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How Do Students Learn?
EDU 553 – Principles of
Instructional Design
Dr. Steve Broskoske
What Can We Learn from
Brain Research?
What Is Learning?
• What actually is learning?
• How do people learn?
What Is Learning?
• Learning is not a thing (noun); it
is a process (of storage and
retrieval).
• Neurons are billions of cells that
encode, store, and retrieve
information.
• Neurons form networks of
connected information.
• Learning involves making
connections between neurons.
• “Neurons that fire together, wire
together.”
Example of How Our Brain Works
(Proof of Neural Network)
• Sally took her birthday money and went to
buy something from the ice cream truck.
– Now, tell me more…
Info
Info
Info
Info
Info
Info
Example of How Our Brain Works
(Proof of Neural Network)
Example of How Our Brain Works
(Proof of Neural Network)
• The way that information was stored
(neural pathway), is the way that
information will be retrieved.
– Example: How did you store the alphabet?
Example of How Our Brain Works
Cna yuo raed tihs? The phaonmneal pweor
of the hmuan mind! Aoccdrnig to rscheearch
at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in
waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are. The
olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat
ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a
taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a
pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid
deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the
wrod as a wlohe.
What Is Learning?
• Memory is not static (like storage in a
computer).
• The brain is dynamic. It constantly
arranges and rearranges its networks to
accommodate incoming information.
vs.
What Is Learning?
• The brain is constantly
bombarded with all
kinds of sensory data.
• If we paid conscious
attention to all these
data, we would be on
continuous overload
and unable to process
any of the information.
What Is Learning?
• The brain filters out
any information that it
finds not useful, not
important, or irrelevant.
This material does not
get encoded nor is it
stored.
The brain does not store everything it has
experienced, as was once thought.
What Is Learning?
• Unfortunately, much of the information
taught in schools fits into this category.
The brain does not see fit to store or retain
dates of events, definitions of terms it does
not understand, or any other data it deems
irrelevant.
What Is Learning?
Fits info. into
schema.
Learning has
taken place.
New
Stimulus
Brain searches
existing networks to
find a place where
new information fits.
Irrelevant,
not useful,
unimportant,
nonsensical
data gets
discarded.
The Magical Number
• The Magical Number Seven, Plus or
Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity
for Processing Information (Miller, 1956).
• Memory span of young adults was found
to be 7 ± 2 elements (chunks) regardless
of whether the elements were digits,
letters, words, or other units.
The Magical Number
Learners chunk material into understandable units.
Demonstrating the
Magical Number
• How do you remember your phone
number?
– (570) 674-6761
• How did you learn the alphabet?
• Can you retell a story (a movie or a book)?
What Can We Take from Brain
Research into the Classroom?
•
•
•
•
Learner attention is critical.
Involve students actively in learning.
Don’t cognitively overload learners.
2 powerful features in teacher’s control:
1. Meaning.
2. Emotion.
• Eliminate negative aspects.
• Accentuate positive aspects.
1. Importance of Attention
• Attention is the first step in the learning
process. If the brain ignores information, it
is not encoded or retained in memory.
• Brain is programmed to attend to loud
noises or sudden movements (survival
technique).
• Highly responsive to
novel stimuli and events.
Importance of Attention
Gain learner attention at the beginning of a
lesson, and as frequently as needed
throughout instruction.
Incorporate attention-getting devices
(sound and/or movement) in materials
such as PowerPoint.
2. Involve Students Actively in
Learning
Symbolization
Abstract
• Verbal Experiences
– Teacher talk, written words. Engages 1 sense.
• Visual Experiences
– Graphics, images, charts. Engages 1 sense.
• Vicarious Experiences
– PC or video programs. Engages several
senses. Learner indirectly doing.
• Simulated Experiences
– Role play, experiment, simulations, working
model. Engages nearly all senses.
• Direct Experiences
Concrete
Hands-on
Minds-on
– Learner actually does what is being learned.
Engages all senses.
Most effective and
long-lasting
learning. Engages
many senses.
