International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume 3, Issue 7, June-2012 1

ISSN 2229-5518

The Impact of Self-directed Learning Strategies

on Reading Comprehension
Morteza Khodabandehlou, Shahrokh Jahandar, Gohar Seyedi, Reza Mousavi Dolat Abadi

Abstract- For several decades, self-directed learning (SDL) has been a major focus of adult education (Merriam and Caffarella 1999) since the
publication of Malcolm Knowles' book in 1975. However, this study aims to investigate the impact of self-directed learning on learners' reading
comprehension proficiency and the measurements that teachers can do to encourage self-direction among adult learners. This is done by introducing
self-direction strategies of reading comprehension, to the learners to be able to monitor their own learning. To this end, they ap plied more of the
metacognitive strategies that are believed to be at the heart of self-directed activity (Grow, 2010). 92 upper-intermediate and advanced female Iranian
EFL learners, studying English in IELTS & TOEFL Center of Arian in Gorgan, Iran, randomly selected and divided into two groups: experimental and
control that the same syllabus and assessment procedures followed. The instrument includes an IELTS reading test. Finally, the data gathered by the
experiment of the study was analyzed through SPSS software, using Independent Samples t-test. The results reveal that there is a significant difference
between mean score of TDL (Teacher-Directed Learning) and SDL, and after treatment students perform better that proves superiority of self-directed
over teacher-directed readers.

Key Words: Self-Directed Learning, Andragogy, Autonomy, Reading Comprehension

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INTRODUCTION strategies and have little awareness on how to approach

