FINAL BLOG

PERSONAL LEARNING THEORY
What? My personal learning theory is a combination of all the learning theories we learned about in class. I feel that each one is a necessary component to the learning process. Cognitivists state that learning occurs through memory, reasoning, creating schemas, etc. I agree with the idea that our memory is an important part of learning. In order for meaningful learning to occur we must encode the new information into our long term memory by connecting it with our prior knowledge. I feel that when students can relate what they learn to what they already know, they will be able to recall it better. One other way to recall information efficiently is to create schemas (or categories/concepts) for the information to be filed in storage. When students take information and are able tie that information to a central idea and tie those central ideas together to form a concept, they are able to see how everything fits together, at that point the information becomes relevant.
Chapter 7 discusses the views of constructivists. I agree with the idea that students construct meaning based on their experiences. Students must be allowed to categorize what they learn in order for them to fully understand it. One problem that arises in allowing students to construct their own concepts and meanings, is the likelihood that misconceptions will occur. Often times misconceptions will be overlooked and the student will not get the right idea or simply not understand what is being taught. I disagree with constructivists about the effect of misconceptions. I personally feel that if a student goes into an assignment with a misconception and discovers they are wrong, they will learn more than a student without any prior misconceptions. Using misconceptions to your advantage as a teacher will strengthen your explanation when used correctly.
Behaviorists view learning through the relationships of stimulus and responses. They believe when you learn something you will change a behavior. I feel that this is true, when students learn about recycling they will stop throwing away items that can be recycled. If the students continue to not recycle, then they really do not fully understand what they have been taught. I do not think that classical conditioning should be used to teach behavior to students. I view it as an unethical practice, it does not explain or justify why you should behave a certain way. I am in support of using operant conditioning in the classroom. I like the idea of using positive and negative reinforcers with students. I believe this helps students to decide what is acceptable and what is not without using punishment. I also plan to set up a token economy for my students. I feel this can be a powerful way to motivate students. Cueing is also an important part of behaviorism. I plan to use this in my class daily because it is very subtle and effective.
The social cognitivist theory is discussed in chapter 10 of our book, this addresses how people learn by observing others. I agree with this idea mainly because this was how I learned as a child. I would watch someone get in trouble for something and then I would not participate because I did not like the consequence others had received. This is an example of vicarious learning, which can be very effective for socially observant students. Modeling is also a very effective way to teach. In order for modeling to work students must be able to: pay attention, perform, be motivated, remember it. Self-regulation is also important to a successful classroom. Students should evaluate their goals and classroom work on a regular basis.
So What? In my classroom I plan to encourage learning by using my learning theory which is a combination of cognitivism, behaviorism, constructism, and social cognitivism. To ensure my students are learning I will have my students make connections with the new information they are learning. I can do this by asking 3 basic questions: does this remind you of other texts, do you have any personal stories about this, and how does this effect the world. I will also encourage my students to create schemas by using advanced organizers that visually allow the students to see connections. Creating class webs is a great way to help students sort information into concepts.
To encourage constructivism I will use hands on activites that allow students to explore the concept we are learning. I will allow my students to use manipulative's in math and other subjects to increase understanding. I will also use webquests to encourage discovery learning. I will scaffold my students by giving them little structure so that they head in the right direction. I also plan to use the inquiry model lesson plan, set up so that students come up with definitions and characteristics. Using constructivist ideals in the classroom will encourage higher level thinking.
Learning through behaviorism is also important to a successful classroom. I plan to cue students who are behaving inappropriately in the classrooom. I also really like the idea of reinforcing incompatible behaviors. For example, if a student is coming in late from recess everyday you can assign that student to be the official line leader and praise him/her for doing so. I also think it is important to explain to students why certain behaviors are appropriate or inappropriate. When punishment can not be avoided, I will make every effort as a teacher to choose a punishment that is mild and relates to the behavior. Overall, I want to have a very positive environment in my classroom, reinforcing students for the work and behaviors they exhibit.
I plan to use the social cognitivists view of learning by modeling effectively in my classroom. I will make sure to be competent in all subject areas that I am teaching. I will make the behavior relevant to the learner's life. I also want to model gender appropriate behaviors and bring in professionals to do so as well. I also plan to use flexible learning strategies to promote self-regulation. I also will have my students set goals each term and evalute them at the beginning, middle, and end of that term.
Now What? I took the assigned quiz before I started this final blog. Each of my scores were very close. Behaviorism- 46 points, Humanism- 45 points, and Cognitivism- 44 points. I feel that all of the learning theories play an important role in a student's development. Each theory is reflected in certain areas or aspects of the classroom.
Some things that I would like to learn more about are individual differences. New research is being done daily with individuals to help us better understand their needs. I want to be an accommodating teacher, and to do so I must understand different disorders and disabilities. In order to do this I plan to collaborate with special education teachers. They will be able to help me come up with accommodations as well as to better understand the students IEP.
I also want to learn more about teaching moral reasoning. Learning moral reasoning is vital to a student's social skills. One way I plan to do this are to find books with good moral values and use them to teach literature as well as moral reasoning. I want to let the students stumble onto the idea of moral values.
After discussing Authentic activities in class I decided this is one area I need to work on. I think I do not use these as often because it takes a lot of effort to plan. One way I could lessen time is to find lessons on UEN or share authentic activities with other teachers in my school. I really think that authentic activities require higher level thinking and that is definitely something I want used in my classroom.
During the semester I have learned so much in Educational Psychology. This class has helped me shape my personal theories and ideals. It has also required me to think outside the box. I have learned many things that will be valuable to me as a teacher. I now better understand the brain and human development. I am excited to get a job teaching and use all the things I learned from this class to educate my future students!