Week 10's Readings

Webquest

• inquiry-orientated online tool for learning
• a classroom-based lesson in which most or all of the information that students explore & evaluate comes from the World Wide Web
• can be as short as a single class period
  
• can be as long as a month-long unit
  
• usually (but not always) involve group work
• students taking on specific roles
  
• built around resources that are preselected
  
• information is used,NOT searched
  

What ain't WebQuests

• web based lessons taught on a computer screen. e.g. IVLE virtual class
• web based lessons with talking heads e.g. webcast
• do it yourself website
  
• lessons on YouTube

Benefits of Webquests

• encourages critical thinking
• encourages cooperative learning
  
• encourages authentic assessment
• encourages technology integration
• learners given real resources to work with
• learners work together
  
• work with information that is at first,unclear

Limitations of WebQuests

• not the best way to teach factual recall, simple procedures,or definitions
• finding time to design webquests
• using new tools
  
• requires learners to have a certain level of reading ability
• only effective for less defined tasks that invite creativity & problems with several possible solutions (e.g. what should be done to preserve Pulau Ubin's flora & fauna)
  

Components of a Webquest

1. Introduction - provide background information & motivational scenarios, gives overview of learning goals. can be stretched over the course of a long term webquest to engage learners
   
2. Task - formal description of what learners will have to accomplish by the end of the WebQuest.Resources for a topic on the Web is searched for --> An activity that incorporates the information from various sites is devised --> task should be interesting = most difficult & creative aspect
   
3. Process - description of the steps that are required to go through in accomplishing the task,with links embedded in each step
   
4. Resources - a list of resources (bookmarked web sites,print resources etc) that learners will need to complete the task. Recent WebQuests have them embedded within the Process section to be accessed at the apprioprate time.A variety of resources should be used to enhance the WebQuest.
   
5. Evaluation - a rubric for evaluating learners' work.Standards should be fair,clear,consistent,and specific to the tasks set.
   
6. Conclusion - allows learners to reflect on & for teachers to summate.Set aside time for discussion of possible extensions & applications of the lesson,as an honour to the constructivist principle (learn by doing,learn even better by talking about what we did). Encourage learners to suggest ways of doing things differently to improve the lesson
7. Teacher's page

• what is inside
• purpose of webquest
• statement of goals & objectives
  
• target audience
  
• any other info
• credits
  

What makes a good WebQuest

• utilize the Internet
• utilize a scaffolded learning process (temporary frameworks to support learners'performance beyond their capacities, e.g activities that help develop the right mindset, engage learners with the problem, divide activities into manageable tasks & direct students' attention to essential aspects of learning goals)
  
• to turn research based theories into dependable learning-centred practices
• inspire learners to see richer thematic relationships (thematic teaching helps learners understand why they are engaged in the current study;making logical connections among disciplines & thus increasing chance of transferring learning from one context to another, and faciliating of a sound knowledge base)
  
• faciliate a contribution to the real world of learning
  
• reflect on their own metacognitive processes through clever applications of authentic assessment (test their newly constructed knowledge against real world feedback)
  

Week 9's Readings

Problem Solving

The ability to combine previously learned principles,procedures,declarative knowledge & cognitive strategies in a unique way within a domain of content to solve previously unencountered problem

It is different from principle learning as the former requires the selection & combination of multiple principles in order to solve a problem,rather than a single principle.

Therefore,for a learning goal to be regarded as problem solving,it must involve almost simultaneous consideration of principles & procedures within a domain,the careful selection of the principles that are applicable,and the sequencing of the application of the principles so that a problem is solved.

To solve a problem within a domain,one must possess principles,declarative knowledge & cognitive strategies, with application of principles being the most critical component.

This is consistent with heuristic problem solving where no clear procedural rule exists.

Well structured (or well-defined)problems

Problem for which the existing state and desired state are clearly identified, and the method(s) to reach the desired state are obvious

E.g. converting kilograms to grams

Ill structured (or ill-structured)problems

Situation in which its existing state and the desired state are unclear and, hence, methods of reaching the desired state cannot be found.Appropriateness of solutions vary according to the rationale for solution.

