Review of learning theory - constructivism

Social constructivism attempts to address the problem of how students naturally learn best. The advancement in ICT support these attempts. When technology is used appropriately by instructor, web 2.0 tools can effectively assist in creating a social constructivist learning environment.

As described by Tway (2003)

• Knowledge is constructed from experience by learners.
• Learning is a personal interpretation of the world.
• Learning is an active process in which meaning develops on the basis of experience.
• Conceptual growth comes from sharing multiple perspectives and changing our internal representations through collaborative learning.
• Realistic settings that contain integrated assessments should be used for learning.

Educators can help learners acquire expertise through the constructivist method of cognitive apprenticeship. Teachers can help students by using the principles of modeling, scaffolding and coaching. The target of cognitive apprenticeship principles is “to empower students to accomplish the tasks independently” (Ding, 2008, p.6)

Opportunities for learners to exchange feedback regarding each others' work contribute to the knowledge being constructed by the group. “The circulation of knowledge and information among peers serves as a condition for effective learning” (Ding, 2008, p.7). This exchange of feedback could be facilitated through a wiki or discussion board. For example, students may spend a class viewing short student created skits that demonstrate problematic social situations that they are likely to experience. Students can reflect upon the choices made by the characters in the skit and comment on the appropriateness of the choices through a class wiki or discussion board. This extended and asynchronous discussion can raise awareness of alternate choices that are available to students in similar social situations. In this manner, the group will be constructing knowledge of options available when handling certain social situations along with the possible consequences of each option.

pedagogical implications for the constructivist classroom:

• Be sensitive and attentive to the learner's previous constructions.
  
• Use cognitive conflict techniques to address student misconceptions.
  
• Approach topics in a variety of ways to maximize the opportunities for students to bridge the gap between the current discussion and their previously held conceptions.
  
• Be aware of the importance of goals for the learner.
  
• Be aware of the importance of social contexts. Appreciate that knowledge of different types occurs in a variety of social environments.
• Pose problems of emerging relevance to students. Starting with student interests increases motivation and student engagement.
  
• Seek and value students' points of view.
  

Web 2.0 applications - Google Docs

http://voicethread.com/share/1370398/

Our presentation consists of 5 parts:
1.  What are the functions in Google docs
     1.1 doc , 1.2 presentation 1.3 spreadsheet 1.4 form 1.5 drawing
2.  What are the features make it different ?
     2.1 How to add people ?
     2.2 How to collaborate ?
3.  What are the advantages with collaboration function / any drawback ?

Digital Story created by Photostory 3

Famous Place in Hong Kong from Random on Vimeo.

Learning object - Combining Visualization and Interactivity?

In the secondary school Physics text book, a lot of texts are used to describe the phenomena and is so abstract to understand. For example, to understand how distance between the two coherent sources affect the antinodal lines in wave interference, my children need to use imagination to understand the theories.
If the teachers encourage their students to get the simulations on web, it will be easier for the students to learn.
For the students, they can vary the input parameters ( like frequency of wave) and get different results. This is a kind of interactive learning which makes the learning so interesting!

Can I say that this kind of learning
1) provides multiple representations? The simulation gives the animation of wave movement with the corresponding graph varies synchronously. I don't think the two visuals compete each other. Indeed, the graph describes the effect of interference.
2)is a dual code learning. In the sound interference, we can hear the sound and see the wave movement at the same time.
3)combining visualization and interactivity? Learners can vary the input parameters of the simulation to experience different results.

Anyone gets any idea? Can you find any learning objects using multimodalities?

FMY

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Session 3 group work reorganize again

From short term memory to your knowledge

Limitations of Short-term memory

         Short-term memory (STM) is the capacity for holding a small amount of information in mind in an active, readily available state for a short period of time.
The limitations are, duration of short-term memory is short (in the order of seconds when rehearsal or active maintenance is prevented). Its capacity is also very limited, some experiments showed that the store of short-term memory was 7+/-2 items and some modern estimates of the capacity of short-term memory are even lower, typically on the order of 4 to 5 items.

         As short term memory lose easily and we cannot recall it after some time (not become our knowledge), how can we retain it?

         Let’s look at how our brain works.

Gestalt Principles

         Gestalt theories describe how people tend to organize visual elements into group when certain principles are applied. Look at the below picture:

   

Do you consider it as one object? This is the Gestalt principal Similarity.

