It Takes a Community: Developing Self-Directed Learners

This action research project focused on the question, “How can I incorporate student-led assessment to develop self-directed learners?” Using a variety of approaches, including dialogue journals, critical friend relationships, and scholarly pathway check-ins, I worked with sixth and eighth graders to develop a community of trust where students could give and receive feedback that would help them take control of their learning. In particular, and of potential interest to educators, I found that the combination of cross-age critical friends and dialogue journals, whereby my students wrote to each other regularly about their work, helped students acquire skills of reflection and self-management essential to their own development as learners.