Learning Theories and Their Implications to Teaching

Viola October 25, 2014

About this Presentation

Define learning & teaching

What is a learning theory

Some categories of learning theories

Highlight some implications of learning theories to teaching

Provide example(s)

What is Learning

What is Teaching

About Learning Theories in Education

What is a Learning Theory

Origin - answering why and how learning occurs

Philosophies about how learning occurs

Many ways of ‘grouping/categorizing’ learning theories

Some Learning Theories in Education

Some Learning Theory Categories

Historical Evolution of Learning Theories (e.g. Wilson & Peterson, 2006)

From Towards

Learning Process Sponge, Passive, individual activity, diversity as problematic

Active, collaborative, diversity as resource

Funds of Knowledge

Disciplinary facts – what to be learned

Consider what, why and how learning takes place, inquiry processes

Teaching Practice Teacher centered, transmission of information from teacher to students

Complex process, student centered, teachers continually improve on TPCK

Implications to Teaching Teaching philosophies – what one believes as best practice

Potential gap between learning and teaching research communities (Wilson & Peterson, 2006)

Teacher as a coach or facilitator of learning

Enable Knowledge integration – build on what they already know

Shared responsibilities- communities of practice, collaboration etc (Lave & Wenger, 1991)

Intellectual process- teachers as experts and with adequate TPCK (Mishra, & Koehler, 2006; Shulman, 1983; Wilson & Peterson, 2006)

Example of Students’ prior Knowledge Some students’ prior knowledge

Some students’ reasoning

What we expect them to understand

Children look their parents

They see resemblance in their own families

Offspring inherit genetic material from parents

Can roll tongue like dadHave dimples like mom

Some students’ beliefs that • genetic material for

a trait only from a parent they resemble

• What is expressed is dominant

• Only dominant trains are inherited

• Boy inherit more genetic from father than mother & vice versa

Gene exist in more than one form One allele from each parentExpression depends on dominance, recessive, codominance etc

Implications to Practice

References Hollis, K. (2014). TPCK Model and Learning Technology by Design.

http://kristinahollis.wordpress.com/2013/04/03/tpck-model-and-learning-technology-by-design/

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

Lave, J. & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated Learning: Legitimate Peripheral Participation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Lewis, J., Wood-Robinson, C. (2000). Genes, chromosomes, cell division and inheritance-do students see any relationship? Int. J. Sci. Educ., 22(2): 177-195.

Manokore, V., Williams, M. (2012). Middle School Students’ Reasoning about Biological Inheritance: Students’ Resemblance Theory. Int. J. Biol. Educ., 2(1): 1-31.

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge: A new framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record. 108(6), 1017-1054.

References cont’ Stewart, J.H. (1982). Difficulties experienced by high school students when

learning basic Mendelian genetics. Am. Biol. Teacher, 44: 80–84, 89.

Shulman, L.S. (1986). Those Who Understand: Knowledge Growth in Teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4-14.

Turney, J. (1995). The Public Understanding Of Genetics - where next? Euro. J. Genet. Soc. 1 (2): 5 - 20

Wood-Robinson, C. (1994) Young People’s Ideas About Inheritance And Evolution. Stud. Sci. Educ. 24: 29-47

Wilson, S. M., & Peterson, P. L. (2006). Theories of Learning and Teaching What Do They Mean for Educators? Washington DC: National Education Association