EDIT 603 - Philosophy of Instructional Technology

Educational Constructs

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LEV VYGOTSKY

 

I researched and found three web links on educational constructs that have been instrumental in my approach to teaching; Social Development Theory, Constructivist Theory and Multiple Intelligence Theory. I found some similarities in each of these theories. In doing so, I realized these particular theories run parallel to many of the approaches implemented in my classroom. In researching Vygotsky, Social Development Theory, the major theme of his theoretical framework is that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the development of cognition. Vygotsky (1978) states “Every function in the child's cultural development appears twice; first on the social level, and later on the individual level, first between people, (inter-psychological) and then inside the child, (intra-psychological). A second aspect of his theory is the idea that the potential for cognitive development is limited to a certain time span which he calls the “(zone of proximal development)” (ZPD). Furthermore, full development during the ZPD depends upon full social interaction. The range of skill that can be developed with adult guidance or peer collaboration exceeds what can be obtained alone.

PRINCIPLES:

1) Cognitive development is limited to a certain range at any given age.

2) Full cognitive development requires social interaction.

Applying the principles above in conjunction with having set up a computer lab this year, I will be able to access more readily students' independent work compared to their work in pairs. Having this information will enable me to cross-reference and address Vygotsky's “zone of proximal development” for each student. Some of the computer based instruction will be individualized and some in groups of 5 or 6 according to their zone of proximal development. I hope to transfer this success when arranging combinations of students working in pairs during mini-lessons. Students being paired during mini-lessons rotate on a weekly basis as to encourage social interaction among students at all levels. With the use of technology, I can provide learning activities that emphasize and complement group goals and individual accountability.

 

JEROME BRUNER

 

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Jerome Bruner's work is based on constructivist theory. Bruner's constructivist theory is a general framework for instruction based upon the study of cognition. Much of the theory is linked to child development research (especially Piaget).The ideas outlined in Bruner (1960) originated from a conference focused on mathematical learning. A major theme in the theoretical framework of Bruner is that learning is an active process in which learners construct new ideas on concepts based upon their current/past knowledge. Teaching and learning mathematics is the perfect forum for extrapolating Bruner's ideas. To understand mathematics, a strong foundation is essential .Without prior knowledge of previous lessons, it is virtually impossible to successfully investigate and digest new information. Being aware of a student's level of knowledge at all times is fundamental to Bruner's constructivist theory. According to Bruner, instruction must be structured so that it can be easily grasped by the student (spiral organization). I integrate this concept throughout my lesson plans. In fact, each lesson plan will state the prior knowledge necessary to understand the current lesson plan. This way student's can gauge their learning by the process of spiraling.

Cognitive structure (i.e. schema, mental models) provides meaning and organization to experiences and allows the individual to “go beyond the information.” The instructor should encourage students to discover principles by themselves. The instructor and the teacher should engage in active dialog (i.e. Socratic learning). The task of the instructor is to translate information to be learned into a format appropriate to the learner's current state. The study of algebra has become more prevalent in the seventh grade curriculum. Most seventh grade students have very little exposure to this branch of mathematics, but according to Bruner, instruction should be designed to facilitate extrapolation and or fill in the gaps (going beyond the information needed).As an example, this year my classes will learn to use a graphing calculator. Topics will involve as many real-life situations as possible. One will be to predict world population in the year 2010.Besides learning the technology applied to this problem, students learn the formula for the slope of a straight line, how to find the slope of a straight line, and the y-intercept. Prior knowledge includes an understanding of integers. This problem allows student's to construct their own meaning. Students transform the information, construct hypotheses, and make decisions relying on a cognitive structure to do so.

 

HOWARD GARDNER

 

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When asked how educators should implement the theory of multiple intelligences, L. Gardner says, “It's very important that a teacher take individual differences seriously.” The bottom line is a deep interest in children and how their minds are different, and in helping they use their minds well.” According to Gardner , there are eight intelligences: verbal, bodily, intrapersonal, logical, musical, interpersonal, and naturalist. These intelligences are the way in which students learn. A Student will posses all of these intelligences, but will favor only a few. According to multiple intelligence theory, the first principle, Instructor's should be aware of the variety of intelligences and arrange class activities to accommodate them. The second principle states that the teacher should create assignments that measure all forms of intelligence and encourage students to use their preferred learning intelligence. Student's today have been using computers and all sorts of technology at home where they have become computer savvy and are highly capable of using technology to explore real-life situations. This year our school computer lab installed a geometry sketchpad program. Learning geometry for many students can be a daunting task. The sketchpad program offers hands-on learning for students. This program allows me to use a variety of stimuli so as to accommodate different intelligences. With the aid of sketchpad, geometry is not limited to two-dimensional figures and shapes. Also this program allows students to manipulate space and understand concepts which are more difficult to comprehend using just a chalkboard. Students will have three mandatory geometry projects, although how they are presented is decided by each student. The sketchpad program allows students more freedom to present a project according to their preferred intelligences. Recently I used an overhead projector for visual intelligent learners aided by the use of a manipulative for bodily intelligence learners. Besides students feeling more comfortable under these conditions, they are exposed to different learning styles, giving them access to explore a variety of new ways to learn. Knowing there are different learning styles and being able to apply this knowledge with the use of technology will diversify my classroom and augment my teaching knowledge.

 
RESOURCES

 

Social Development Theory:

http://tip.psychology.org/vygotsky.html

Constructivist Theory

http://leo.oise.utoronto.ca/~lbencze/Constructivism.html

http://www.west.net/~ger/Orientation/constructivist.html

Jerome Bruner:

http://www infed.org/thinkers/bruner.htm

Multiple Intelligences:

http://tip.psychology.org/gardner.html

http://www.genconnection.com/online/articles/mitech.htm

Howard Gardner:

http://pzweb.harvard.edu/PIs/HG.htm