Definition
A formal agreement between student and instructor outlining objectives, activities, and assessment criteria for individualized study. It's a personalized syllabus where students help design their own educational experience, with varying success rates.
Example Usage
The independent study required a learning contract specifying deliverables and deadlines, though by week eight both student and professor had forgotten what they'd agreed to.
Origin
Popularized in adult and distance education in the 1970s-80s as a tool for self-directed learning
Fun Fact
Learning contracts assume students know what they need to learn, which works great for motivated self-starters and creates chaos for everyone else who just wants to be told what to do.
Related Terms
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See “learning contract” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.
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