Learning Theories Wiki

Communities of Practice.
This learning theory ended up being a classic choice for me.  Social constructivism is not something that I have been heavily involved in throughout my university learning.  I was interesting reading why I need to become more involved (somehow) in my own community of practice.  I am still finding this a challenge for me.  Even though I am very open and outgoing face-to-face, as a digital immigrant I have not integrated the social networking of the technology age.  Not getting mobile phone reception and being on satelite  internet does not help either.  I struggle to keep up with course material and family.   And thus do not look for time to surf the net, or communicate with others.

The course asked for a reading/video to be examined in greater depth to broaden the knowledge of a concept that a learner may not have come across before, or to re-examine ones perspective on this particular learning theory, or to challenge ones current thinking on learning theories.

The Expert Jigsaw strategy was used for this activity to develop teamwork and cooperative learning skills within our learning cohort, to help develop a depth of knowledge not possible if a student were to try and learn all of the material on their own, will often disclose the learner's own understnding of a concept as well as reveal any misunderstandings, and gives other members of the cohort an opportunity to enter in discussion and consolidate their own knowledge and understanding.

As a secondary science teacher this strategy would be very beneficial, as often there can be a lot of material, or issues, related to a single topic.  It would also bring different aspects of the topic and the individuals social/cultural views to the attention of all learners and one would hope this would promote substantive conversation.  Jigsaw learning allows students to be introduced to material and yet maintain a high level of personal responsibility, develops teamwork and cooperative learning skills.

This online form of reading and presenting back allows all students to have an opinion in a non-threatening environment, to be heard, have time to think, research and reflect, can increase confidence and participation.   It can also be used very effectively in a classroom setting by involving all learners with a smaller protion of work/learning, and giving the individual a less threatening environment to have a voice.

This activity was behaviourist learning in that it was well scaffolded with the PMI table; directing the learners attention to the teachers intended learning outcomes from the reading.  It also meant that all students were reporting their information in the same format which allowed for easier analysis and evaluation for all learners.  It supported individuals with different learning needs as is can reduce the problem of dominace, give students the chance to discuss their report and modify it based on the suggestions of other members of the expert group, gright students can be encouraged to develop the mind set of 'teacher', just to list a few advantages.  I believe this would be a good strategy to use in a science classroom for starting a new unit, or for a culminating activity at the end of a unit of work.

Multiple Intelligences

Logical – Number Smart   22

You will be good at mathematics and other number activities; you are also good at solving problems.  This is sometimes called being logical smart.

Intrapersonal – Myself Smart   18

You will know about yourself and your strengths and weaknesses.  You will probably keep a diary.

Interpersonal – People Smart   17

You will like to mix with other people and you will belong to lots of clubs.  You like team games and are good at sharing. 

Visual/Spatial – Picture Smart   17

You will be good at art and also good at other activities where you look at pictures like map reading, finding your way out of mazes and graphs.

Kinaesthetic – Body Smart   15

You will enjoy sports and are good at swimming, athletics, gymnastics and other sports.

Naturalistic – Nature Smart   11

You will like the world of plants and animals and enjoy learning about them. 

Linguistic – Word Smart   8

You will enjoy reading, writing and talking about things.

Musical – Music Smart   8

You will enjoy music and can recognise sounds, and timbre, or the quality of a tone.

I found this test to very accurately describe how I perceive me to be.  It also shows that there are some areas that I need to develop more.

My Learning Style

1. What is my preferred learning style – sensing, sequential, visual, and active/reflective.

What sorts of learning experiences would suit you best with your learning style?                   As a sensing learner I like to: learn facts, solving problems by well-established methods and.  I dislike:  complications and surprises, resent being tested on material that has not been explicitly covered in class, and courses that have no apparent connection to the real world.  I am good at: memorizing facts, doing hands-on (laboratory) work.  I am: patient with details, practical and careful.   As a visual learner I remember best when I see pictures, diagrams, flow charts, time lines, films, and demonstrations.  As a sequential learner I gain understanding in linear steps, with each step following logically from a previous on, and I tend to follow logical stepwise paths in finding solutions.

2. In a traditional classroom of 25 students,  I would support the range of learning styles each lesson by: giving a global overview picture of the topic and how it relates to the real world, before sequencing the learning steps; using as many different ways of presenting the material as possible, such as diagrams, tables, graphs, verbally going over and/or summarising the material; limiting rote learning of facts to a minimum; including where/when possible hands-on and/or problem solving activities; leaving enough time for students to reflect on their learning and the topic.
3. With my current knowledge of ICT, I could design digital pedagogy to support my learners better by: learning what is available, how to use it, and how to integrate it with the syllabus requirements and with the resources available in the school/classroom.  Currently, my skills run to word documents, excel spread sheets and PowerPoint.
4. The sorts of profiling questions I could be asking about my learners to ensure that I cater for everyone's preferences could be do they prefer: pictures and diagrams or listening to information, seeing the whole picture and how this relates to other areas or do they build on their knowledge by building up a big picture by putting all the pieces together, to learn facts and figures or to see how this information relates to the real world. 
5. How does ICT support differences in learning styles? Learners can learn at their own pace, at a level that is extending their learning but not that advanced that the learner disengages, take a risk in a non-threatening environment, have multiple attempts, and gives immediate feedback.
6. I found the test to describe how I learn very accurately.  As a result of my preferred learning style I find mathematics and science subjects easier to master than more creative subjects.  I really enjoy the problem solving aspects of Engineering.   I find the sequential ordering of most online courses suit my learning style.   Most software programs are set out in a very orderly logical manner, which I find easy to work with (once I have determined how and why to use it).  I need a need to find an activity worthwhile.  I really need develop my collaborative learning; as this is something I have not used outside my family life for many years, and something I feel is very important in any working environment.