Section II-Theories and Models of Learning and Instruction

Epistemology seeks to answer questions such as “what is knowledge?” and “how is knowledge acquired?” Epistemology or underlying beliefs about knowledge provide the foundation for a philosopher’s model of instruction, thus influencing specific instructional methods to obtain knowledge. An example is Skinner’s theory of radical behaviorism which dealt with empirical knowledge, or knowledge gained by observation. Skinner’s instructional methods were influenced by the Positivist viewpoint, that scientific knowledge is the only form of authoritative knowledge. Epistemology theories are important to consider because they impact how one views instruction, the role of the learner and teacher, as well the methods and tools instructors use to achieve learner outcomes.

 

A contextualist epistemology is one uses the term “know” dependent on context. In other words, one makes meaning of a situation based on one’s language and surroundings. The objectivist/positivist epistemology defines knowledge as only relative if it can be observed. The subjectivist/relativist epistemology defines knowledge based on one’s beliefs. A contextualist epistemology is different from these epistemologies because it states that knowledge is useful if it is relative to the context in which it occurs.  Vygostsky’s social constructivism theory is an example of contextualism because learning was achieved through everyday settings and tools that were prevalent in a culture. A teacher who has a social constructivist approach creates lessons and activities for learning that are similar to situations students use outside of school, and allows time for discussion and group activities to make concepts more meaningful.  Vygostsky believed one should use any tools available for transfer of knowledge, and if he were alive today, he would be a big fan of blogging, Facebook and Twitter.  While social contructivism concentrates on deeper conceptual knowledge, the behaviorist approach places a focus on external and observable behaviors. The teacher distributes all of the knowledge, and then rewards the student for correct observed behavior. Many activities we do today are influenced by this philosophy, for example, the benchmark tests our students take each six weeks are formative assessments carried out to test if the intervention (instruction) has been effective. Another behaviorist method we use on our elementary campus is our system of rewarding good behavior—students carry “punch-cards” with them from class to class, and teachers give hole-punches for good behavior.

A behaviorist method of teaching is less likely to acknowledge the importance of relevancy in solving problems, and more interested in monitoring progress and reinforcing correct behavior to achieve established learning goals. This method also requires students to master content before applying their knowledge to a problem; on the contrary, constructivist models of problem-solving assume students will achieve mastery of content in the process. Chapter 7 mentions two kinds of problems: well-structured and ill-structured problems.  Word problems are well-structured problems that may or may not have relevance to students and are still predominant in standardized testing today. As a consequence, problems that have no relevancy provide little motivation for students. Reiser states “the industrial-age paradigm systematically destroys self-motivation by removing all self-direction and giving students boring work that is not relevant to their lives” (p.79). Ill-structured problems, on the other hand, would be more suited to a constructivist approach because they resemble problems in the “real world” such as decision making, troubleshooting and policy problems. Problem-based learning, which is grounded in the constructivist theory, supports meaningful connections, thus providing a degree of motivation to students.



I think, therefore I am...dangerous!

This week’s reading was somewhat of a cognitive over-load, if you will, and my brain is still trying to free up some short-term memory space:) Nonetheless, it has implications for those of us who are involved in education, and that is the fact that “what is knowledge?” has been researched, tested, studied and applied by many individuals through Earth’s history and we would be careless not to learn from the individuals who came before us.