Constructivist/Constructionist Theories of Learning

Constructivism/Constructionism Theories of Learning:

The schools I teach at are big fans of this learning method. Most of our teachers use in one way or another during the school year. It comes up most often in the form of projects and presentations. I have to admit that I am also a big fan of this method as well. I believe most teachers would agree that creating finished projects and presentations helps students use higher levels of thinking and creates more connections in their minds. I think another important factor is that when students are able to show what they have learned, they are motivated to learn more. Positive reinforcement creates a greater desire to learn more, and instills confidence in a students abilities.

Aside from the idea of creating GIS maps that I mentioned in my discussion post, I am a big fan of PowerPoint presentations that were created by the students. Instead of having the students create entire presentations, I usually assign them only one or two slides, and have them work as individuals or in pairs. One of the aspects of their slides must be how it is connected to the other slides that are being created. Then, when they are all put together, we teach each other the lesson. I think this helps the students in many ways. First, they can be proud that they have contributed to the overall presentation in a positive manner. In addition, they quickly learn how important their obligation is to the other classmates to do their work so there is not a gap in the information. Second, it helps the students see the overall picture of a concept or lesson. Finally, having all the slides be related to each other in one way or another is a great way to help students understand connectivity, or causes and effects.

While creating the slides, students are often introduced to entirely new concepts. Before they can share them with everyone else, they need to use assimilation and accommodation techniques to understand the information well enough to teach it to others

Cognitive Learning Methods

Cognitive learning theories and information processing seem to be the next step up from behaviorism and information storage.

Cognitive learning concerns the storage of information in long-term memory along with the ability to retrieve and apply that information properly.

The ability to store and retrieve information in long-term memory relies upon a student’s ability to make many, varied connections between prior knowledge or experiences and new knowledge and experiences.

It appears that the more social or cultural connections a student has to the material being taught, the more likely it is they will retain and apply the new information.

Here is the difference between cognitive and behaviorist learning methods. Cognitive learning methods seek out personal connections between the material and the student. This may not be as efficient as behaviorism, but it appears to create a stronger mental bond with less familiar and more complex materials.

One of the cornerstones of cognitive learning is the construction of little pieces of information into larger concepts. A common belief is that a learner can only process and transfer to long-term memory a limit of seven pieces of information Therefore, in order to teach higher level information, the student must process the seven pieces of information and synthesize them into larger concepts.

The use of technology is a great way to create a wider variety of connections between prior knowledge and new information.

Behavioralism in Practice

Hello fellow bloggers,

I had some technical difficulties with posting- accidentally posted to the wrong blog!
Here are a few of my thoughts on behaviorist learning methods and the use of technology in the classroom.

First of all, as I mentioned in the discussion posting, I completely disagree with the idea that behaviorist methods are antiquated and have no place in today's classroom. I teach elementary school age children, and I actually believe that for the majority of the subjects I teach, behaviorist methods are possibly the best methods. At the very least, they are a major ingredient in the combination of instructional methods.

Behaviorist methods are the most effecient way to lay down a foundation of basic information to build off of. In elementary school people sometimes take for granted that a student can read or do simple math. If they lack these skills, behaviorist methods are a great way to help them learn them. If they lack these skills, it is impossible to reach for loftier goals in the future.

It is important to recognize the use of behaviorist methods in establishing classroom discipline, and individual expectations of effort, attitude, and quality of work.

Of course, educators certainly cannot fully rely on behaviorist methods to teach. If they do, they will never be able to go beyond a basic understanding of simple subjects. In order to fully address the needs of every student, and to lead them in the direction of higher learning and higher order thinking, teachers must use a variety of methods.

I believe that technology and behaviorist learning methods are a good match. Most of us use computer programs that we learned using behaviorist methods, like tutorials. In addition, the computational and statistical nature of computers is a good fit with the desire to assess, monitor, and reward progress towards goals.

However, just like traditional teaching environments, it is important to recognize that behaviorist methodology in combination with technology can only take a student so far, at which point it is necessary to move away from behaviorist methods, not move away from technological assistance.