Learner control and personal learning environment: a challenge for instructional design

Abstract

In an increasingly networked and technologically mediated world, people need to continuously update their knowledge and skill base, so as to be able to self-direct their intentional learning projects. In addition to teaching domain-specific knowledge and skills, the role of higher education should be reorganizing current teaching and studying practices in a way that allows students to take control over their projects and environments. Contemporary models of instructional design consider a learning environment as a predefined element in instruction created and controlled by an educational authority. On the other hand an emerging personal learning environment (PLE) discourse emphasizes learner control over an environment. However, current interpretations of PLEs leave other instructional functions unattended. The article proposes an elaborated understanding of PLE, one which integrates important instructional functions of learner control. The theoretical framework presented in this article is inspired by conceptual ideas developed within the iCamp (www.icamp.eu) project. The article illustrates the line of argumentation with students experiences gathered from a pilot course taught at Tallinn University, Estonia.