This is your second required post for EDCI 335 and maybe the one you choose to be assessed for your final grade (25%). Now that you have some understanding of the theoretical grounds for teaching and learning, we are going to begin to think about how that is applied in designing learning environments. This is the first point where you will need to think about alignment in your design. If you decide that the theory upon which you will base your learning resource is constructivism, then it wouldn’t make much sense to provide all of the information that a learner needs and test their ability to recognize that knowledge. Instead, learners need to engage in some cognitive effort to think; or in some physical effort to practice a skill in order to learn. They must adjust their mental models based on new information. Please complete the following task:

  • Create a post on your own blog and address one or more of the prompts below.
  • Make sure you do not simply restate the views of the authors of the readings but try to write about how you would apply what you read to your own context.
  • Make sure you use the category edci335 and Post 2 on your post!
  • Include links to your peers’ posts to comment on their ideas (at least one-two).
  • Aim for 300-400 words in your post.

Blog Prompt

  1. Meet with your learning pod and decide who will research which instructional approach is listed below.
  2. Each person in your pod will write a post about one or more of the following approaches to learning environments:
    • direct instruction
    • inquiry-based learning
    • cooperative learning
    • experiential learning
    • open pedagogies
  3. Each post should include an overview of the characteristics of the approach and a discussion of how that approach does or does not align with your chosen topic.
    • You are encouraged to work with learners from other pods on your individual posts. If you are writing about direct instruction, pair up with someone from another pod who is also writing about direct instruction and share resources and ideas. Make sure you credit each other by linking to each other’s posts!
  4. Meet again as a learning pod and decide which approach among the four that you wrote about aligns best with the topic you will be addressing in your blueprint and interactive learning resource. Discuss the merits of each approach researched by the members of your group.

Why this structure?

This is similar to a cooperative learning approach called ‘jigsaw groups‘ where group members are divided, and each member becomes an ‘expert’ on a particular component of a concept by working with other ‘experts’ in the class. then those experts return to their original group to share what they have learned. Since the whole group succeeds based on the work of individual members, there is pressure on all learners to help those who are having difficulty.

This is a very powerful strategy for helping to overcome bias in learning environments.