Monday, February 27, 2012
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Thoughts on Social Constructivism
Social constructivism considers that knowledge is socially constructed. Students socially build, share,and agree upon knowledge. By exchanging and sharing with others, ideas are formed and learning occurs. Learning is dialog. Dialog is learning. The basic principles of social constructivism include:
· Social interaction plays a central role in human development.
· Tool mediates between social and individual functioning.
· Internal activities (internalisation) and external activities (externalisation) mutually transform one another.
Social constructivism emphasizes that learning is an active process mediated by social interaction. Conceptual growth comes from the sharing of multiple perspectives and negotiation of those perspectives through individual and collective experiences.
Lev Vygotsky thought that human development occurs on two planes. First it appears on social plane, and then on individual plane. Social interaction is the cornerstone in human development. In knowledge construction, social and individual processes are intertwined and interdependent. “Individual consciousness is built from the outside through relations with others” (Kozulin, 1986, p. xxiii-xxiv).
Internal activity (internalisation) and external activity (externalisation) are mutually transformed. The dual concept of internalization and externalization is used to explain the mutual transformation between the social world and the personal world. Human mind functions as both a social and a personal system.
Piaget insisted that development concepts should not be taught to children until children reach the appropriate development stage. Opposite of Piaget’s theory, Vygotsky believed that children can do more with the help of an adult or of capable peers than they can do by themselves (Zone of Proximal Development). Piaget believed that the most important source of cognition is located within the children themselves. Vygotsky argued that the social environment plays an essential role in the child's cognitive development.
All of you have experiences in online discussions. Online discussions provide a social environment for knowledge negotiation. You are exposed to multiple perspectives on an issue.
In the process of discussions, there is constant mutual transformation between individual cognition (internalization) to social cognition (externalization) and back to individual cognition (internalization). You think through the issue and externalize your thoughts. Through negotiation, the group reaches the consensus (social cognition). You then engage in individual reflection of the knowledge transacted and internalize the knowledge.
Discussions move you closer and closer to social cognition – the negotiated knowledge. Remember the story Six Men and the Elephant? Each of the men constructs his own knowledge. However, their knowledge representation is not complete. Without meaningful negotiation, intellectual chaos occurs.
Online discussion forums are the tool that mediates your discussions. Online discussion differs from fleeting oral discussions. In face to face discussions, mistakes tend to get away and escape the notice. There is no record left about the discussion for anybody to study and examine.
Text-based discussions leave a permanent record about what one has written. You have time to read, think, compose, examine and reflect upon what one has said. Does the online discussion tool alter your flow of thinking? It is the question that you should be able to answer now.
· Social interaction plays a central role in human development.
· Tool mediates between social and individual functioning.
· Internal activities (internalisation) and external activities (externalisation) mutually transform one another.
Social constructivism emphasizes that learning is an active process mediated by social interaction. Conceptual growth comes from the sharing of multiple perspectives and negotiation of those perspectives through individual and collective experiences.
Lev Vygotsky thought that human development occurs on two planes. First it appears on social plane, and then on individual plane. Social interaction is the cornerstone in human development. In knowledge construction, social and individual processes are intertwined and interdependent. “Individual consciousness is built from the outside through relations with others” (Kozulin, 1986, p. xxiii-xxiv).
Internal activity (internalisation) and external activity (externalisation) are mutually transformed. The dual concept of internalization and externalization is used to explain the mutual transformation between the social world and the personal world. Human mind functions as both a social and a personal system.
Piaget insisted that development concepts should not be taught to children until children reach the appropriate development stage. Opposite of Piaget’s theory, Vygotsky believed that children can do more with the help of an adult or of capable peers than they can do by themselves (Zone of Proximal Development). Piaget believed that the most important source of cognition is located within the children themselves. Vygotsky argued that the social environment plays an essential role in the child's cognitive development.
All of you have experiences in online discussions. Online discussions provide a social environment for knowledge negotiation. You are exposed to multiple perspectives on an issue.
In the process of discussions, there is constant mutual transformation between individual cognition (internalization) to social cognition (externalization) and back to individual cognition (internalization). You think through the issue and externalize your thoughts. Through negotiation, the group reaches the consensus (social cognition). You then engage in individual reflection of the knowledge transacted and internalize the knowledge.