tudents have lots of problems with reading a text; reading. They also have deficiencies in the use of
S they are more concerned with getting the correct
answer than with more important process of how to
metacognitive strategies to monitor for their understanding
of texts. In contrast; successful L2 readers know how to use
get the answer. appropriate strategies to enhance text comprehension (e.g.,
They depend too much on the dictionary to look up Pitts, 1983). According to Block (2004), '' metacognition [in
every unknown word. To help students overcome these this field] can be defined as a reader's awareness of (1) what
problems, teachers can ask them to read and underline he or she is thinking about while reading, (2) what thinking
unknown words without looking up the meaning in processes he or she initiates to overcome literacy
dictionary; to use contextual clues to guess the general challenges, and (3) how a reader selects specific thinking
meaning; to skip unnecessary unknown words; and break processes to make meaning before, during, and after
them up into root, prefix and suffix. reading.''
When we help students develop awareness about their Knowles (1975) claimed that there is convincing
own thinking and learning processes, we are helping them evidence that people who take the initiative in learning
think about the effectiveness of the strategies they use in (pro-active learners) learn more things and learn better,
reaching the goals they have set. Essentially, they are than do people who sit at the feet of teachers passively
"thinking about thinking," a process known as waiting to be taught (reactive learners) (Knowles, 1975: 14).
metacognition. In general, use of a long-term metacognitive The main characteristic of self-directed learning, according
strategy of planning what is to be done, monitoring our to Long (2002), is the degree to which the learner maintains
progress, and evaluating the results is an effective way of active control of the learning process.
helping students take more control of their own thought An emphasis on student self-direction and efficacy
and feeling processes (Block, 2004). The literature of means that we teach and engage students in specific
metacognitive strategies in reading comprehension reveals strategies that offer them opportunities to make decisions
that poor readers in general lack effective metacognitive and solve problems on their own without being told what
to do at all times. It means we provide them with strategies
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designed to help them process information effectively and
Assistant Professor of state research institute of higher education in Rodaki. to be self-confident, believing that they have the abilities to
Tonekabon, Iran. Dr.Morteza.Khodabandehlou@Gmail.com succeed. And perhaps most important, we help students
Assistant Professor of state research institute of higher education in Rodaki.
Tonekabon, Iran. ShahrokhJahandar@gmail.com.
become more reflective about their thinking and learning
An MA Graduate in TEFL. Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon Branch, processes.
English Language Department, Tonekabon, Iran. Seyedig@yahoo.com The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of self-
An MA student in TEFL. Mazandaran Science and Research Branch .
Rm14aaa41@Gmail.com direction on learners' reading comprehension proficiency,
students' accomplishments, and teacher's role in this area as
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well as suggesting some helpful reading strategies to -SDL is, ironically, highly collaborative. Learners
promote learner autonomy. Thus, specific strategies we can collaborate with teachers and peers (Guthrie, Alao &
provide include encouraging students to set their own goals Rinehart; 1996; Temple & Rodero, 1995 as cited in Antonio,
for personal development and instructional improvement, 2001).
and planning ways to achieve these goals. To reach goals -SDL develops domain-specific knowledge as well as the
they have set, students can benefit from learning a variety ability to transfer conceptual knowledge to new situations.
of problem-solving strategies as well. To this end, learners It seeks to bridge the gap between school knowledge and
were trained and practiced in SDL reading strategies that real-world problems by considering how people learn in
preferably were metacognitive strategies. Some key real life (Bolhuis, 1996; Temple & Rodero, 1995 as quoted in
concepts concerning the subject are explained below. Antonio, 2001).
The study is designed to address the following specific - Students learn to identify and value their own experiences
question: in life. They learn to value personal experiences of others.
- Does SDL influence reading comprehension proficiency They develop critical thinking, individual initiative, and a
significantly? sense of self-worth and self-confidence.
Following are some of the specific hypothesis based on - Through SDL, it is possible to learn how to learn, to learn
formulated research question: how to see, to learn how to be, in always that make one
H0. Self-directed strategies do not have any significant more self-directing in many areas of life. It is a situational
impact on EFL learners' reading comprehension proficiency attribute an impermanent state of being dependent on the
over teacher-directed strategies. learner's competence, commitment, and confidence at a
given moment in time (Pratt 1988, p.162 as quoted in
SELF-DIRECTED LEARNERS Merriam, 2001).
Self-directed learning, which has its roots in adult The benefits of SDL are best described in terms of the
education, is an approach that has been tried with learners type of learners it develops. The literature on SDL asserts
in elementary and secondary schools. There may be slight that self-directed learners demonstrate a greater awareness
variations in how different educators define SDL, but a of their responsibility in making learning meaningful and
survey of the literature on the subject identifies several monitoring themselves (Garrison, 1997 as cited in Antonio,
tenets that are central to the concept. 2001). They are curious and willing to try new things (Long,
-As the term suggests, SDL views learners as responsible 1994 as cited in Kerka, 2000), view problems as challenges,
owners and managers of their own learning process. SDL desire change, and enjoy learning (Taylor, 1995 as cited in
integrates self-management (management of the context, Antonio, 2001). Taylor also found them to be motivated and
including the social setting, resources, and actions) with persistent, independent, self-disciplined, self-confident and
self-monitoring (the process whereby the learners monitor, goal-oriented. Self-directed learning allows learners to be
evaluate and regulate their cognitive learning strategies) more effective learners and social beings.
(Bolhuis, 1996; Garrison, 1997 as quoted in Antonio, 2001). Depending on the philosophical orientation of the writer,
-SDL recognizes the significant role of motivation and the goals of self-directed learning vary. Those grounded in
volition in initiating and maintaining learners' efforts. a humanistic philosophy posit that self-directed learning
Motivation drives the decision to participate, and volition should have as its goal the development of the learner’s
sustains the will to see a task through to the end so that capacity to be self-directed. Knowles and Tough (1967 as
goals are achieved (Corno, 1992; Garrison, 1997 as quoted quoted in Merriam, 2001) wrote from this perspective as do
in 2001). Brockett and Hiemstra (1991 quoted in Merriam, 2001). In
-In SDL, control gradually shifts from teachers to learners. their Personal Responsibility Orientation (PRO) model of
Learners exercise a great deal of independence in setting self-directed learning, human nature that is “basically good
learning goals and deciding what is worthwhile learning as . . . accepting responsibility for one’s own learning” and
well as how to approach the learning task within a given being proactive drive their model.
framework (Long,1994 as cited in Kerka, 2000; Morrow,
Sharkey, & Firestone, 1993 as cited in Antonio, 2001). TEACHER'S ROLE IN SELF-DIRECTED
-Teachers scaffold learning by making learning 'visible.' LEARNING
They model learning strategies and work with students so The goal of educational process is to produce self-
that they develop the ability to use them on their own directed, life-long learners. Many current educational
(Bolhuis, 1996; Corno, 1992; Leal, 1993 as quoted in practices in public schools and universities; however, do
Antonio, 2001). more to perpetuate dependency than to create self-
direction. Moreover, there is more than one way to teach

