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What is cognitive load? [Malamed]

On 04/07/2011, in digital learning, elearning, instructional design, learning theories, memory, online learning, by Daniel Christian

What is cognitive load? — from theelearningcoach.com by Connie Malamed

 

 

 

What causes too much demand on working memory? One cause comes from an abundance of novel information. More information than the person can process. But high cognitive load is also strongly influenced by the number of elements in working memory that interact with each other. Often, complex learning is based on interacting elements that must be processed simultaneously. For example, learning to drive involves understanding how several elements simultaneously interact, such as considering the pressure required to brake, the amount to turn the steering wheel and making adjustments for weather conditions and traffic.

 

Working memory is vulnerable to overload…

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Well done video re: teaching in the 21st century, asking, “What does it mean to teach?”

On 03/29/2011, in 21st century, education, education reform, engagement / engaging students, learning theories, student teaching/teacher education, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

What does it mean to teach in the 21st century?

Originally saw this at:
The Educator’s PLN- posted by Chris McEnroe on 3/28/11

 

Also, very relevant here is the following posting from Arne Duncan at ED.gov blog:

  • The Changing Face of American Education
    (Cross-posted from the White House Blog    ) 

    One of the greatest challenges facing our country is the coming retirement of more than 1 million baby-boomer teachers. This challenge has presented us with a once in a lifetime opportunity to help reshape education in America by recruiting and training the next generation of great American teachers.

Teaching is a rewarding and challenging profession where you can make a lasting impact. Teachers have a positive influence on students, schools, and communities, now and into the future. Schools across the nation are in need of a diverse set of talented teachers, especially in our big cities and rural areas, and especially in the areas of Math, Science, Technology, Special Education, and English Language Learning.

That’s why the department launched the TEACH campaign — a bold new initiative to inspire and empower the most talented and dedicated Americans to become teachers. We know that next to parental support, there is nothing more important to a child’s education than the quality of his or her teachers.

Many of you are already thinking about becoming teachers. The TEACH campaign provides tools at your fingertips to navigate the academic and professional requirements that will credential you to succeed as a teacher in one of our schools. TEACH.gov features an online path to teaching and over 4,000 listed, open teaching positions.

 

 

Also see:

 

 

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Special Issue IRRODL — Connectivism: Design and Delivery of Social Networked Learning

On 03/28/2011, in learning theories, social learning / networks, social media, teaching & learning, teaching online, by Daniel Christian

Special Issue IRRODL — Connectivism: Design and Delivery of Social Networked Learning

This special issue of IRRODL provides an opportunity to step back and reflect on how these dramatic social and technological changes impact education. In 2004, connectivism was presented as a new theory of learning that addresses learning in complex, social, networked environments. Since that time, numerous articles, open online courses, and online conferences have explored connectivism’s application in education. As articles in this issue reflect, sharp criticism and support have been offered. We hope this issue will help to advance the discussion, to clarify areas of needed research, and to contribute to ongoing debate about the influence of the Internet on teaching and learning.

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What is the place of learning theory in policy discussions? In educational reform?

On 03/21/2011, in change, Daniel S. Christian, education, education reform, leadership, learning theories, legislatures / government / legal, organizational change, pedagogy, policy, strategy, tools, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
In my recent class at Capella University, one of the last discussion board questions asked:

  • Do you think learning theory should be more explicit in official discussions of policy?

What a great question! My answer was yes, as it makes sense to me to guide educational reform by what is best for the students…for learning. Hopefully, we can make informed decisions. Though I’ve learned that there is no silver bullet when it comes to learning theories, each learning theory seems to be a piece of the puzzle for how we learn. Graphically speaking:


If viewing the above graphic on the Learning Ecosystems blog (vs. in an RSS feed/reader):
You may need to right-click on the above image and save it, then open it.

Such theories should have a place when policies are drafted, when changes are made. But I don’t often hear reference to the work of Thorndike, Bandura, Vygotsky, Gagne, Kolb, etc. when legislative bodies/school boards/or other forms of educational leadership are exploring future changes, directions, strategies. What is it that these people were trying to relay to us? What value can we gleam from them when we form our visions of the future? How does their work inform our selection of pedagogies, tools, organizational changes?



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What’s the best way for learners, employees, organizations, & publishers to deal with constantly-moving *streams* of content?

