Social Constructivist ApproachesThis week’s readings have me visualize students that are learning from the sidelines “sitting on the bench” without getting to “play” or to learn actively by working with their team. If we consider that the social constructivism approach illustrates the importance of working together to develop understand but also to create meaning and define reality by their interactions. Moreover, it is important for students to develop their own ability to construct their own understanding by interacting with others. For instance, I have had the opportunity to work with others that had different experiences, point of view and cultural background and by opening my mind to their realities. In turn, this has allowed me to grow and improve both personally and professionally. References: Orey, M. (2010). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching and technology. Global Text. Chapter 6,7,14 and 19
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Cognitive ApproachesIn this week’s readings, we studied Bloom’s Taxonomy. Although, it is the most commonly used, referenced and cited education theory it is also widely misunderstood. For my own personal research, I wanted to get a copy of the original text but was unable to do so. Since the only copy I could order was for over 100 hundred dollars I decided to use secondary sources for my research. I found it interesting that there were in fact 3 branches to the original taxonomy two of which I was not familiar with. I found it interesting but not surprising that these two branches where the affective and psychomotor branches. It is that we choose only to focus on the mind when the brains, when the hands and the heart play an essential role in reaching higher order thinking. Furthermore, I pursued my researched I remembered reading somewhere that Bloom once said that his research was misunderstood and I wondered why. Then I thought that perhaps the visual representation of the theory could be misleading. Indeed, it seems to indicate that we can only master “higher levels of thinking” by first mastering, “lower levels of thinking”. This can happen but higher thinking can also lead to lower levels understanding. In conclusion, it may be easier to get students to memorize facts if they deeply understand the problem first, it all depends on the approach and the context. References: Bransford, J., Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school. Washington, DC: Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council. Chapter 1, Chapter 6, Case, R. (2013) The unfortunate consequences of Bloom's taxonomy - The Critical Thinking Consortium. Retrieved September 29, 2018, from https://tc2.ca/uploads/PDFs/Critical%20Discussions/unfortunate_consequences_blooms_taxonomy.pdf Lalande, M. (2012). Aiming Higher: Bloom and Vygotsky In the Classroom. RECIT Provincial Service for General Adult Education. Creative Commons 3.0. Retrieved September 29, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjUOHhFvR4k Meyer Dan. (2010) Math class needs a makeover. TED. Retrieved September 29, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWUFjb8w9Ps Orey, M. (2010) Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching and technology. Global Text. Chapters 1-5 Sinek, Simon. Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action (2009). Penguin Publishing Group Behaviourist ApproachesIn this first week of our course Principles of Learning, we studied and discussed behaviourist approaches. Our instructor, Dr. Joseph M. Stokes, asked us a profound question: “Should we use punishment with our students and if so, when is it appropriate?” My initial response to this question was that we should not use punishment. However, as I reflected on my own learning experiences and pondered on this question, my response evolved and I changed my mind. In the past month, I hired a personal trainer and I saw my knowledge and skills greatly improve with her coaching. In the past whenever I tried working out I thought; no pain, no gain. I pushed my limits on the first attempt and it took me two weeks to recover, I associated working out with the pain I felt and I ended up giving up. Now, I am looking forward to my training sessions. They are not easy, and sometimes I am suffering a little, but I am now feeling the reward. It is no longer about the pain but about the gain. In conclusion, learning can sometimes feel like punishment but it is important that the benefits outweigh the pain. References: Bransford, J., Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school. Washington, DC: Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council. Chapter 1 Horner, R. H., & Sugai, G. (2015). School-wide PBIS: An example of applied behavior analysis implemented at a scale of social importance. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 8(1), 80-85. Orey, M. (2010). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching and technology. Global Text. Chapter 26 Shanker, S. (2010). Self-regulation: calm, alert and learning. Education Canada, 50(3), 4-7 |
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December 2018
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