E.g. Determining what really happened during the Great Siberian Explosion in 1908

Cognitive Requirements for Problem Solving Learning

(1) Problem Representation

Define & decompose the problem into sub-problems.

For well defined problems, definition involves the identification of apprioprate problem schema - superordinate productions in the if-then form,
with 'if' representing the salient conditions for a particular class of problems(together with related declarative knowledge & principles),
and the 'then' representing the cognitive strategies & principles to support the solution of the problem.

Decomposition of the problem into subproblems can be similiarly straightforward for well defined problems as such problems have corresponding subproblems.

For ill-defined problems, definition inovles skilled strategy to determine what the problem actually is.This is difficult as ill defined problems have

multiple perspectives that represent the problem in a different way,
it requires multiple domains to articulate the problem,
that no actual problem exists in the way it is being presented as one.

To clarify ill structured problems, learners need to identify alternative perspectives of individuals affected by & affecting the solution,and also clarify what is known, what can be found out, and whatm ust remain unknown.Factors other than lack of knowledge that constraint possible solutions ought to be identified.

Solution Planning

It requires searching,selecting,combining,and sequencing relevant knowledge.

Means end strategy:jumping back & forth between desired end and current state,identifying intermediate states & the principles to convert each other to the next intermediate state.

Difference-reduction strategy:attempts to select principles to enact upon the current state to get it to look more & more like the desired state.

Working-back-wards strategy:starts with the desired end state & then selects and applies the principles that will backup to the intermediate state just before the desired state.move on to the next-to-last step & so forth until intermediate stage is reached.

Solution Implementation

To be able to apply multiple pirnciples,one must know the principles,know where to apply to what situation and confirm they have been applied appropriately.

Some instructional strategies use simulations or other types of problem-based learning environments for learners to practice problem solving in a domain without giving them prior experience with the principles that must be considered and sequentially applied to solve the problem presented in the simulation.

Disdavantage: This approach has a high cognitive demand as it requires one to acquire domain-specific principles to the application level at the same time that one learns to identify problems that require applications of multiple principles.

Advantage: Provides an immediate relevancy for why such principles must be learnt.

Solution Evaluation

To get a particular solution,one may need to go through multiple iterations between solution implementation and solution evaluation, trying out multiple solutions until one works.

Confirmation for well defined problems is simple as the system itself provides feedback that the problem is solved.

Determining whether a solution is suitable for an ill defined problem may be difficult. Instructors have to come up with some form of guidance for learners to evaluate, whether it is acceptable to involved parties.

Components of Attitude Learning

(1) The cognitive component consisting of 'knowing how'

A prerequisite that is always present in all examples of attitude learning,hence a part of attitude itself

(2) The behavioural component consisting of the need to apply the attitude - to engage in the behaviou

To actually internalize an attitude,one has to do it.

(3) The affective component consisting of 'knowing why'.

The urge & desire.
Fundamental condition for achievement of affective component = role model

Cognitive Component in Attitude Change & Formation

Attitude includes both knowing how to do something & choosing to do it.

(1) Attending

To be aware
To be willinging to receive
Focus on some parts

(2) Responding

Actually take satisfaction in it
Move from acceptance to willingness to respond to take satisfaction in response to the new attitude
Responding level right at the centre of what is generally meant by appreciation

(3) Valuing

Having subcategories
(a) accepting of the value
(b) preference for a value
(c) commitment

(4) Organization

Goes beyond newfound eclecticism & links with other values
Goes beyond what can be accompished in standard instructional design
Have the organized system of beliefs,commitments & preferences that one associates with another in the particular field

Instructional Conditions for Attitude Objectives

(1) Demonstration of desired behaviour by a respected role model

Important for learners to comprehend & see the model demonstrating the behaviour & being reinforced

Four-step proceduer for use of human models in attitude learning
(a) establish appeal & credibility of role model
(b) stimulate recall of relevant knowledge & concepts
(c) demonstration or communication of desired action by the model
(d) demonstration or communication of reinforcement(positive outcomes)as a result of the action taken

(2) Practice of the desired behaviour(role playing)

