As a mature aged student studying via distance education, it can sometimes be difficult to self-manage and find a healthy balance between life, work and study. Additionally, information overload can prove overwhelming, hindering proper memory retention, after having been out of the learning environment for numerous years. Discovering what strategies work best is an individual process of trial, error and re-evaluation. The time management and learning strategies I will explore to counteract these challenges are the Covey time management matrix, to-do lists, note taking and reflective journaling.
As one the major fundamentals in the success of online self-directed learning is time management, it seemed prudent to start with addressing this challenge first. Describing time management as a misnomer better defined as self-management, Covey (1990) suggests deconstructing, evaluating and prioritising activities based on significance towards long term goals. Subsequent to reading Covey (1990), I decided to clearly define what my long term goals are and analyse which activities are beneficial to these …show more content…
Note-taking has always been a method I have used when learning in a classroom setting, so I chose to see how well this skill transfers to an online environment. Research by Watkins (2015) suggests that the encoding process associated with personalised note-taking improves future information retrieval and has continually been proven to optimise educational outcomes for students. Consequently, the more I practiced this technique, I began to realise that I no longer had to go back and reread or watch informational videos as frequently. Material is better recalled when generated from the mind of an individual, even in the form of simple note-taking, rather than auditory or visual approaches to retention, defined as the generation effect (Bui,
As one the major fundamentals in the success of online self-directed learning is time management, it seemed prudent to start with addressing this challenge first. Describing time management as a misnomer better defined as self-management, Covey (1990) suggests deconstructing, evaluating and prioritising activities based on significance towards long term goals. Subsequent to reading Covey (1990), I decided to clearly define what my long term goals are and analyse which activities are beneficial to these …show more content…
Note-taking has always been a method I have used when learning in a classroom setting, so I chose to see how well this skill transfers to an online environment. Research by Watkins (2015) suggests that the encoding process associated with personalised note-taking improves future information retrieval and has continually been proven to optimise educational outcomes for students. Consequently, the more I practiced this technique, I began to realise that I no longer had to go back and reread or watch informational videos as frequently. Material is better recalled when generated from the mind of an individual, even in the form of simple note-taking, rather than auditory or visual approaches to retention, defined as the generation effect (Bui,