Week 4: Continue Blog Outline for Instructional Plan (Learning Theories)

Now that you have a greater understanding of "learning"- What is your newly constructed definition of "learning"?

Learning: The ability to connect and apply new information, stories or thoughts in meaningful ways

Based on your definition of learning, what are the learning goals or objectives for your session?

1.     Explain how children learn best

2.     Share, listen and collaborate with others on lesson enhancements

3.     Create an elevated lesson plan with others using tools and resources that enhance learning. Lesson should include a scaffolding activity and evaluation

4.     Present lesson to the whole group, and reflect on others’ lessons

5.     Reflect on this learning experience by sharing what you learned and how you will use what you learn in future lesson plans

What will indicate that your learners "learned"?

Reflection and observing how future lessons are taught by the teachers will indicate that they learned from this workshop experience.

What multi-dimensional theoretical lens will you use to design the instructional experience? Why?

·      Embodied Learning: “Adults bring more and varied life experiences to a learning situation... that can connect new learning to their life experiences as well as share their experiences to assist others in their learning” (Knowles, 1989, as cited in Merriam and Bierema, 2014, p.136).

o   Teachers will share examples of lessons that allowed them, or others, to learn best and why.

·      Behaviorism: “What one learns is a response to particular stimuli arranged in the environment for the purpose of bringing about learning” (Merriam and Bierema, 2014, p.26).

o   Teachers will observe and share reflections of others’ lessons. Additionally, the workshop includes learning outcomes that will involve having a particular arrangement within the environment (Merriam and Bierema, p.26).

·      Humanism: “Human beings have the potential for growth and development and that people are free to make choices and determine their behavior” Merriam and Bierema, 2014, p.29).

o   Teachers will create enhanced lessons with others that include few criteria. This allows for teachers to make many choices and determine behavior within group.

·      Cognitivism: “Cognitivists focus on insight (the moment when a solution to a problem becomes clear), information processing, problem solving, memory and the brain” (Merriam and Bierema, 2014, p.32).  

o   Teachers will process information to create enhanced lesson plans that they later will present to their colleagues.

·      Constructivism: “Learning is how people make sense of their experience” (Merriam and Bierema, 2014, p.36).

o   Teachers will participate in dialogue throughout the workshop. Additionally, they will use tools, such as computers and books, to learn.

What are key insights you are beginning to see, feel, and believe?

The ability to deeply learn and recall what you experienced starts with the person and their connection to themselves. When the body, mind and spirit are tuned in to each other, the person feels comfortable and safe. This allows a person to be fully present and personally and emotionally connect to the learning experience. It allows them to truly feel and have emotion. When people have time to dialogue and reflect during and after the learning experience, they can make meaning of what they learned. Then they can begin to apply it.

Reference:

Merriam, S.B. and Bierema, L.L. (2014). Adult learning: Linking theory and practice. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.