I am finding it difficult to complete the weekly assigned readings without losing interest. The texts are theory laden, extremely technical, and lack explicit connection to a group of students with whom I can identify. However, I am able to make connections to my personal experiences and am excited about understanding the theories of cognitive development.
Teaching is a social experience. I enjoy observing and interacting with students and teachers daily. Often the scientific theories behind what we do in the classroom are not part of my daily thinking, but they will be. When we learned about the Simon’s Informational Processing Theory this week I was able make numerous connections to the learning of students and reaffirmed in my own mind the importance of schema.
Students need to have opportunities to build a strong foundation in educational concepts before progressing to learning that extends the basic concepts. I think that school systems are pushing teachers to move their students to the next level of thinking without ensuring that learners have mastered the basics in all subject areas. The push for progress for the sake of progress is not honoring students’ learning and development.
I am going to need help remembering which theorist believed what ideas. The author referring to the theorist that inspired them often confuses me. Are they are attempting to build upon current educational beliefs or disprove long held theories. Repeated expose to the texts will help solidify this information.
Hi Meghan,
ReplyDeleteI like it when you said, “However, I am able to make connections to my personal experiences and am excited about understanding the theories of cognitive development.” I, too, found the Cog Dev texts a bit tough. In my own case, I certainly had to reread the articles more than once. (Dr. Rinne said this himself at the start of the course.) But you know what….in the past I felt in some education courses I was being “spoon fed” the material. As I gained more confidence with the neuroscience concepts, I started to welcome the challenge we’re given in the MBT program.
Speaking of Information Processing Models let me share with you another version of the same thing. It is an awesome concept map or “schema” that has been very, very helpful to me over the years. It is a graphic designed to show how the brain processes information. The concept map was developed by David Sousa, a highly thought-of author and “interpreter of neuroscience.” All the “Big Themes” we encounter as we learn about the brain, such as, attention, memory, and emotion are represented on Sousa’s map.
http://www.dialogueonlearning.tc3.edu/model/environment/brainfunction-grp.htm
Okey Dokey - Let me calm your nerves. Please do not worry about “remembering which theorist believed what ideas.” Most of the “theorists” described in Chapter One are of interest mainly for historical or foundational purposes. The most important things to understand are how the various brain systems function and interconnect. Example, how do emotions (negatively or positively) affect memory or how does the phonological system work or how do the executive functions impact attention. That is what we practitioners need to know to do our jobs better. By the end of the program all this information will be “second nature” to you!
Best regards,
Sharon
PS If you are having any concerns, please feel free to give me a call. My number is 410-692-5344. Note: I don’t always get my messages (my husband has Alzheimer’s), so if you call and I am not home send me an email & I’ll call you back.