semester.