Is self-learning the future of education?

By Matt Ewens

Many years ago, I covered a case study on how a college library had bought into self-service machines to enable learners to renew their library books themselves.  For those technical folk, it utilised RFID, (radio frequency identification).

What has this to do with self-learning I hear you cry?

Well, for me anyway, it represented the start of self-learning in some respects, a bit like when the first self-checkouts started to appear in supermarkets. For learners it was convenient, simple, saved them time, and was effective.  The effect was similar for librarians and it meant that they could better manage the support they provided for learners.

Some college libraries are also using mobile technology to issue learners with text messages to alert them when their borrowed items need to be renewed.