And Another Social Learning Type Thing...

With these posts today, I should be good for my reflecting on SLT in the future :-)

I wanted to reflect, briefly, on group learning.  My personal distaste for group assignments (can't explain why, just that I dislike it) colors my willingness to accept that learning can happen through working with a group.  But recent experiences -- whether I like it or not -- is causing me to have to CHANGE my belief about this concept (there's a principle or two out there in my mind that I can't retrieve that includes cognitive dissonance valence).  First, my experiences in these group exercises that Tiffany has us do in class DO assist in my understanding and application of the focus concepts and principles.  Second, my experience in discussing my change class paper assignment with Chuck.  In both these scenarios, discussing with others has improved my understanding and application, and hopefully my final outcomes.

Once again, I'm going to have to accept that those various theorists were correct about the value of social learning, and change my beliefs.   Oh, quick,  I should use change theory to dissect my CHANGE of heart!

Schema and script, here I come!

Risk of High Self-Efficacy

Some of these posts are not directly related to what happened in 621 class, however, they will relate to the concepts we are studying in class.

This post is about self-efficacy. Actually, we don't study this until a few week from now, but I accidentally read the social learning chapter (once again failing to read the syllabus and relying on my memory bites me in the time commitment)

Self-efficacy: A person's belief about how well they can do something.  With respect to learning stuff, I've developed REALLY high self-efficacy.  Having learned two of the world's most difficult languages -- Mandarin Chinese and Japanese -- having learned Spanish in nine weeks at age 40 + several years, having had to rely on self-study to learn half the extremely technical (science, computer science, physics and engineering) concepts that my various work positions expected me to learn, has taught me that I can learn and apply complex concepts and principles on my own.  (That I may have some incorrect understandings and poor organization of the things I've studied is a strong possibility.)

At any rate, my success at learning, combined with high achievement needs seems to have put me in a precarious situation this semester:  I took too many classes.  Three classes contain a lot of new concepts for which I do not already have existing knowledge.  The fourth -- Planned Change -- presents knowledge that I have from my business school and product development marketing work experience, supply applied in a different way.  Thankfully, this Change class makes it easier to accommodate? this knowledge and principles into my existing schema (ooh ;-) ).  However, the number of classes seems to color my perception of my ability to succeed at all four: My self-efficacy for each class, right now, is low.  I find myself having to use positive thinking ("just shut up and do the work; it will work out") or negotiation ("okay, I can take a hit on THIS assignment because it is only worth xx points") to counter-act my low self-efficacy.

Last night I talked with Chuck about my Change paper.   He helped me refocus my topic and outcome so that NOW I have greater self-efficacy for THAT class, and for my other classes as well.  I wonder if I'm applying this "self-efficacy" concept correctly.  Can self-efficacy be relative or cumulative?  

It's so cool to have vocabulary, concepts and principles -- theory -- to help describe my experience.  I never thought of myself as someone who had a use for theory.  Guess I was wrong.

Perception and Misconception

Here are a couple of incidences from last night's class that brought home the reality of reality, or rather, the power of one's perception to understand information that is received.

1) The learning strategies exercise. I simply COULD NOT understand the instructions of the  group exercise.  I WANTED to understand, however, something prevented me from grasping the instructions.  Something in how I perceived the assignment, in how I perceived the instructions prevented me from grasping the assignment.  Luckily George understood and helped our team finish the assignment.  I have moments like that quite often these days.

2) The last group exercise where we practiced analyzing an instructional situation.  This time the perception problem lay with a team mate.  He provided a beautiful response to a totally different question.  He even got me doubting my understanding of the assignment.   It wasn't until another team member stated that she did not think that his response addressed the question asked.  Later in our team discussion, it became clear that this same guy didn't understand what cognitive theory attempts to describe.  Our team spent significant time trying to get him to see that the process IS important to cognitive theorists.  Sadly, I don't think he changed his mind.

Week 8: On Being Mental

So today we started discussing cognitive learning theory.  I thought I understood, but then my understanding turned to mush in class when I tried to apply what I read.  Apparently "it' in there", finding it is the issue. 

About today's class and cognitive instructional strategies. 