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well. With some exceptions, good teaching is situational –it more beneficial for learners to achieve a few objectives of
varies in response to learners. The teacher begins to provide importance to them than it is to fulfill all the objectives that
some key characteristics of a learner who can take are important to the teacher. Leal (1993 as cited in Antonio,
responsibility for learning: an ability to define one's own 2001) advocates allowing learners to explore ideas through
objectives; awareness of how to use language materials peer discussions - even without fully intact answers - a
effectively; careful organization of time for learning, and process that can yield new and valuable insights. Corno
active development of learning strategies. (1992 as cited in Antonio, 2001) suggests allowing learners
Knowles visualizes the teacher role as that of facilitator to pursue personal interests without the threat of formal
of learning rather than teacher, procedural guide rather evaluation. Even if they make mistakes while doing so, the
than content transmitter. One of the most important tasks of activities will sustain their interest, transcend frustration,
the teacher is to raise student awareness of their roles in and eventually break barriers to achievement. According to
learning. Taylor (1995 as quoted in Antonio, 2001) suggests Leal, Uninterrupted Sustained Silent Reading may be one
engaging students in discussion on topics from the Self- way of accomplishing this objective in the reading
Directed Learning Readiness Scale. Examples of topics: I classroom.
know that I want to learn and that I am a learner, so if I To establish the habit of self-monitoring, teachers need to
want to learn something, I can, and I like to learn and to encourage learners to reflect on what they did and to revise
solve problems because I know that thinking 'hard' can be attempted work (Corno, 1992 as cited in Antonio, 2001).
fun. The exercise of evaluating oneself on such topics was Keeping journals is one way of maintaining a record of the
found to have positively influenced learner awareness. learning process. Teachers also need to model learning
Long (1994 as cited in Kerka, 2000), who works with strategies such as predicting, questioning, clarifying, and
readers, suggests generating similar discussion through the summarizing, so that students will develop the ability to
use of questions designed to help learners become aware of use these strategies on their own. Teachers also need to
what good readers do and how to become one. Among the allow individual learners to approach a task in different
examples he provides are: Did you read better today than ways using different strategies (Many, Fyfe, Lewis &
yesterday? Could you keep the ideas in your book straight Mitchell 1996). Teacher should help students begin to
in your mind? Were there words you did not know? How recognize their different personality types, life-goals, and
did you figure them out? styles of learning; set high standards and motivate students
Learner participation in decision-making is another to achieve them.
fundamental aspect of the SDL approach. Taylor advocates Since SDL stresses meaningful learning, Temple and
involving students in decisions concerning what is to be Rodero (1995 as quoted in Antonio, 2001) advocate a
learned, when and how it should be learned, and how it situated learning approach, in which teachers bring real-life
should be evaluated. In addition, every proponent of SDL problems into the classroom for learners to work on. They
emphasizes the importance of allowing learners to pursue advise against 'sugar-coating' work with fun, the rationale
their own interests so that learning becomes more being that if the tasks are meaningful, learners will work on
meaningful. Morrow, et al. ( 1993 as cited in Antonio, 2001) them willingly. Learners should also be allowed to
report that when writers are allowed to choose their own collaborate with the teacher in determining deadlines and
topics, they write more often and they write longer pieces. other regulations. For the language teacher, the issue is
Students do not have to be given total freedom, however. whether it is possible to help learners acquire and develop
Teachers could, for instance, establish a thematic strategies of either kind which will enhance their ability to
framework within which students are given choices learn inside and outside the classroom.
(Guthrie, et al., 1996; Temple & Rodero, 1995 as cited in Researchers have found that as children grow, they have
Antonio, 2001). Teachers in this approach lead students to an increasing desire for autonomy. SDL may be one way of
take responsibility of their own learning, encourage them to harnessing that natural desire to help achieve a meaningful
cooperate and consult with each other. learning experience that will last through adulthood.
Long (1994 as cited in Kerka, 2000) and Bolhuis (1996 as Moreover, teaching reading strategies to self-monitor
quoted in Antonio, 2001) stress that teachers who want to meaning can help students to become true readers.
encourage SDL must free themselves from a preoccupation
with tracking and correcting errors, a practice that is ego- READING STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE SELF-
threatening (Guthrie, et al. 1996 as cited in Antonio, 2001). DIRECTED LEARNING
Long and Bolhuis advocate greater tolerance of uncertainty Reading comprehension strategies are seen as
and encourage risk-taking, and capitalizing on learners' comprehension processes that enable readers to construct
strong points instead of focusing on weaknesses, as it is meaning from the printed page most effectively. In other

