Download Assignment 5 Outline - Kevin Broun`s e-Portfolio

Running Head: DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
Assignment 5
Kevin Broun
Anetta Leon
Obed Nartey
ETEC 510
California State University, Long Beach
1
DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
2
Introduction
Since the early twentieth century psychologists have developed many theories of how
human beings learn. These theories are expressed in the many schools of educational
psychology, with behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism being the major three. Each
theory is rooted in psychological history and research yet contains strikingly different
perspective of the human mind. Behaviorists focus on observable behavior that is learned
through external forces, cognitivists focus on inner mental processes, and constructivists focus
on creating a mental framework. Each of the theories offers unique insight into the human mind
and has important implications for educators.
Behaviorism
Behaviorism focuses on observable human behavior and how human behavior is shaped.
Everything we think and do comprises our behavior, and behavior can be shaped through various
learning processes. Examples of learning processes that shape behavior include classical and
operant conditioning, made famous by Ivan Pavlov and B.F. Skinner. (Psychology and You,
2000.) Reinforcement theory, or the idea of rewards and punishments also falls under the
category of behaviorism. Under the behaviorist approach to education, the learner is passive and
simply responds to environmental stimuli. In other words, the learner is molded by the
information and feedback he or she received from his or her environment. Modeling (as studied
by Albert Bandura) is also a significant component of behaviorism—when someone sees a
behavior modeled, he or she is likely to repeat the same behavior. (Psychology and You, 2000.)
The learner is essentially passive under the behaviorist theory, and the idea that learners begin as
“blank slates” (John Locke’s idea of the “tabula rasa” ) is central to this theory. (Behaviorism,
2008.)
Web sites that would accommodate behaviorist theory are ones that feature a
reinforcement component. For example, on Beachbaord (www.csulb.blackboard.com), students
can turn in assignments and then see their grades posted online in addition to receiving feedback
via a discussion board. Feedback from peers on a discussion board may prove more valuable to
students than input from instructors, although instructors can also provide feedback in a forum
such as Beachboard. Web sites that use models to show the learner how to perform a task would
also work with the behaviorist theory so that the learner can simply repeat what they have seen
demonstrated or modeled. In an educational setting, this might be helpful to show instructional
DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
3
videos that model instructional strategies for teachers (especially in the areas of dealing with
student behavior) or to instruct students in myriad hands-on topics. A variety of demonstration
videos can be found on YouTube (www.youtube.com) as well as TeacherTube
(www.teachertube.com). On these sites, the learner can watch a video demonstration of
practically anything and can then follow the model. These video-based web sites provide an
alternative to the traditional format of a teacher demonstrating something for a student, and a
variety of informative as well as engaging videos are available.
Additionally, an educational web site featuring an online interactive quiz would fall
under the behaviorist approach to education. An ESL web site (http://a4esl.org/q/j/kf/mcsvae.html) features online English grammar quizzes with immediate feedback for the quiz taker.
This web site provides immediate evaluation by giving students immediate feedback on their
multiple choice questions. Also, the running score and percentage correct are tallied as students
complete each question, making student immediately aware of their proficiency. Teachers could
use this web site as a way to quiz or test students, using the data from the web site as part of
students’ grades. Transfer of learning occurs when students use feedback from one to improve
their learning in another subject. For example, a student receiving English grammar feedback
from the ESL web site can use these new grammar skills when writing an essay for his history
class.
Cognitivism
The cognitive theory of learning explains that we learn through our mind’s processing of
information. The human brain processes information through internal mental states, connections,
and processes. All of this brain function can be described or measured using algorithms.
(Cognitivism, 2008.) With the cognitive theory of learning, the focus is on inner mental
activities. The learner is viewed as a computer that processes information.