1. Tiffany typically uses questions to have us apply what we've learned, and to INFER if learn has occurred.  Tonight was no difference.  
2. Periodically through out class she would ask us to define "learning" from a cognitive theory perspective to help us internalize the definition of learning for cognitivists.   
3. While reviewing famous cognitive theorists, she asked us to supply key terms and ideas for each theorist, and provided cues to help us supply the terms she wanted.  
4. While discussing perception, she went to a website where we looked at several images that were specifically designed to be interpeted in two ways.  This was a concrete and fun example to illustrate that perception is in the eye of the observer.
5. Several activities fostered deeper learning
1. the learning strategies exercise that we did in small groups
2. the exercise where we practiced applying cognitive concepts to one of three practice learning situation
3. after each group activity, she had us summarize what our groups discussed or created
6. Her powerpoint presentation served as way to organize some of the cognitive information we have read.
7. Scaffolded our learning about how to create instructional strategies by starting with an overview of the 9 point model for cognitive learning, then asked us what cognitive instruction is trying to achieve, then introduce Gagne' 9 events of instruction as a cognitive instructional theory, which applies the 9 point model for cognitive learning to instruction.

That's all I can retrieve for now.

Loving Omrod

Okay, I'm really liking the Omrod textbook.  Tiffany picks great texts.  In each of her classes -- 631, the distance ed class, and now 621 -- the texts have excellently communicated potentially complex and easily confounding material.  Furthermore, these texts afford rapid (more or less) reading of the material they present.  In other words, I can read them relatively rapidly and understand them.

What makes Omrod's text work?

1. Formatting.
   The text size, the use of white space, the occasional use of graphics, all work together to motive my eyes and brain to want to read the material.  Format can be a big deal for me.  Use of tiny print is hard for me to read, not simply because of the size, but I have a problem with my eye muscles that make it hard for me see a single line of text (I see two rows and use glasses to fuse them into one row).  Paragraphs of small text make it hard to fuse rows of sentences into single rows, which means more brain work is require to manage the physical act of reading.
   
   White space, combined with effective use of breaking concepts into smaller, succinct paragraphs help reduce the overwhelming nature of the content.  When texts try to pack too much info on a page, my brain screams, and I have to "force" myself to read.  Once I get started, I'm okay, but each time I have to restart the reading of such textbooks, I have a struggle with my brain.
   
   The use of lines to separate modules within a chapter is appreciated.  It's reinforces that "we're moving on to another module".
2. Motivation.
   Omrod's use of personal anecdotes at the beginning of the chapter motivates me to want to read the chapter.  She picks excellent anecdotes that clearly introduce the concepts that will be introduced in that chapter.  And she refers to them as makes sense in the chapter or in the book. 
   
   Whenever possible, she uses examples that use people -- specifically students -- to help explain or serve as evidence of concepts or principles.  Use of people examples over scientific lab examples makes the material more approachable, thus inducing motivation to continue reading.
3. Writing Style.
   Omrod's writing style is professional, yet causal enough to facilitate understanding.  There's another book I'm reading "Foundations of Program Evaluation" by Shaddish, Cook and Leviton, that use the writing styles of each of the authors, and none of these authors write in an easy to understand way.  It could be that the subject matter is simply so complex and multidimensional that there IS NO WAY to simplify writing about it.  Or it could be that these authors are academics and have an academic writing style that uses specific evaluation vocabulary.  Their writing style, combined with the 8 point font, making reading the book an excruciating experience.  And a de-motivating one because I never know if I "got it".  Even after we discuss in class, I still don't know if I "got" it.  Moving on....
   
   Her organization of chapter content facilitates understanding as well.  The summary presents the key concepts presented in the chapter.  The introductory sections clearly explain what will be presented.  Listing the concepts at the top of the chapter indicates what will be learned.  Each concept is introduced, explained, and has at least one example to clarify the point.  She knows how to introduce concepts in a way that builds so that by the end of the module or chapter, she has successfully explained very complex ideas.   Her level of detail is excellent; it does not overwhelm.

Yes I like this book.  Just thought I'd try to analyze why.

Deep Learning

So THAT's what Tiffany's up to.  Trying to get us to develop deep learning of the material she's introducing to us. 

Just finishing reading some material about deep learning strategies for another class.  As I read I keep thinking, "so  THAT's why she's making us do this or that."  Yay! I'm building schema!  Don't know how deep my learning goes.

A example of deep learning activities I recall from class are:

• Keeping a reflection journal in which we note our observations about class activities and strategies that Tiffany uses.
• Those "pair and share" activities in which she has us engage.
• The knowledge bases assignments
• The reflections we do for each knowledge base, which can serve as a self-assessment of said knowledge base
• The types of questions she asks during class (can't recall specifically right this moment, but they do attempt to get us to do more than exhibit declarative knowledge).

Cool.