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words, those strategies show how readers tackle a reading loud. As students acquire more practice with the dialogue
task, how they interpret their reading and what they do in small groups, the teacher consciously imparts
when they do not comprehend. Good readers draw on responsibility for the dialogue to the students, while
prior knowledge and experience to help them understand becoming a coach to provide evaluative information and to
what they are reading and are thus able to use that prompt for more and higher levels of participation. This
knowledge to make connections. Struggling readers often shift from an instructor-centered approach to a student-
move directly through a text without stopping to consider centered approach is a central component of the reciprocal
whether the text makes sense based on their own teaching process and encourages self-regulation on the part
background knowledge, or whether their knowledge can be of the students (Palincsar and Brown, 1986). (For more
used to help them understand confusing or challenging information see: Palincsar and Brown 1984; Peter E.
materials. By teaching students how to connect to text they Doolittle, et al 2006; Oczkus, 2003).
are able to better understand what they are reading There are a lot of other recent researches and strategies
(Harvey & Goudvis, 2000 as quoted in FOR-PD, 2004). to promote learner autonomy but due to limitations of
Accessing prior knowledge and experiences is a good research it is impossible to mention and elaborate all of
starting place when teaching strategies, because every them through this paper.
student has experiences, knowledge, opinions, and
emotions that they can draw upon. REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Below are some examples of connecting statements for Since the late 1980s we have seen a proliferation of terms
students to use as a reference or teachers can use them as relating to this concept of terms relating to this concept of
prompts for classroom discussion. 'self-directed learning': autonomous learning, self-
This part reminds me of.... I felt like... (character) when I.... monitoring, self-assessment, learner strategies, self-help
If that happened to me I would.... This book reminds me learning strategies, strategic investment, learner training,
of... (another text) because.... I can relate to... (part of text) self-study, self-access learning. The key concepts that have
because one time.... Something similar happened to me emerged, however, and around which others pivot, are
when.... those of learner autonomy (which for our purposes can be
Tovani (2000 as cited in FOR-PD, 2004) offers reasons why taken as synonymous with self-directed learning) as a goal
connecting to text helps readers: for learners, and learner training, or the teacher's
It helps readers understand how characters feel encouragement of their efforts towards that goal.
and the motivation behind their actions. Malcolm Knowles was known as the father of
It helps readers have a clearer picture in their head andragogy, or adult education. About the same time that he
as they read thus making the reader more engaged. introduced andragogy to North American adult educators,
It keeps the reader from becoming bored while self-directed learning appeared as another model that
reading. helped define adult learners as different from children.
It sets a purpose for reading and keeps the reader Knowles (1975) himself contributed to the self-directed
focused. learning literature with his book "Self-Directed Learning: A
Readers can see how other readers connected to Guide for Learners and Teachers," published in 1975,
the reading. describing self-directed learning as "a process in which
It forces readers to become actively involved. individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of
It helps readers remember what they have read others", explaining the concept and outlining how to
and ask questions about the text implement it through learning contracts. And it might be
Reciprocal Teaching is an instructional strategy for recalled that the first assumption underlying Knowles's
teaching strategic reading developed by Annemarie S. view of andragogy is that learners become increasingly self-
Palincsar that takes place in the form of a dialogue between directed as they mature. The processes in self-directed
teachers and students. In this dialogue the teacher and learning include diagnosing one's own learning needs,
students take turns assuming the role of teacher in leading setting personal goals, making decisions on resources and
the dialogue about a passage of text. Four strategies are learning strategies and assessing the value of the outcomes
used by the group members in the dialogue to use reading (1968).
comprehension strategies independently, including text A second goal is the fostering of transformational
prediction, summarization, question generation, and learning (Brookfield, 1986, Mezirow, 1985 as quoted in
clarification of unknown or unclear content. At the start the Merriam, 2001 and Lowry, 1989). Transformational learning
adult teacher is principally responsible for initiating and as presented by Mezirow posits critical reflection by the
sustaining the dialogue through modeling and thinking out learner as central to the process. This critical reflection is an

