JOT2 – LEARNING THEORIES

Cindy Drake-Whitehead

Student ID: 000423551

JOT2 Issues in Instructional Design – Task 2

Western Governor’s University

Mentor: Karen Lamb

Task A: Learning Theories & Learners

Constructivism, Cognitivism, Behaviorism

Constructivism is Beneficial for Learners Who:• Have an ill-defined problem with multiple ways

of solving• Are creating and designing projects, such as

websites and art• Need to work in groups with peers• Need to construct their own knowledge while in

real-world situations

Cognitivism is Beneficial for Learners Who:

• Need to classify and organize information• Need to apply rules and execute procedures• Have little knowledge of a subject and need

to mimic the instructor• Need explanations and demonstrations of

the new material• Have prior knowledge and must link to it to

learn even more

Behaviorism is Beneficial for Learners Who• Need to memorize new subject material• Require feedback for reinforcement• Are learning material that requires a low level of

processing• Need to respond the same way every time to a

stimulus• Need to act quickly and automatically to a cue

Task B: Learning Theory Used in Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan: Using Household Measures in Pharmacy Calculations (Green and Ballington, 2013)

Why the Lesson Plan (Green and Ballington, 2013) Demonstrates Cognitivism

● Builds on students’ prior knowledge● Teacher demonstrates equations on the board● Teacher models measuring substances for students

to mimic● The equations are put into context● Students perform tasks with defined, sequential

steps

Task C: Adaptation of Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan Adapted to a Behaviorist Theory.

Cognitivist Lesson Plan Modified to Behaviorism• Have students memorize standard temperatures

in Celsius and Fahrenheit • Keep records of students’ efforts and reward

highest achievers• Drill and practice in the classroom• Create computer games for repeated practice • Use flashcards to teach the units and equations• Give immediate positive or negative feedback to

students

Task D: Lesson Plan Discussion

Cognitivism Chosen for Lesson Plan

● Students need teachers to perform the equations first– model and demonstrate

● Mastering equations is less about memorizing, rather it is understanding why you do each step

● Students must master sequential steps in response to different stimuli

● Students require prior knowledge – units, measurements

● Multiple ways to solve some equations

Cognitivism Chosen for Lesson Plan

Task E: Effective Instruction Through the Use of Design Theories

Benefits of Using the Theories of Design

• Focuses attention on the desired results of instruction

• Helps designers know which info is essential, is important, or just nice to know

• Focuses on activities that provide evidence of a student’s understanding

• Students learn about topics that engage and interest them

• Data from student evaluations allow for tweaking of instruction

Task F: Design Theories

Strengths and Limitations: ● Wiggins● Gagne● Teaching for Understand (The Harvard

model)

Strengths of Wiggins Theory

• The instruction is focused on what students need to know to get the end results• Assessments are conceived before lessons and

activities – makes lesson planning easier• No excess information is taught – less confusion for

students and teachers• Feedback from evaluation and peers is frequent –

able to tweak instruction quickly• Based on clearly defined goals

Limitations of Wiggins

• It is a time consuming process – may take a few years to fully develop instruction• Can be difficult for veteran teachers – hard to

grasp creating assessments before lessons• Heavily dependent on assessments to drive

instruction• May focus too much on results and goals and not

enough on individual learning styles and student needs

Strengths of Gagne’s Events

• Keeps learners engaged in the classroom• Students’ prior knowledge is strengthened as they

use it as a base for new knowledge• Modeling by teachers allows students to learn by

aural and visual cues.• Teachers have a structured formula for the

classroom• Encourages transfer of learning to new situations

Limitations of Gagne’s Events• Does not fit with every learning style – some

students need less structure and more learner-centered activities• Does not allow for much teaching flexibility• 9 events can be tedious on the teacher and

student• May encourage passivity in the learner – not

enough encouragement to discover information on their own

Strengths of Teaching for Understanding• Emphasizes using generative topics for student

engagement – topics that have multiple points of interest for students• Goals for understanding are clearly outlined, making

teaching and curriculum design easier• Encourages activities that demonstrate students’

understanding of the material• Emphasizes ongoing assessments for continual

feedback to encourage student improvement• Builds on the students’ previous knowledge

Weaknesses of Teaching for Understanding

• Constant assessments required for feedback can be stressful on the teacher and student• Creating assessments is time consuming• Constant test taking and projects are stressful on the

student• Students understand in different ways. Some

activities that prove understanding will not work for every student• TFU may not be ideal for short-term instruction

due to time-consuming nature

Task G: Most Suitable Design Process

Wiggins – Understanding By Design

● The pharmacy calculations course is completely online, which lends itself to Backward Design

● Learning goals are stated first – students know what is expected of them on the national certification exam

● Assessments are then created to match the content of the national exam

● Lessons are then created – games, quizzes, worksheets to teach the math calculations found on the assessments and national exam

Wiggins – Most Suitable Design Theory

● According to the learner analysis, my students tend to fear pharmacy math

● Knowing what is expected of them from the beginning reduces stress and confusion

● Assessments are very important for the learner to prove to themselves that they are ready to sit for the national exam

Wiggins – Most Suitable Design Theory

• Green, T., & Ballington, D. (2013). Pharmacy Calculations for Technicians, 5th Edition Chapter 5 Lesson Plan. Retrieved from irc.emcp.com: http://irc.emcp.com/index.php?titleID=2884&title=Pharmacy%20Calculations%20For%20Technicians%205E

Works Cited