Learner activity a powerful tool in attitude formation & change
Provides opportunity within an instructional environemnt
Constitutes another means by which modelling can be employed
Conventional group discussion

(3) Provide reinforcement for the desired behaviour

Reinforcer technically defined as a stimulus that increases the probability of the prceding behaviour re-occuring.
In common terms,reinforcers generally thought as rewards,though not ALL rewards are reinforcing
Praise & reward can be worse than no attempt to reinforce at all,in many situations

Week 8's Readings

Procedures

they are strictly defined - all steps are included and each step is unambiguous(clearly defined)

they are also known as algorithms.

they can be simple,with only one set of steps to follow linearly.

they can be complex,with many decision decision points (points in a procedure at which one must determine which of two or sometimes more situations exist.)Each decision point can lead to a different path or branch through the alogrithm.

E-learning & Practice

(1) Learning to determine if the procedure is required

Practised by presenting situations in which the procedure might be useful.

Learners decide whether or not procedure should be applied.

Learners should justify their answers to give feedback to instructors whether they have truly identified the situation by its critical attributes.

(2) Learning to complete the steps in the procedure

Each individual step of the procedure should be practicsed immediately after it is presented.

'Snowballing' effect of practising new steps with previously learned steps = enhances learning the entire procedure as a whole.

Helpful to learn & practise the steps of some procedures in a reverse order, aka 'backward chaining' which can be very effective & motivating especially for tasks in which completing the last step is highly satisfying.

Learners should have a pratice in completing the entire procedure several times.

(3) Learning to list the steps in a procedure

Practice recalling the sequence and nature of the steps in the procedure

Provide ample opportunity to recall the steps in the correct order

The need to recall critical keywaords that summarise the performance in each day

Requires learners to expand on these keywords to ensure that they do indeed denote the entire procedure

(4) Learning to check the appripriateness of a completed procedure

Opportunities for learners to view the processs and/or product of a procedure and determine whether the procedure was correctly performed

Include overt reviewing of their own performances

Opportunity to review performance of others = allows them to note errors that others made

E-Learning and Feedback

(1) Instructor providing feedback

to confirm whether or not learners have appropriately identified the situations that require the application of the procedure

explanatory feedback to tell why a particular situation does or does not require the application of the procedure

includes discussion of the critical attributes of the situation & a mapping of these attributes onto the situation,indicating where the attributes do or do not match

(2) Accuracy of the completion of each step of the procedure

feedback during initial phase may be more detailed than in later practice of the entire procedure

include information as to whether the learner correctly assessed the nature of the situation & made the correct decision,leading to choosing the correct path in the procedure

feedback on completion of operation steps should include dichotomous(divided) information as to whether the step was correctly completed, and qualitative information as to (a) whether they selected the inputs appropriately,(b) whether the outputs of the operation reached any prescribed criterion, and (c) whether the step was completed with acceptable precision & efficiency

videotape procedures with operation steps with significant observable motro component to allow learners to observe their own behaviours while reviewing any written or spoken feedback

teach learners to judge the adequacy of the completion of individual steps in the procedure

(3) useful feedback include whether all the steps of a procedure were remembered in the correct order

(4) feedback include correct answer response as to whether the given procedure has been correctly completed

learners can compare these judgement to their own assessments of whether a demonstrated procedure has been executed properly.

Principle Learning

Principles prescribe the relationship(s) among two or more concepts.These relationships are described in terms of 'if-then' or 'cause-effect'.

Principles allow the learner to explain what has happened and control the effects of variables upon each other.

To state a principle does not means acquisition of one.Simply stating one is declarative knowledge learning.To acquisite one is to apply the principle to a variety of previously unencountered situations.

Principle learning is central to domain-specific problem solving.In other words, to solve a problem,one has to select the appropriate combination of principles ,which also means that several principle have to be applied co-currently.

Week 7's readings

Declarative Knowledge Learning

It involves "knowing that".

E.g. I know the procedures to set up a wireless network at home.

Words that are often used to describe declarative knowledge performance are explain, describe, summarise and list

There are three subtypes within declarative knowledge learning, which are labels & names, facts & lists, and organized discourse.

