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Lecture 1:�Topic 7-8

Dr Tan Kok Wei

ELC612

Learning and Cognition

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Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lecture, you should be able to:

  1. Evaluate different theories of learning (T1, T2, T3, T4) and apply them in teaching
  2. Help learner improve their ability of stay attentive, retain information (T4)
  3. Defend the importance of constructivism in learning (T5)
  4. Distinguish thinking and metacognition (T6, T7)
  5. Help boost critical and creative thinking (T7)

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Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lecture, you should be able to:

  1. Examine how individual difference and task types may have impact on learning and its outcomes (T8)
  2. Distinguish between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
  3. Boost motivation of learners
  4. List and discuss the importance milestone of reading

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Thinking

Bartlett (1958) Fraenkel (1980): fill in gaps and reorganization of information

Dewey (1933): examine and evaluate information based on certain criteria

Chaffee (1988): used in making decisions and solving problems

Bourne, Ekstrand and Dominowski (1985): involve symbolic representation of events and objects

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Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lecture, you should be able to:

  1. Evaluate different theories of learning (T1, T2, T3, T4) and apply them in teaching
  2. Help learner improve their ability of stay attentive, retain information (T4)
  3. Defend the importance of constructivism in learning (T5)
  4. Distinguish thinking and metacognition (T6, T7)
  5. Help boost critical and creative thinking (T7)

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Good (Critical) Thinker

  • Intrinsic motivation can be also be beneficial: Give rewards sparingly, especially on tasks of natural interest

Welcome dynamic and challenging task

Open to various possibilities and perspectives

Seek clarity

Seek evidence (ask good questions)

Reflective

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Divergent Thinking

  • True creativity requires both styles operating dynamically
  • Wallas outlined four-stages of creative insights
    1. Preparation: Collect info, define problem
    2. Incubation: Stepping away from the problem
    3. Illumination: Aha, a sudden flash of insight
    4. Verification: Refinement and evaluation

Feature

Divergent

Convergent

Cognitive Goal

Generate multiple novel solutions or possibilities

Find the single best or correct answer

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Divergent Thinking

  • True creativity requires both styles operating dynamically
  • Wallas outlined four-stages of creative insights
    1. Preparation: Collect info, define problem
    2. Incubation: Stepping away from the problem
    3. Illumination: Aha, a sudden flash of insight
    4. Verification: Refinement and evaluation

Feature

Divergent

Convergent

Cognitive Goal

Generate multiple novel solutions or possibilities

Find the single best or correct answer

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Boosting Creativity

  1. Accept change as the only constant
  2. Realise that some problems have no easy answers
  3. Recognise that many problem have a number of possible answers
  4. No guilty for trying and failing
  5. Reward for dare to try and be different
  6. Develop perseverance �

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Individual Differences

  • Learner differs in attitudes, interests, aptitudes, abilities and knowledge, broadly under two main factors:

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LEARNING TRAITS

    • Preferred way of processing information
    • Personality, including motivation
    • Prior knowledge

LEARNING TASKS

    • Skills activated depend on the task: going beyond given text requires the learner to draw inferences

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Age Differences

Piaget argues that children are "active scientists" who construct their own understanding of the world

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Age Differences

Piaget argues that children are "active scientists" who construct their own understanding of the world

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Learning Taxonomy

  • While cognitive learning spans six levels, but classroom tests heavily over-index on basic recall (Bloom et al., 1956)

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Question?

End of T7 and T8