Self - Access Learning Strategy

How does self access work?

Will it be a success or a failure?

I'm sure many of you had this experience and you may have noticed the level of satisfaction if learning took place in a self motivated manner.

You may find it a little strange at first. At times, you may spend
just thinking what to do. You're actually on the first stage of self learning strategy. That is learning how to think critically about what might be useful and enjoyable for you that's relevant.

You may begin to do something and find it's boring or too easy or maybe too complicated. Perhaps you just don't feel like it. That's normal.The tendency is you leave it and try several different things until you discovers what is best and effective. Don't expect to be "susccessful" everytime you try. Even if you don't succeed for the first attempt at least you've discovered yourself learning how to learn.

Consider some of these tips in Self Access Learning Strategy.

* What were your aims before you started? Why ?

* Was it relevant?

* Have you encountered few problems?

* What have you done about it?

* Were you resourceful enough?

May a times self-access works well. The level of satisfaction is of greater degree. It's actually more satisfying if learning took place through self access.

Learning - An Individual Process

The intergration of new knowldege into individual existing knowledge and skills occur only with certainty when something known is used spontaneoulsy in communicative purposeful situation to express it's meaning. This implies the engagement of genuine interest and will depend partly on the presence of a positive attitude.

If learning is a social practice and the classroom a social context, learning itself remains largely an individual process as we seek to integrate newly perceived information into existing knowledge system. It is essential for us to recognise that, to a large extent, it is the individual and not through text nor formal education control what is learnt, since it is in our minds that selectivity organise the sensory input into meaningful wholes.

Situations of interaction can be shown parallel with person's generated motivation which is the ultimate goal of the learning process. Self - motivation is the most important factor to take into account.

A person should be Socio-Culturally determined. Learning new skills means becoming familiar with the assumptions on which it is based and the social purposes for which it is used.
Draw some explicit comparisons from previous acquired skills/knowledge and use it as a springboard which it will lead to a new venture of learning.

Yes, learning is a continuous process. It goes beyond. Identify where you're heading to. Set pathways. Focus on things one at a time. If you see that it's a vague venture to go along with, don't stop from there. You're actually on the right track! Just think of possible ways to make it work. Maybe , segragate into chunks, it's wiser to use Mind Mapping and make sure that the pathway you've created is self-directed not going further away from it's main objective.

Note: If there are some points of clarification, you can proceed to the discussion board created and we'll exchange views . Others may as well pick up from your own expertise.

" The Gift "

Mary, a 14 year old girl from USA, was very sick. She had a bad heart. "Mary needs a new heart" her doctors said, "She must have a new heart or she will die soon"



Felipe, a 15 year old was worried about Mary. Philip was Mary's friend. He liked her very much. He liked her freckles and he liked her smile. Philip didn't want Mary to die.

Felipe talked to his mother about Mary. I'm going to die and I want to give my heart to Mary. His mother didn't pay much attention to Felipe. She said he's just kidding. She thought Philip isn't going to die. He's strong and healthy.

But Philip was not healthy. He had terrible headaches sometimes. "My head really hurts", he often told to his friends. He never told his parents about his headaches.

One morning Felipe woke up with a sharp pain on his head. He was dizzy and he couldn't breathe. He was then rushed to the hospital. The doctors at the hospital had terrible news to the parents " Philip brain is dead, we can't save him."

The family were very sad, but they remembered his words. Philip wanted to give his heart to Mary. The doctors made several tests and they finally said " We can give Philip's heart to Mary" . They took out his heart after his death and rushed the heart to Mary. Doctors took Mary's heart and replaced with Felipe's heart.

The operation was a success. Felipe's heart was beating in Mary's chest. But Mary didn't know it. Her parent's and her doctors didn't tell her.. They waited until she was stronger. Then they told her about Felipe. " I feel very sad" she said, but I am thankful to Felipe."

Three months after the operation. Mary was back at school. She has to have a regular check ups. and she has to take medicine everyday. But she is living anormal life.

Felipe's brother said " Everytime we see Mary, we think of Felipe". She has his heart in her. That gives us a great PEACE."

"Great! well done Felipe! that's the value of a real friendship."

Passage was extracted from Sandra Heyer's TRUE STORIES.