Heutagogic approach to developing capable learners

Abstract

The twenty-first century higher education sector has come a long way after undergoing continuous metamorphosis from pedagogy to andragogy. Most of the educational approaches adopted in medical schools are directed towards developing more of competencies and less of capability, which is the ability to use competencies in novel contexts. Competencies alone are not sufficient to thrive in the present day work place as medical profession subsumes complex contexts; it is in this scenario that, medical educators are entrusted with the challenging task of developing “capable learners”. In the heutagogical approach, learners are required to decide upon what to learn and how to learn and therefore the control of the learning process is on the learner and the role of the teacher becomes that of a navigator. This paper highlights the current higher educational practices based on heutagogy, considers its application in the context of Problem-based learning and also discusses a few challenges in incorporating this approach in the existing undergraduate medical curriculum. The article proposes the use of social media in order to support learner autonomy, which in turn improves learners’ cognitive engagement with content and tasks, thereby assisting the development of attributes associated with capability.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Glossary

Heutagogy: Heutagogy or self-determined learning is an educational approach first described in the context of vocational education by Hase & Kenyon (2000). A heutagogical approach expects the learners to set their goals, reflect and revise on their learning experiences, in the process towards achievement of their goals. Heutagogy emphasizes upon nurturing capability in learners (Hase & Kenyon 2007).

Hase S, Kenyon C. 2000. From andragogy to heutagogy. Ultibase, RMIT. Available from:

http://ultibase.rmit.edu.au/Articles/dec00/hase2.htm.

Hase S, Kenyon C. 2007. Heutagogy: a child of complexity theory. Complicity. 4:111–8.

Notes on contributors

Reem Rachel Abraham, PhD, is Professor of Physiology, Melaka Manipal Medical College, Manipal University, Manipal, India.

Ramnarayan Komattil, MD, PGDHE, is the Vice President – Faculty Development and Alumni Relations, Manipal University, and also Professor of Pathology, Melaka Manipal Medical College (MMMC), Manipal Campus, Manipal University, Manipal, India.