RAPPORT
Volume 3 Issue 1 (2018)
In the following we have grouped the
comments around three main areas as
they emerged from the interviews and
open comments in the online surveys. We
will discuss each in turn.
The Three-Layered Model enabled
students to:
1. Develop Self-Regulated Learning
2. Increase motivation
3. Develop a different view of their studies
and themselves.
Developing Self-Regulated Learning
Students reported that working with PDP
enabled them to develop new
competences. In particular they developed
a sense of responsibility in relation to their
learning. They were able to relate PDP to
their life and to making progress in
meeting personal goals. These new
competences included the ability to identify
their skills, the ability to critically reflect, to
recognise things of importance and the
ability to carry out self-analysis. They were
able to give more in-depth responses and
be more focussed on their study. One
student said “It does make me think about
how I learn and it makes me think where I
want to go with my modules… I’m taking
control of my learning rather than just
going with the flow”.
Students developed a new awareness of
their strengths and weaknesses, and of
their limitations. They felt that their ability
to clarify and identify weaknesses and
strengths made their goals more
achievable as they could see where they
were going and how to get there. In this
sense some students reported that PDP
“gave them self-confidence”. They were
able to identify where improvement was
needed, and that made them feel more
confident and focused as they realised the
relevance of the activities. Having a better
understanding of what they were doing
and why was deemed helpful. Just the fact
of understanding and realising made it
more relevant for the students when
looking into their goals and tasks, being
able to define exactly what they wanted,
and revealed that these goals were more
achievable. They also had the experience
that when you learn to plan, goals seem to
be more manageable and easier to reach.
One student commented: “The more
conscious you are of your strengths,
weaknesses and what experience has
taught you, the more likely you are to
make informed choices about what to
pursue.”
Students felt that working with PDP was
enabling and helpful in different areas.
One aspect was in relation to managing
their learning: it enabled them to revise
and improve further, it also helped them to
orientate their thinking towards module
content. Working with PDP enabled them
to develop their metacognition, and it
helped them to critically analyse, carry out
self-evaluations and review. It also helped
them to organize their learning, to manage
their time and make informed choices.
One student wrote “Some skills I had not
previously been able to describe, and by
seeing them written down in activities I
was able to look at them from different
perspectives.”
The students perceived that PDP allowed
them to see connections between different
goals and different areas of their lives –
personal, academic and professional.
Thinking about their goals in relation to
each of the three areas and then seeing
how the goals interrelate was an
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