What I found interesting, and not something, I ever sat down to think about, is the advancement of learning processes throughout the centuries. Aristotle (384 – 322 B.C.) introduced Empiricism as the primary source of knowledge. Plato (c. 427 – 347) then introduced Rationalism. John Watson instigated the behaviorist movement circa 1913 (McLeod, 2016). By the mid-1950s, cognitive psychology became the leading learning theory (McLeod, 2015). The list goes on and each one of the _isms is born from currently available knowledge at the time. In other words, knowledge builds upon previous knowledge and continuously generates new theories.
Another interesting point. I have always considered the Internet as a source of information for my own personal use; however, I have never considered it as a fount of knowledge to incorporate into designed lesson plans. This course opened my eyes in that regard. My use of the program MindJet Mind Manager is a tool that I used for the creation of my last discussion assignment. My intent was to use a different format for completing my assignment. I did it because I grew tired of reading so much text, and if I grew tired, I was sure others also were tired. After all, this is something I learned in this class, to take advantage of the Web 2.0 tools available on the internet and to use the tools in helping to promote other students’ motivation and interest that can benefit their learning.
Additionally, in the research done in week four, I obtained great information about using Facebook as a web 2.0 tool for learning. Facebook provides a great learning environment because of the ability to promote collaboration with others using web 2.0 tools and not creating independent individuals. As much as I am against using Facebook, the week four assignment open my mind to the many possibilities and benefits derived from using such a tool. One example, assign two or more students to analyze a poem. Once they share and discuss each of their own interpretation, they can write their reports. If there was any convincing done, the reports should be similar. If not, then they will be different. A lot can be learned from the results of the reports turned in.
Learning about the different theories helps me to put into perspective the different learning styles that a pupil uses. Recognizing the styles will then help me to adjust the students’ lesson plans so that I can maintain the student motivated and focused. Additionally, I truly believe that the use of educational technology can provide benefits in many ways. I mostly speak through experience with the math program that I created and presented in the assignment for week six and included in my blog. Using technology, we can touch upon more senses in the brain. Howard Garder, 2003, posits that we as human beings have “a set of relatively autonomous intelligences”. According to Garder, these autonomous “intelligences” are seven primary forms of intelligence. These are linguistic, musical, logical-mathematical, spatial, body-kinesthetic, intrapersonal, and interpersonal (Garder, 2003).
References
Brambilla, M. (1993). Demolition Man. USA: Warner Bros.
Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (1993). Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism: Comparing Critical Features from an Instructional Design Perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 6(4), 50-72. doi: 10.1111/j.1937-8327.1993.tb00605.x
Gardner. H. (2003. April 21). Multiple intelligences after 20 years. Paper presented to the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL. Retrieved from http://ocw.metu.edu.tr/pluginfile.php/9274/mod_resource/content/1/Gardner_multiple
Glenn, D. (2009. December 15). Matching Teaching Style to Learning Style May Not Help Students. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/Matching-Teaching-Style-to/49497/
Instructional Design.org. (n.d). Howard Gardner and Multiple Intelligences: http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/multiple-intelligences.html
Marian, V., & Shook, A. (2012). The Cognitive Benefits of Being Bilingual. Cerebrum: The Dana Forum on Brain Science, 2012, 13.McDonald, I. (2014). Update: Speaking multiple languages benefits brain health. Alzheimer’s Australia Dementia Research Foundation. Retrieved May 17, 2017 from https://www.dementiaresearchfoundation.org.au/blog/update-speaking-multiple-languages-benefits-brain-health
McLeod, S. (2015). Cognitive Psychology. Retrieved May 24, 2017 from https://www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive.html
McLeod, S. (2016). Behaviorist Approach. Retrieved May 24, 2017 from https://www.simplypsychology.org/behaviorism.html