Interview Schedule - Learning Projects

Allen Tough's Learning Projects Interview Protocol

There is information in the Brockett and Hiemstra book related to Allen Tough's groundbreaking contributions to the field of self-directed learning. His dissertation work on adults learning without teachers led to subsequent research and his 1971 book on Adults' Learning Projects. For this research he developed an interview protocol. Many researchers have used this protocol during the past three decades to carry out similar research.

Interestingly, what the protocol allowed researchers to uncover did more than anything is shatter our previous understanding of adults as learners. Before Tough's work, adult educators and others thought about adult learning as revolving around participation in formal credit and non-credit courses. However, through the protocol with its exhaustive set of probing questions, adult learners began to reveal their involvement in learning activities outside the formal course structure. The results included new knowledge that many adults engage in considerable learning each year.

In conjunction with Learning Activity #5, if you decide to the use the Tough protocol, here is a version you can use. Only one master copy of each part of the protocol is included, so you will need to print enough copies of each component to meet your interviewing needs.

Included as the first item is the interview form itself. Read through it and you will quickly understand how it is used. The first two pages contain the questions you can use to help the interviewee recall or remember the various learning projects he or she was involved in during the previous 12 months. (P) refers to a probing question. You don't need to ask each question, but pick and choose those you believe will help the interviewee begin to reveal what she or he has done in the past year. If, during the interview process, the interviewee appears to be unable to recall anything else, show or read to him or her the information contained in "Sheet One" as a means to help with even additional recall.

Use the form with four identical sets of "fill in the blank" areas to begin recording the separate learning projects, courses, experiences, etc. you obtain from the interviewee. Typically, most adults average more than four distinct "learning projects" each year, so you probably will need two or more of these forms.

Once you feel you have fairly well exhausted an individual's ability to recall learning activities (and always keep alert for new ones to surface during the remainder of the interview - an interview typically lasts from 40-60 minutes, although it can be shorter in duration), move to the third page of the interview protocol. Begin asking the questions on that page to find out more details about each separate learning experience. Note when it calls for you to use "Sheet Two" and "Sheet Three." The idea here is to determine when a learning experience qualifies as a "learning project" as defined by Tough (at least five hours within a six-month period and at least seven hours overall during the past year). Some people disagree with this particular definition, but it is one that Tough determined best represented a distinct and meaningful learning project. It is recommended you use the same definition base to enhance your ability to compare your results with those of previous researchers.

Note, too, that the protocol also asks for information about how each learning area was learned, level of current activity, a reason for undertaking the learning, who directed the learning (this turned out to be an extremely important part of the interview process in that out of the results grew the knowledge that the majority of the direction was self-planned or self-directed), and the source of information (subject matter) acquired during the learning. Record the information on that form with four identical sets of "fill in the blank" areas. All these results will give you a better understanding of adults as self-directed learners and a database for comparison with previous research results.

Interview Protocol

ID No. or Name __________________________________

I am interested in listing the things you have tried to learn during the past year. When I say "learn" I don't just mean learning the sorts of things that people learn in schools and colleges. I mean any sort of deliberate effort at all to learn something, or to learn how to do something. Perhaps you tried to get some information or knowledge -- or to learn new skills or improve your old ones -- or to increase your sensitivity or understanding or appreciation. Can you think of any efforts like this that you have made during the past 12 months?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Try to think back over all of the past 12 months – right back to __________ of last year. I am interested in any deliberate effort you made to learn anything at all. Anything at all can be included, regardless of whether it was easy or hard, big or little, important or trivial, serious or fun, highbrow or lowbrow.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P)It doesn’t matter when your effort started, as long-as you have spent at least a few hours at it sometime since last month or so.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P)We want to get as complete a list as possible, because we think that people make far more attempts to learn than anyone realizes. We can include any sort of information, knowledge, skill, or understanding at all that you have tried to gain -- just as long as you spent at least a few hours at it sometime during the past 12 months.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Can you recall any other efforts to learn that were related to your home or your family? Anything related to your hobbies or recreation? Your job? Your responsibilities in various organizations, or clubs, or in a church or synagogue, or on a committee, or some other responsibilities? Anything related to some teaching, writing, or research that you do outside of your job?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Going back over the past 12 months, can you recall any other times that you tried to learn something by reading a book? When you read newspapers or magazines, do you read certain topics or sections because you want to remember the content? Have you tried to learn anything else from booklets, pamphlets, or brochures? From memos, letters, instructions, or plans? From technical or professional literature? From material from a library? From workbooks or programmed instruction? From an encyclopedia or other reference source?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Have you learned anything at all from a medical doctor? From a lawyer? From a counselor or therapist? From a financial or tax advisor? From a social worker? From a private teacher? From a specialist or expert? From individual private lessons?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Have you learned anything from documentaries or courses on television? From TV news or some other TV programs? From radio? In a theatre? Have you tried to learn from conversations? Or from asking questions: that is, have there been any topics or areas that you have tried to learn about from your friends or other people? Have you deliberately sought to learn by seeking out stimulating individuals? Have you tried to learn anything from your spouse or other relatives? From a neighbor?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Perhaps you have learned something in some group or other? Perhaps in some meeting or discussion group? From attending a conference? From a retreat or weekend meeting? From an institute or short course or workshop? From a committee or staff meeting? From taking a course? From attending evening classes, or lectures, or a speech? From a correspondence course? From attending a club or group meeting?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(P) Perhaps tape recordings or phonograph records or "a language lab” helped you learn something during the past year? Have you learned in a church or synagogue? In a college, university, or school? In some community organization? In a company or factory or office? In a government program? In an exhibition, museum, or art gallery? In some vacation spot?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Now I have a list of some of the things people learn (Sheet One). It may remind you of other things that you have tried to learn during the past 12 months. Take as long as you want to read each word, and to think about whether you have tried to learn something similar. (Give him or her the sheet, or read it aloud if necessary.)

