The three critical concepts from this course that have an effect on personal belief are self-directed learning, learning orientation, and self-motivation. Personal beliefs are formulated through a variety of influences including cultural, cognitive, and learning development which, in turn, influence behavior and interaction with others (Santos, 2018). Self-motivation is a key aspect of personal beliefs as a person’s motives are often determined by specific beliefs about one’s own personal capacities. This stems from the self-efficacy theory which suggests that beliefs are both the primary drive and at the same time a consequence of believing that an individual can achieve a goal or task (Lumen Learning, n.d.). I find this to be true in a variety of educational and non-academic situations where my motivations inherently impact my belief in myself to finish a task. If the motivations are sincere or affected by closely personal goals, the belief in its morality or success increases significantly.
Nevertheless, learning elements also contribute to personal beliefs. Self-directed learning refers to the process of individuals taking the initiative of personally formulating learning goals, identifying learning needs, and selecting appropriate resources in aiding in the learning process. A critique of self-directed learning can be self-empowering while also directing learners into a compromise with dominant social conformity (Brookfield, n.d.). In my opinion, self-directed learning is an expression of identity and sovereignty that guides the belief in taking control of one’s education. It is a personal belief that one has the continuous exercise of authentic control over one’s life and learning, an expression of self-efficacy and self-direction. Meanwhile, learning orientation measures the tendency of seeking to improve knowledge and skill, the value of the learning process. This directly correlates with self-motivation as well as the shaping of beliefs about education and learning. Many successful people, while smart, are not necessarily the most intelligent, but rather have a high learning orientation (Smerek, 2019). It is indicative of personal values of how much one has an active exploratory mind, motivations of learning from others and being the most competent at whatever specialization or job one can have.
References
Brookfield, S. D. (n.d.). Self-directed learning. Web.
Lumen Learning. (n.d.). Motivation as self-efficacy.
Santos, L. D. (2018). The cultural cognitive development of personal beliefs and classroom behaviours of adult language instructors: A qualitative inquiry. Brain Sciences, 8(12), 220. doi: 10.3390/brainsci8120220
Smerek, R. (2019). What are the benefits of a learning orientation? Psychology Today.