EDLD+5368+Discussion

WEEK 1: What did you learn about your learning theory beliefs from this activity?

The theory that aligns the least with my beliefs is the Behaviorist Theory. According to the article, “Learning Theories Knowledge Base,” behaviorism is a “world view that operates on the principle of “stimulus response.”” All behavior is caused by an external stimuli. While I believe that external stimuli can be motivating, I don’t think that it is necessary for true learning to take place. Behaviorists also believe that the learner starts off as a tabula rasa, or clean slate, and is passive in his/her learning (Learning Theories Knowledge Base, 2010). I believe that it is important for learners to be active participants in their learning. Constructivism (also known as Interpretivism) aligns closely with my beliefs about kids and how they learn. Constructivists believe that individuals “Build personal interpretation of the world based on experiences and interactions” (Dabbagh, 2006). I truly believe that learning is an active process that involves constructing knowledge rather than acquiring knowledge.

//Dabbagh. N. (2006). The instructional design knowledge base. Retrieved on April 12, 2010, from ////__[] __////. //

Learning Theories Knowledge Base (2010, March). at Learning-Theories.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010 from __[|http://www.learning-theories.com] __.

What did you learn about yourself and your students based on the learning inventories?

I was actually rather surprised by the results of the student learning style inventory that I gave my 2nd grade class. I thought most of the students would be Kinesthetic learners- they tend to specifically enjoy the hands-on activities that we engage in. Instead, I found that the overwhelming majority of my students are Visual learners. The results are as follows: 16 of my students are Visual Learners, 4 are Auditory Learners, and only 1 student is a Kinesthetic Learner! In thinking about these results further, I have realized that it really does make sense that my students are Visual Learners. I also took the same student inventory before giving it to my students. It turns out that I am also a visual learner! It is great to have commonality with the majority of my students. It is important, though, that I do not forget about the other 5 students (about 1/4 of my class) that are not visual learners. To do this, I always make sure to include a variety of different activities each day that support each learning style. According to learning-styles-online.com,"If you are a visual learner, use images, pictures, color and other visual media to help you learn. Incorporate much imagery into your visualizations" (The Visual Learning Style, 2007). I will be sure to use more of these techniques in my lessons for the class. According to the Teaching Style Inventory, I tend to lean more towards "understanding" rather than "rote" learning. While my students would probably prefer cooperative groups all of the time, I am pretty split between the amount of time the students work individually and in small groups. For concept representation, I lean more towards applied than abstract. This could have something to do with the age of the students I teach.

The Visual Learning Style (2007). At learning-styles-online.com. Retrieved April 15, 2010 from http://www.learning-styles-online.com/style/visual-spatial/.

WEEK 2: To me, understanding means to truly be able to transfer your knowledge to something new and different. "The ability to transfer our knowledge and skill effectively involves the capacity to take what we know and use it creatively, flexibly, fluently, in different settings or problems, on our own." This is something that is sometimes very difficult for students. That is why using the backwards design is so important and so effective. Focusing on what students should be able to do, know, AND understand before creating activities and finding appropriate materials is of utmost importance. According to the reading, "Students will be unable to give satisfactory responses when the design does not provide them with clear purposes and explicit performance goals highlighted throughout their work." According to a reading from week 1, transfer is important because "all new learning involves transfer based on previous learning, and this fact has important implications for the design of instruction that helps students learn" (Bransford, 2000). One example that I can see in my classroom (2nd Grade) is with the weekly spelling tests. We learn a spelling pattern each week (ex. silent e, long & short vowels) and most students do very well on the end of week spelling tests. They have had multiple opportunities at school and at home to work with the words and study them. To me, the real test is to see whether the students are spelling the words correctly in their daily writing assignments. Sometimes I will see students memorizing the words for the spelling tests and then spelling those same words incorrectly in their writing even the next week. This is a red flag to me that true understanding has not been accomplished. On the other hand, we have been focusing on two digit addition and subtraction word problems lately in math. Most students are able to transfer their knowledge of one type of problem to a different type of problem. I thought the pathagorean theorem example from the book was very interesting. Students were able to use the theorem to complete problems but were unable to transfer that knowledge to higher level thinking problems. As teachers, it is important for us to realize this problem and to work to improve it. Using the backward design can really help us to develop lessons that will encourage transfer. Bransford, J.,Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (Ed.). (2000). //How people learn.// pp. 129-154 (Chapter 6). Washington DC: National Academy Press. Retrieved on April 19, 2010, at __ [|http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9853&page=131#p2000495f9970131001] __. Wiggins, Grant; McTighe, Jay. Understanding by Design (Expanded Second Edition).