The Problem
A recent edition of Creative Teaching and Learning included an article that advocated a method aimed at helping students to combine, within the same essay and in a cohesive fashion, material from different sources.1
The recommended approach was intended to counter the problem that many learners—even those of Sixth Form age—have not yet acquired the abstract thinking skills necessary to synthesise effectively by drawing on content from a range of items. The strategy that was proposed involves students constructing a preliminary assignment framework after they have identified relevant material in a relatively small number of sources during the early stages of their study. As they investigate further, by consulting more items, they gradually alter and expand their framework to accommodate any new and appropriate material they encounter. Ultimately, the writing of the essay is guided by the final version of the framework they have prepared.
Andrew’s first-hand research with candidates pursuing the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) has verified the value of the method, henceforth known here as the Information/Writing Interaction Model (IWIM). However, the problem arises that, since the approach owes both its origin and its validation to a particular group of Sixth Formers taking a very specific course, it cannot be claimed that it will be suitable for use in other independent learning situations. For many years it has been argued in qualitative research that if the findings of one study are to be applied with confidence by the reader of the report to a different situation with which they themselves are familiar, the two contexts must be broadly similar. Nearly four decades ago, Bassey referred to this matter when discussing the importance of the ‘relatability’ of case studies in education.2 Pursuing the same line of logic, we might be of the opinion that independent learning tasks which lend themselves most obviously to the IWIM method are those whose characteristics are comparable to the nature of the EPQ. In this sense, we could say that the projects should
- be prolonged;
- give as high a profile to the research process as to the outcome itself;
- demand the use of a variety of sources;
- result in the production of a document, such as an essay or report, of several thousand words.
In many educational environments, the distinctiveness of the EPQ is such that work which meets all four criteria may be rare, so this article will outline what can be done to render the method suitable for effective adoption with regard to other assignments that are required of students ranging from upper secondary school age to first year undergraduates who are still to gain some of the more advanced independent learning skills.
Provisions to Increase Applicability and Success
1. Determine the extent to which topic choice should be open/closed
In an EPQ situation, the candidate has the freedom to select for scrutiny any subject they wish. In contrast, there are other independent learning tasks that are completely closed, and here a specific essay title may be stipulated. There are, of course, many degrees of difference within the intermediate territory between these two extremes. Some fifteen years back, when Andrew attempted to identify individual shades within the open/closed spectrum that were evident in the data he had collected for his PhD project devoted to the information-related behaviour of school-aged children, he was able to isolate as many as seven.3 Andrew has explained previously, in work with Wendy Beautyman, that a student may, for example, be permitted to choose their own topic as long as certain issues are addressed or, in a more restricted situation, be allocated a subject but invited to determine their own aspects for coverage.4 While educators may suspect that students who are granted a totally free choice of area will find the work more motivating, they must appreciate that the decision to allow such scope is not one to be taken lightly, since it will have important consequences for the resourcing of the project within the school. In the words of Joyce and Joyce, ‘truly learner-centered inquiry takes students in all directions’.5 Essentially, the more stringent are the boundaries imposed on the choice of topic, the easier it often is to provide suitable and high quality sources. As was explained in the original article, because it is generally true that the standard of any document resulting from independent learning will be limited by the calibre of the information that has been selected, the ultimate success of the IWIM method is dependent on the learner being able to adopt appropriate and sound source material. The old adage, ‘garbage in, garbage out’, quickly springs to mind in this context.