Labels & Names

It involves pairing of information. Learners need to mentally construct connections between two elements, either propositional or imaged-based.It gets more difficult as number of labels increases, similiarity among information pair increase or when connections between idea pairs is less meaningful.

E.g. in chemistry Qualitative Analysis (QA), certain combinations of chemicals mixing together produce different colours.What students learn in Secondary 3 is a few basic one.As they proceed onto Sec4, they learn more variations,and in some cases,combinations do produce the same color.Hence,learning of labels can be a hassle.

It can be referred as paired associate learning.Learning labels does not necessarily require learning the meaning of the two linked ideas but rather learning that one thing links to the other.When one do not already possess concepts,it makes learning of labels even more tough as it lacks meanings.Back to the example of chemistry QA,if students do not know the concept behind color changes of solutions when they mix,then learning of labels pose a tough challenge for those who have not grasp the concepts.

Facts & Lists

It is fundamentally propositional in naure.Fact is usually a statement that describes a relationship between or among concepts.List is a group of elements that must be remembered together.To make learning of facts & lists meaningful, learners must integrate them with knowledge.

For example,in Biology,students learn about respiration and carbon dioxide as one of the end products of the process.If students blindly memorise this fact,it serves no meaning.However,if students understand the process,the knowledge about the process utilizing oxygen for cellular activities,hence giving off carbon dioxide,the fact about respiration just become meaningful learning.

It is to be noted that facts & lists can be learned as individual facts, apart from other information, and as network of interconnected information.

For example,the YIH Study Room opens at 8.30am during school term.It is a meaningful thing for those students who study there even though its an isolated fact.

As the network or knowledge base becomes larger & more complex,it becomes easier to add yet more.

Organized discourse

It is propositional in nature.Learning is done through reading a text.

Instructional Strategies for Fact Learning

The core of the process of learning declarative knowledge is the creation of meaning.It can be done in the following ways:

Organizing Strategies

As we receive new information,we actively organize it by clumping or chunking sets together, and establishing relationships among sets.

Organization may add meaning by placing new unfamiliar material into some existing 'slot'. Slots can assist recall by providing a beginning point for recall of the rest of the schema or by limiting the spread of activation of memory to a smaller and more germane area.

Instruction either provides organization or help people to engage in organization themselves.

Organizational techniques for processing information in learning facts and lists include the use of expository structures, graphic organizers and narrative structures.

Examples of expository structures are description,chronology,comparison-contrast,cause-effect, problem-solution,and problem-solution effects.

Graphic organizers are great assistants in the information processing of organized discourse learning.They provide a visible,distanced(e.g written word & graphics that is available for inspection & manipulation) pattern on which to build a schema.w

Examples are networks,concept structuring,schematizing and mapping.Take concept mapping as an example,it is a graphic means of depicting relationships among ideas.It is part of a presentation or may be generated by learners.In concept mapping,a wide variety & flexibility exists in arranging elemetns and depicting their relationships.

Linking or Association Strategies

These techniques assist learners to make associations that aid learning.Examples are the use of images,mnemonics and analogies.

Images are employed often to assist in the memorization of facts and lists.The use of images can be instruction-supplied or learner-generated.In the context of organized discourse, the use of verbal description of images sometimes invoke more vivid mental imaginery than is possible to achieve on film or video.Supplantive use of images for processing attention in organized discourse include users of illustrations in text.Images can be explicative and represent information,in addition to their attentional and retentional roles.

Metaphoric devices provide a link between the known & the unknown,providing intellectual stimulation & interest through the figural use of concrete images. The use of metaphors,in which a known vehicle is used to convey a new topic through settign up an identity.Analogies are vehicles used to convey the topic through a relationship between pairs.An example is stated below:

"Pupils are more like oysters than sausages. The job of teaching is not to stuff them and then seal them up, but to help them open and reveal the riches within. There are pearls in each of us, if only we knew how to cultivate them with ardor and persistence."
(Sydney J. Harris, "What True Education Should Do," 1964)

A more common example would be the case of an inferior individual competing against a superior rival,despite knowing that he is going to lose the fight."it is like an egg hitting itself against a stone".

