Learning Theories Module
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Reflections
New challenges & new opportunities
Today marked the first day of the MSc in Applied Elearning.
This marks an important milestone as it signals the start of a new venture - M Sc in applied eLearning.
As with any new challenge or venture you approach it with a certain amount of apprehension but you also
a certain level of excitement. I am looking forward to getting started and I 'm eager to find out what exactly
the course entails and keen to get a sense of what the course has to offer.
We were given a brief introduction to the overall course and were asked to capture our hopes, fears and expectations as we start out on our new learning journey.We were advised that the Masters consisted of 90 ECTS “European Credit Transfers” and the first module on this course namely Learning Theories would account for 5 ECT’S.There was some excellent tips given in class for researching relevant papers, libraries, books and journals which I will take on board for the course.
With this in mind Muireann advised as to capture our hope, fears and expectations for the duration for the course over
the next few years. A useful and worthwhile exercise as it will be very interesting to look back two years from now to see how my knowledge, experience, skill set has evolved and if indeed these initial expectations will be meet.
Reflective blog - September 18th
Today we looked more in depth into the learning theories of behaviourism and cognitiism.This helped me gain a better understanding and insight of the principles behind the theory and was able to relate to how I have adopted these learning approaches in my own professional practice.
The one thing I taken from the M Sc to date is that it allows one to reflect upon their own practice and provides an opportunity to critique one’s own work and analyse how one has approached learning from both a learner’s and a trainers perspective. I wasn't aware that such theories existed nor was I aware that subconsciously I was adopting some of these principles to my everyday working practise. It provided an opportunity to examine how I, in my role as an I.T support specialist/trainer deal with people and has led me evaluate my approach and see if I can take on board some of the principles I have learnt to date in this first module.
Learning Theories Presentation
Today each member of the class was given an opportunity to give a brief overview of their learning theories paper.
We were given a couple of minutes each to pitch our proposals for our papers and it proved to be a worthwhile exercise.
It was interesting to listen to other members of the class discuss their own papers and the feedback throughout today’s session was invaluable.
The two theories that identified with in my own practice is behaviourism and social constructivism.
In preparation for this session I created a one page summary document for my own paper which can be seen below.The final version of the learning theories paper is available under the learning theories menu.
Overall Reflections on the Learnings Theories Module and Paper
Writing the final paper provided me with the opportunity to critically reflect and evaluate my role as an I.T support specialist. Prior to commencing this module I had came across terms such as behavioural and cognitive psychology but never truly appreciated their meaning or implications for learning , teaching and training. Kurt Lewins now infamous quote “there is nothing so practical as a good theory” could never be more accurate, even if it has taken completion of this module to fully comprehend and appreciate this statement. My learning experiences over the past few weeks has led me to developed a greater understanding and appreciation of the teaching philosophies and how they align to educational /instructional practice
From time to time I’m tasked with training staff on various software applications and systems. I have always adopted a behaviourist approach to training in my role as an I.T trainer. I put this down to a number of reasons, (a) if was the teaching philosophies I had grown accustomed to in my own educational and professional experience, (b) I wasn’t really aware of other approaches, and (c)despite its limitations it has benefits – evaluate one skill set and/or level of knowledge and it has clearly defined learning objectives.
When training staff I try to draw on positive experiences from my own educational or professional experience of being the learner. I try to be enthusiastic, clear, and concise and make sure that the learners have a clear understanding and knowledge of what it is I’m training on this. This is typically achieved by a question and answer forum an encouraging learners to put forward their own ideas. Inevitably training people on I.T applications has close ties to behaviourist principles , such as clearly defined learning objectives, repetition and practice or what Conner refers to as “drill and practice”. It also tends to be instructor led. The main issue I have discovered with training staff on software programs is that without repetition and practice the learners forget the content taught to them This module however has given me a fresh perspective whilst also providing me the opportunity to re-examine how I might approach training staff differently in the future, something which I alluded to in the final draft of the learning theories paper. Peer tutoring, working collaboratively and learning from other peoples experiences are some of the concepts that underpin social constructivism. The challenge for me in is to incorporate these social constructivist ideas into my role as an I.T trainer as I believe this will create a more stimulating, engaging and rewarding learning experience, as is the case with the M Sc.
In terms of the course itself, one of the pleasing aspects is the classroom interaction and sense of camaraderie. Discussion, debate and exchange of ideas are constantly encouraged in what I can only describe as a trusted and open forum. It has been a sharp learning curve in which I learnt a lot about myself and my approach to teaching and learning.
References...
Carlile, O., & Jordon, A. (2003). It works in practice but will it work in theory? The theoretical underpinnings of pedagogy. Retrieved 2012, from All Ireland Society for Higher Education (AISHE): http://www.aishe.org/readings/2005-1/carlile-jordan-IT_WORKS_IN_PRACTICE_BUT_WILL_IT_WORK_IN_THEORY.html
Conner, M. L. (2012). A Primer on Educational Psychology. Retrieved from Marcia Conner Business Culture, Collaboration, and Learning: http://marciaconner.com/resources/edpsych/
Smith, M. (2001). kurt lewin: groups, experiential learning and action research. Retrieved from infed- the encyclopaedia of informal education: http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-lewin.htm
Bigge, & Shermis. (2006). Learning theories for teachers. Lanham, Md: University Press of America.
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