Similarity

Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. People often perceive them as a group or pattern

   

         Now, look at the other object.

 

         Do you consider H links with the leave? It is due to Gestalt principal Continuation.  The cross lines of H lead the viewer’s eyes to the leave.

Continuation

Continuation occurs when the eye is compelled to move through one object and continue to another object.

     

Do you consider the above object is a complete object?  This can be explained by the Gestalt principal Closure

Closure

Closure occurs when an object is incomplete or a space is not completely enclosed. If enough of the shape is indicated, people perceive the whole by filling in the missing information. Do you consider the below is one object?

   

   

This can be explained by Gestalt principal Proximity

Proximity occurs when elements are placed close together. They tend to be perceived as a group

How about the below figure? Can you see tree and water?

You can see the figures because of our ability explained by Gestalt principal Figure and Ground.

Figure and Ground

The eye differentiates an object from its surrounding area. A form, silhouette, or shape is naturally perceived as figure (object), while the surrounding area is perceived as ground (background)

The above gives us idea of how to create pictures in the teaching materials and how to attract learners' attention .

Now let’s see how our brains learn.

Multiple representations

An external representation is something or some symbols that stand for/depict an object and/or processes. Internal representation concerns about representation in mind.  Examples of representations are verbal descriptions, pictures, graph, formulas and rules.  Multiple representations enhance visualization for the brain, it helps learners to construct another type of representation. 

They help learners of different learning styles to learn better. Multimedia can be used to support in doing multiple representations.  Is learning is a process of changing external representation to internal representation?   

Then we look at different technologies:

Modality

Modality is a path of communication between the human and the computer.  It describes a human-computer interaction.  Human can receive the output of the computer through the sense.  The computer can receive the input of human from sensor or device.

Multimodalities

Multimodality can support different modalities in different manners.  It combines graphics, text and audio output with speech, text, and touch input, giving users multiple options for inputting and receiving information. This makes the service application much easier to use.  For example, it allows telephony subscribers to move between different modes of interaction, from visual to voice to touch, it allows users speak into a wireless handset at the same time they're writing, reading or sending a message. Is it good for learners to learn when multimodalities are used in learning?   To some extent, it is true but too many modalities are used in learning may distract the learners.  

 

Dual Code

The dual code theory states that human have separate channels for processing visual and auditory information.  Then the mind creates separate representations( visual codes and verbal codes)  for information processed in each channel.  The representations are used to organize incoming information into knowledge ,then stored in long term memory and can be recalled later.

Richard Mayor stated in his Modality principle that students learn more deeply from animation and narration than from animation and on-screen text.  Due to the limited capacity in auditory and working memory at one time, we learn better when any extraneous information is removed (Coherence principle).  Besides, multiple visuals or multiple narrations at one time may compete with each other and affect learning (Redundancy principal).  Therefore,  consider to use  animation and narration in preparing the teaching tools.  

Combining Visualization and Interactivity

People use Knowledge Tools (e.g. senses, language, software) to perform Knowledge Processes (e.g. observation) on Information to create knowledge.

In general, people learn better by visualization than by just hearing.  Interactive learning (learners need to do) can help the learners to understand the information and make their own knowledge easier.  Based on that human learning rule, combining visualization and interactivity in the learning process can enhance learners to learn faster and build knowledge and long term memory easier.

Consider Combining Visualization and Interactivity in preparing teaching materials!  Learners can learn deeply.

Can you find some other teaching resources which fulfill the above requirement and can help learner to turn information to long term memory?  Please share with us!

The above information is retrieved from the below websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-term_memory

http://graphicdesign.spokanefalls.edu/tutorials/process/gestaltprinciples/gestaltprinc.htm

http://paer.rutgers.edu/scientificAbilities/Downloads/FormAssessTasks/MultRep.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual-coding_theory

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modality_(human-computer_interaction)

http://www.coreography.com/blog/tag/richard-mayer/

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/multimodality

http://www.w3.org/2004/02/mmi-workshop/paterno-cnr.pdf
http://www.instantmessagingplanet.com/wireless/article.php/976511/What-is-Multimodality.htm

http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference/Resource_library/proceedings/01_12.pdf

http://thebutlers.blogs.com/info/

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