Context and outcomes of self-directed learning among immigrants, who participate in activities of communal organizations

Abstract

Over the past decades, global migration flows increased significantly. For example, in 2010 there were 32.5 million foreigners in the EU-27. The majority of them, 20.2 million, were third-country nationals, while the remaining 12.3 million were citizens of another Member State (Vasileva, 2011). The increase of migration trends is also noted in Lithuania. According to the data of Lithuanian Migration Department at the beginning of 2013 33,267 foreigners lived in Lithuania. After coming to a new country, immigrants face social, political, economic, cultural and educational integration problems. The solution of them may be reflected through self-directed learning, which could be useful to immigrant integration. This type of learning stimulates immigrants to design and manage the learning purposefully with or without the help of others. The self-directed learning states assumptions to analyze personal values, attitudes and reflect personal emotions, which create preconditions to make decisions regarding immigrants’ integration. In this way, learners develop their human and social capital. The relevance of self-directed learning among immigrants is studied by Nugraha (2004), Igoudin (2008), Chang (2010), Kang (2011), who highlight learning experiences, motives and environments. But there is still a lack of systematic research about the context and outcomes of self-directed learning among immigrants, who are involved in activities of communal organizations.