Reflecting on Learning Theory

Over the last 8 weeks, I have learned much about the different ways in which people learn as well as how that knowledge can and should inform my own instructional design process.  We have looked at constructivism, cognitivism, connectivism, social learning theory and multiple intelligences.   We learned about conditioning form the likes of Skinner and how rewards and penalties could be used in terms of encouraging learning.  Finally, we looked at andragogy, the theory of how adults learn based on their experiences.

                As far as what I found striking as I studied, I believe the thing that struck me the most and has come to have the largest impact upon my instructional design is andragogy.  As an instructional designer that creates courses and learning experiences for adult professionals, having an understanding of how learning takes place within the experience of individual adults is imperative.  As we learned, there must be some need for new information in order for adult learners to engage in learning experiences.  Most often, this takes the form of needing new information in order to perhaps receive a promotion in one’s career or perhaps find a new career altogether.  As a result, adult learners are looking for learning opportunities that speak directly to their experience.  For example, adult learners want to learn what they will need to know in the new position or job.  Anything else may be deemed irrelevant and therefore jettisoned from the student’s overall learning experience.

                As an instructional designer then, it is my job to create courses or training modules that address this need.  How is this done? It can be accomplished in many ways.  Situational learning where students are interacting with some sort of problem they may encounter in their new position or job is an excellent way for adult learners to stay engaged in the process and use their own problem solving knowledge and experience.  Another strategy that can be employed when designing instruction for adult learners is group projects or discussions.  Connectivist theory tells us that much learning occurs through learning nodes that the student connects with and designing experiences that give students the opportunities to connect with other students and experts in their field and glean further knowledge.

Fitting the Pieces Together

Over the last several weeks, I have been fortunate to study many of the learning theories prevalent in education today.  Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, social learning, connectivism and adult learning were all subjects I explored throughout the course of this class and gleaned much insight into not only how others learn, but also how I process and apply new information.

In my initial discussion post during week one of this course, I stated that I believe the learning theory that applies most to how I obtain new knowledge, was personal and social constructivism.  After studying the various learning theories, I can say that this is still the case, although I have added new pieces to my learning puzzle through an understanding of connectivism and adult learning theory (andragogy).  Without even truly realizing it, my learning, especially later in life has come through the nodes of my learning networks, be it fellow employees, mentors, professional organizations or courses such as this one.  Each of these nodes has added to my knowledge base in a way that would not have occurred if they didn't exist.  In adult education, I find that my learning style fits also.  Like most adult learners, I am now learning largely because in my current context, I have a need to do so.  Having moved into instructional designed and gained some professional experience in the field, I believed it was important to also obtain the theoretical and formal knowledge as a supplement.  Thus, since my personal context has change and I have a need for this information, my engagement is high.

This also helps to explain my own personal learning preferences.  Again looking at andragogy, I strongly agree with the theorists in that if the information I am being presented with has little or no meaning for my personal experience, I would not put forth the effort to learn and store it.  At this point in my life, I am about learning what is important for me to reach the goals I have set for myself and have little time to learn for learning's sake as I did while an undergraduate.  As an instructional designer, I keep this before me at all times while I design learning outcomes and strategies.  Perhaps one of the benefits of getting older is wisdom and with that comes the understanding that you can learn (sometimes very much) from others.  This is indeed the case with me in that I have learned a great amount through my connections with others in the fields, mentors, trainers and presenters.  Attending conferences and learning best practices from others has been invaluable for me as I seek to learn all I can to be a highly successful instructional designer.

How does technology play into all of this?  In many ways is the short answer.  Specifically, technology has been invaluable for me as I learn learning management systems and design principles.  For example, my institution uses blackboard and there are many excellent tutorial and best practice presentations and documents available on the internet.  While this may sound quaint or outdated, it is in fact something that I use daily as I design courses for the university.  Additionally, I have attended many online training sessions and seminars that have enhanced my learning by providing insights into how other designers go about their craft.  Through these I have established excellent relationships with others in the field that I can always bounce ideas off of and get feedback when I need it.  All of this information is being stored in an electronic portfolio of my own creation that I can access at any time should I need a refresher.  This and other tools ensure that I can continue to grow as a developer and educator.

Connectivism

Below you can see the connectivist "Mindmap" that shows my personal learning networks that have assisted with increasing my knowledge of instructional design.  As you can see, I have included not only people I interact with on a daily basis (such as my mentor, students and faculty at Walden) but also technological tools I use, conferences and associations I belong to and social networking sites such as blogs and Linkedin.

My network had greatly influenced my learning as I’ve moved into the field of instructional design.  Initially of course, my mentor was the one that first guided me toward the field of instructional design.  I had been working in educational administration and it was this mentor that first taught me about instructional design and showed me that I have a talent for it.  In addition to teaching me many things about how instructional design works and what are effective and ineffective strategies, it was she who encouraged me to take the program at Walden.  My studies thus far have been valuable in helping me learn about the field and has provided me thus far with formal educational training to compliment the experience I have already gained. 