OK, that gives us a fairly complete list. If you suddenly think of something else you have learned, though, please tell me.

Now I want to find out a bit more about each of your efforts to learn. Let's begin with the first one on the list. It was your efforts to learn ____________________ . Here is a sheet that will help us learn more about your efforts and estimate the number of hours that you spent at learning this, and the number of hours spent at planning and preparing for that learning. (Hand him or her the second sheet – Sheet Two.)

(If possible, pin down and record just what the learning segments were. For example, you could ask, "How did you go about learning this? How was it learned? What did you do? Was there anything else you did to learn _______________?" Examples that you might record to help understand the total effort are: Watched an expert, listened to a record, read, practiced, attended a meeting, etc. This list of activities is primarily for your benefit in helping the person estimate his or her time accurately: We do not need the data for any specific purpose other than it might help you later determine the subject matter source. In other words, don't make any special effort to get it or to record it, but on the other hand don't discard it either.)

(Ask for a time estimate in total number of hours. If the number of hours is below 14, check two criteria. First, "within some six-month period during the past year, did you spend at least five hours at the learning itself -- that is, at the ______________ learning effort." Second, "within some six-month period or shorter period during the past year, did you spend at least seven hours altogether on the learning effort?" If both criteria are met write “yes” and proceed; if both are not met write “no” and move to the next learning project.)

(Ask them to select whether they have been active or not active.)

(Determine their reason for undertaking the project. Ask, "in any of your efforts on the learning endeavor, was credit any part of your motivation? That is, did you hope to use any of your learning efforts for academic credit -- towards some degree, certificate, diploma, or grade achievement? (Pause) Was any of your learning directed toward passing a test, examination, or course -- or toward some license or a driving test? (Pause) Or was it toward some requirement or examination or upgrading related to a job? (Pause) Or did you undertake the learning activity for your own enjoyment or self-improvement? Note: You will need to determine the primary reason.)

Now we are going to think about your learning effort and try to decide who or what was the director or leader. That is, who decided what you would learn – and how you would learn -- whenever you spent some time trying to learn? Here is a sheet explaining what I mean (Sheet Three). (If no one resource was primarily responsible --51% or more -- classify it as mixed. If he or she does not seem to understand, or if you feel doubtful about the response, ask who the particular director or leader was. If you anticipate difficulty or if the learner asks, say that we are interested in who the leader was for the past 12 months rather than earlier.)

(Finally, determine the major source of subject matter. That is, what resource provided most of the content -- a book, a pro ski instructor, a discussion group, a television broadcast, etc.)

(Repeat for each learning project, recording the appropriate data.)

That completes the interview. Thank you very much for your time and assistance. I think your efforts will help to make education more meaningful in the lives of many adults.

Some things that people learn about!