The use of analogies in instruction needs to be practised with caution as learners need to be familiar with the vehicle of analogy,to be capable of analogical reasoning,to be able to identity the limitations of the analogy and to visualise verbally presented analogies.

Common mnemonic techniques include:

single-use coding (ADDIE),

the use of pegwords (where a list of things is arbitrarily associated with a sequence of numbers beginning with 1), e.g. 0 for sea, 1 for hat, 2 for hen, 3 for ham ...

the use of time-honored method of loci(to commit a list of words or topics to memory,one imagines a familiar location), e.g. this method was used as a memory tool b y Greek orators who took advantage of the technique to give speeches without the aid of notes.

the use of keyword(involving the creation of a memorable image that will stimulate recall of the pair of elements in question)

e.g. the Spanish word 'carta' sounds like English word 'cart',so keyword is cart.Then I link it with an image. 'carta' means letter in spanish, so I has an image of a letter in a cart.

Elaboration Strategies

When new information is received, learners tend to reconstruct or add to that piece of information,so as to make it meaningful for themselves and easier for them to retrieve the information. Types of elaboration include filling in gaps, making inferences and imagining examples.

Elaboration is a basic process by which link are made within information being received as well as for connecting new information to existing knowledge and structures.The techniques of elaobration involves making elaborations on the material being learned, including elaboration into sentences and devising rules.

e.g. why certain elements in the periodic table are arranged in a particular row, column & order

Elaboration of concepts into sentences may lead to their being learned as concepts rather than remaining declarative knowledge,depending on a variety of factors such as the practice available on examples and non-examples.

Concepts

Concepts are sets of specific objects,symbols or events which are grouped together on the basis of shared characteristics and which can referenced by a particular name or symbol.

There are two kinds of concepts - concrete & abstract. Concrete concepts are known by their physical characteristics. Abstract concepts are not perceivable by their appearances,are also known as defined concepts that fit a particular definition.

Attributes of a concept are:

intrinsic: an invariant property of an observable thing or class of things that typically can be pointed to

functional: relates to how something works and what its use might be

relational: a quality a concept may possess defined in terms of something else

functional & relational attributes are called variable attributes - qualities that can be possessed by an example of a concept that can vary from instance to instance.

Cognitive Processes & Structures in Concept Learning

Concept learning requires two cognitive processes - generalization & discrimination.

Generalization: process by which generalities are induced from particulars

When exposed initially to a member of a concept, one must learn to generalize beyond the single instance of that concept to others that fall into the same category.

Over-generalization: thinking of new experiences in terms of old experiences.Occurs when a non-instance is classified as an example of the concept

Discrimination: distinguishing or noting/perceiving differences which exist

Gradually,one will learn to discriminate between examples of a concept and non-examples that may share some features with the concept,but not the critical or 'criterial' attributes that make it a member of the class.Discrimination can be made first during a learning process,followed by generalizations.

Concept learning can go wrong in two ways.One can either continue to overgeneralize or undergeneralize(classify examples of a concept as non-examples)

When concepts can be grouped togher in instruction, representing one domain, they are considered to be either successive concepts or coordinate concepts.

Successive concepts are sets of concepts with a common,superordinate parent concept.They are thought to have clearly distinguishable critical & variable attributes.Successive concept learning therefore should focus foremost on generalization skill development through the use of example-only instruction.Undergeneralization tends to occure with this group of concepts as the concentration is only on examples.Individuals fail to recognize true examples as members of a class of concepts because generalizing too narrow a sampling of the concept category.

Coordinate concepts are sets of concepts in which the characteristics for one concept are in part supplied or defined by others in the set.They have multiple,common,critical and variable attributes.Therefore,they are better learned through the use of matched sets of examples and non-examples.Overgeneralization tends to occur with this group of concepts.

