Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
"Can an understanding of how the brain works really improve your instructional design? Don't just assume it can, but critically consider the evidence and how it might be used in practice?"
It seems intuitive that an instructor’s knowledge of the brain and its functions would help him or her to design more effective instruction. In situations where learners have damaged areas of the brain, I believe an understanding of neurons, synaptic connections, neurotransmitters, and the four brain lobes (frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal) could inform an instructional designer’s selection and modification of methods and materials. Designers could draw from a repository of teaching strategies to compensate for vision, speech, hearing, as well as information processing deficits.
The brain and its structures will not function optimally if an individual is malnourished, dehydrated, or exhausted. From an educational standpoint, teachers in my district typically monitor students to ensure that their basic needs are met. As far as adult learners are concerned, I can not guarantee that someone in my training class is not hungry, thirsty or tired. The company can provide lunch or I can provide brief coffee/snack breaks, but I do not have much control over this issue.
I also considered how medications and illegal drugs could impair neurotransmitters’ ability to send, receive, and interpret messages; I have a file full of teaching strategies for ADHD students on Ritalin or other medications. In adult education, however, I will not have any idea if students are taking medications or illegal drugs that impede the learning process. Imagine this: an adult
learner informs me that he or she is a recreational drug user and needs differentiated instruction to compensate for his/her inability to process information effectively. Not a very likely scenario!
I also thought deeply about teaching strategies that pinpoint different areas of the brain, yet none came to mind. Even more importantly, I could not really articulate what the benefits of stimulating one area of the brain over another would be. So, I tried to locate two resources to shed light not only on the benefits of brain-based teaching but also specific strategies inherent in this approach.
After sifting through more than 20 peer-reviewed journal articles in Academic Search Premiere, I became frustrated by the lack of current research (within ten years) as well as application to adult learners. Finally, I located a 2006 journal article in New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education titled “Brain Function and Adult Learning.” The author posits that “learning is always about memory, that is, about creating lasting neural connections (p.72). In order to forge these lasting connections, Taylor emphasizes the importance of connecting new
information with learners’ prior experiences and knowledge, and suggests that the brain naturally searches for prior experiences to connect with new data. She asserts that experiential learning--personal narratives and writing-to-learn activities—utilize both hemispheres of
the brain and encourage students to negotiate their personal experiences as well as beliefs with new data to generate a new level of comprehension. Blogging is an example of writing- to-learn, because it allows students to explore new topics through writing and negotiating meaning internally—with learner’s own experiences-- and externally with other bloggers’ insightful contributions. Please peruse this website to learn more about research supporting the benefits of blogging: http://www.bcs.org/upload/pdf/ewic_hc07_sppaper1.pdf
Taylor also probes the difference between fact based learning (veridical) and problem based learning (non-veridical). Fact based learning occurs in the frontal cortex and challenges students to memorize data rather than manipulate it to construct new knowledge (p.78). In contrast, problem based learning occurs in the back cortex and challenges learners to analyze, compare, and interpret information.
She also suggests the important role that emotions play in long term memory. Strong emotions tend to imprint experiences well into our LTM while anxiety can impede the brain’s processing abilities and ability to recall information (p.81).
While I agree with many of Taylor’s assertions, which also resonate with chapter three of our text, I am not completely convinced that brain based learning and strategies are the magic bullet of instructional design. I would argue, however, that this area of research is informative and can contribute to a dynamic instructional plan.
References:
I placed Taylor's article in the docshare folder:
Taylor, K. (2006). Brain function and adult learning: Implications for practice. New Directions For Adult & Continuing Education, (110), 71-85.
http://www.bcs.org/upload/pdf/ewic_hc07_sppaper1.pdf
It seems intuitive that an instructor’s knowledge of the brain and its functions would help him or her to design more effective instruction. In situations where learners have damaged areas of the brain, I believe an understanding of neurons, synaptic connections, neurotransmitters, and the four brain lobes (frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal) could inform an instructional designer’s selection and modification of methods and materials. Designers could draw from a repository of teaching strategies to compensate for vision, speech, hearing, as well as information processing deficits.
The brain and its structures will not function optimally if an individual is malnourished, dehydrated, or exhausted. From an educational standpoint, teachers in my district typically monitor students to ensure that their basic needs are met. As far as adult learners are concerned, I can not guarantee that someone in my training class is not hungry, thirsty or tired. The company can provide lunch or I can provide brief coffee/snack breaks, but I do not have much control over this issue.
