Is Self-Development the Key to the Future?

This paper explores participants' subjective experiences of a management skill development programme. The programme incorporates self-managed and experiential learning methods. The study monitored the progress of samples of participants drawn from two cohorts of learners, examining their experiences in detail. The programme introduces and develops key independent learning skills, and had already attracted one of the highest student satisfaction ratings in its first two years of operation (see Stansfield, 1995a). This part of the study concentrated on feelings and emotions, which were wide-ranging from excitement to cynicism. Attention focused upon the conflict between study and other demands, the role of the tutor, the acceptability of peer feedback, the nature of assessment, small group working and perceived equity between effort and outcome. A tentative model of the responsive self-developer is proposed, together with suggestions for improvements to the cognitive and support structures needed to facilitate effective self-development.