DIY U: Getting Started With Self Learning

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Task Navigation 

Write a Personal Learning Plan

Week 1: Write your personal learning plan and post it here.

Steps to Creating a Personal Learning Plan

1. Goal. Pick your path. “I want steady professional employment in the field of sustainability.” “I want to combine teaching English with travel.” "I want to start video blogging." "I want to improve my knowledge of alternative economics."

2. Current Status. Relevant experience, interests and accomplishments, both academic and extracurricular. College courses taken, creative pursuits, volunteer work, personality test results.

3. Learning Steps: Content and skills you’ll need to master--be specific! People or organizations that may become a part of your quest; Courses you want to take; Groups to join; Specific books, videos, websites that you want to read, watch, or use.

4. Experiential Steps: the experiences you want to pursue as part of your learning, including internships, volunteering, travel, leadership of an organization, or experience working with a mentor.

5. Who Can Help: Parent, sibling, friend, P2PU student—someone needs to read this learning plan and help hold you accountable for it. 

6. Next Steps: What are you going to do in the next day, week, month, and year to make your plan a reality? It’s a good idea to review weekly, monthly, or every semester with your guide from step 5.

7. Hack P2PU to create your plan and track your progress!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt4S3huxa2o

Task Discussion


  • dtschopp   Sept. 27, 2011, 10:45 a.m.

    I finally posted a first version of my learning plan: http://p2pu.org/en/groups/learning-project-building-leadership-skills. Let me give you some background on this: I volunteer in a basketball club where we want to engage our members to help us reach our goals. We consider our club an ideal environment for young people to learn skills that are valuable on the job market.

    Actually it's more of a project than a learning plan at the moment, but there are plenty of questions to answer on my way that provide learning opportunites. I still can refine these, though.

    Feedback is very welcome, thanks!

  • AJC   Sept. 28, 2011, 2:56 p.m.
    In Reply To:   dtschopp   Sept. 27, 2011, 10:45 a.m.

    This is a topic a lot of people think about in many cultures across the world. Whatever plan you develop could be quite valuable to others. I would focus on the very specific qualities you would like to see your club members/youth develop, especially focusing on the environment they're coming from. What are their hurdles? What are your hurdles as a mentor or guide?

  • Eshinee Veith   Sept. 30, 2011, 8:10 a.m.
    In Reply To:   dtschopp   Sept. 27, 2011, 10:45 a.m.

    So far, it looks like you are make some good progress in identifying the information "holes" that you are trying to "fill" in your proposed learning process. Perhaps you could try rephrasing these questions in the form of tasks:

    • Define "leader", both in relation to sports and society as a whole.
    • Identify leadership skills that young people should acquire.
    • Identify learning opportunities in our sports club that map to leadership development.
    • List member-eligible leadership roles in our sports club.
    • Identify specific leadership skills developed in members by each role
    • (etc.)

    These would then be the tasks that lead you to more fully defining what it is that you need to learn. Once you have figured out what you need to learn, the next step is to create tasks that actually advance the learning process. They could include tasks such as the following:

    • Read journal articles on youth and leadership (via Google Scholar)
    • Read library books on youth and leadership
    • Seek out experts in youth leadership development
    • Watch or listen to podcasts on leadership development
    • (etc.)

    My current approach is to have general tasks (e.g. Read books on _____) which I then track my progress on by making notes on my activity reated to that task in the comments section for the task. (see an example here)

    If you do a Google search for podcast youth leadership skill sports, you get a lot of possibilities for acquiring information. The one that stuck out to me was the Life Performance Institute for youth sports leadership training; they have a free leadership email course.

    All the best to you.

  • dtschopp   Oct. 21, 2011, 9:07 a.m.
    In Reply To:   AJC   Sept. 28, 2011, 2:56 p.m.

