Students construct knowledge through activities that go beyond simply reproducing or learning information, and instead require generating new ideas or understandings. An effective activity for knowledge construction is interdisciplinary, with clear goals incorporating multiple subjects, and requires students to apply their new knowledge to support further construction in a new context. Strategic thinking and metacognition play important roles in knowledge construction, as strategic thinking allows for planning and assessment, while metacognition involves self-awareness of one's cognitive processes. Different learning contexts, such as orienting, instructional, and transfer contexts, provide different types of environments to support knowledge construction.
3. Learning is the
process by which
an individual
acquires knowledge,
attitudes and skills
that are necessary
to meet the demands
of life
4. The behaviour of an individual is thus
changed through experiences
This change in behaviour brought about by experiences is commonly known
as learning.
5. Dependent learning which is teacher
directed, highly structured with very e
xplicit assignments, and
with lectures, surgeries etc.
Learning based on discussion –
the learner flourishes in a group,
likes the exchange of ideas.
Autonomous – the learner likes to ha
ve the teacher as a resource,
but to have influence over the
content and structure of what is
learnt. Such learners will flourish wit
h distance learning or
resource-based learning.
Learning Style
Which is a more
conscious plan of
action as to how
to acquire new
knowledge, skills
or attitudes, and
from learning
preferences,
which is how
people prefer to
be taught
6. Learning Style
Learning can
result from
both vicarious a
nd direct
experiences
Learning from
direct
Experiences
Learning from
Instruction
Vicarious means o
bserving someone
and learning from
that
observation and n
ot being
directly involved in
the
experience
7. The Nature of Learning
Output of Learning
Behaviorism
The measurable outputs
of learning, such as the
ability to reproduce facts,
than in the mental
processes involved
Constructivism
What goes on in the mind
of the learner.
Constructivism gave
rise to more ‘student cent
ered’ forms of teaching
Cognitive theory
Memory and recall
In order to understand
mental processes, we
need to know how the
brain functions
8. Cognitive Theory
Short-term Memory Long-term Memory
Capturing students’
attention
The goal is for something
to enter long-term memory,
the storage system, and be
ready for retrieval.
Providing visual
stimuli along
with the verbal
Making the
information
more
‘meaningful’
Making the
learning
active
Repetition Getting student
s to recite
material
Mnemonic devices
especially ones tha
t employ visual
imagery
Successful retrieval depends
on the ability of the
information to fit into these s
tructures
Working Memory
9. Learners are more concerned with ‘simply
memorizing’ the text and don’t ‘argue with
it’ or make any attempt to relate it to the
broader canvas of their knowledge.
Surface Learning
Learners relate material
to what they already
know, consider it
thoughtfully, examine the
argument, and look for
patterns
Deep Learning
Cognitive theory
considers learning
according to mental
processes
10. Learning as a Cycle
Learning is thus a process of observation, reflection, abstraction and experimentation
80% 60% 40% 50%
Stage 1
Concrete experience
Stage 2
Observations and
reflections on the
experience
Stage 3
Formation of abstract
concepts and generalizations
based upon the experience
and subsequent reflections
Stage 4
Testing the implications of
the concepts and
generalizations in new
settings.
12. Learning Style
Natural problem solvers,
with an objective viewpoint,
who adapt observations into
theories, and learn from
systems, models and
concepts.
Theorists
Practical learners who
adopt the right strategy for
the task in hand, enjoy
problem solving and learn
by practical application of
theory.
Pragmatists
Learn by doing, and tend to
be extrovert people who get
on with things, thriving on
challenge and new
experiences.
Activists
Like to do a lot of preparation
and think about what they do
before rushing into a decision
as to how to do it.
Reflectors
13. Cognitive Learning styles
The analytic thinker
processes information
into its components,
looks at detail, is
concerned with
procedures, and is a
logical thinker.
Analytic
The wholistic thinker
is more likely to see
the whole picture,
be more intuitive,
and notice similarities
rather than
differences.
Wholistic
The verbalizer recalls
words.
Verbalizer
The imager recalls
pictures.
Imager
14. Dunn’s Learning Styles Model
01 By which sensory mode
is learning better achiev
ed: auditory, visual or ki
netic.
Perceptual
03 Global versus analytic,
left vs. right-brained etc
Psychological
05 Time of study, food
needs etc.
Physiological
02 Temperature, lighting etc.
of room.
Environmental
04 Motivation, persistence,
conformity, ability to
multi-task etc.
Emotional
06 Learning better achieved
alone, with peers in a
group, with authoritative a
dult etc.