On 03/18/2011, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, active learning, adult learning, career development, change, collaboration, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital textbooks, distance education, informal learning, instructional design, learning ecosystem, learning theories, lifelong learning, microlearning, online learning, online media, pace of change, professional development, publishing, RSS, social learning / networks, social media, staying relevant, strategy, student-related, surviving, teaching & learning, textbooks, training / L&D, ubiquitous learning, workplace, by Daniel Christian

What's the best way to deal with ever-changing streams of content? When information has shrinking half-lives?

From DSC:
After looking at some items concerning Connectivism*, I’ve been reflecting upon the following questions:

  • What’s the best way for us to dip our feet into the constantly moving streams of content?
    (No matter the topic or discipline, the streams continue to flow.)
  • What’s the optimal setup for K-12 based “courses”?
  • What’s the optimal setup for “courses” within higher education?
  • How should L&D departments deal with this phenomenon?
  • How do publishers and textbook authors want to address this situation?

Thinking of Gonzalez (2004; as cited in Siemens (2005)) description of the challenges of rapidly diminishing knowledge life:

“One of the most persuasive factors is the shrinking half-life of knowledge. The “half-life of knowledge” is the time span from when knowledge is gained to when it becomes obsolete. Half of what is known today was not known 10 years ago. The amount of knowledge in the world has doubled in the past 10 years and is doubling every 18 months according to the American Society of Training and Documentation (ASTD). To combat the shrinking half-life of knowledge, organizations have been forced to develop new methods of deploying instruction.”

Stephen Downes addresses this and points to a possible solution to this phenomenon in his presentation from 3/15/11 entitled “Educational Projection: Supporting Distributed Learning Online.”

Excerpt/slides:

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I need to put more thought into this, but wanted to throw this question out there…more later…

 

 

* From DSC: Some of the items I looked at regarding Connectivism — some directly related, others indirectly-related — were:

Siemens, G.  (2005).  Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age.  Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm.

Downes, S.  (2005).  An introduction to connective knowledge.  Retrieved from http://www.  downes.  ca/post/33034.  Downes noted that this was published in Hug, Theo (ed.  ) (2007): Media, knowledge & education – exploring new spaces, relations and dynamics in digital media ecologies.  Proceedings of the International Conference held on June 25-26, 2007.  November 27, 2007.

Kop, R.  & Hill, A.  (2008).  Connectivism: Learning theory of the future or vestige of the past? International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, v9 n3 p1-13 Oct 2008.

Tracey, R.  (2009). Instructivism, constructivism or connectivism? Training & Development in Australia, December, 2009. p08-09, 2p.  Retrieved from EBSCOhost. ISSN 0310-4664.

Kerr, B.  (2007).  A challenge to connectivism.  Retrieved at http://learningevolves.  wikispaces.  com/kerr.

Sims, R.  (2008).  Rethinking (e)learning: A manifesto for connected generations.  Distance Education Vol.  29, No.  2, August 2008, 153–164.  ISSN 0158-7919 print/ISSN 1475-0198 online.  DOI: 10.  1080/01587910802154954

Lisa Dawley.   (2009).  Social network knowledge construction: emerging virtual world pedagogy.  On the Horizon, 17(2), 109-121.   Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals.  (Document ID: 1880656431).

Hargadon, S.  (2011).  Ugh.  Classic politics now extends to social networking in education.  Retrieved from http://www.  stevehargadon.  com/2011/03/ugh-classic-politics-now-extends-to.  html.

Cross, J.  (2001).  Crowd-inspired innovation.  Retrieved from http://www.internettime.com/2011/03/crowd-inspired-innovation.

Rogers-Estable, M..  (2009).  Web 2.0 and distance education: Tools and techniques.  Distance Learning, 6(4), 55-60.  Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals.  (Document ID: 2017059921).

Marrotte-Newman, S..  (2009).  Why virtual schools exist and understanding their culture.  Distance Learning, 6(4), 31-35.  Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals.  (Document ID: 2017059881).

Hilton, J., Graham, C., Rich, P., & Wiley, D. (2010). Using online technologies to extend a classroom to learners at a distance.  Distance Education, 31(1), 77-92.  Retrieved from ProQuest Education Journals.  (Document ID: 2074810921).

Attwell, G. (2010). Personal learning environments and Vygotsky. Retrieved from http://www.pontydysgu.org/2010/04/personal-learning-environments-and-vygotsky.

