Self-Directed Learning in High School Classrooms (w/ David Lane)

While teaching in a conventional school, David Lane has found ways to bring the power of self-directed learning to learners both in and out of school settings. Years ago, he co-created the now defunct Ingenuity Hub, an self-directed alternative to school. He has also taught a self-directed high school class where students decided what and how they wanted to learn. Kevin, David, and Gina about how self-directed learning can look inside of conventional schools, its value for learners, and even about the benefits of not always focusing on learning.

1:14 - How David Discovered Self-Directed Learning as a Teacher: “I don’t think it was a straight line.”
9:48 - The Value of Not Being “On-Task”: “For them, it was as significant an experience to say “Wait a minute; what is my time worth, and why don’t I know?”
13:03 - How Self-Directed Learning Can Empower Learners in Conventional Schools: “I think it is not fair that so many kids don’t know that this is available to them.”
21:49 - Experiencing High Schoolers Directing Their Own Learning: “‘Do you understand that you just explained chemistry? Did you know any of that stuff before you tried this?’ He said, No…’”
28:29 - Challenges and Benefits of Self-Directed Learning in Conventional Schools: “Once kids start experiencing that process, you can’t stop it. You can’t turn it off after that.”
32:22 - Why Self-Directed Learning is Often Relegated to the “Extra-Curricular”: Here’s a kid graduating high school already knowing how to do the work that he wants to do… and high school has nothing to do with it.”
38:05 - Learner Difficulties Adjusting to Self-Directed Learning: “In most of the classes they take, they’re just playing a game, and the educators know it.”