I also considered how medications and illegal drugs could impair neurotransmitters’ ability to send, receive, and interpret messages; I have a file full of teaching strategies for ADHD students on Ritalin or other medications. In adult education, however, I will not have any idea if students are taking medications or illegal drugs that impede the learning process. Imagine this: an adult
learner informs me that he or she is a recreational drug user and needs differentiated instruction to compensate for his/her inability to process information effectively. Not a very likely scenario!
I also thought deeply about teaching strategies that pinpoint different areas of the brain, yet none came to mind. Even more importantly, I could not really articulate what the benefits of stimulating one area of the brain over another would be. So, I tried to locate two resources to shed light not only on the benefits of brain-based teaching but also specific strategies inherent in this approach.
After sifting through more than 20 peer-reviewed journal articles in Academic Search Premiere, I became frustrated by the lack of current research (within ten years) as well as application to adult learners. Finally, I located a 2006 journal article in New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education titled “Brain Function and Adult Learning.” The author posits that “learning is always about memory, that is, about creating lasting neural connections (p.72). In order to forge these lasting connections, Taylor emphasizes the importance of connecting new
information with learners’ prior experiences and knowledge, and suggests that the brain naturally searches for prior experiences to connect with new data. She asserts that experiential learning--personal narratives and writing-to-learn activities—utilize both hemispheres of
the brain and encourage students to negotiate their personal experiences as well as beliefs with new data to generate a new level of comprehension. Blogging is an example of writing- to-learn, because it allows students to explore new topics through writing and negotiating meaning internally—with learner’s own experiences-- and externally with other bloggers’ insightful contributions. Please peruse this website to learn more about research supporting the benefits of blogging: http://www.bcs.org/upload/pdf/ewic_hc07_sppaper1.pdf
Taylor also probes the difference between fact based learning (veridical) and problem based learning (non-veridical). Fact based learning occurs in the frontal cortex and challenges students to memorize data rather than manipulate it to construct new knowledge (p.78). In contrast, problem based learning occurs in the back cortex and challenges learners to analyze, compare, and interpret information.
She also suggests the important role that emotions play in long term memory. Strong emotions tend to imprint experiences well into our LTM while anxiety can impede the brain’s processing abilities and ability to recall information (p.81).
While I agree with many of Taylor’s assertions, which also resonate with chapter three of our text, I am not completely convinced that brain based learning and strategies are the magic bullet of instructional design. I would argue, however, that this area of research is informative and can contribute to a dynamic instructional plan.
References:
I placed Taylor's article in the docshare folder:
Taylor, K. (2006). Brain function and adult learning: Implications for practice. New Directions For Adult & Continuing Education, (110), 71-85.
http://www.bcs.org/upload/pdf/ewic_hc07_sppaper1.pdf
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Reviewing Instructional Design Blogs
1. Experiencing E-Learning; http://christytucker.wordpress.com/
A. Design:
The blog is visually appealing with a main window and side bar panel. The content is well-organized, clearly labeled, and easy to navigate.
B. Content:
Main Window:
· Current thread:“Revisiting Learning Styles”
· Weekly Bookmarks: (if you click “the rest of my favorite links HERE,” it takes you to Tucker’s
public Diigo library, which is filled with a stockpile of 1,500 articles.
· Book Review:Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen
Side Bar:
· Biography; Portfolio data- she invests significant effort detailing her credentials,journey into Instructional Design, and current endeavors in her own ID company.
·Categories:ISD; Careers; Blogging; Tools
·Careers in ISD: skills, responsibilities, opportunities
·Recent posts and monthly archives search
· Blogroll: blogs she’s following
C. Usefulness:
Tucker’s blog offers a tremendous number of resources probing education, e-learning, learning, instructional design, research, higher education, tools, and web design. What makes it even better is the ease of navigating through each category of information. Considering the depth and
breadth of resources offered, readers really do not need to shop around to other blogs to find additional information.
2.
Multimedia Learning; http://multimedialearning.com/
A. Design:
This blog really pops with visuals, videos, and eye-catching details in the main frame. The side bar has recent posts as well as comments for readers to peruse.
B. Content:
· Tutorials: I was amazed at all of the videos demonstrating how to use multimedia tools in software such as Articulate, Captivate, Lectora, Powerpoint, and others.
·Archives Tab: This is the real gem of the blog, because it features 26 different categories, many of them different authoring software that Instructional Designers need to know. The archive also features the last 100 posts by topic.
C. Usefulness:
Although this site is not even close to offering the amount of resources as Christy Tucker features on her blog above, Multimedia learning can help fledgling Instructional Design see snappy examples of authoring software as well as learn how to built these tools into training.