Discussions move you closer and closer to social cognition – the negotiated knowledge. Remember the story Six Men and the Elephant? Each of the men constructs his own knowledge. However, their knowledge representation is not complete. Without meaningful negotiation, intellectual chaos occurs.
Online discussion forums are the tool that mediates your discussions. Online discussion differs from fleeting oral discussions. In face to face discussions, mistakes tend to get away and escape the notice. There is no record left about the discussion for anybody to study and examine.
Text-based discussions leave a permanent record about what one has written. You have time to read, think, compose, examine and reflect upon what one has said. Does the online discussion tool alter your flow of thinking? It is the question that you should be able to answer now.
Thoughts on Constructivism
Constructivism has three basic principles: (1) Knowledge is constructed by the learner; (2) Cognitive development can occur only after certain genetically controlled neurological changes occur; (3) Teacher’ role is to guide and scaffold student learning.
The major difference between cognitivism and constructivism is that cognitivism is teacher-centered, emphasizing teachers’ roles, while constructivism is student-centered, emphasizing students’ roles.
In my previous blog entry, I cited examples of cognitivist teaching strategies. This blog entry presents an example of the contructivist teaching approach, posted by a student in the previous class.
The teaching experience I would like to describe comes from my chemistry class. The concept I was addressing with the class was Boyle's Law, which states that "the volume of a given amount of gas is inversely proportional to the pressure at a constant temperature". The class starts with all the students at the demonstration table looking at a balloon in a pressure chamber. As a student pumps a handle with a tube leading to the chamber, they all observed the balloon getting larger. My question to the group was why. It normally did not take long for the students to associate what was happening with the concept of Boyle's Law, even if they could not recall the name. As a group, we all came to the conclusion that when you increase the pressure on a volume of gas, the volume of gas should get smaller, or decrease.
Now the problem: As the student pump the handle to the pressure chamber, the gauge indicated the pressure was increasing. According to Boyle's Law, by increasing pressure on a volume of gas, the volume of gas should decrease or get smaller. However, as the pressure gauge showed the pressure increasing, the balloon in the pressure chamber was also increasing. THE STUDENTS JOB WAS TO DETERMINE WHY.
I then had them to work in groups to determine their answer using their prior knowledge and each group reported their explanation.
This approach used some of Dewey's, Piaget's and Bruners ideas by using things commonly understood and familiar to the students, relating it to everyday things and allowing students to discovery or determine an explanation based on their prior experiences and knowledge.
Once the explanations were presented, I came back and did more directed instruction to make sure all the students understood the concept and how it is applied. The pros in doing this was all students have had some experience with balloons and there behavior and as a result could all add something to the group discussion. It also allow those who may have had a better grasp of the Law to share that understanding with others and by doing so increase the understanding in them. I could not see any real disadvantages to this approach.
Although I did not use a computer, I could have allowed the students to go to the computer and use computer stimulations of Boyle's Law.
Finally, as with most things, determining when a certain approach would be most effective is the job of the teacher. As a professional, the main task should be preparing yourself to take advantage of whatever method based on the need and situation of the child.
The major difference between cognitivism and constructivism is that cognitivism is teacher-centered, emphasizing teachers’ roles, while constructivism is student-centered, emphasizing students’ roles.
In my previous blog entry, I cited examples of cognitivist teaching strategies. This blog entry presents an example of the contructivist teaching approach, posted by a student in the previous class.
The teaching experience I would like to describe comes from my chemistry class. The concept I was addressing with the class was Boyle's Law, which states that "the volume of a given amount of gas is inversely proportional to the pressure at a constant temperature". The class starts with all the students at the demonstration table looking at a balloon in a pressure chamber. As a student pumps a handle with a tube leading to the chamber, they all observed the balloon getting larger. My question to the group was why. It normally did not take long for the students to associate what was happening with the concept of Boyle's Law, even if they could not recall the name. As a group, we all came to the conclusion that when you increase the pressure on a volume of gas, the volume of gas should get smaller, or decrease.
