Personal Learning Theory

Jay Schwan

Point Loma Nazarene University

24 April 2017
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Personal Learning Theory

A freshman walks onto the campus of a four-year university for the first time and for

most, it marks the beginning of adulthood, new friendships, and an influx of new knowledge. As

this new educational adventure commences, students will explore, struggle, and adjust the ways

in which they intake, process, and store information. As a future college counselor, I will interact

with a diverse student population, whose learning styles differ based on their unique differences.

In my personal learning theory, five factors influence a students way of learning: ethnicity,

socioeconomic status, job experiences, social and emotional factors, and motivation.

College campuses are some of the most diverse places in the country today, where

students of many backgrounds and ethnicities come to learn and advance their education. With

the varying ethnicities we see in our students, we also see an effect on learning. Depending on

which ethnicity a student may belong to, the way they learn may differ. Certain ethnicities have

certain customs, norms, and practices that clash with the stereotypical way in which the

American education system is set up and the way in which it is applied to learning. Factors that

may differ amongst ethnicities include, but are not limited to, verbal and nonverbal

communication, information processing, and concept of time. These factors can cause a

dissonance in a students way of learning in a typical American postsecondary institution. For

example, students of Native American descent tend to process things longer without interaction

in order to understand or perfect their answer or task before they share their thoughts, which

could be problematic in an American college classroom because teachers often call on students

quickly and randomly. This could cause these students to feel anxious or uneasy about attending

class and it could distract them from retaining incoming information. As a college counselor, it
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will be my job to help that student process their stress or anxiety and help them adjust to the

differences in the learning process.

Socioeconomic status plays a major role not only in access to college for students but

also in the learning process for students at the postsecondary level. When students identify with a

lower socioeconomic status, it alters the way in which they learn. Students who attend college at

a low socioeconomic status most likely grew up in a similar situation. Students who grew up in

this situation may not have received the same education that students of a higher socioeconomic

status may have received. They were not given high quality education with a surplus of resources

and outside assistance, and although they have still made it into higher education, they may be at

an educational disadvantage than some of the other students in terms of learning and attempting

completion and success. Their environments may not be the most supportive or learning or

focusing on ones education. These students are more likely to drop out not only because of

financial burden but also because of low achievement in their classes. As a future school

counselor, I will have the opportunity to help these students navigate the balance they need to

succeed both in and out of school. In guiding them, I will direct them to proper resources that

will aid their education experience and will ease some of the stressors they face in school.

A great source of learning occurs through experiences, and job experience can shape a

persons strategies and ways in which he or she processes information. Not only are there a

variety of skills that one learns while holding a job position, but these experiences have a major

influence on how one will handle certain situations in the future; hence, the process of learning

occurs constantly in the workplace. A large majority of students in higher education hold at least

a part time job, or have held one in the past, and these experiences will influence the way we

process the learning that takes place in education. For example, most people who work typically
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have a list of tasks to complete and are required to do so in an allotted timeframe. This requires

the employee to prioritize certain tasks and manage his or her time effectively and efficiently. In

completing these tasks in this way, the employee can then apply the learned experience of how to

prioritize and complete tasks in a certain amount of time to his or her life as a college student. In

the counseling role, along with helping students balance their work and school life, I will be able

to help them build a bridge between the skills they have learned in outside experiences to their

education in order to help them successfully achieve in the classroom.

Social and emotional health is a major concern for college students today, and a students

social and emotional health will affect their learning and achievement in higher education. When

students are not in a healthy place mentally, the way they process information and think about

certain situations drastically changes. They are less likely to properly prioritize and their ability

to focus on education is not where it should be. In this state of mind, any kind of learning is

practically eliminated. Students mental health serves as one of the most crucial catalysts to the

learning process and the processing of information. Without taking care of oneself, one is unable

to properly tend to anything else in his or her life, and in my future career, this students social

and emotional success will be at the top of my priority list. I will strive to ensure that they feel

their best so that they can feel successful in their personal life and in their life as a student, and I

will provide direction to students who need those outside resources and programs that will help

them take care of themselves.

The final factor that affects learning at the postsecondary level is a students motivation.

Without motivation to learn, there is no learning that can take place. Many students struggle with

motivation to learn and achieve within higher education. This may be due to a variety of

circumstances, like self-efficacy, personal life interferences, or lack of interest. Some students
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have a low self-efficacy, or a belief in their ability to succeed. When this is the case, they may

decide to eliminate the possibility of succeeding completely out of belief they are not able to do

so. They dont see the point in putting in the effort to try if they are just going to fail. Oftentimes,

a students personal life may interrupt the motivation to focus on school. These situations may

take precedent to the student, which causes a lack in motivation for the less important element in

their life, education in this case. Finally, some students simply do not have an interest in school

or learning. For differing reasons, they do not find school or learning to be interesting or

worthwhile. In counseling, I will encounter many students who lack in motivation to learn and it

will be my responsibility to both show them the value of education and inspire motivation within

them so they can come out academically successful.

Learning is unique to every individual, and in the time a student spends at a four-year

university, there is a plethora of learning to be done both academically and personally. Students

possess an individualized system of processing and maintaining information and experiences.

These methods are influenced by a range of factors that relate to a students life. Ethnicity and

socioeconomic status influence learning in that they present differences in culture, environment,

and financial means amongst students and the way they view and interpret educational processes.

Experiences, especially as an employee, allow students to acquire different skill sets that they in

turn will use throughout their higher education journey. Social and emotional health influences

decision making and priorities that affect the learning that occurs in a students life. And finally,

motivation within the student serves as the on and off switch for a students ability and desire to

learn. These interconnected factors determine a students success and achievement in learning

and obtaining knowledge, and as a future college counselor, I will guide my students in helping
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them reach their potential through learning practices that best suit them and result in positive,

successful outcomes during their time in higher education.