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''understanding of the historical, cultural, and biographical In addition to goals and process, the literature can be
reasons for one's needs, wants, and interests. . . . Such self- categorized according to the learner and the extent to which
knowledge is a prerequisite for autonomy in self-directed self-directedness is a priori personal characteristic and
learning''. (Mezirow, 1985, p. 27 as quoted in Merriam, 2001 associated with other variables such as educational level,
and Lowry, 1989) creativity, learning style, and so on. Two scales of self-
The third goal for self-directed learning is the promotion directedness, one measuring readiness (Guglielmino, 1997
of emancipatory learning and social action. Just as as quoted in Merriam, 2001), and one measuring personal
andragogy has been criticized for ignoring the context of characteristics (Oddi, 1986), have been used in a number of
learning, some writers would like to see self-directed studies. In addition to these empirical studies, the
learning to be positioned more for social and political action relationship between autonomy and self-directedness has
than individual learning. Both Brookfield (1993 as cited in been explored. Candy (1991, p. 309 as quoted in Merriam,
Merriam, 2001) and Collins (1996 as cited in Merriam, 2001) 2001) writes that since a learner’s autonomy is likely to
call for a more critical, political analysis of SDL. ''vary from situation to situation,'' educators should not
How one actually works through a self-directed learning assume that because a person has been self-directed in one
experience has generated a number of models of the situation, ''he or she will be able to succeed in a new area:
process. The earliest models proposed by Tough (1971 as Orientation, support and guidance may all be required in
quoted in Merriam, 2001) and Knowles (1975) are the most the first stages of a learning project.'' Furthermore,
linear, moving from diagnosing needs to identifying Matuszowicz (1996 as cited in Kerka, 2000) provides one
resources and instructional formats to evaluating outcomes. example of this in his work focused on developing self-
Models developed in the late 1980s and the 1990s are less direction in homeless adults. For perhaps the first time in
linear and more interactive; in such models not only the their lives, this group recognized themselves and others as
learner but the context of the learning and the nature of the learning resources and learned through the practice of
learning itself are taken into account. In Danis's (1992 as interpersonal behaviors and skills such as giving and
cited in Merriam, 2001) model, for example, learning receiving feedback. Similarly, in British open learning
strategies, phases of the learning process, the content, the centers, O'Mahony and Moss (1996 as cited in Kerka, 2000)
learner, and the environmental factors in the context must found that adult basic education students ''identified a
all be taken into account in mapping the process of SDL. common bond and developed a collective self-direction'' (p.
Victori and Lockhart (2000) believe that one of the 30) through work on a student committee; they also
premises of any self-directed program should be that of enhanced their sense of individual self-direction. A study of
enhancing students' metacognition to prepare them for empowerment in community groups (Singh, 1993 as cited
approaching their own learning autonomy. Such a program in Kerka, 2000) suggests that group learning processes can
should involve cyclic diagnosis of learners' beliefs about empower individuals to move from low to high self-
language learning, preferred styles, learning needs and directedness. In addition, the enhancement of individual
objectives in order to endow the learners with criteria for SDL abilities tended to help groups become more
choosing optimum strategies, resources and activities for empowering.
their individualized program. Their purpose was to Guthrie, et al. (1996 as cited in Antonio, 2001) noted that
highlight the unifying role of metacognition in all levels of the self-directed learners in a Concept-Oriented Reading
learner training. Instruction (CORI) program demonstrated the ability to
What Merriam and Caffarella (1999) term ''instructional'' search for information in multiple texts, employ different
models of the process focus on what instructors can do in strategies to achieve goals, and to represent ideas in
the formal classroom setting to foster self-direction and different forms (drawing and writing). Morrow, et al. (1993
student control of learning? The best known of these is as cited in Antonio, 2001) observe that with proper
Grow's (1991 as quoted in Merriam, 2001 & 1994) Staged planning and implementation, self-directed learning can
Self-Directed Learning (SSDL) model. Grow presents a encourage students to develop their own rules and
matrix whereby learners can locate themselves in terms of leadership patterns.
their readiness for and comfort with being self-directed, In one school of thought, SDL is based on the
and instructors can match the learner's stage with autonomous, independent individual who chooses to
appropriate instructional strategies. For example, whereas a undertake learning for personal growth (Merriam and
dependent learner needs more introductory material and Caffarella 1999). Braman's (1998 as cited in Kerka, 1999)
appreciates lecture, drill, and immediate correction, a self- review of literature suggests that the SDL construct has
directed learner can engage in independent projects, been primarily based on individualistic attitudes and
student-directed discussions, and discovery learning. values, in keeping with the viewpoint that lifelong learning