Now the problem: As the student pump the handle to the pressure chamber, the gauge indicated the pressure was increasing. According to Boyle's Law, by increasing pressure on a volume of gas, the volume of gas should decrease or get smaller. However, as the pressure gauge showed the pressure increasing, the balloon in the pressure chamber was also increasing. THE STUDENTS JOB WAS TO DETERMINE WHY.
I then had them to work in groups to determine their answer using their prior knowledge and each group reported their explanation.
This approach used some of Dewey's, Piaget's and Bruners ideas by using things commonly understood and familiar to the students, relating it to everyday things and allowing students to discovery or determine an explanation based on their prior experiences and knowledge.
Once the explanations were presented, I came back and did more directed instruction to make sure all the students understood the concept and how it is applied. The pros in doing this was all students have had some experience with balloons and there behavior and as a result could all add something to the group discussion. It also allow those who may have had a better grasp of the Law to share that understanding with others and by doing so increase the understanding in them. I could not see any real disadvantages to this approach.
Although I did not use a computer, I could have allowed the students to go to the computer and use computer stimulations of Boyle's Law.
Finally, as with most things, determining when a certain approach would be most effective is the job of the teacher. As a professional, the main task should be preparing yourself to take advantage of whatever method based on the need and situation of the child.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Thoughts on Cognitivism
Cognitivism believes that knowledge is organized. By using various mental representations, human minds are capable of structuring knowledge and generating limitless further representations. For instance, here is a driver’s license “1B1684T”. What is the best way to remember it? One can repeat it continuously and probably will remember it. However, the most effective way is to use “association” skills to form a structure and store the structure in one's memory. One might say “Number 1 in Birmingham (1B). Then one might identify the relationships among numbers. 16 is 2x8. 8 is 2x4 (1684). “T” can refer to a “teacher” if it happens that one is a teacher. Now it is a lot easier for one to remember this driver’s license.
Cognitivism views learning as knowledge transmission. It is the teacher-centered approach. The teachers’ job is to facilitate the formation of cognitive structures in learners’ minds. The teacher uses various mental representations to facilitate knowledge transmission. These methods include "association", categorization", "comparison", "contrast" and etc. I need to emphasize that we do learn from good lectures, although we do not learn only from lectures. A successful classroom keeps a good balance between the teacher-centered approach and student-centered approach. I remember a physics teacher who always used daily examples to illustrate difficult concepts. In one class, he said: “You are thirty. The water in the cup is hot. What do you often do? You blow at it for a while before you drink it. It shows that temperature is related to flow of air.” Years later, I still remember his lectures.
The following postings are from group discussions in a previous class. The group conducted a discussion on various cognitive strategies to facilitate student learning of course materials. These postings are about a memory enhancing strategy – Mnemonics.
Posting #1
Mnemonic devices are an important Cognitivist tool. I still use mnemonic devices to remember information all the time. Can you think of an example of a mnemonic device for your content area? This might be something useful for the lesson plan for this unit.
Posting #2
Mnemonics is a great memory enhancing strategy that involves teaching students to link new information that is taught to information they already know. It doesn’t require a wealth of material and does not require extensive planning (Mastropieri & Scruggs, 1998). Even though students in early grades are not usually expected to learn and recall as many facts as older students, they are involved in a number of activities that involve making associations that could use mnemonic devices. One example I can think of is the link between letters to words; such as “a” stands for “apple” or “f” for “flower”. Another example is teaching students that the shape of the letter “s” looks like a snake, which also begins with that letter. I have also used mnemonics when teaching new vocabulary by having the students think of what the specific letter formation of parts of the new word remind them of. One example is- the word medicine has two letter “i”’s and those two “i”’s resemble two pills. Mnemonics helps me memorize important information needed for tests. I use this strategy frequently!
Posting #3
My content area is English. I only remember one really memorable mnemonic device. A professor in college did a demonstration to illustrate the definition of melodrama. It might be hard to describe in text, but I'll try. She folded up a piece of loose leaf paper, accordion style and pinched it in the middle (so it looked like a bow). Then she held it above her lips like a mustache and said in a deep voice, "YOU MUST PAY THE RENT!!!" Then she moved the paper bow to the top of her head and said in a high pitched voice, "But I can't pay the rent!" She went back and forth like this for a while. Obviously she looked like an idiot, but she did effectively demonstrate the term melodrama. Also, it was hilarious. The humor only made it easier for the students to learn! I have never forgotten that demonstration...or the definition of melodrama!