Interdisciplinary.
Authentic
learning.
Active vs. Passive Learning
Active
• Students actively
construct knowledge by
listening carefully,
conversing, and
performing meaningful
tasks.
• Students are engaged
mentally, emotionally,
and sometimes
physically.
Passive
• Teacher-centered
instruction.
• Students sit at desks and
memorize, take notes,
recite, and drill as primary
instructional
methodology.
Employ this test: Are your students actively involved in the
thinking/learning process?
Active vs. Passive Learning
• Suggestions:
Allocate passive activities (reading, drill,
practice) to homework.
Use the classroom for active learning
experiences and group experiences.
Active vs. Passive Learning
• It is the student’s responsibility to actively
participate in learning (vs. being passive
“sponges.”)
• Not all learning will be fun and
entertaining, but it all should be
meaningful.
• Engage students by requiring them to
reconstruct the knowledge they acquire.
3. Don’t Cognitively
Overload Learners
Remember the Magical Number (7 ± 2
elements/chunks).
Help students chunk information:
• Use mnemonic devices.
• Do not provide more than the magical number
of elements and expect students to remember
it effectively.
4. Meaning
• Realize that learners are not information
absorbers. They are active participants in
learning (constructing knowledge).
• Learners create new neural pathways,
connecting new information to existing
knowledge.
• Therefore, new learning depends on
previous experience.
Meaning
 Start a lesson by helping learners recall previous
knowledge before delivering new information.
 Respect prior knowledge. Don’t assume
students understand something clearly.
• Brain is pattern-seeking. When it does not understand
something, it tries to figure it out.
 Example: Understanding sets.
 Work to connect new information with existing
knowledge.
Meaning
 Use metaphors and analogies.
• Helps learner bridge existing knowledge and new
information.
 Example: Electrical circuits are like flowing water.
 When there is little or no previous experiential
knowledge, use concrete experience.
 Projects and problem-solving help brain see context
into which discrete parts fit into. Brain does not “get”
meaning, it “makes” meaning.
 Examples: Problem-based learning, case studies, hands-on
learning.
5. Emotion
• Amygdala is a set of 2 almond-like
structures associated with the
reptilian brain (brain stem) that
regulate emotion.
• Releases adrenaline and triggers
fight or flight (the stress response).
• Emotion can influence memory.
– Try it:
• Where were you during the World Trade
Center Bombing?
• Recall an experience from Kindergarten (or
1st or 2nd grade).
Emotion
• Positive:
– Classroom activities that engage student
emotional and motivational interest lead to
more vivid memories.
• Negative:
– Stress can lead to “down-shifting” to the
reptilian brain, which makes the rational
problem-solving part of the brain less efficient.
Emotion
Eliminate negative: Foster an
environment where students feel safe.
• Brain does not distinguish between physical
and psychological danger.
Accentuate positive: Intensify students’
emotional state to enhance both meaning
and memory.
Examples: Simulations, role playing, real-life
problems, interviewing people who lived through
events.
Emotion
• Positive use of emotions:
– Create an aesthetically pleasing/positive
environment in which the learner feels
positive during instruction.
– Engage the learner’s emotions in learning to
enhance understanding and memory. Any
emotion (positive or negative) can accomplish
this end.
Effect of Positive Emotions on
Multimedia Learning
Improving an
Instructional Product
1. List several negative aspects of emotion that
can be eliminated from your training product.
2. List several elements that could help create an
aesthetically pleasing/positive environment for
learners.
3. Describe how you might incorporate emotion
into a lesson to increase understanding and
memory.
4. List several ways you might involve more active
participation from learners.
Review
• Steps in Instructional Design process.
– Analysis of Dick & Carey Model.
– Comparison of various ID models.
• How learning physiologically works.
• What can we learn from brain research?
–
–
–
–
Attention.
Magical number.
Meaning.
Emotion.
Next In-person Session
• Front end analysis:
– Needs assessment
– Audience analysis
– Task analysis