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has primarily instrumental objectives related to individual level. Learners had 25 minutes to answer the questions. The
responsibility and work force development. So, the goals of test consists of 3 parts with a total of 13 questions:
an individual and his/her cultural group may conflict, thus -4 items in part A that learners were supposed to choose the
hindering the opportunity for self-direction. most suitable heading for each section/paragraph from the
However, another school of thought stresses the social list of headings
construction of knowledge and the social context of -5 items in part B to answer multiple-choice questions
learning. One of Brookfield’s criticisms of SDL research was - 4 items in part C to identify True/False/Not Given
that it ignored social context by focusing on the individual, statements to reflect the opinions are implied or stated by
isolated learner, although Long refutes Brookfield's the text.
criticism in an analysis of more than 500 studies, as much as
90% of which were concerned with SDL in social settings.
Maehl (2000 as cited in Kerka, 2000) asks, ''Is self-directed
learning possible if knowledge is socially or culturally
constructed?'' (p. 51). Rowland and Volet (1996) also call for Procedure
more awareness of socio-cultural perspectives. They To this end, control group students experienced
suggest that a more postmodern view of the self in self- summary writing and rehearsing strategies in which they
directed learning challenges the notion of universal are only passive recipients of the meaning their teacher
individualism and that, from this perspective, adult construct from the printed passage and never try to use the
learning has significance ''for a learner's community as well knowledge of their own to understand the subject better
as for the individual'' (p. 100). and experimental group learners are trained and practiced
Moreover, O'Donnell (1999 as cited in Kerka, 2000) goes in pre, during and post reading strategies. The researchers
the furthest in emphasizing the collective over individual developed an instructional curriculum to practice some
dimension when he presents a rationale for what he calls control of the learners' own learning. The session began
''selves-directed learning'' (p. 251). with some warm-up activities that include having students
In this paper we will argue Braman's (1998 as cited in to predict text content using the title/subtitles and picture
Kerka, 2000) view that he believes goals of an individual illustrations or information and make them to think of a set
and his/her cultural group may hinder the opportunity for of questions about the topic and a personal experience to
self-direction. we will present data that support Rowland make a connection between what they knew before and
and Volet's (1996) view that adult learning has significance what they want to learn and activate their prior knowledge.
“for a learner’s community as well as for the individual” by Then the teacher models the metacognitive strategies and
making learners practice in groups and examine then asks the students to regulate their own learning and
individually. self-evaluate them. After that, they practice using
contextual clues and key words to aid comprehension,
Method paraphrase the sentences, use think-aloud method and
92 out of 150 upper-intermediate and advanced EFL students write their own story endings using the list of
female high school students studying in IELTS & TOEFL predicted conclusions within small group components
Center of Arian in Gorgan, Iran selected randomly and focusing on helping learners develop general
divided into two groups: control and experimental. The comprehension strategies that could be used to access
control group trained in teacher-directed strategies and the meaning in a broad array of texts, regardless of the texts'
experimental group trained and practiced SDL reading vocabulary and/or grammatical features as well as asking
strategies in an 8-week course of English reading texts. The some problem solving questions and have student
class met twice per week for a total of 8 weeks, with each discussions or projects around the topic to enable them
class meeting lasting approximately 90 minutes every make analytical decisions on their own and also be able to
session 30 minutes using SDL approach with strategy relate the subject to their own experiences. They practice
training and practice. The average of their ages is 15 to 25. skills in time management, project management, goal
setting, self-evaluation, peer critic, information gathering
Material and use of educational resources as well. During the whole
The students both in control (TDL) and experimental project one of the researchers observed the classes to
(SDL) group are assessed individually in an IELTS reading evaluate learners’ needs and objectives and turn the teacher
comprehension test before, to homogenize, and after a-16- toward their goals and their preferred strategies.
session practice to see the impact of each TDL and SDL. Later on, as follow up activities and to ensure learners’
Materials are similar both in format of questions and their autonomy, students were applied higher-order thinking
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strategies which help them construct meaning from what of SDL over TDL. So it needs to compare the means
they read and help them monitor their progress toward through the Independent Samples t-test.
their goals and turn them to extensive reading of short In Table 1 (b), the Independent Samples T-Test reveals a
stories, magazines, books and newspaper. As students gain statistically reliable difference between the mean score of
practice and confidence in using these strategies -within TDL that has Mean=14.68, SD=1.33 and SDL has
small groups and then as individual readers, the teacher Mean=17.95, SD=1.38, t(90)=11.53, P=0.00, α=0.05.
assesses individual learners' abilities to comprehend a text P<0.05 → The null hypothesis is rejected.
through a specifically English reading proficiency test of
IELTS.
The Students both in control and experimental group
completed a post-test that closely paralleled the pre-test.
After that, learners in experimental group are interviewed
after treatment and it reveals that all of the learners have
positive attitudes toward SDL.
The data gathered by the experiment of the study is
analyzed through an independent samples t-test that is
discussed below.