Posting #4
I experienced a terrific mnemonic device yesterday while observing a US Government teacher at Hoover High School. She is teaching her twelfth grade class the 27 amendments She went through many suggestions, but when she got to 18 and 21 this was her advice: In the US it is PROHIBITED for 18 year-olds to drink alcohol, therefore remember that the 18th amendment was the Prohibition amendment. Then when a person turns 21 the are allowed to drink alcohol so the ban has been repealed; therefore, the 21st amendment is the Repealing of the Prohibition amendment. I had never before heard it said like that, but I bet I will never forget it. Plus the way she presented it with fun and vigor, class movement, her movement, etc. Impressive! The whole class was mnemonics to remember, and not a student probably realized they were even learning!
Posting #5
Mnemonics are a great strategy for students to enhance their memory. I once did a lesson on the order of operations in math. I used the famous "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" to teach the order. Students were quick to learn the order and had no problems doing the math that I put before them. I also used a mnemonic device to teach the planets. "My Very Elderly Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" of course is the phrase in which most people use to remember the planets. I introduced this to the students and then challenged them to come up with their own phrase. The results really surprised me. Then when I quizzed them the next day, I asked the students to write the names of the planets in order and said I would give extra credit if they could write their original phrase. Again I was surprised, because every student remembered their phrase and the planets.
By viewing cognitive learning software listed in the course, you might notice that cognitive learning software encourages students to identify patterns and generate patterns. Students can also use the software to create their own pattern exercises. Graphic organizers are efficient concept mapping tools that make it easier for students to organize and structure information. Graphic organizers allow student to visually display relationships between information and thus create a mental representation to be stored in the mind.
Computer tutorials take cognitivist approaches. I have had a positive experience with a piece of tutorial software. I learned Lotus Spreadsheet from this piece of software. It was my first semester as a graduate student in the United States. I was feeling nervous and uncertain. I took a statistics course and needed to use the software in my class. By chance, I located a piece of software which tutored Lotus Spreadsheet. I started the tutoring at night. I liked the software. I felt very relaxed in this learning environment. There was nobody around me. I could concentrate on my learning. The computer tutor was tireless and patient. I could have it repeat the tutoring as many times as possible. Though patient, this tutor was sharp and strict. A “warning” beep would pull my wandering thoughts back onto the right track. By the time the class met again, I was quite ahead of the class in my skills in operating Lotus Spreadsheet.
Cognitivism is teacher-centered approach. All the learning activities are designed and controlled by the teacher. Students can be grouped together to do exercises, for example, to play a simulation game. However, they are mainly following the instructions given by the teacher or the software program in completing the task. There is very limited knowledge construction taking place. Cognitivism does not necessarily exclude group work. It depends on what students do in groups.
In conclusion, I think all the groups did well in the discussions on cognitivism. I hope these discussions help you design your cognitivist projects.
Cognitivism views learning as knowledge transmission. It is the teacher-centered approach. The teachers’ job is to facilitate the formation of cognitive structures in learners’ minds. The teacher uses various mental representations to facilitate knowledge transmission. These methods include "association", categorization", "comparison", "contrast" and etc. I need to emphasize that we do learn from good lectures, although we do not learn only from lectures. A successful classroom keeps a good balance between the teacher-centered approach and student-centered approach. I remember a physics teacher who always used daily examples to illustrate difficult concepts. In one class, he said: “You are thirty. The water in the cup is hot. What do you often do? You blow at it for a while before you drink it. It shows that temperature is related to flow of air.” Years later, I still remember his lectures.
The following postings are from group discussions in a previous class. The group conducted a discussion on various cognitive strategies to facilitate student learning of course materials. These postings are about a memory enhancing strategy – Mnemonics.
Posting #1
Mnemonic devices are an important Cognitivist tool. I still use mnemonic devices to remember information all the time. Can you think of an example of a mnemonic device for your content area? This might be something useful for the lesson plan for this unit.