Sociological
The way in which he proposes that there should be
a match between how students learn and how
teachers teach
15. Goals of The Learning Process
The successful learner, over time and with support and instructional gui
dance, can create meaningful, coherent representations of
knowledge.
16. Goals of Learning Process
To construct useful representations of kn
owledge and to acquire the thinking and l
earning strategies necessary for
continued learning success across the
life span, students must generate and
pursue personally relevant goals.
Filling gaps, resolving inconsistencies, and deepening their understanding of the subject
matter to reach long term goals
19. Why it is important?
Improving students’ learning and achievement and building students’ capacity to learn.
Students become active participants in the learning process, empowering them to
become independent learners, and motivating them to achieve their full potential.
20. knowledge construction
is a process by which
students generate ideas
and understandings.
Knowledge construction
cannot be achieved
when students merely
reproduce what they
have already learned.
What is
Knowledge
Construction
?
21. Why Students should Construct Knowledge
The possession of knowledge is far less
important than the creative uses of knowledge
The development of new knowledge is the
greatest driver of innovation
The ability to construct further knowledge
through critical and applied thinking, and will
better position our students as productive
contributors to a knowledge.
Knowledge to new situations and new
problems
22. How to plan instruction that includes opportunities for students to construct
knowledge
Generating new
ideas and
understandings
Interpretation Analysis Synthesis Evaluation
drawing
inferences
beyond the
literal meaning
identifying
relationships among
the parts of a whole
identifying the
relationships among
two or more ideas
judging the quality,
credibility, or
importance of data,
ideas, or events
23. What is knowledge construction?
You can simply impress your
audience and add a unique zing
and appeal to your Presentations.
An activity requires some knowledge construction when students go beyond
reproducing knowledge to generate ideas or understandings that are new to them
24. The activity’s primary purpose is that students construct
knowledge
Students spend a class
period conducting a close
read of a scientific article
on bear habitats. For
homework students write a
paragraph drawing an
inference about local bear
behavior during
the present drought.
Although the homework
asks students to interpret
the article by drawing
inferences, the time spent
constructing knowledge is
minimal compared to the
time taken understanding
concepts in the article
through the close read
After previously
conducting a close read of
a scientific article on bear
habitats, students spend
three class periods
preparing for a debate on
the topic of local efforts to
reduce bear depredations.
Students complete a unit
test focused on the
acquisition of content
knowledge.
A content-focused test does not
demonstrates only that students
can reconstruct existing
understandings.
Students are graded on a
portfolio of work in which
50%+ of their grade is
earned through
demonstration of their
activities interpreting,
analyzing, synthesizing,
and evaluating
information.
Students are
demonstrating that most
of their time and effort
was spent constructing
knowledge rather than
learning or processing
knowledge and processes
that were presented to
them.
Most time is spent analyzing bear behavior in the
context of local conditions, and synthesizing and
evaluating information to construct an argument
25. The Learning Activity is Interdisciplinary
Interdisciplinary learning activities have clear learning goals that incorporate content, ideas, and
methods from multiple academic subjects.
Students research the countries of a world region and evaluate
the importance of different types of quantitative and qualitative
information useful to potential visitors to these countries.
Students then synthesize their information to publish a visitor’s
guide for each country on a Weebly website. Students are
provided with success criteria aligned to social studies,
mathematics, and ELA standards.
Again, students have success criteria from more than one disc
ipline, and must demonstrate knowledge construction in each
discipline. (Extension question: Is the creation of a website su
fficient for students to demonstrate they are applying their kno
wledge of countries in a new context?).
Students research the countries of a world region and
collect information about each country’s climate,
economy, and culture. Students then create and publish
a visitor’s guide for each country on a Weebly website.
Students do not have success criteria from multiple
disciplines and are reproducing, rather than constructing
knowledge.
26. Students apply their knowledge when they use knowledge they have constructed to
support another knowledge construction task in a new context
Applying the Knowledge in a New Context
Students analyze demographic statistics from their
hometown and then analyze demographic statistics
from a second location.
Students do not apply their knowledge from analyzing
demographic statistics to any new activity; they simply
repeat the same activity with a different set of data.
Students examine photos enlarged at different sizes to
develop an understanding of similarity and then describe
their understanding.
Students do not apply their knowledge from
evaluating shapes to any new domain; they simply
articulate that knowledge.
27. Students examine photos enlarged at different sizes to develop
an understanding of similarity and then apply that knowledge to
abstract geometric shapes, thinking about size ratios and
angles to determine which shapes are mathematically similar.
Students apply their knowledge from evaluating
shapes to deepen their own understanding of
mathematical similarity.