Result
The paired samples t-test has been displayed in Table1:

Table1 (a)
Group Statistics of the Study

Group Statistics
Group N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean
TDL 46 14.6848 1.33483 .19681
Reading
SDL 46 17.9565 1.38575 .20432

Table1 (b)
Independent Samples t-test of the Study Figure1. Mean Score TDL-SDL Diagram of the Study
Independent Samples Test
Figure1, also, points that there is a significant difference
between the mean score of TDL and SDR, and after
treatment students in experimental group performed better
that proves superiority of SDL over TDL strategies.

Discussion
Based on this study the null hypothesis that self-directed
strategies have no significant influence on Iranian EFL
learner's reading comprehension proficiency is rejected.
And at the end of the course the strategic learners that were
equipped with SDL strategies were able to identify their
own learning needs, setting personal goals, making
decisions and generally to take the responsibility of their
In Table1 (a), the mean score for the TDL group and for
own learning not only in the educational context but also be
the SDL group is about 14.68 and 17.95 respectively. This
shows that mean score of SDL group is more than that of able to succeed in any new areas and contexts and their
learning is much more purposeful and planned than TDL
TDL which proves better performance of the self-directed
groups that it promotes collaborative learning among
learners of the study over teacher-directed learners, but
students.
these differences in these two groups are not significantly
The authors have experienced SDL strategies with
noticeable and meaningful to result in complete superiority
upper-intermediate and advanced-level students and in

