Song’s Educational Journey

Month: May 2020

Post 2 – Cooperative Learning

May 27, 2020 / / 7 Comments

Cooperative learning is an education approach which divides students into small groups and lets them work together and learn from each other. It requires every member in each group being interdependent, making contributions and taking responsibility. In the cooperative learning process, educators are not directly teaching; instead they are observing students and making adjustments when they see the learners make “off-topic behaviors” (laughter, loud noise, etc.) (Zook, 2018).

Cooperative learning is effective when students have already focused on the materials, so this approach is not a good choice to begin the class with. It is better for the educator to use cooperative learning techniques during the middle of the class, especially when students are starting to show signs of distracted behaviors. The formats of cooperative learning are various, such as debate, discussion, and project (Zook, 2018).

For me, I think cooperative learning can be applied in our group’s topic – Artificial Intelligence (AI). Cooperative learning is a good application of the constructivism learning theory, because it allows students to listen and learn from other members’ perspectives and helps students gain deeper understanding of the topic (West, 2018). In our blueprint, the learning outcome 4, “evaluate from different views”, requires students to learn from each other in order to see both positive and negative views towards AI. Then, students can come up with their own thoughts and feelings whether or not to support the introduction of AI and give reasons/evidences to support their opinions. The targeted learners for our lesson plan would be middle school students. Research shows that having cooperative learning in middle school can improve students’ academic performance, motivation (Johnson, Johnson, Roseth & Shin, 2014) and a positive social relationship (Van, & Roseth, 2018). So, I think cooperative learning should be considered as a strategy for teaching in our topic.

 

 

Reference

Johnson D. W., Johnson R. T., Roseth C. J., Shin T. S. (2014). The relationship between motivation and achievement in interdependent situations. Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 2014;44:622–633. doi: 10.1111/jasp.12280.

Van Ryzin, M. J., & Roseth, C. J. (2018). Cooperative Learning in Middle School: A Means to Improve Peer Relations and Reduce Victimization, Bullying, and Related Outcomes. Journal of educational psychology, 110(8), 1192–1201. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000265

West, R. E. (2018). Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology: The Past, Present, and Future of Learning and Instructional Design Technology (1st ed.). EdTech Books. Retrieved from https://edtechbooks.org/lidtfoundations

Zook, C (2018, October 18) What Is Cooperative Learning and How Does It Work? [blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.aeseducation.com/blog/what-is-cooperative-learning-and-how-does-it-work

3 learning theories

May 17, 2020 / / 4 Comments

Application exercise: How would the instruction be designed differently by a behaviorist, a cognitivist, and a constructivist? Scenario: A high school social study teacher is planning a class on the Vietnam War.

In Chapter 11, Peggy and Timothy discussed three learning theories – behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. In behaviorism theory of learning, the focuses are on arranging stimulus and consequence in the environment, targeting towards the knowing of what. This theory requires a low degree of processing. The purpose of the instruction designed by behaviorists is creating an environment to form and reinforce good responses/behaviors. In this scenario, the teacher tries to provide a learning environment to help students shape good learning habits and support them to learn the basic event. In order to let students preview the content, a teacher using behaviorism can say “I will ask some basic questions about the topic – Vietnam War in the first a few minutes and randomly ask some students to answer.” And teacher provide some feedback on students’ answers. Students can learn to do some pre-class reading and the teacher will continue asking questions before class. The teacher can present class material in PowerPoint format and play a few minutes of documentary about the Vietnam War, when students start to get tired of the standard lecture format. These techniques will stimulate visual and auditory senses and help students to learn.

Cognitivism theory of learning focusses on encouraging students to actively participate in the learning and to guide them to process information effectively. This theory targets at the knowing of how and requires an increased level of processing. The purpose of instructional design is creating the learning environment, making connections with the learners’ previous studies, and helping them find effective organizing strategies. In this scenario, the teacher focuses on letting students learn how events relate to each other and how to effectively process what they have learned into memory. The cognitive teacher can use an outline presenting how the War began, what is going on in this War and how the War ended. Besides the teacher can introduce a map of the important historical events that took place in the Vietnam War, which can help students to gain a better understanding of the relation among different events. In addition, the teacher can ask students to compare the Korean War against the Vietnamese war (if they have already learned about the Korean War) to make connection with their previous experience.

Constructivism theory of learning focuses on creating personal meanings/interpretations from their experience. A constructivist instructor encourages students to learn and practice in the context. Constructivism theory targets reflection and how to develop new techniques. It requires a high level of processing. The purpose of instructional design is assisting learners to create, access and update their meanings, and helping learners practice in real and related environments. In this scenario, the instructor tries to let students find their own meanings, introduces different perspectives and guides them so they can think beyond the information. An instructor using constructivism theory can provide different perspectives, from the side of South Vietnam, North Vietnam, US, China and the Soviet Union, and how people in those countries think about this war. Besides that, the teacher can conduct group discussions about the topic “as a Canadian in 1960s – 1970s, what do you think the government of Canada should do”? This question allows students to share their thoughts and learn from others through their responses.

Introduction

May 13, 2020 / / 2 Comments

Introduction

My name is Song. I am a fourth year student major in psychology and minor in education. I am also an international student from China. I am interested in both of eastern and western culture, and I am look forward to learning from each other.

Both of my parents are teachers, and I also have some tutoring experience, which makes me aware how important education is. I have studied psychology for 4 years, and I saw a lot of students suffering from mental health issues. I really want to be a education counselor in the future, so I can help students get some emotional relief and find their own way to solve their life problems.

I love nature. I feel relaxed near the beach and forest. I always go for a walk when I feel sad and stressed. And walking helps me feel better and get a clearer mind. In addition, I am a big fan of swinging. When I am swinging, I feel like flying, and I forget everything and just stay in that moment.

Hope all of us have fun in this course and stay safe!

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