Constructivism in Practice

“The essence of Learning by Design lies in the experience of the learner as a designer and creator of an external, shareable artifact” (Han & Bhattacharya, 2000). Dr. Orey talks about building something with the constructionist point of view. When we use this theory we are asking the students to create something that we can see, share, and apply to the real world. Learning by Design fits the criteria of the constructionist theory. The following are the components most readily identified in a LBD environment:

-Authenticity: tasks based on real-world applications
-Multiple contexts for design activities
-A balance of constrained, scaffolded challenges with open-ended design tasks
-Rich, varied feedback for designers
-Discussion and collaboration
-Experimentation and exploration
-Reflection
(Han & Bhattacharya, 2000)

With my students I want them to have a good understanding of what they want to do and accomplish at the end of this process. At the end I want them to create something that they can share with their classmates, and soemthing that they will take ownership of. As the teacher I will have to at least guide them to their end product, but I cannot just let the learner go off on their own.
Han and Bhattacharya (2000) suggests some strategies that will allow for this process to be learner centered and allows for building of knowledge.

1. Clear expectations from day one.
2. Inform participants of implicit and explicit objectives and how they will be evaluated.
3. Learner should be the active builder of knowledge.
4. Instructor should take on the role of a facilitator, motivator
5. Tasks given should allow learners to design and construct an artifact that can be
shared.
6. Provide rich and varied feedback for the designers/learners
(Han & Bhattacharya, 2000)


Following these guidelines, in my opinion, is a great start to creating engaging, meaningful, and memorable learning experiences.


References

Han, S., and Bhattacharya, K. (2001). Constructionism, Learning by Design, and Project Based Learning. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging
perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Constructionist and Constructivist Learning Theories. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Cognitivism in Practice

When we talk about cognition we talk about how information enters the brain and is stored. This week I have explored many strategies and techniques that can facilitate this.

In Dr. Orey’s video this week he discusses the cognitive learning theory. He discussed how learners use their senses to store information. He goes on to talk about how putting images with texts gives a better chance of a student remembering the information. One part of the student’s brain remembers the picture and then another part labels what the picture is. This is called “dual coding of information.” A strategy that correlates with this is using PowerPoint Presentations to visually display images with text to show their meanings. Here the learner makes a connection with the image and the text. The learner then remembers the picture which then triggers the text. According to Dr. Orey, “integrating multiple senses in presentations improves learning” (Laureate, 2009). Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski (2007) use multimedia to satisfy this cognitive role. “For many students, multimedia is very effective because it helps them both activate prior knowledge and develop a mental model to help them understand new information” (Pitler et al, 2007). Resources presented my Pitler and associates are United Streaming, The Internet Archive, Google Video, A9, and Creative Commons. All of these sites allow the learner to do a search on what they want to learn more about and it presents the material in a multimedia fashion.

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Behaviorism in Practice

According to Dr. Orey, “… reinforcement is the most powerful mechanism of operant conditioning” (Laureate Education, 2009). Monitoring our students’ effort and assigning homework and practice are types of reinforcement. In the text Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, there were several ways we can use technology to monitor our students’ effort and reinforce it. Many students do not want to put forth a great effort to complete an assignment or to try something that might seem difficult at first glance, but wonder why they get low grades. With the use of a spreadsheet we can set it up in such a way where the student sees the correlation between their effort and their grades. The spread sheet serves as a data sheet of information that can be helpful to both the student and the teacher to reinforce a desirable behavior.

Homework in itself is reinforcement. “As an extension of the classroom, homework provides opportunities for students to deepen their understanding of the content and to gain proficiency with their skills” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007). Some students might think homework is punishment but it is for their own benefit. The authors also recommend some things to keep in mind when dealing with homework.

1. Establish and communicate a homework policy.
2. Design homework assignments that clearly articulate purpose and outcome.
3. Vary approaches to providing feedback. (Pitler et al, 2007)

But when homework is not done a consequence ensues, in my classroom anyway. This falls under the second installment of operant conditioning, punishment. “Punishment involves presenting a strong stimulus that decreases the frequency of a particular response. Punishment is effective in quickly eliminating undesirable behaviors” (Standridge, 2002). When implementing punishment I am trying to stop a behavior, in this case, missing or incomplete homework assignments. In some instances particularly with homework, punishments need to be implemented in order for reinforcement to do its job.


References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Standridge, M. (2002). Behaviorism. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved May 12, 2010, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/