E.g. A convertible car can be incorrectly classifed as a sedan of the same style and manufacturer

Week 6's Lecture+ Readings Review

Recognising Fuzzies

When someone says something in specific such as "there is room for improvement in the contents of our project final report", it is essential that we see it as something important enough to do something about it.We need to differentiate between abstractions(also known as fuzzies) and something important that we need to apply goal analysis.Through goal analysis can we break down the idea into meaningful steps to complete.In other words, if something is deem important to achieve,one must apply goal analysis to determine what to do to get the desired results.

From the readings,a goal is a statemnt describing a broad or abstract intent,state or condition.A goal analysis is useful whenever a goal exists that is important to achieve,or to achieve better than is presently the case.It is used whenever a statement of intent describes an abstraction,when the statement doesn't answer the question "How will I know one when I see one?"

Task Analysis

It refers to a collection of techiques used to help make the components of a competent performance visible.It is a set of ways to draw a picture of what competent people actually do, or should do, when peformancing a task.It is a way of visualizing the steps in a procedure, the key decisions that are made while performing the procedure,and how to tell when to begin and end the procedure.

How do we then differentiate the task and the steps required to complete the former? A task is a series of steps leading to a meaningful outcome.On the other hand,a step is one of many actions that need to be taken in order to reach the meaningful outcome.

An example of a task is to write an essay on global warming.Steps in the task include reading up on causes and effects of global warming from books and online sources.

Task analysis consists of 2 steps which are task listing and task detailing.

Task listing is coming up with a list of all the tasks that make up the job so that one can have a complete overall picture(layout) of the job. An example of a tasking listing is as follows for a salesperson: identify customer's needs, narrow down choices for customer, assess benefits and possible impacts of customer's lifestyle, ensure mutual understanding etc.

Task detailing is listing the steps and decisions invovled in performing each of the tasks on the list.There are two practical ways to list steps and decisions which are through lists and flowcharts.

An example of lists is the user instruction manual for setting up a wireless router.The manual offers a step-by-step guide for user to plug in the cables and wirings.

A flowchart is preferred as it is east to read and clearly shows the alternatives to be followed when decisions are involved.It also reveals where information is still missing.In a flowchart task, there is only two symbols to depict the steps of a a task, a rectangle to depict actions and a diamond to depict decisions.

The Outcomes of Learning

(i) Verbal Information

Declarative knowledge or knowing that.Organised bodies of knowledge that we require. Consists of many units including names,facts,principles and generalizations.Knolwedge can be learnt through various means such as a textbook, a lecture or a photo.The learning of verbal information as a performance means that the learner has acquired the ability to state in propositional form of what was learned.What makes words information is their sentence form which carries meaning for the learner.For example, when someone says Nokia-Samsung-Motorola, he or she learns something but there is no information inferred from it.However, when someone states "Nokia leads the mobile phone market with Samsung and Motorola trailing it behind, that individual has acquired information.

The functions of information and knowledge serves as a necessary requirement for further reading.For example,if one is to learn driving, one has to have access to information about car controls,the engine,the steering wheel,the rear mirrors and so forth.Some information are of practical importance to us in our lives.The amount and kind of practically useful information learnt depends on individual's inclination.A male driver is generally more skilful in driving a manual car while a female driver is generally more hesitant about driving a manual car.Organised and associated bodies of knowledge are known to provide a vehicle for thought. The vast store of information which an individual possesses provides almost limitless possibilities for flexbile thinking.For example,a computer technican may consider many possibilities when repairing a computer that has broken down.From his experience and knowledge,a computer can break down due to many reasons such as virus attack and faulty internal components.

(ii) Intellectual skills

Involves 'knowing how'.Involves the ability to carry out actions, not just to state them or talk about them.The intellectual skills that one learns enables him or her to respond adequately to entire classes of interactions with the environment through symbols such as letters, numbers and diagrams.They are further classifed into several categories which are discriminations, concrete concepts, defined concepts, rules and higher-order rules.

Discrimination is the ability tio distinguish one feature of an object from another(one symbol from another).It is another name for the perceptual learning.It results in the selective perception of features of the learner's environment.The performance made possible by discrimination learning is the ability to tell the difference among stimuli,which means that the learner can respond differently to different stimuli but may not be able to name them or use them in some other ways.For example,a rookie in computer component learning course may initially tell the difference between a RAM stick and video card adaptor on the motherboard. After learning discriminate features of the two different components,the rookie can learn to change the correct component if it becomes faulty.

