Evaluation of Self-Directed Learning Activities at King Abdulaziz University: A Qualitative Study of Faculty Perceptions.

Purpose Doctors are expected to be lifelong learners and engage in continuous professional development throughout their careers. Learning to be a self-directed learner as early as possible is therefore likely to lay the foundation for future learning and development. For this reason, self-directed learning (SDL) has recently been incorporated into the internal medicine curriculum at the Faculty of Medicine in Rabigh at King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study was to evaluate faculty perceptions of the effectiveness of the SDL activities. Methods  The evaluation framework for this study was underpinned by Stufflebeam's context, input, process, and product (CIPP) evaluation model. Seven faculty members took part in semi-structured interviews that explored their understandings of SDL objectives (context), their perceptions of the methods and resources used (input), the implementation of SDL activities (process), and whether they met their intended educational goals (product). Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using the thematic analysis method. Results The following four themes emerged from the data and were mapped against the elements of the CIPP model: faculty perception of SDL (context), content and resources (input), facilitation and scheduling (process), and student engagement and assessment (product). Conclusions The faculty had different opinions about the objectives and content of SDL sessions; however, they agreed that they align with internal medicine objectives and clinical content. The faculty perceived SDL activities as a reading task for students to complete prior to group discussion. The data revealed the need for faculty training to conduct such sessions. Challenges in the learning environment were reported, including issues in library access and the scheduling of academic activities. The participants reported poor student engagement to be a particular challenge and made suggestions on how this could be addressed. In addition, they emphasized the need for assessment for these sessions.