Any informational web site (e.g. Wikipedia) would work with the cognitive theory as this
theory is about receiving information. On any encyclopedia web site, the learner has the
opportunity only to take in information and then the brain processes the information. This is
similar to having a teacher lecture (perhaps while using Power Point) in the classroom while the
student receives the information. A research project and the research process is the perfect
example of the cognitive theory because when a student is engaged in researched he or she must
locate information, read the information, sort the information, discard information that is not
DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
4
useful, and synthesize the useful information into a research paper. A research database like
EbscoHost or the eref section of the CSULB Library web site (http://csulb.edu/library/eref/) are
examples of online databases that would help a learner with the research process.
According to the cognitive theory, instruction should be structured in such a way as to
provide students with as much information as possible. The use of computers, technology, and
the Internet has dramatically increased the amount of information available to anyone and has
also increased the speed at which the information can be received. Teachers should not only
provide information for students but should teach students how to access information for
themselves. Feedback should be given to students in the form of grades on tests and assessments
to let students know which information was memorizes or mastered and which information was
not. Additionally, teachers should assess the amount of information students have absorbed
through standard objective tests. Transfer of learning would occur when students start to see an
overlap and connections between material from various sources. For example, a student may
study World War I in a World History class while reading All Quiet on the Western Front in an
English class; combining and sorting this information from both courses would help students
improve their grades in both courses.
Constructivism
The constructivist theory of learning holds that learning is an active, constructive process
where the learner takes in information and then constructs his or her own mental framework.
The learner actively creates his or her own subjective representations of objective reality using
the information that is taken in from a variety of sources. (Constructivism, 2008.) Learning
under the constructivist theory is more about the process of constructing knowledge and less
about the acquisition of knowledge. The learner is not a blank slate but brings all background
experiences and knowledge to the table. (Constructivism, 2008.) Instead of relying solely on
others to spoon feed them material, students formulate and test their ideas, draw conclusions and
make inferences. In a collaborative learning environment, students can apply the constructivist
theory by becoming active participants in the learning process.
Software or web sites that help the learner to experience the process of learning would be
beneficial tools for the constructivist theory because project- and inquiry-based learning are
essential to the constructivist theory. A web site containing examples of constructivist
approaches to teaching high school is the Buck Institute for Project-Based learning web site
DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
5
(http://www.bie.org/index.php/site/PBL/overview_pbl/). This web site contains video clips,
lesson templates, and project ideas for teachers to incorporate project-based learning into the
classroom. Finally, a web site focusing on inquiry-based education, such as WebQuest
(www.webquest.org) could be a useful tool for constructivists.
Also, any software that actively allows students to do the task they’ve been asked to do
would fall under the constructivist theory. For example, Power Point, Word, Photoshop, Adobe
Illustrator, Flash, or any software where the user manipulates and synthesizes information to
create something would work with the constructivist theory. Teachers could assess not only the
finished product of the students but could also evaluate the creative process used to create the
desired outcome. For example, in a Computer Animation class students would be assessed on
their technical abilities with the Flash software but also evaluated on the creative aspects of their
finished animation product. Feedback should be provided to students early and often in the
creative process so that they can correct any errors and continue with their project. Feedback
from peers could also be a valuable part of the constructivist learning process as students could
critique and help each other with their projects. Transfer of learning would occur as students
synthesize the information from a variety of subjects and put it to use in their finished product.
For example, the same student completing a Flash animation could create an animation about the
French Revolution, thereby using information from his World History course.
DESIGN OF INSTRUCTION—THEORY TO PRACTICE
References
Behaviorism (2008). Learning Theories web site. Retrieved from http://www.learningtheories.com/behaviorism.html.
Cognitivism (2008). Learning Theories web site. Retrieved from http://www.learningtheories.com/cognitivism.html.
Constructivism (2008). Learning Theories web site. Retrieved from http://www.learningtheories.com/constructivism.html.
McMahon, Judith and Tony Romano. Psychology and You, 3d ed. National Textbook
Company: Lincolnwood, Illinois, 2000.
6