Concrete concepts are classes of object features,objects and events.Many concrete concepts are learned in early childhood but new concepts are learned at any point in time during one's life.
The performance indicative of concrete concept learning is the ability to identify a class of object, object qualities or relations by pointing out one or more instances of the class. What is important is that the acquistion of a concrete concept enables the learner to identify the entire classs of things by indicating one or more examples of the class.Very often,identifying a concrete concept is shown by naming but we must understand that it is not eseential to just name to learn the concepts.

To be continued ...

(iii) Cognitive strategies

(iv) Attitudes

(v) Motor skills

tutorial post

Reflection on the 3-face assessment model:

Review of Week 4's lecture

E-learning design is an important aspect of e-learning.

It is inferred from the readings that the e-learning designs have much impact on the learning experiences of learners and this would in turn determine whether the planned learning outcomes are achieved. How do we assess whether a design is effective?

A well designed learner flow is one that provides a motivating environment that engages the learners. It is also one that provides the learners with flexibility to choose activities they want to engage in. This is essential as learners need to feel empowered and have ownership over their learning experiences. However, it is to be noted that there is no perfect standalone approach or activity to achieve this outcome as different types of approaches cater to different learning objectives or contexts.

There are four kinds of designs: rule-based, incident-based, strategy-based and role-based learning designs.

Rule-based designs require learners to apply a standardized sequence of procedures in order to accomplish the outcomes. This can be seen in approaching algorithm problems where students need to follow a set of formulae in order to solve the problems.

Incident-based designs are based on learner’s contact & engagement in events that mirror reality. In such designs, learners participate in activities that require them to reflect and consider their actions with regards to the events. This can be seen in NM2220 Media Writing Assignment where students are given a real life incident to read and think about. They are then asked to come up with a response based on their understanding and knowledge gained from lectures. Exploration of the issue is supported by whole class discussions to stimulate ideas and thoughts.

Strategy-based designs are based on tasks that call for strategic planning and activity. Learners are provided with sample tasks and answers, cases, strategies and treatment.

Role-based designs allow students to acquire skills, knowledge and understanding through assumption of roles within real life settings. Role-playing in scenarios is common in this aspect as it provides various learning opportunities for learners (who are participants in the settings) to apply their knowledge and concepts based on individual’s understanding. Learners are given descriptions of scenarios and roles. This can be seen in the upcoming NM3219 Writing for Communication Management assignment where students are portrayed as a corporation’s public relations officer. Students are hence required to respond to a looming corporate crisis which requires timely responses. In this mock-up scenario, the lecturer will send out emails on a daily basis to inform students of new developments in the crisis, and students have to reply based on their own understanding.

To be continued ...

Assignment 2

Q1) State the essence of each theory in terms of

• key assumptions on learners,
• key assumptions on learning,
  
• a representation of the process of learning.

The theory of Behaviorism states that learning takes place through the change in behavior, which is in turn shaped by the environment through conditioning.Learners will learn to acquire new behaviors through the concept of rewards and punishment.Hence in the learning process, a learner's behavior is shaped according to the desired outcomes.

The theory of Cognitivism states that learners take lead over the learning process.In other words, the learners are actively organizing and processing information in their environments. They are keen to learn what is going around them and prior knowledge is an essential part in the process of learning. For example, an individual learner needs to know what is going on in the particular environment, makes sense of it and develops possible apprioprate solutions.

The theory of Socioculturalism is a concept that is akin to the system theory, where a process does not just involve a single subsystems, but also different units coming together. In the context of learning, it does not just involve the mental processes that are occuring inside the mind of an individual, but it also involves the tools that are available to an individual in the environment that can be utilized.One example of a tool is interpersonal relationships. In order to accomplish tasks such as learning, people have to interact with others(usually with the aid of learning materials)

Q2) Critique the theory's usefulness to different types of problems.

There is no single theory that is perfect for all situations and problems.Different theories work for different kinds of problems.

