Social Learning in an Online Classroom

The term "social" simply means the interaction of people (or organisms in general), while a "social environment" is the interaction of people with culture taken into consideration; therefore based on those definitions an online class would be a considered a social environment. When learning is taken into consideration we can take about social constructivism which "emphasizes the importance of culture and context in understanding what occurs in society and constructing knowledge based on this understanding" (
Kim, 2001). Then, there is constructivism which "is a psychological and philosophical perspective contending that individuals form or construct much of what they learn and understand" (Ormond, Schunk, & Gredler p. 182). With all that said, and my explanations to follow I would say, yes, an online class can be social and construct knowledge if done so correctly.

Learning by constructivism requires a certain amount of prior knowledge and the willingness learn from others by actively participating, among other things. With that said, I think that a graduate or upper level undergraduate course can benefit more from online classroom (from a constructivist standpoint) more than say a basic or intermediate course. Each of us is able to bring to the course some ideals that are similar and others that are different from our prior knowledge of work and school, which make for good discussion. Throughout the readings I found that in order to learn constructively it requires a combination of fact and opinion. "...each of us has a uniquely constructed version of reality that we carry around with us in our day-to-day experience as human beings. Two people looking at something together never actually see the same thing in the same way" (Kim, 2001). So my answer to this week's discussion will probably not be just like someone else's, because we do not see it the same way.

For this degree program, I believe that the online environment is quite suitable. If this were a traditional class there may be more opportunity for spontaneous discussion, but I do not feel that takes anything away from the discussions that we have. However, I do not think online would be a suitable environment for a science class. I stated earlier that it takes certain criteria for this form of classroom to be successful. Prior knowledge is a large part of what allows this setting to be successful, because everyone should be on a similar playing field. An online setting is not the place for a teacher to start off doing most of the work and gradually turn it over to the student; instead it needs to be a collaborative effort. If it were a traditional classroom there may be more opportunity for someone to get help in order to get brought up to speed, but for an online course it is important to able to work in the ZPD and still be challenged.

When I teach I tend to use two of Vgotsky's ideas, scaffolding and reciprocal teaching. When I taught high school and now at the GED level, I use scaffolding to help my students. I teach math (and science) and feel this is a good way to make sure the students are getting the material on a step-by-step basis. I always tell my students, math more than any other subject requires you to master one concept before moving on to the next. I also like to use reciprocal teaching in combination with self-talk to walk students through mathematical steps, so that when they do it on their own they can walk through the same steps. Now these forms of the constructivist theory work well in a tradition classroom, but I do not feel that they would translate well into an online classroom because the student needs guidance to get the high-end of their ZPD.

 

 

Kim, B. (2001). Social Constructivism.. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved <Jan. 26, 2010>, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Ormrod, J., Schunk, D., & Gredler, M. (2009). Learning theories and instruction (Laureate custom edition). New York: Pearson.

Ormond, J. Video Program: Theory of Social Cognitive Development

Conversations about Learning

Just as learning is NOT automatic, neither is deciding what -ism should be used for any given person at any given time. My metacognition = my learning style and ability, and since each persons' learning style varies, so does ability (or should I say know-how) to think critically and problem solve. This is because, as it stated in Learning Theories and Instruction- "Collectively, metacognition activities reflect the strategic application of declarative, procedural, and conditional knowledge to tasks" (Ormond, Schunk, & Gredler p. 101).

I agree with Kerr, and premise of Kapp's blog about how "... each -ism is offering something useful without any of them being complete or stand alone in their own right." Each -ism has something to bring to the table, behaviorism and the importance of feedback or "reinforcement" and memorizing, cognitivism with the focus on critical thinking, and constructivism with its higher-order and collaborative thinking. Critical thinking would be difficult if a good base knowledge was not accomplished though behaviorism. In addition, I agree with Kerr and how he implies the -isms are somewhat hierarchical.

I would like to use an analogy to describe why there is not one best learning style. If I had a chocolate cake that I thought was the best I ever had, that does not mean that anyone has to agree with this. Some will agree with me, while others will disagree. Maybe someone has a chocolate cake they like better; maybe someone else does not like cake, or another like's carrot cake best. The same goes for learning theories. There are many theories out there, all good in their own right, but for different reasons. Best is a personal opinion, everyone's view on what is best in a given circumstance will vary. This is also one reason why they are going to continue evolve.

The different learning theories are important whether one is instructing or learning, but to me I do not think it is important to put so much effort into remembering exactly what each theory entails with the greatest of detail. Instead, I think it is essential to understand the how, what, and why of learning. I say this because much of what I have read so far is a bit of a review from my undergraduate education degree, and background as a whole. I had forgotten about exactly what each of the -isms entailed to the fullest, but that does not mean that I did use them by understanding the benefits of utilizing numerous instructional methods to reach all ability levels and learning styles. However, that is not say that reading about them again is not going to further my knowledge and remind me of things I have forgotten.

