Self-Directed Learning

I've always been jealous of people who can teach themselves something, be it a foreign language, an instrument, or a unique skill. I am intrigued by jugglers and street performers who claim to be "self-taught". In the realm of academia, the internet has made it so that knowlegde is just a click away. It is not as difficult to self-instruct when we are presented with so many more resources. I recently read an article about self-directed learning as a teaching tool. In this article, a parent ponders how his son could learn about math through his passion of basketball. He writes:

"What I wonder is whether his classrooms and teachers can help him become a passionate, patient, connected learner who is empowered to truly learn whatever and whenever he needs to."

 He lists and describes many academic programs that help students learn about school-related topics through the interests of the students. Some schools let students have more freedom in learning style. Kids are allowed to use certain resources to teach themselves and personally make the most of their lessons.

I think this is a good strategy to use in moderation. If students are given too much freedom, they will potentially go off-task. I think there needs to be some sort of rubric or loose structure so that the students can have a mutual understanding while having the freedom to go at their own pace.

Here is the link to the annotated article:
http://diigo.com/0syj0