Posting #2
Mnemonics is a great memory enhancing strategy that involves teaching students to link new information that is taught to information they already know. It doesn’t require a wealth of material and does not require extensive planning (Mastropieri & Scruggs, 1998). Even though students in early grades are not usually expected to learn and recall as many facts as older students, they are involved in a number of activities that involve making associations that could use mnemonic devices. One example I can think of is the link between letters to words; such as “a” stands for “apple” or “f” for “flower”. Another example is teaching students that the shape of the letter “s” looks like a snake, which also begins with that letter. I have also used mnemonics when teaching new vocabulary by having the students think of what the specific letter formation of parts of the new word remind them of. One example is- the word medicine has two letter “i”’s and those two “i”’s resemble two pills. Mnemonics helps me memorize important information needed for tests. I use this strategy frequently!
Posting #3
My content area is English. I only remember one really memorable mnemonic device. A professor in college did a demonstration to illustrate the definition of melodrama. It might be hard to describe in text, but I'll try. She folded up a piece of loose leaf paper, accordion style and pinched it in the middle (so it looked like a bow). Then she held it above her lips like a mustache and said in a deep voice, "YOU MUST PAY THE RENT!!!" Then she moved the paper bow to the top of her head and said in a high pitched voice, "But I can't pay the rent!" She went back and forth like this for a while. Obviously she looked like an idiot, but she did effectively demonstrate the term melodrama. Also, it was hilarious. The humor only made it easier for the students to learn! I have never forgotten that demonstration...or the definition of melodrama!
Posting #4
I experienced a terrific mnemonic device yesterday while observing a US Government teacher at Hoover High School. She is teaching her twelfth grade class the 27 amendments She went through many suggestions, but when she got to 18 and 21 this was her advice: In the US it is PROHIBITED for 18 year-olds to drink alcohol, therefore remember that the 18th amendment was the Prohibition amendment. Then when a person turns 21 the are allowed to drink alcohol so the ban has been repealed; therefore, the 21st amendment is the Repealing of the Prohibition amendment. I had never before heard it said like that, but I bet I will never forget it. Plus the way she presented it with fun and vigor, class movement, her movement, etc. Impressive! The whole class was mnemonics to remember, and not a student probably realized they were even learning!
Posting #5
Mnemonics are a great strategy for students to enhance their memory. I once did a lesson on the order of operations in math. I used the famous "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" to teach the order. Students were quick to learn the order and had no problems doing the math that I put before them. I also used a mnemonic device to teach the planets. "My Very Elderly Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" of course is the phrase in which most people use to remember the planets. I introduced this to the students and then challenged them to come up with their own phrase. The results really surprised me. Then when I quizzed them the next day, I asked the students to write the names of the planets in order and said I would give extra credit if they could write their original phrase. Again I was surprised, because every student remembered their phrase and the planets.
By viewing cognitive learning software listed in the course, you might notice that cognitive learning software encourages students to identify patterns and generate patterns. Students can also use the software to create their own pattern exercises. Graphic organizers are efficient concept mapping tools that make it easier for students to organize and structure information. Graphic organizers allow student to visually display relationships between information and thus create a mental representation to be stored in the mind.
Computer tutorials take cognitivist approaches. I have had a positive experience with a piece of tutorial software. I learned Lotus Spreadsheet from this piece of software. It was my first semester as a graduate student in the United States. I was feeling nervous and uncertain. I took a statistics course and needed to use the software in my class. By chance, I located a piece of software which tutored Lotus Spreadsheet. I started the tutoring at night. I liked the software. I felt very relaxed in this learning environment. There was nobody around me. I could concentrate on my learning. The computer tutor was tireless and patient. I could have it repeat the tutoring as many times as possible. Though patient, this tutor was sharp and strict. A “warning” beep would pull my wandering thoughts back onto the right track. By the time the class met again, I was quite ahead of the class in my skills in operating Lotus Spreadsheet.
Cognitivism is teacher-centered approach. All the learning activities are designed and controlled by the teacher. Students can be grouped together to do exercises, for example, to play a simulation game. However, they are mainly following the instructions given by the teacher or the software program in completing the task. There is very limited knowledge construction taking place. Cognitivism does not necessarily exclude group work. It depends on what students do in groups.
