Raen | Syracuse University
INFOGRAPHIC 1
This infographic talks about the definition and mechanisms of learning based on cognitivism.
Famous theorists and their contributions are also introduced.
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Resources:
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Ormrod, J. E. (2020). Human learning (8th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Pearson
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Koszalka, T.A. IDDE 621 Principles of Instruction and Learning- Behavioral Learning Theories [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from
https://blackboard.syracuse.edu/ultra/courses/_475730_1/cl/outline
INFOGRAPHIC 2
Instruction should be designed to facilitate learning and should provide experiences that focus on different mental processes, storing, and recalling new information. Here are some instructional design theories inspired by cognitivism.
Resources:
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Advance Organizers
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9 Events of Instruction
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Meaningful Reception Theory
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References:​
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Koszalka, T.A. IDDE 621 Principles of Instruction and Learning- Cognitive Development Learning Theories [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from
https://blackboard.syracuse.edu/ultra/courses/_475730_1/cl/outline
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What is an advance organizer? Retrieved from http://projectlearnet.org/tutorials/advance_organizers.html
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Beltran, P. Ausubel Meaningful Reception Learning Theory Presentation Retrieved from
https://prezi.com/jvzfo9hqxwey/ausubel-meaningful-reception-learning-theory- presentation/
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Conditions of Learning (Robert Gagne) Retrieved from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/conditions-learning.html
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Learning Scenario
The teacher in an English class is at the front of four 12-year-old Japanese students. She points to the picture and says, "Today, we will practice how to construct a longer sentence using ‘because’. Please look at the picture, choose an object and write it down in your notebook." Students then write a word and showed it to the teacher. Having checked them, she says, "Good job everyone. You wrote the words in their correct spelling. Now, please look at the passage." The teacher grabs a small whiteboard, takes a marker and asks, "What is the passage all about?" Yuna says, "Winter sports." The teacher writes it and replies, "Great job." The teacher writes the word on the white board, draws 8 lines from it and says, "Let's think of words that are connected to it, anyone?" Juri says, "Skiing." Then the rest of the students give 7 more words.
The teacher says, "Very good, everyone. Next, I want you to read the passage altogether and answer the question in pairs.” She writes the question on the whiteboard and asks. “Which do you prefer, winter or summer? And why?" Students read the passage aloud and write their answers in one sentence. After 3 minutes the teacher says, "Pens up! Now, who wants to start to read their sentences?" Haruto raises his hand and says, "I prefer winter than summer because I enjoy going to a hot spring in Hakone." The teacher says, "You did very well. It is one of my favorite places to go, too!” Soma then reads his sentence next, "I prefer winter than summer because I like eating shaved ice dessert." The teacher says, "It is the best summer dessert! You also did well with your sentence, but did you mean you prefer summer?" She then explains about switching "winter" and "summer" then continues with the rest of the students.
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Photo source: https://helenadailyenglish.com/everyday-english-conversations-practice-lesson-7-can-you-say-that-again.html
Let’s take a look at this learning situation from the point of view of cognitivism.
In a nutshell, the learning scenario is viewed from the point of view of the instructor using the terminology in Gagne's Nine Events of Instruction wherein the activities are viewed as mental structures or schemas of students. She gains the attention by pointing to the picture and then informs the objectives that they will practice constructing sentences using 'because'.
Since this is not the first time for the learners to do the activities, they are continuously using their schema in writing words and sentences from the previous lessons. The instructor asks students words that connect to the word 'winter sports' that serves as an advance organizer. This activates students' prior knowledge about the topic and organizes information for the learners to understand the activity easily. By checking the exercise together, the instructor elicits performance from students and provides feedback while assessing their performance.
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Observation
Checklist
Cognitivist observation checklist consists of five observed behaviors of the instructor, five observed behaviors of students, and four observed materials.
Reflection
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Cognitivism is a very insightful theory into the inner processes of our brain. It takes into account mental processes which are pivotal to learning such as attention and memory. If you don’t have them, learning is unlikely to occur, even with the best efforts on behaviorists’ part. I like how it emphasizes learner's mentally organizing information that involves strengthening connections and meaningful learning practices. It always has captivated me the way the unconscious works connecting all the dots for us to learn. One thing I do like about this theory is the belief that cognitive development occurs in stages and is controlled by maturity. It is true that some learning results in no change of behavior.
Cognitivists would argue that individuals have much to do with their own learning as they are constantly processing information according to the Dual Store Model. I agree that the better information is organized, the better its processing, storing, and retrieval. I believe that I use more of a Cognitivist approach while teaching because I use 9 events of instruction all the time. I'm always looking for meaningful learning technique adaptation to connect my students to the content. It allows learners to quickly connect information with basic known concepts that are somewhat obvious about how to improve long-term memory storage. But when giving tokens and "very good" stamps as reinforcement to younger students, I think I still bring a bit of behaviorism in there. As a learner, it has been a constant assimilation of new information connecting it to what I had from previous learnings. The presence of learning objectives and outlines at the beginning of each chapter of this course facilitated my learning of new concepts. Additionally, the repetition of concepts contained in the video tutorials helped strengthen my retention and understanding of the material. I must admit that creating an observation checklist for this theory seemed a bit challenging as behaviors cannot be observed since learning takes place in an individual's mental structures.
Overall, I agree that when prior knowledge is related to new material that is being taught, the learner has a better chance of actually learning and comprehending the new information. More often than not, I try to impose some sort of meaning on new information. I noticed that most of my learning processes have always been closely connected to remembering and then recalling information. I always connect the various concepts in a way to understand their relation to one another. Developing a strong knowledge of cognitivism can help to teach and learn new concepts.
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