    Hi Alison. Thank you very much for your feedback. I am very sorry for my late reply. You are absolutely right about narrowing the focus. Otherwise the project will get too complex. I like the way you look at learning as taking a hurdle. In this way the skills we define are more likely to be adjusted to our member's needs.

  • dtschopp   Oct. 21, 2011, 9:12 a.m.
    In Reply To:   Eshinee Veith   Sept. 30, 2011, 8:10 a.m.

    Hi Eshinee. Thank you very much for your feedback and sorry for my late reply. Your comment was a tremendous help. And it was very motivating for me as I had some issues making progress with my project. I refined my learning plan according to your suggestions and now have a clearer path to my goal. It could still be more detailed, though. But learning is work in progress, isn't it?

    All the best to you, too.

  • Eshinee Veith   Sept. 27, 2011, 3:07 a.m.

    My plan can be found here:

    http://p2pu.org/en/groups/shiyeyi-language-learning-plan/

    I have it listed as a personal learning plan but would consider turning it into a study group at a later date, should there be enough interest from potential Shiyeyi-learners.

  • gotim   Sept. 22, 2011, 8:48 a.m.

    I wanted to create my personal learning plan but discovered that the option "Other" is no longer available in the Create - form that appears when clicking on Learn. What should I do?- Go on with Study Group? Clone existing learning plan?

  • Zuzel Vera   Sept. 23, 2011, 7:24 a.m.
    In Reply To:   gotim   Sept. 22, 2011, 8:48 a.m.

    The option Other is available but it works a little different than before.

    Before if you wanted to create a personal learning plan you selected Other and filled out the new term. With this selection your group was called a personal learning plan and in terms of functionality it worked just like a study group.

    Now you can fill out a new term and choose the kind that has the functionality you want. So you can have a personal learning plan that has the functionalities of a study group, or one that works like a course, or even a challenge (which is a new kind of group that is currently under development).

  • Wendy Dunst   Sept. 23, 2011, 10:23 a.m.
    In Reply To:   Zuzel Vera   Sept. 23, 2011, 7:24 a.m.

    Can you change the option for your group once you've created it?  Just asking - haven't looked at the functionalities of study groups, courses, or challenges.

  • AJC   Sept. 23, 2011, 3:16 p.m.
    In Reply To:   Wendy Dunst   Sept. 23, 2011, 10:23 a.m.

    Yes, you can change these options by editing your plan/group.

  • Markus Deimann   Sept. 16, 2011, 7:55 a.m.

    My personal learning plan is now in the "right" place:

    http://p2pu.org/en/groups/personal-learning-plan/

  • AJC   Sept. 19, 2011, 4:32 p.m.
    In Reply To:   Markus Deimann   Sept. 16, 2011, 7:55 a.m.

    Hey Markus - you might want to add some more info to you personal learning plan title so folks know what topic you are focusing on. Really interested to see your progress!

  • Markus Deimann   Sept. 21, 2011, 4:51 a.m.
    In Reply To:   AJC   Sept. 19, 2011, 4:32 p.m.

    Hi Alison,

     

    thanks for the feedback, you are right I should provide more input.

     

    some of them can be found on my weblog markusmind which I recently set up to catch up with the MOOC #change11 course. There are some overlappings with the mooc and the p2pu which I also try to reflect in my blog.

    greetings,

    markus

  • Markus Deimann   Sept. 15, 2011, 10:41 a.m.

    My personal learning plan:

     

    Build a theoretical framework to analyse OER

    compile empirical evidence of OER in its distinct aspects

    intergrate theory and practice in a reconstructive way

  • AJC   Aug. 29, 2011, 5:40 p.m.

    I'm working on a learning plan for masters level studies in ecological design: http://p2pu.org/en/groups/learning-path-ecological-design/

    Check it out!

  • Eshinee Veith   Sept. 30, 2011, 8:14 a.m.
    In Reply To:   AJC   Aug. 29, 2011, 5:40 p.m.

    Looks like you've got some great leads on learning opportunities.

    Go for it!