In conclusion, I think all the groups did well in the discussions on cognitivism. I hope these discussions help you design your cognitivist projects.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Thoughts on Behaviorism
The discussion on behaviorism has closed. Both groups did wonderfully in the discussion. Both groups reached the consensus that behaviorism could be used in teaching and what skills could be taught by the behaviorist approach. More importantly, both groups deepened their understanding of the limitations of this approach.
Behaviorist learning objectives deal with the lowest level of knowledge: memorization. The assessment method is a test since it involves the right and wrong answer.
Below are some of my thoughts on behaviorism I would like to share with you.
The importance of drill and practice relates to the notion of automaticity. In order to perform complex intellectual tasks such as reading, writing, and solving math problems, it is essential that learners master subskills to the level of automaticity. It means that learners should be able to perform these subskills without thinking or automatically. If one writes, one needs to master spelling of vocabulary and sentence structures. To solve complicated math problems, one needs to master basic calculating skills and formulas. Once I talked to my friend who was studying for her Ph. D. in math. She told me that math did involve lots of memorization. Please do not misunderstand. Drill and practice is a component of learning, not everything about learning.
One’s working memory is limited in capacity. One can only process limited numbers of mental operations at a time. It affects the operation of higher order skills if too much memory is devoted to operating subskills. The mastery of subskills will free working memory so that more working memory can be devoted to operate higher order skills.
Comparing with paper drills, computer drills have the following advantages:
Computer drills are fun. It is boring to be drilled. No one likes to be drilled. Computer drills integrate games into drill and practice. While the learner is playing games, the learner is being drilled.
Computer drills provide immediate feedback. Time is always an issue to drill students in classroom settings. With too many students in class, the teacher finds it difficult to provide adequate time to drill each student. If students drill themselves, they might make mistakes without being corrected immediately. The mistake might perpetuate itself. Computer drills provide learners immediate feedback. Mistakes are corrected immediately.
Computer drills remove psychological barriers in student drilling process. If students are drilled in class, it is quite humiliating for students to make mistakes in front of the class. Computer drills can remove this psychological barrier. No one knows that the learner makes a mistake, but the computer.
Computers never get tired. Students can practice and repeat a skill as many times as possible.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
How to Achieve Success in the Online Course
This is my teaching blog for this course. I hope this blog can offer another communication channel to assist you in this course. This blog will be the forum for me to offer tips, strategies and guidance so that you can be successful in this course.
It is normal for students to experience a certain level of anxiety in taking an online course, especially if it is the first online course you are taking. However, you will gain experiences navigating and functioning in the online learning environment as the course moves along. Here are a few suggestions for you. Hopefully, you find them useful.
1. Lots of students think that the online course takes less time and efforts. It is a misconception. Contrarily, you need to spend more time and efforts in the online course. The online course is text-based. We write a lot slower than we talk. For example, it takes more time and efforts to participate in class discussions online than in face-to-face discussions. However, the pay-off is the flexibility of time and place. You do not need to travel to the campus for most class sessions and you can choose the most convenient time for your learning.
2. Ideally, you should log in every other day to keep yourself well informed of all the development in the course. When a mail is sent through the blackboard, it does not go to your Internet mailbox, it remains in the blackboard vista. Therefore, you do need to check your mail from time to time so that you do not miss any information. You do not need to stay on line for two hours and a half at one time. You can space your time between log-ins.
3. Come to face-to-face meetings. Bring all of your concerns and problems to face-to-face meetings. Face-to-face meetings are helpful in clarifying student confusions. You’ll learn new technology skills that you’ll need to complete your assignments. You will also have opportunity to meet your group members face-to-face to discuss group projects.
4. Read, read, and read carefully. The online course is text-based. Therefore, you need to spend time reading all the instructions carefully. Pay attention to the deadlines for the assignments and class discussions. Points would be deducted for late assignments. Worse, once a discussion closes, no one is allowed to post any more. Read carefully about the instructions for each assignment and discussion. Follow instructions. All the assignments are posted online for the whole semester, which should help you to plan your time and work throughout the course.
6. This is a discussion-based course. All the assignments are based on class discussions. Without participating in class discussions, you will not be able to do your assignments. We also have group projects. Your discussion performance is seriously evaluated. Follow discussion rules. Rules are posted for each discussion activity.
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