Student responsibility for learning.

This paper presents the results of a study of student responsibility for learning, utilizing a student perspective. On the basis of a four-month participant/observation and 52 interviews with sixth and seventh graders at a California middle school, six categories were found that students viewed as being their responsibilities for learning. The categories, from the most to least frequently mentioned, were: (1) Do the Work, (2) Obey the Rules, (3) Pay Attention, (4) Learn or Study, (5) Try or Make an Effort, and (6) Responsibility as Something Given or Taken. It was concluded that the students did not perceive school as a place for learning, saw school as neither challenging nor as allowing them enough control to make the work challenging, and although they said they felt responsible for learning, they were actually just "being held responsible" rather than "being responsible."