Cognitivism in Practice

There are many different ways to learn content material but when we are given an opportunity to interact with the material we are trying to digest we tend to be able to draw on the experience of learning as well as the process itself. As an instructor, I can lecture to my students and have them take notes on the content material. I may be very good at commanding the attention of most of the class, but there will be those who just tune out and write the notes without much of it sinking in. The experience is what their minds make it, some will be able to gain knowledge from the information, but for the most part it will require more on task time with a notebook and possibly flashcards or some sort of strategy to memorize the content material.
Using technology to interact with the material will peak their interest, stimulate their minds, and provide a visual montage to keep their brain engaged. Using concept maps provide a way to organize a lesson around the subject material and perhaps even permits collaboration with group interaction. With the different sites available today, teachers have a much broader toolbox to implement their objectives. So many of the sites are interactive and permit the user to convey their interpretation of the topic or subject material. Students are able to create projects such as creating animated snapshots they can set to music, PowerPoint presentations, stationary cartoons, review games, and now I am working on a new site that permits students to create their own animated cartoons with a multitude of characters. The possibilities seem endless for the creative instructor. However, I must confess that I am a better thief than an innovator and because of my being a digital immigrant; I tend to be behind the curve a bit.
Lastly, one of the interesting things about introducing concept mapping, virtual field trips and other visuals, is that it gives the students more control of the content material and permits them to think about it while they are thinking about how to share it with everyone else (and their teacher). Again it provides a skill that will be used beyond the classroom as well, that is to say, more authentic than just reading it from the text, or listening to a lecture.

Behaviorism in Practice

Many of today's education websites include activities and and games for students to peruse while studying or completing homework. Just as the sites are informative, they are also heavily grounded in a reward or punishment (as not moving on to the next level, or page) system. While education is ever changing, some things remain a constant. Human behavior is intrinsic and has to be molded as the individual matures. Students also mature at different times. Some students learn very quickly that completing a project that was difficult is very rewarding. Others will stray from a challenge, or procrastinate until the very last, or they will only do the absolute minimum. With today's technology, a teacher has a tool to level the playing field. Students can be stimulated to peak their interest, or they can reinforce areas where they struggle. In this week's course resources, there were several sites that offered a tremendous amount of help for a student as well as a teacher. It became apparent that with the proper planning, many of the sites can be used in class, or implemented as homework. They can be used in conjunction with a lesson, or they can be an addition to or reinforcement of the lesson. In the content area I teach, homework assignments are limited, yet there are a number of different paths to take to build the Social Studies skills such as recognizing bias, or cause and effect relationship. Even though it is a bit more abstract than conducting a scientific experiment where one can actually see the process, the sites provided, one in particular, was able to address a very abstract concept and produce a visual of it. For a student who is trying to grasp the concept, it is an extremely valuable tool. Therefore I found exploring the sites very interesting and at least I felt I had a more clear understanding of the philosophy behind the development of the sites.