Reflection

What did you find surprising or striking as you furthered your knowledge about how people learn?

Many years ago while studying for my bachelor’s degree, there was a required course called introduction to psychology, and it was during these studies that I first came into contact with learning theories. I studied  the theories of Jean Piaget, B. F. Skinner and Sigmund Freud to name a few, but Connectivism as a learning theory for the digital Age, Adult learning theories and Social learning theories made very little impression and may not have even been established theories then. What is surprising to me is the fact that I studied, that is memorized all the theories, sat the examination and received a passing grade, but I now realize that I did not have a clue about what I was studying. When I began reading the Learning Theories and Instruction course material I found it familiar, but it was during this course that I actually understood what I was reading, and it was during this time around that I am now able to contribute to a meaningful discussion about learning theories and the way people learn, including how I learn. Back then I was a typical college student with all the distractions of college. I can identify with Dr. Ormrod’s statement that “Adult learners have an advantage over the more traditional college student in the sense that, [in my experience,] they have a really strong need to know. Your typical college student has a lot of distractions”. I am now a truly motivated learner and no longer just going through the motions of learning.

How has this course deepened your understanding of your personal learning process?

The differences in the concepts of learning styles versus learning strategies have profoundly impacted my understanding of learning. I use to think that I had a particular learning style but I now understand that learning styles emphasize the different ways people think and feel as they solve problems but “learning strategies are cognitive plans oriented towards successful task performances” (Pressley et al., 1990; Weinstein & Mayer, 1986). A learning strategy enables learning to take place and Dr. Ormrod suggests that “effective learning would be better achieved with the use of “learning strategies”. She further states that using the learning strategies of “elaboration, comprehension monitoring, and mnemonics” are very simple but effective strategies that can be used with both adult and children to facilitate learning.

What have you learned regarding the connection between learning theories, learning styles, educational technology, and motivation?

Learning theories are conceptual frameworks that describe how information is absorbed, processed, and retained during learning (Knud 2004). Learning styles refer to the variations in one’s ability to accumulate as well as assimilate information (Ormrod), and are commonly referred to as audio, visual and kinesthetic. Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources (Richey, 2008). “Motivation is an internal state that arouses us to action, pushes us in particular directions and keeps us engaged” (Ormrod, Schunk, Gredler 2009), and is partly a function of the learning environment (Graham & Weiner, 1996; Greeno et al., 1996; Paris & Turner, 1994; Reuda & Moll, 1994). The four concepts are interrelated and interdependent. Learning brings together cognitive, emotional, and environmental influences and experiences for acquiring, enhancing, or making changes in one's knowledge, skills, values, and world views (Knud 2004).

 
How will your learning in this course help you as you further your career in the field of instructional design?

This course has given me the knowledge base to create meaningful and effective learning experiences. I am now aware that when planning learning, the student brings many unknown elements into the learning environment like the level of cognitive capability, emotions about learning, environmental influences and life experiences. In the role of an instructional designer I will need to parley all these unknowns into creating effective learning experiences.

Conclusion

Learning is the complex task of “acquiring new, or modifying existing, knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, or preferences and may involve synthesizing different types of information. The ability to learn is possessed by humans, animals and some machines.” “Learning is not compulsory; it is contextual. It does not happen all at once, but builds upon and is shaped by what we already know. To that end, learning may be viewed as a process, rather than a collection of factual and procedural knowledge. Learning is based on experience. Learning produces changes in the organism and the changes produced are relatively permanent” (Schacter et al., 2011, pg 264).

References

Ormrod, J., Schunk, D., & Gredler, M., Learning theories and instruction (Laureate custom edition). New York: Pearson. (2009).

Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (1993). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly.

Smith, M. K., Learning theory. The encyclopedia of informal education. (1999).

Dr. Jeanne Ormrod., "Motivation in Learning" Video Program (approximately 10 minutes)

Richey, R.C. (2008). Reflections on the 2008 AECT Definitions of the Field. TechTrends. 52(1) 24-25

Illeris, Knud (2004). The three dimensions of learning. Malabar, Fla: Krieger Pub. Co.

Stanley Cavell, "Knowing and Acknowledging," Must We Mean What We Say? (Cambridge University Press, 2002), 238–266.