Resources:

Ormrod, J. E., Schunk, D. H., & Gredler, M. (2009). Learning Theories and Instruction. Pearson Education, Inc., New York. Chapters 4, Cognitive Learning Processes. Chapter 5, Applications of Instrumental Conditioning, pp 161 – 181.

Ormrod, D. J., (2009). Video program: Behaviorism and Instructional Design. http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=3865262&Survey=1&47=6426074&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

Blogs:
Bill Kerr: http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2007/01/isms-as-filter-not-blinker.html
Karl Kapp: http://karlkapp.blogspot.com/2007/01/out-and-about-discussion-on-educational.html

Week 2: Evaluating Resources

Resource 1:

I used the Walden Library Database and searched using Education Research Complete Database. I searched using the keywords "brain and learning" in SU Subject Terms. I then sorted by relevancy and found an article "Key Aspects of How the Brain Learns" about cognitive neuroscience, namely the neocortex, and adult learning. This article not only related to this week's reading assignment, but also has some relevance to last week's reading of learning theory. It is a short read; I recommend you check it out.

http://library.waldenu.edu/JournalArticles_ResearchDatabases.htm

Zull, J. (2006). Key aspects of how the brain learns. New Directions for Adult & Continuing Education, (110), 3-9. doi:10.1002/ace.213.

 

Resource 2:

I used Yahoo for my next search and used the same keywords "brain and learning" to see what kind of results it would generate. As expected, not as good as the library database. I read through a few and the one I chose was on brain-based learning from The Encyclopedia of Instructional Technology. It does not go into detail, but gives a nice, simple overview. I did this statement "In the near future we may be called upon to be professional learning designers rather than instructional designers." I thought it paired well with the discussion topics for this week.

http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/articles/brainbased/index.htm

Week 2 Application- Classmate Critique

I subscribed to quite a few of blogs that my cohorts shared, but one that I found quite useful was http://www.langevin.com/blog/. It contains a wide variety of information in addition to being a blog. Since Langevin is a company that trains trainers I found it gave a "360" view, if you will, of what happens from all directions.

Denise mentioned the blog "The Why, What, Who, What, and How of Instructional Design" both in her assignment last week and as a comment for my discussion this week. I read it, and also found it to be a great outline that explained the planning process simplistically while still being informative. This is a concept that I currently use to some degree, but I plan to remember this strategy now as a facilitator and in the future as an Instructional Designer. However, s a GED facilitator I must ask my use that outline in a slightly different manner because much that process in inherent in the program itself.

Why- I, and my colleague are teaching as a part of a non-profit to help a community in need. This part is inherent.

What- What is happening within the program now and how is going to change over time? This can come from both internal and external factors.

Who- The participants are low-income individuals without a high school diploma. Their needs must be addressed and taken into consideration.

What- What level are they entering in at? What can I (we) do to help them learn at their greatest potential? They are all learning the same material; the difference is based on what level they enter at.

How- How can this class be most effective and most efficient? How can we make sure they stay in the program and achieve their goal(s)?

I read more from this site including "My Most Difficult Learner." While reading this I noticed, Jose the Trainer, used this process as he dealt with a difficult situation with to attendees at a particular session. This outline of why, what, who, what, and how has many applications for many situations, it just needs to be tweaked based on what the situation is and the individuals involved.

One thing that I do not agree with completely is that by following this process your learners will learn how to do their jobs better every time. Although it is a good outline, it is not the end-all-be-all, because there are always exceptions to the rule. In addition, I see this as a process that can be done out of order and even have to be done over again, if the situation is not analyzed properly the first time around.

Jennifer

 

Week 1 Assignment

Being a first time blogger, it took some getting used to but I think I have got the hang of it. I chose blogger.com to create my account and registered with Google Reader. I may also create an account with wordpress, because I found it contained some useful information on a variety of topics.

I browsed the Instructional Design blogs in Week 1 Resources and chose http://ideas.blogs.com/ and http://en.wordpress.com/tag/instructional-design/ because they seemed the most useful and user friendly. I then searched and found a useful website, www.instructionaldesign.org.

http://ideas.blogs.com/ included information about reflections and insights on instructional design and e-learning. It provides links to other similar sites and blogs. One thing I liked is how there were separate categories for easy access to topics on technology, development, and design.

When I searched for useful website on Instructional Design and E-Learning I bookmarked a few, but found www.instructionaldesign.org to be most informative on the principles and how they relate to the field of instructional design. It includes topics such as, Online Learning, Instructional Technology, Teaching and Learning, and Web Hosting. In addition, it has information on notable instructional designers and the approach they take. There is also information on ID Models, storyboarding and much more. Other parts of the site I found useful was that it contains video clips, book recommendations, and is overall a user friendly site. I encourage everyone to check out this one; I think you will also find it to be a good resource.

Although I find blogging to be a little out of comfort zone, I can already tell that I am getting used to it and that it will be beneficial. Now let's just hope that I did everything correctly!