Behaviorism learning approach is ideal for solving puzzle and algorithms problems.For example, junior college students are often seeing practising their ten-year series books in preparation for examinations.These books provide the solutions to questions and problems. When they got the questions wrong,they refer to the solutions and re-attempt the questions till they grasp the concepts.Students are also conditioned to score well through the examination grade system.

Cognitivism learning apporach is ideal for solving trouble-shooting and diagnosis solution problems.For example,when the computer screen displays an error,the user will be keen to find out the root of the problem. Any relevant prior knowledge of error messages and their causes will be of benefit to the user.Empowered with these information,the user will set his sights on coming up with possible solutions and the possible scenarios if any of these solutions is to be applied.

Socioculturalism learning approach is ideal for issued based and design problems.As such problems usually encompass a wide scope of factors,an individual's point of view might be too narrow.Through teamwork and group brainstorming,an individual has access to the valuable abilities(tools)of others,which can assist in solving the problems at hand.This is when interpersonal relations with the people around him come into play.

Q3) Comment on theory's usefulness for the development of 21st century skills.

From my point of view, 21st century skills include creative and innovative thinking skills, hands-on learning(a shift from classroom based learning) and team project work. These skills can be picked up in today's environment,especially in NUS where its mission is to nurture thinking individuals who are alive to opportunities to make a difference, and global citizens effective in diverse settings.It is done so through the broad-based curriculum supported by multi-disciplinary courses, cross faculty enrichment and special programmes.

As such,NUS's education curriculum involves all 3 theories of learning in the following aspects:

For NUS undergraduates to do well in a module,the department sets assessment criteria for students which usually involves team project work, mid term examinations, tutorials, tutorial participation marks, attendance marks and assignments.

For example,CNM students taking Media Writing module NM2220 are constantly reminded of the harsh reality in the media room,where articles need to be submitted on time for publication. One second late and an individual's article would not be published.As such,as CNM students, we are conditioned to submit our assignments on time.Students who submit late are therefore punished by having marks deducted or denied of A gradings.This is in line with the approach of Behaviorism.

Using the Media Writing Module NM2220 as an example again,students are taught the basic concepts of writing for various kinds of articles such as news story and press releases.One assignment to students requires us to be independent and come up with a press release based on a given real life scenario.Students are only equipped with the lecturer's slides and textbook, and guidance from tutors.The rest is up to us to research and come up with the possible solutions. This is in line with the approach of Cognitivism.

For the team project for NM2220,we had to come up with an online newsletter for a health organization.We were required to come up with five individual articles to be posted on a team's designed online newsletter.An individual would find problems editing and correcting his or her own work,hence we are required to correct each other's article and contribute to the design of the newsletter.Hence this is in line with the approach of Socioculturalism.

I have read Ridza, Eileen and Shifa's blogs.

Week 2 Lecture

I felt lost during the lecture today.It might be due to the fact that I reached home around midnight and only got to bed around 0100hrs.I had to wake up 0530 hours to get ready and leave house by 0645 hrs for school.

As expected,theory lectures are more boring.With a mind that was still in dreamland ,the amount of information that was absorbed was at best minimal.Upon more in depth review of the readings later, did I got a better picture of the contents of the lecture.

Personally,I feel that videos are a good way to convey information to students. However videos should be capped at a limit of 1 minute to 2 minutes,so as to retain the audience's attention.If a lengthy video is being shown to an audience who crawls in at 0800hrs,attention would be lost rapidly.

As much as some of our requests are being accommodated by the lecturer,I guess undergraduates like me have to make an effort to do the readings before the lecture so as to understand better during the lecture itself.There is certainly more room for improvement on my part.

Week 1 Lecture

I was quite hesitant to take this module as it is 0800-1000 hrs every Wednesday.However,I guess I have to give it a try as the modules offered by CNM department are quite limited.

My initial impression of the module after the lecture was that it was quite dry and I dread the interactivity of the lecture.It is too early in the morning to be involved in group discussions although I have to agree to an extent that such teaching style is unique and quite an eye-opener.The breakdown of the module signifies a heavy workload which worries me.

Nevertheless,I hope that the lectures will become more interesting in future.