Back in December, my partner and I bought our first car. I had never owned a car before, and while I am confident in my driving skills, I was concerned about my lack of mechanical knowledge. Before we decided what car to buy, I committed to researching as much as I could about our specific vehicle to become an expert, capable of handling any minor issues that may come up.
We ended up buying a used 2009 Hyundai Accent. Less than an hour after the sale, the first issue arose. When we tried inserting a CD into the CD player, it jammed and refused to eject the disk, all while creating a loud grinding sound every few seconds. After at least thirty minutes of troubleshooting, I was able to get the grinding to stop. Knowing I had not fixed the issue, I spent the rest of the evening and the next morning learning all I could about potential causes. I looked at advice columns from other people who had experienced the same issue. I sought instruction manuals for my vehicle and CD player. It did not take long for my confusion to turn into frustration, and just like that, I realized my aspiration to be an expert on every facet of the 2009 Hyundai Accent was abandoned.
The biggest issue with this self-guided learning experience was the insufficient access to educational materials. Without a strategically designed learning system, my learning needs were neglected, and my motivation quickly diminished.
Autonomy:
I had full autonomy to find the information I needed online, but with too few constraints, it was difficult to find specific information since I didn’t know exactly what I was searching for.
Competence:
My difficulties in finding the right information meant I spent hours researching without any applicable knowledge. I was not able to develop any practical competency in repairing my car.
Relatedness:
The issue with trying to learn the mechanics of an entire car is that it consists of several components that often operate independently from each other.
Relevance:
The information about repairing 2009 Hyundai Accents is already limited, but because it was bought used and filled with aftermarket part replacements, most aren’t relevant to my needs.
A more thoughtfully designed learning experience might use a Behaviourist model to instill valuable information about the 2009 Hyundai Accent, separated into modules. One module could explain the most basic functions and mechanics of the car. Others could be dedicated to teaching learners how to overcome certain issues that may arise from driving the car. Essentially, I would have loved an interactive technology-mediated owner’s manual, instead of relying on trial and error or paying thousands to a mechanic.