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Quote from “Rethinking (e)learning: A manifesto for connected generations” [Sims, 2008]

On 03/17/2011, in change, elearning, generational differences, learning theories, online learning, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

Quote/excerpt from Sims (2008) paper entitled, “Rethinking (e)learning: A manifesto for connected generations”:

Advances in theories of human memory parallel, and perhaps depend on, advances in technology… The information processing approach has been an important source of models and ideas, but the fate of its predecessors should serve to keep us humble concerning its eventual success… Unless today’s technology has somehow reached its ultimate development, and we can be certain it has not, then we have not reached the ultimate metaphor for the human mind either. (Roediger, 1980, p. 244 as cited in Sims, 2008)

Roediger’s remarks remind us that, not only are we in a constant state of change and development, but also that there are inherent risks in arguing that we know what there is to know about teaching, learning, and e-learning. Therefore, without undermining the importance of understanding the dynamics of human learning, this article adopts the position that it is untimely to let the e of e-learning disappear, because without that e we might lose sight of the value digital technology provides, especially through social networks, to emergent forms of learning and knowledge construction.

Emergent forms of learning cannot easily be addressed by current instructional design methodologies (Kays & Francis, 2004), which are often teacher-centered. New models and strategies embracing the roles and skills of the teacher, the learner, and the design team are required to address such developments (Sims & Koszalka, 2008). Recent reports by Oblinger (2004), Irlbeck, Kays, Jones, and Sims (2006), and Siemens (2007) posit that these emergent technologies and interactions have opened doorways to new ways of learning and that these deserve new models of thinking about the very essence of the teaching and learning dynamic. While this article accepts that e is becoming more mainstream and part of the infrastructure of developed nations, the real question is whether the models we use to create learning environments and measure outcomes retain their relevance in a generation in which technology is the medium of communication for many.

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Sims, R. (2008). Rethinking (e)learning: a manifesto for connected generations. Distance Education (29) 2. August 2008, 153–164.

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Game levels and scaffolding–they’re related [Karl Kapp]

On 03/14/2011, in educational games / serious games, instructional design, learning theories, motivation, play, by Daniel Christian

Game levels and scaffolding–they’re related — from Kaplan EduNeering by Karl Kapp

 

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Some graphics I created: Learning theories; Instructional Design goals; love of learning

On 03/12/2011, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Daniel S. Christian, graphics, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, learning theories, love of learning, pedagogy, personalized/customized learning, by Daniel Christian

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If viewing these graphics via the Learning Ecosystems website/blog:
You may need to right-click and download the graphics to see them in their entirety.

 

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If viewing these graphics via the Learning Ecosystems website/blog:
You may need to right-click and download the graphics to see them in their entirety.

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If viewing these graphics via the Learning Ecosystems website/blog:
You may need to right-click and download the graphics to see them in their entirety.

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The facts on higher order thinking

On 03/10/2011, in adjunct faculty, biology, faculty, higher education, instructional design, learning theories, pedagogy, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

The facts on higher order thinking — from Faculty Focus by Maryellen Weimer, PhD

.Faculty Focus

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I just read a study that pretty much blew my socks off. An article highlighting the details will appear in the March issue of The Teaching Professor. I’ll give you the nutshell version here. The researchers were interested in finding out if there was empirical evidence to support the frequent criticism that introductory courses are fact filled with little content that challenges higher order thinking. Beyond anecdotal evidence, this research team didn’t find much empirical documentation so, being biologists, they decided to look at introductory-level biology courses.

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The psychology of e-learning [UK]

On 02/28/2011, in corporate universities / corporate training, learning theories, psychology, training / L&D, vendors, by Daniel Christian

The psychology of e-learning

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Communities of practice

On 02/26/2011, in informal learning, learning theories, lifelong learning, social learning / networks, by Daniel Christian

Wenger, Lave -- learning theories

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Study: Hands-on projects may be best way to teach engineering and technology concepts

On 02/26/2011, in engineering, K-12 related, learning theories, pedagogy, STEAM-related, technology (general), by Daniel Christian

[2008/09] Study: Hands-on projects may be best way to teach engineering and technology concepts — from Purdue University as reported by Kim Medaris

From DSC:
This study focused on 126 eighth graders from Indiana; it presents one perspective on teaching STEM-related topics.

