2019 Annual Conference

Research to Practice

Shared Concurrent Session (Approx. 12 or 20 minutes)

Positive psychology focuses on using individuals' strengths to improve their experiences and outcomes.  As individuals pursue higher education, their character strengths can be utilized to help them adapt to their new environments and develop skills to facilitate success, particularly in the area of self-directed learning.

This session is designed for educators who work with students in a variety of higher education settings.  The session will also be informative for researchers, graduate students, and others interested in needs of higher education students, both traditional and post-traditional learners.

The learner will:
Identify character strengths which help facilitate success for students in higher education.
Determine ways to assist students in effectively using their character strengths in higher education settings.
Identify character strengths which are helpful in self-directed learning.
Determine ways to use character strengths to facilitate self-directed learning.
Describe area(s) in which he/she can personally apply what has been learned to practice.

With the increased emphasis on student success in higher education, institutions are seeking ways to facilitate positive outcomes for students.  By incorporating knowledge of character strengths, individuals working with students can help them learn to leverage their own strengths, especially in developing self-directed learning behaviors.  As students develop as self-directed learners, they gain skills which enable them to be successful not only in higher education, but also in the workforce following graduation and as lifelong learners.  The session will conclude with a discussion period during which participants may explore ways in which they intend to apply the information they have learned to their own contexts or examine other ramifications of promoting positive psychology concepts.

This session will be presented using PowerPoint. Multimedia elements may be included, but will require no additional equipment. The session will begin with an overview of positive psychology, character strengths, and self-directed learning.  The presenter will discuss research which connects these topics.  The presenter will then introduce practical ways in which character strengths can be used to facilitate self-directed learning, providing attendees the opportunity to participate in discussion.  Attendees will apply session content to personal practice. Attendees will be provided presentation outlines and the presenter's contact information. No internet access is required.