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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume 3, Issue 7, June-2012 8
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some cases we invited feedback from the students on their A touchstone of effective learning is that students are in
impressions and thoughts of the strategies covered during charge of their own learning; essentially, they direct their
the course. What follows are an indication of students’ own learning processes. SDL enable learners to be efficient,
retrospective comments on the efficiency of these strategies. active, motivated learners. They no longer get bored with
1. The strategies you applied made me conscious and this task. They set their own personal goals and pursue
active. I used to read a text word for word until then, being personal interests. But the problems arise when the
afraid to misunderstand the contents. Now I'm trying to teaching style is not matched to the learner's degree of self-
skip as many words as possible even when I am going to direction and the students are not directed properly in the
read about something not familiar, and I am going to deal first stages of learning. On the other hand, it needs learners
with the text I have already had quite a few knowledge. to collaborate with teacher.
2. There are many positive aspects of using predictions. The data analyzed through t-test indicates a significant
Firstly, we immediately think about the topics help us to difference between mean score of the two groups that
understand contents of articles or some experiences of my confirms the great outperformance of students after
own. Secondly, we can improve our reading speed by treatment.
predicting the following contents.
Thirdly, we can associate our knowledge concerning the
topics and it can help us to make our learning much easier.
3. Finding key words in any text was an interesting
technique. I think relying on key words is more helpful Implications and Further Research
than relying on the structure in reading a text. In this study there are implications for:
4. This time I really enjoy my reading. I could not imagine a) English teachers to pay much more attention to learners'
that I could understand a text without knowing the reading comprehension with regard to the value of the
meaning of new words using contextual clues. strategy training in the language classes to enable students
5. I no longer get bored with this task. to learn more efficiently and become autonomous learners.
6. Now I actively involve in the topic I am reading about It may allow teachers to obtain an awareness of the likely
and it's really challenging to discuss about reading text problems to be incurred by the learners’ lack of familiarity
specially when some of my classmates have opposite ideas with such strategies. Furthermore, teachers can teach in
or when you ask a question and make us choose between more than one style.
these two such as: Do you enjoy watching movies in the b) Students to know how to carry out this task efficiently
cinema or get a CD/DVD of that to watch at home? Do you and independently. It can also assist learners to invent
prefer to keep your old friends or make new ones? and so strategies of their own and use metacognitive strategies to
forth. monitor for their understanding of texts
7. I can regulate my own reading strategies and I am aware This could be attributed to EFL/ESL learners both in
of my own responsibility in learning. local schools and English schools. SDL generally meets with
8. When you ask us some questions concerning the topic we active cooperation from students.
really engaged in the text and I can remind what I learnt The main pedagogic aim underlying my proposal is that,
before. upon the implementation of a new methodology to
9. Now I know how to learn efficiently and actively improve learners' reading comprehension, which combines
thinking about the topic is really fun. self-directed strategies with metacognition focused tasks;
students are expected to develop a highly acceptable
Conclusion comprehension competence to become self-regulate
The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of self- learners.
direction on learners' proficiency of reading SDL has some other strategies not only in reading skill
comprehension, students' accomplishments, teachers' role but also in other skills of learning English and any other
in this area and suggesting some tips about learning languages and is applicable to other fields of study, so
strategies so that EFL learners can read different texts of not teachers can use any of these strategies interchangeably
only their textbooks but also other sources like magazines, based on learner objectives. We suggest that the door is
newspapers, etc to comprehend them effectively and now open and there is a scope for the development of
efficiently without wasting their time by looking up every future research in this area with regard to other skills that
word in dictionary. Moreover, the long-term objective of have significant influence on the proficiency of EFL/ESL
the SDL is a life-long learning particularly in adult learners. Self-directed learning is the method used when a
education. learner, rather than an institution, controls both the
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International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research Volume 3, Issue 7, June-2012 9
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learning objectives and the means of learning. It is a [10] Palincsar and Brown. (1984). Reciprocal teaching of
continuous process, often informal, and an important factor comprehension-fostering and comprehension monitoring
activities. Cognition and Instruction. Lawrence Erlbaum
in lifelong learning. Many adults engage in self-directed
Associates, Inc. I, (2) 117-175.
learning to improve their work performance. Others carry [11] Palincsar, A. and Brown, A. (1986). Interactive teaching to
on self-directed learning in recreational arts and hobbies, promote independent learning from text. The Reading
matters of health, family and community, or simply to Teacher, 39, pp.771-777.
increase their intellectual resources. Consequently, the [12] Pitts, M. M. (1983). Comprehension monitoring: definition
and practice. Journal of Reading . 26, pp. 516-23.
scope of this research could be enlarged to investigate the
[13] Rowland, F., and Volet, S. (1996). Self-Direction in
other fields of education and even life. community learning: A case study. Australian Journal of Adult
The model may apply to less formal learning situations, and Community Education, 36(2): pp. 89-102. (EJ 535 209)
it is directed to teachers, expressed in terms of ''teachers'' [14] Victori Mia & Walter Lockhart. (2000, January). Enhancing
and ''students,'' and was with educational institutions in metacognition in self-directed language learning [Abstract].
International Journal of Educational Research, 23(2), pp. 223-234.
mind.
[15] Making connections. (2004). Florida Department of
Education. Retrieved October 8 from
http://forpd.ucf.edu/index.html

Acknowledgement
We would like to thank all of our colleagues in IELTS &
TOEFL Center of Arian have helped to examine learners for
the study and are grateful to those learners who have
participated our study. The authors would also like to
extend their gratitude to Professor Gerald Grow from
Florida A&M University for careful reading and providing
thoughtful comments (November, 2010).

References

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