Where to Gather Information
That is a great question, isn’t it? Where do you gather the information for your learning journal? What is most important to record? What would you want to remember?
The last question guides my decisions on what I record. Simply what do I want to remember. The greatest item I find from my learning journals is that the information I recorded at the beginning of my learning journal seems to become part of my permanent knowledge. I have seen it; read it; written it; revisited it. It becomes part of how I am.
I, honestly, record information in my learning journal from everywhere and anywhere. I’ve even recorded quotes while watching Criminal Minds. (Don’t judge! There are some great quotes!)
Know What You Want to Learn
This may be the greatest question of all. What do you want to learn? When I returned to school for my masters, I knew that I wanted a degree in education. This was an easy decision to create a learning journal based on what I would learn in my courses. Everything in this learning journal is based on education and related especially to self-directed learning principles. I knew I didn’t want this specialized knowledge blended into my personal journal, planner or even my other learning journal.
Interested in reading more? Click on image for The Art of Learning Journals.
Before all else, I’d suggest creating a general learning journal. As you discover a passion for something, you can specialize a notebook dedicated to that subject. Just make it simple. My first learning journal is a notebook I picked up at Target. There were no rules. Simply to write down and record what I found interesting.
By Tracy Atkinson
Tracy Atkinson, mother of six, lives in the Midwest with her husband. She is a teacher, having taught elementary school to higher education, holding degrees in elementary education and a master’s in higher education. Her passion is researching, studying and investigating the attributes related to self-directed learners. She has published several titles, including Calais: The Annals of the Hidden, Lemosa: The Annals of the Hidden, Book Two, Rachel’s 8 and Securing Your Tent. She is currently working on a non-fiction text exploring the attributes of self-directed learners: The Five Characteristics of Self-directed Learners.
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