3.
Julian Stodd’s Learning Blog; http://julianstodd.wordpress.com/
A. Design:
This blog is very simple in nature with the current thread in the main window and learning cloud, recent posts, blogroll, archives, Twitter Updates, and Tagcloud in the side bar. It is not as well organized as the other blogs. When the reader clicks on the “Learning” cloud, the site pulls up 116topics in the main window. Readers have to scroll down through roughly ten topics
before going to the next page. There is no way to see all 116 topics down into phrases, so readers can quickly pick and choose what they’re looking for. Similar structural flaws are evident in the Tagcloud; readers have to scroll through the hits ten per page which is time consuming.
B. Content:
oCommunication
oE-Learning
oInstructional Design
oLearning
oSocial Media
oTechnology
oWriting
C. Usefulness:
This blog is more reflective than informative when compared with the other two blogs reviewed. Stodd’s posts force readers to examine issues, practices, and tools. Unlike Tucker’s content rich resources that inform and educate readers about timely topics and issues, this blog probes into them and challenges the audience to view the topic through a different lens. For example, Stodd discusses an upcoming presentation he will deliver on formal and informal communication and stresses the value of engaging an audience in all of those channels. Stodd’s blog will certainly have readers asking more questions about themselves and their craft rather than providing
answers!
A. Design:
The blog is visually appealing with a main window and side bar panel. The content is well-organized, clearly labeled, and easy to navigate.
B. Content:
Main Window:
· Current thread:“Revisiting Learning Styles”
· Weekly Bookmarks: (if you click “the rest of my favorite links HERE,” it takes you to Tucker’s
public Diigo library, which is filled with a stockpile of 1,500 articles.
· Book Review:Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen
Side Bar:
· Biography; Portfolio data- she invests significant effort detailing her credentials,journey into Instructional Design, and current endeavors in her own ID company.
·Categories:ISD; Careers; Blogging; Tools
·Careers in ISD: skills, responsibilities, opportunities
·Recent posts and monthly archives search
· Blogroll: blogs she’s following
C. Usefulness:
Tucker’s blog offers a tremendous number of resources probing education, e-learning, learning, instructional design, research, higher education, tools, and web design. What makes it even better is the ease of navigating through each category of information. Considering the depth and
breadth of resources offered, readers really do not need to shop around to other blogs to find additional information.
2.
Multimedia Learning; http://multimedialearning.com/
A. Design:
This blog really pops with visuals, videos, and eye-catching details in the main frame. The side bar has recent posts as well as comments for readers to peruse.
B. Content:
· Tutorials: I was amazed at all of the videos demonstrating how to use multimedia tools in software such as Articulate, Captivate, Lectora, Powerpoint, and others.
·Archives Tab: This is the real gem of the blog, because it features 26 different categories, many of them different authoring software that Instructional Designers need to know. The archive also features the last 100 posts by topic.
C. Usefulness:
Although this site is not even close to offering the amount of resources as Christy Tucker features on her blog above, Multimedia learning can help fledgling Instructional Design see snappy examples of authoring software as well as learn how to built these tools into training.
3.
Julian Stodd’s Learning Blog; http://julianstodd.wordpress.com/
A. Design:
This blog is very simple in nature with the current thread in the main window and learning cloud, recent posts, blogroll, archives, Twitter Updates, and Tagcloud in the side bar. It is not as well organized as the other blogs. When the reader clicks on the “Learning” cloud, the site pulls up 116topics in the main window. Readers have to scroll down through roughly ten topics
before going to the next page. There is no way to see all 116 topics down into phrases, so readers can quickly pick and choose what they’re looking for. Similar structural flaws are evident in the Tagcloud; readers have to scroll through the hits ten per page which is time consuming.
B. Content:
oCommunication
oE-Learning
oInstructional Design
oLearning
oSocial Media
oTechnology
oWriting
C. Usefulness:
This blog is more reflective than informative when compared with the other two blogs reviewed. Stodd’s posts force readers to examine issues, practices, and tools. Unlike Tucker’s content rich resources that inform and educate readers about timely topics and issues, this blog probes into them and challenges the audience to view the topic through a different lens. For example, Stodd discusses an upcoming presentation he will deliver on formal and informal communication and stresses the value of engaging an audience in all of those channels. Stodd’s blog will certainly have readers asking more questions about themselves and their craft rather than providing
answers!
Testing Poll Gadget
Hmm...I am trying out the polling gadget, but the question does not appear above my answer choices. Any suggestions?
Friday, March 2, 2012
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