This paper reports some of the findings of this project. The tutorials were of one hour duration and were held fortnightly. Initial discussions focussed on what self directed learning was and the importance of being self directed both in the short term as a physiotherapy student and later as a practicing physiotherapist. All students enrolled in first year Physiotherapy for Semester 2 were required to complete a weekly learning log. The learning logs direct the students to set learning objectives, to identify any barriers to learning that they encounter and to identify potential solutions.
Students also record the time they spend in various learning activities.
The questionnaire consisted of 35 statements related to their experiences of self directed learning in the first year Physiotherapy course. A five point Likert scale with descriptors of strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, and strongly disagree was used. Students were also asked to justify their choice for each question with a written comment. Although the original intent of the project was for the tutorials to be instructional, and that students would readily receive and apply this guidance it quickly became apparent that there were a number of barriers which made students reluctant to change their approach to study. The tutorials thus became a forum for open discussion about the students' perceptions of self directed learning in a university environment.