Applying the Knowledge in a New Context
Students analyze demographic statistics from their
hometown and then use their understanding of
population trends to develop a plan for an upcoming
housing development project
Students apply their knowledge from analyzing
demographic statistics in order to develop a housing
plan; this step requires further analysis.
28. Strategic Thinking
Strategic thinking is a process
that defines the manner in
which people think about,
assess, view, and create the
future for themselves and
others
29. One can apply strategic thinking to arrive at decisions
that can be related to your work or personal life
Strategic thinking involves developing an
entire set of critical skills
Strategic Thinking
30. They are committed
to and seek advice
from others.
They have the ability to
balance their tremendous
amount of creativity with a
sense of realism and
honesty about what is
achievable in the longer
term
They are committed
lifelong learners and
learn from each of their
experiences
The best and greatest
strategic thinkers take
time out for themselv
es
They have the ability to be non-
judgmental and they don’t allow
themselves to be held back by judging
their own thinking or the thinking of
others when ideas are initially being
developed and shared
They have the ability to
be patient and to not
rush to conclusions
and judgments
Strategic Thinking
31. Strategic thinkers have the ability to use the left (logical) and
right (creative) sides of their brain. This skill takes practice as
well as confidence and can be tremendously valuable
They have the ability to develop a clearly defined and
focused business vision and personal vision
They have the ability to clearly define their objectives and
develop a strategic action plan with each objective broken
down into tasks and each task having a list of needed
resources and a specific timeline.
They have the ability to design flexibility into their plans by
creating some benchmarks in their thinking to review
progress.
They are amazingly aware and perceptive.
Strategic Thinking
33. What is Metacognition?
Metacognition is the knowledge
you have of your own cognitive
processes (your thinking)
It involves self-regulation and self-
reflection of strengths, weaknesse
s, and the types of strategies you
create.
35. Metacognitive Knowledge
Learning Process Task of Learning The Strategies
Your beliefs about how
you learn and how you
think others learn
How you process
information
When you will use them
37. It is a mechanism for controlling your thinking activities and to ensure you are meeti
ng your goals
Metacognitive Strategies
38. An instructional context represents all the
factors external to the learners within an
instructional environment that provide
meaning for the messages they receive
What, when, where, how,
why, and with whom
individual learners learn from
instruction
What are Learning
Contexts?
39. Opportunities for learners to
interact with instructor as well
as other learners throughout
the learning experience
Social
Degree to which instructional
messages gain learner
attention, are personally
relevant to the learner, provide
the learner with a feeling of
confidence in learning and a
feeling of satisfaction once
learning is accomplished
Motivational
Instructional media present
in the learners’ environment
Physical
Learning Contexts
41. Orienting Context
Instructional Context
Transfer Context
An orienting context is used to introduce an instructional program,
provide experiences with which new information will be based, moti
vate learners, establish a need for learning new skills-knowledge-a
ttitudes (SKA), provide a bridge between what learners already kno
w how to do and new SKA to be learned, etc.
An instructional context is used to engage learners in activities
associated with those effective conditions most appropriate for
the types of SKA to be learned
New and different environment in which learners must apply (pe
rform) what they learned within previous instructional contexts t
o succeed. Appropriate scaffolding and incentives are usually a
n important part of this context type
Learning Contexts
42. 01
02
03
Computer and Context
Represent instructional contexts in which l
earner’s become “immersed” in self-contai
ned computer-based environments to learn
MicroWorld Computer-Based Learning
Environments
The computer is used to support a classro
om-based learning experience
Classroom-Based Computer-Supported
Learning Environments
Learner activity centering around, and dep
endent upon, computer-based interactions
with other members of a learning communi
ty connected via the computer
Virtual Community Computer-Supporte
d Learning Environments
Simple Portfolio
Presentation
Learning environments as places “…where lea
rners may work together and support each othe
r as they use a variety of tools and information r
esources in the guided pursuit of learning goals
and problem-solving activities.”
Brent Wilson (1996, p.5)
Most teachers know intuitively that learners remember better if they pay attention: their task is to provide stimuli and employ strategies that combat the natural forgetting process. Variations in tone of delivery, use of gesture, movement etc. all help here, as do attractively presented visuals using colour and images. A wooden presentation is not conducive to learning.
It is your ability to control your thinking processes through various strategies, such as organizing, monitoring, and adapting. Additionally, it is your ability to reflect upon the tasks or processes you undertake and to select and utilize the appropriate strategies necessary in your intercultural interactions.
It is a necessary foundation in culturally intelligent leadership because it underlines how you think through a problem or situation and the strategies you create to address the situation or problem.
Your feelings and emotions serve as a feedback system to help you understand your progress and expectations, and your comprehension and connection of new information to the old, among other things.