Learning to Transfer: the Distance Learner and Transfer of Learning

Abstract

The problem of transfer has been an enduring one, with contestation occurring over definitions, theories, measures, and even whether transfer to new situations is possible. Transfer of learning occurs when individuals take what they have learned in one context and use it in a new and different context. Evidence of transfer has often proved elusive in studies conducted in artificial or laboratory settings. The study reported here is a naturalistic study of transfer within the dual contexts of distance education and higher learning. The emphasis is on a dimension that the literature has neglected, the perspective of the learner. The study explores the learning and transfer experiences of learners enrolled in a Bachelor of Business degree with a distance education institution, The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand. Such a degree is designed for practical application, and those who enrol in such a degree expect to be able to use or transfer what they learn to new and different contexts. Learning to transfer has two aspects in this context: the motivation for learning; and the process of learning for transfer. The research methodology, while predominantly qualitative, also drew on quantitative approaches. In the first stage of the research, there were 92 respondents to a postal survey that used a modified Likert scale for most items. SPSS10 was used for the analysis of the survey findings. The survey data provided a picture of trends in relation to the experiences of the learners and of key factors in transfer of learning. The survey findings and those from interviews with design and teaching team members helped shape and inform the final stage of the research - in-depth interviews with learners. The interviews with 30 learners were audio-taped and transcribed. The analyses of the interviews were influenced by techniques used in grounded theory approaches. A number of factors were explored and discussed in the thesis, including: prior learning; motivations; the experience of learning; the distance dimension; generic or essential skills; the transfer experience; aids and barriers to transfer; the implications for course design and delivery; and implications for future research. The evidence from the research supported the reconceptualization of transfer as preparation for future learning. The experiences of these learners suggest that distance education, by enabling the integration of learning and living, increases the possibilities for transfer of learning. It is argued that transfer of learning needs to be explicitly addressed within the design, delivery and evaluation of all courses and programmes of study.