More Discussion Contributions

Definition of Learning - Due on March 11

• My colleagues and I were discussing this the other day! I think a student learns if he remembers what it taught. And I also think that he will remember what it taught if his current perspective is challenged. For example, a small child may think that everything round is a ball until he realizes that not all round things bounce. Does this make sense?
• Good point Candace. My fellow graduate students were commenting on how funny it is that we do not want our own students to cram for a test and forget what they have stored in short term memory. So, I think that students have 'learned something' when that knowledge is stored in long-term memory. Some graduate level courses require you to regurgitate information for an exam, and then we forget that information shortly after the test. The class where I learned the most has been Conni Kami's math class. We did not have any tests in that class, but I think I learned the most and I remember what I learned and apply the constructivist approach to my daily teaching.
• I disagree... you have not learned something if is it not in your memory. For example, someone may tell you how to change a tire, and someone may even show you how to change a tire. However, you will not have learned how to change a tire until you have done it yourself! Like you said, if learning new material is not applied, you will not learn it.
• I also like this definition:
  An exercise of constructing personal knowledge that requires the learner to be mentally active rather than passively interpreting when recording information.www.maine.gov/education/higher ed.Glossary/Glossary.htm( I like the words actively interpreting...)
  Do you think that we should include that learning is 'making connections' with our memories? I know we've had a hard time deciding if memory is a part of learning, but I think they go hand in hand. A student cannot learn material if they do not remember what they learned. One of my students baffles me. She receives modified tests, and can perform very well on them, especially spelling tests. However, when she does not have modifications for a test for the same set of spelling words, she cannot spell any of them. Has she learned the words? I do not think so. If she cannot apply it in a different setting, then I do not think she has learned them.
• People learn when they are challenged... this discussion has definitely challenged my views of 'learning'. I have talked with students in other groups in our class, and no group is having the discussion like ours that I have spoken with! This is good.
• I would consider the behaviorist approach as extrinsic learning. Students are motivated to learn by external forces, such as rewards or punishments.
  I would consider the cognitive approach to include constructive learning. Students who are taught constructively are most likely intrinsic learners. Your definition included constructive learning under the humanistic approach. Is that right? I didn't see Piaget's name under this list either, and he views learning as a constructivist approach.
  However, great points made about how we as a group are having a hard time coming up with a unified definition of learning. Many psychologists who have made contributions to the field of education cannot agree on a unified definition of learning either.
• This definition is too long. I think it would read better if it were broken up into more than one sentence.
  Original:
  Learning consists of acquiring a new skill, process, or knowledge and can be acquired by making new connections with prior experience and knowledge, thus creating new understanding and ability to apply newly acquired information.
  My proposition:
  Learning consists of acquiring new skills, processes, or knowledge. Learning can be acquired by making new connections with prior experiences and knowledge, thus creating new understanding and ability to apply newly acquired information.
  Does this read better?