Self-Directed Learning: Learning Contracts

Independent study experiences can be extremely rewarding both for students and their advising instructors. As our CTE Teaching Tip: Self-Directed Learning: A Four Step Process explains, independent study gives students the opportunity to explore not only a given topic but also their own learning strategies and goals, and learning contracts can play a critical role in ensuring that this process is a successful one. Learning contracts give ownership to students over their learning at the outset of a project or class, they prompt students to reflect on how they learn, and they establish clear goals and project timelines. For instructors, learning contracts serve as an outline for independent study units and as tools to aid evaluation.

To maximize these benefits, students should develop their own learning contracts, which the advising instructor reviews to provide constructive feedback and suggestions for modification. Because the contract is an agreement between instructor and student, both should sign the final contract and, if modifications become necessary as the learning experience progresses, both should approve and sign the modified contract.

This Teaching Tip reviews the benefits and limitations of learning contracts, outlines both student and instructor responsibilities in creating learning contracts, and concludes with a sample learning contract in the resources which you can draw on when designing independent study experiences for your students.

Benefits

• Require students to be intimately involved in the process of developing their unit of study.
• Require students to explore their readiness to learn and their self-directed learning skills.
• Maximize students’ motivation to learn because they have chosen the agenda.
• Help to keep less independent learners on course with specific and concrete goals and deadlines.
• May include a schedule of regular meetings with the advising instructor.
• Encourage independence of students, which can result in fewer demands made on instructors’ time.
• Provide a formal way to structure learning goals and activities as well as the evaluation of learning goals, which helps to minimize misunderstandings and poorly communicated expectations.
• Schedule and enable the continual feedback about student progress.
• Enable advising faculty instructors to encourage use of a wide variety of resources (e.g., peers, library, community, experiences).

Limitations

• May be challenging to create for students who are used to lecture/exam types of courses.
• May not be suitable for content with which students are totally unfamiliar — some initial guidance may be required.
• May require modification as the unit progresses — careful thought is needed for how much modification is acceptable, which could be defined at the outset of each unit.
• Require that instructors redefine their traditional roles and make the transition from teacher to advisor.

Responsibilities for the learning contract

Student responsibilities

1. Propose a written learning contract of what you want to learn and how you plan to learn it.
2. Develop a detailed schedule that has you working on contract activities each week.
3. Take the initiative to contact your advising instructor immediately to get the assistance you need (with, for example, motivation, resources, feedback, problems).
4. Meet with your advising instructor regularly to review progress and discuss material.

Instructor responsibilities

1. Assist in developing learning contract and ensure its completion and good quality.
2. Recommend learning resources, such as books, journals, people, agencies, library materials.
3. Be available as a resource for information, but allow the student to take initiative in asking for assistance with learning.
4. Meet regularly with the student to review progress, share ideas, and encourage learning.
5. Evaluate the student’s work as described in the learning contract.

Support

If you would like support applying these tips to your own teaching, CTE staff members are here to help. View the CTE Support page to find the most relevant staff member to contact.

References

• Knowles, M. S. (1986). Using learning contracts: Practical approaches to individualizing and structuring learning. London: Jossey-Bass Publications.

Resources

CTE teaching tips

• Self-Directed Learning: A Four-Step Process
• Independent Studies: Unit Planning Decision Guide
• Independent Studies: Readiness to Learn
• Making Group Contracts

Other resources

• Kim, R., Olfman, L., Ryan, T., & Eryilmaz, E. (2014). Leveraging a personalized system to improve self-directed learning in online educational environments. Computers & Education, 70, 150-160.
• Waterloo’s Student Success Office
• Waterloo’s Office of Academic Integrity

This Creative Commons license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon our work non-commercially, as long as they credit us and indicate if changes were made. Use this citation format: Self-Directed Learning: Learning Contracts. Centre for Teaching Excellence, University of Waterloo.