ABSTRACT:
Exploring the Effectiveness of an Interdisciplinary Water Resources Engineering Module in an Eighth Grade Science Class
Jody L. Riskowski, Carrie Davis Todd, Bryan Wee, Melissa Dark, Jon Harbor

Engineering education has historically been given little attention in U.S. K-12 classrooms even though engineering incorporates scientific and mathematical concepts into meaningful, everyday applications. Including engineering and design projects in K-12 science and mathematics classes may improve student interest and comprehension, while also reaching a broader range of students than traditional lecture-based classes.  For this study, the authors implemented an engineering design project focusing on water resources in 8th grade science classes. Students were exposed to either an engineering project (treatment) or a more traditional format (control) and their knowledge of water resource issues was evaluated using a pre-post assessment tool. Overall, students in the treatment classes showed statistically significant improvement in two areas – they displayed higher levels of thinking on open-ended questions and greater content knowledge. This research indicates the effectiveness of engineering in enhancing student learning and supports its inclusion in the middle school science curriculum.

Also, potentially relevant here is:

 

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What Instructional Designers can learn from IBM’s Watson

On 02/17/2011, in instructional design, learning, learning theories, by Daniel Christian

What Instructional Designers can learn from IBM’s Watson — from kaplaneduneering.com by Karl Kapp

Excerpt:

Enter instructional design. What happens in a typically designed program? The designer creates abstracted bulleted lists or items the learner must know and apply to a situation and then, once or twice in the course of the class/e-learning event, etc. The learner is given an example. One or two examples at the most. Not enough to develop pattern recognition or to create an internal construct of how to deal with a particular situation.

That’s all wrong. Instead of giving learners abstractions of concepts or lists of rules, we need to give them examples, not one or two examples but dozens and dozens of examples.

We know expertise comes from experience with situations that build a generalization by the expert who then compares a current situation with past situations to decide how to problem-solve. Designers of instruction can create “learning experiences” using case studies, simulations, etc. to immerse the learner in dozens of similar (but not exactly the same) situations so the learner can recognize situations, not-by-rules, but by experience.

We can’t teach every rule in compliance training, or every answer to a customer’s objection in sales training or every combination of troubleshooting customer problems but we can provide example after example after example that can help learners develop the ability to recognize and address situations and the right response.

So, next time you develop instruction, provide examples, not one or two but dozens.

From DSC:
This makes sense also from a mental rehearsal standpoint — helping move things to long term memory.

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Can students learn to learn? [ item on metacognition]

On 01/31/2011, in learning ecosystem, learning theories, metacognition / metacognitive skills, psychology, student-related, by Daniel Christian

Can students learn to learn? — from InsideHigherEd.com by Scott Jaschik

SAN FRANCISCO — Why do some students in a course perform better than others of roughly equal ability?

The answers, of course, are as varied as are students. Some spend more time studying, or study more efficiently; some have other priorities; some don’t connect with the instructor. Some of these factors relate to metacognition, defined variously as knowing about knowing or being able to understand why we learn the way we do. A student with metacognition may realize after a disappointing test that she didn’t study hard enough, and needs to devote more time to academics. The student operating without metacognition may respond to the same setback by trashing his instructor on RateMyProfessors.com.

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By forcing students to stop for a few minutes and associate their study habits with their exam performance, and to think about why they don’t know an answer, the academics hope to change students’ habits — to encourage them to figure out what they don’t know and to study in more effective ways (and more). “We want those who are not doing well to think about it,” Bonnie said.

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“Learning about learning” — an excellent resource re: learning theories

On 01/29/2011, in adjunct faculty, faculty, formal learning, informal learning, instructional design, learning ecosystem, learning theories, pedagogy, teachers, teaching & learning, by Daniel Christian

Excellent resource for understanding the basics of a various learning theories!

From DSC:
I’d like to thank:

  • Doug Lynch, Dr. Stanton Wortham, and Elliott Masie for recording these videos and for sharing their insights/expertise
  • The University of Pennsylvania for making these items available
  • Capella University for including the above resource in a course that I’m currently taking from Dr. Katherine Emmons entitled, “Learning Theory and the Educational Process.”

2/8/11:
Note/correction from my original posting:
Doug Lynch and Stanton Wortham are not at Penn State, but rather they are at the University of Pennsylvania; Elliot Masie is an Adjunct Faculty Member at the University of Pennsylvania.

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