From a digital tools perspective, software such as animoto, prezi and google docs have been invaluable.  Learning how to take things like powerpoint presentations and turn them into videos with narration, animation and other resources has allowed me to learn how to create more advanced and engaging presentations.  Google docs have allowed me to collaborate with faculty members in real time, sharing documents and designing instruction simultaneously.  In addition, although it they are not listed, software programs such as Moodle and Blackboard have been invaluable to my learning process.  Connecting with tutorials and user groups have shown me new and more effective ways of creating instructional activities for diverse learners.

As for how I gain knowledge when I have questions, there are a number of ways I can accomplish this.  First, one of the nest ways I can learn is to engage with tutorials or user groups as a means of finding the answers I need.  I find that I learn best when I have step by step directions or demonstration.  Additionally, my mentor and other staff members I work with are always available to answer questions or provide some guidance and advice.  Again, these connections are imperative in helping me to gain the knowledge I need to be effective as an instructional designer.

I believe that all of these factors support the theory of connectivism.  Without all of these connections in place, I know that I would not have had the opportunities to learn that I have had thus far.  The key of connectivism is learning networks and establishing those networks is how learning occurs.  Through technological tools, conferences and events, discussions with mentors and colleagues and educational opportunities, my knowledge base increases and I become a better instructional designer.

Learning Theory and Information Processing

This week, we have studied how the brain works to process information and solve problems.  As an assignment this week, we have been asked to examine journals and/or blogs relating to these areas.  To that end, here are a couple of sites I found that I believe offer excellent information about these subjects.

Learning Theories at Te@chthought.com:

On this blog site, the te@chthought staff offer several blogs relating to learning theory and information processing.  The article that I have highlighted deals specifically with three levels of information processing: the structural level, the phonetic level and the semantic level.  While this particular posting relates to how we process the information about words, I believe it serves as a good model for how the brain can process all manner of information.  The structural level, as the most shallow layer of processing, deals only with the outward appearance of the word.  The phonetic level, the second layer of processing, relates to the learner listening to the sound of the word while the semantic level is where the learner actually considers the meaning of the word.  All three of these areas are used when processing information about a word and, similarly, all three of these areas can be related to other areas such as math where the structural stage is where the learner examines the outward appearance of an equation, the phonetic level is where the learner deals with the sound of the equation and the semantic level where the learner considers the meaning of the equation.

Educational Theory and Practice

This blog site deals with learning theory ad how it relates to instructional design.  This site presents some of the findings related to how the brain and learning work for students with diverse learning styles and also provides insights into how instructional designers can create learning experiences that will be meaningful and effective.  For example, this blog features posts on how to help learners with AD/HD challenges beginning with outlining some of the challenges in learning faced by students with this disorder then moves to strategies for creating academic success.  Additionally, other articles address the issues of learner intrinsic motivation (how the learner approaches learning) and using mobile technologies to increase learning and problem solving.

Some Excellent Blogs and Resources for Instructional Designers

As instructional designers, it is imperative to stay up on some of the best practices that are evolving in the field.  To that end, I have examined several blog sites relating to instructional design and highlighted why they are excellent resources for those of us in the field.


1) IDDBlog

This blog, sponsored by DePaul University, provides contributions from a wide variety of instructional designers working at many different levels.  This blog provides many ideas about implementing new strategies as well as ways to enhance current strategies to make them more engaging.

• Gamification: In a post by Kevin Lyon entitled Gaming the System: Understanding How Games Can Influence Course Designs, and Why You'd Want Them To, the author discusses how the use of games in a course can enhance learning in a variety of subjects.  While this subject has oft been discussed, many institutions have been slow to adopt employing games into their pedagogy.  This post makes a strong case for changing our mindset about using games in courses.
• Threaded Discussions: In a post by Ashanti Morgan entitled Reviving Threaded Discussions: Strategies to Enhance Virtual Conversations, the author provides thoughtful examples of how discussion prompts can be created that provide a better experience for students.  I found that these strategies could be employed when collaborating with faculty.

2) Corporate eLearning Strategies and Development

This blog page is focused more on the corporate training aspect of instructional design and provides some excellent ideas and resources for making training courses/modules effective.

• Storytelling in Training: In a post entitled Is Classic Storytelling a Good Model for Corporate Training?, the author outlines how a classical story model could be used to create training for corporations.  This can also be used in creating courses in academia.  Understanding how storytelling (referencing some of the models set forth by Joseph Campbell) can be employed as a means of transferring knowledge is a valuable tool for any instructional designer.
• Reflections on the Future of Education and Training: In a post entitled Future Thoughts: Degrees, Certifications, Certificates Become Meaningless, the author discusses a trend that is taking hold throughout the corporate world, that is what is the value of degrees and certifications?  Although Mark Cuban is one of the commentators, the article still has value as instructional designers look toward the future of their field.

3) The Rapid eLearning Blog

This blog provides effective strategies for designing elearning courses.  In addition to pedagogical suggestions, the blog also provides resources for the instructional designer that could be used in their own contexts.

• Building Interactive Scenarios: In a post entitled How to Build Better Interactive Scenarios for E-Learning, the author provides a list of principles that can be employed by instructional designers as they create activities to enhance student learning.
• Designing Courses to Satisfy All Online Learners: In a post entitled How to Build a Course that Satisfies Many Online Learners, the author outlines some of the different types of learners that we as instructional designers will encounter when we create courses.  Additionally, the post outlines strategies for reaching the various learner types.