1. A sport or game; swimming; dancing; bridge

2. Current events; public affairs; politics; peace; biography

3. Sewing; cooking; homemaking; entertaining

4. Driving a car

5. Home repairs; woodworking; home improvement project; decorating and furniture

6. A hobby or craft; collecting something; photography

7. Raising a child; discipline; infant care; a child's education

8. Nature; agriculture; birds

9. Mathematics; statistics; arithmetic

10. Speed reading; effective writing; public speaking; vocabulary; literature

11. Science; astronomy; humans in space

12. Health; physical fitness; posture; clothes; appearance

13. History; geography; travel; some region, city, or neighborhood

14. Personal finances; savings; insurance; investing; purchasing something

15. Psychology; effective relationships with people; groups; leadership; socia1 skills

16. Typing, data processing; mechanical skills

17. Some personal problem; mental health; an emotional problem; an illness or medical condition

18. Various careers; choosing an occupation; finding a job

19. Gardening; landscaping

20. Something related to a job or responsibility or decision

21. Musical instrument; singing; music appreciation

22. Professional or technical competence; sales skills; how to teach or supervise

23. Some aspect of religion; ethics; philosophy; moral behavior

24. Current changes in society; the future; problems in cities; pollution; sociology

25. Relationships with the opposite sex; manners; marriage; relationships within the family

26. Art; painting; architecture; the opera; movies; television

27. Business management; economics; business ownership

28. Sensory awareness; human potential; communication; understanding oneself; personal efficiency

29. New techniques, a new way of doing something; an innovation

30. Spanish; French; some other language

(Sheet One)

1. We need your best guess about the total amount of time that you spent at all aspects of this particular learning effort during the past 12 months. (do this for each individual learning projects)

Please include the time you spent reading -- listening -- observing -- or learning in some other way -- if your main purpose during that activity was to gain and retain certain knowledge or skill. In other words, we will include all the time during which at least half of your total motivation was to gain certain knowledge or skill, and to retain it until at least two days later.

In addition to the time you spent at the actual learning itself, please include all the hours that you spent, during the past 12 months, at deciding about the learning, planning the learning, and preparing and arranging for it. This can include any time spent at deciding what to learn -- deciding how to learn -- deciding where to get help -- seeking advice about these decisions (from other people or from printed materials) -- traveling to some of the learning activities, such as a meeting or practice session or library -arranging appropriate conditions for learning -- choosing the right book or person for the actual learning -- obtaining that book or reaching that person.

Of course, you cannot remember exactly how many hours, so just give your best guess. If you wish, just choose the closest number from the following list:

1 3 6 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 120 140 160 180 or more

2. Which of these following two answers best describes this particular learning effort at the present time:

(A) NOT VERY ACTIVE -- that is, you have dropped it or completed it, or you have set it aside for a while (or you are spending much less time at it now than you were before)

(B) DEFINITELY ACTIVE -- that is, you are definitely continuing this learning effort right now, and you are spending about as much time as ever at it.

(Sheet Two)

There are four different sorts of learning efforts, according to who directs them. That is, a person's efforts to learn can be classified according to who was responsible for the day-to-day planning. We have to look at who planned or decided exactly what and how the person should learn at each session. For example, who decided what the person should read or hear, or what else he or she should do in order to learn?

1. Group-Planned Learning

In some learning projects, you may decide to attend a group and let the group (or its leader or instructor) decide what and how you learn during each session. A group may be of any size, with a minimum of five people. Examples might be lectures, study groups, workshops, small informal groups, or conferences.

2. One-to-one Learning

In some learning projects, the planning and deciding of what to learn and in what order is handled by one person, who helps the learner in a one-to-one situation. That is, there is one helper (or instructor, teacher, expert, or friend) and there is one learner. These two persons interact usually face-to-face, although it could be by telephone or by correspondence. Even if 2-4 learners were receiving individualized attention from one other person at the same time, it would be included here.

3. Material Resource Learning

In these learning projects, the major part of the detailed direction on what to learn and what to do at each session resides in some material resource, object, or nonhuman resource. A programmed instruction book, a set of tape recordings, or a series of TV programs are examples: The learner follows the programs or materials and they tell him or her what to do next.

4. Self-Planned Learning

In other learning projects, the learner him or herself retains the major responsibility for the day-to-day planning and decision-making. He or she may get advice from various people and use a variety of materials and resources, but he retains the responsibility for deciding what activities to try next, what to read, and what skill or knowledge should be next in the sequence. Instead of turning the Job of planning over to someone else, he or she makes the day-to-day decisions alone.

(Sheet Three)

ID No. or Name ___________________________________

Learning project name or number _________________________________________________________________________________

How was 1t learned? __________________________________________________________________________________________

Number of hours? __________ (criteria check – does it meet the requirements for including) ___________________

Not very active now ___________________ or Definitely active now ______________________

Reason for project ____________________________________________________________________________________________

Director of learning ____________________________________________________________________________________________

Source of subject matter ________________________________________________________________________________________