This week’s EDUC 6115-5 assignment is to reflect upon my
first discussion post and explore changes in my perception due to my rumored increased
knowledge. This post is going to be one those personal reflection moments.
Question #1:Now that you have a deeper understanding of the different
learning theories and learning styles, how has your view on how you learn
changed?
Answer #1:My view of how I learn has not changed very much. However, I
do understand more of why certain methods work for me. I originally stated
that I learn best by using visual resources. Well that is true but only part of the
story. I realize now that if what I am seeing visually is tied to something I
already know, the chances of retaining that knowledge increase exponentially. I
also need time to understand what I have seen. The need for quiet study time to
reflect is also a trait I now see in myself. But most importantly, I have
learned in order to help myself become a more effective learner I need to read and “hear”
my classmate’s explanations in their discussion posts and take the time to
reflect upon their perceptions. In doing that, I gain a much deeper
understanding.
Question #2:What have you learned
about the various learning theories and learning styles over the past weeks
that can further explain your own personal learning preferences?
Answer #2:In the past few weeks, I learned about Social Constructivism.
This theory is basically that groups construct knowledge for one another,
collaboratively creating a small culture of shared artifacts with shared
meanings. Combine that with Connectivism, knowledge that is distributed across
a network of connections to people and information and you have many of the components I described above what I always
called old fashioned team-work. Of course, there are many aspects to team-work but that is a
post for another day.
Question #3:What role does
technology play in your learning (i.e., as a way to search for information, to
record information, to create, etc.)?
Answer #3:The very fact that I am in pursuit of an online Masters
speaks volumes about how important technology is interconnected into my
learning. In our ever changing and globalizing society, the access to computer
and internet has opened up an entire world of "on demand" research and somewhat
instantaneous answers. Of course, I have to be careful to scrutinize my
information according to relevance, context, authorship, time stamp, and a few other
topic dependent criteria. It is still amazing to me that I have everything from
opinion pieces to fully refereed papers available to me. One of the most
important features is the ability to collaborate and create in a space
accessible to the world. For instance, this blog is available to all who wish to
read it.
No comments:
Post a Comment