Reflection on EDUC-6115-3

What did you find surprising or striking as you furthered your knowledge about how people learn?

As I reflected on the past 8 weeks I believe the thing I found most striking, and perhaps I could even use the word disturbing, was the vast number of theories and styles that exist in the learning and instructional design world.  It is bothersome to me in a way because I feel the process of instruction has been so inundated with theories and philosophies on how people learn that at times I believe it takes away from the learning.  It seems there is always a new theory arising that contradicts a theory from the past and it makes you wonder, “Is the type of instruction we are doing today going to be found “improper” or “ineffective” in another year because a contradictory theory arises?”  I definitely agree as instructors and educators we are responsible for the transfer of content and the learning process in general, and a large part of that responsibility is staying up to date with the latest technology, theory, and instructional practices.  What I do not agree with; however, is getting so involved in learning the latest and greatest learning theory that we lose site of the learners.

 

How has this course deepened your understanding of your personal learning process?

Throughout this course I have learned a great deal about a number of learning styles that can further explain my own personal preferences.  For example, I have always learned best by “doing”, or by applying the new concept to actual experience.  This type of learning I would connect with behaviorism. Behaviorism is tied to observable performance, and a kinesthetic way of learning is hands on, and therefore extends itself to a performance that is observable. Again, as an instructional designer I attempt to incorporate activities that allow the learners to apply what they are being taught in order to address the needs of the kinesthetic learners.  Another learning theory that has enlightened my understanding of my own style is the Cognitive.  Cognitivism introduced a number of tools to instructional design such as graphic organizers, “chunking” information, and organization of information from simple to complex so learners can build upon prior knowledge.  All of these are things I utilize in my role as an Instructional Designer, but also utilize as a learner since these tools are a great way to organize your thoughts and map the concept in a way that is easily visualized. 

What have you learned regarding the connection between learning theories, learning styles, educational technology, and motivation?

I have learned that each learning style seems to have a number of theories that connect to that style and reiterate the needs of a person with that type of learning style.  I have learned that different learning styles require different means in order to comprehend and be able to perform the task they are learning, and I have learned that each learning style has much different things that serve as motivators for them to perform to their greatest ability.  I have also learned a great deal about when educational technology will be impactful, and with which learning style it will not be as successful.  Technology definitely has its place in learning and instruction, but it may not be the best mode of communicating information for all learners. 

How will your learning in this course help you as you further your career in the field of instructional design?

In my career as an educator, and now an Instructional Designer, I consistently try to focus on the different learning styles and develop my training material/curriculum in a way that incorporates a variety of learning styles.  Through this course I have gain a greater depth of knowledge about the learning styles and how they can be incorporated into instructional material through a variety of activities and mediums.  I have also learned what type of external factors might impact a learner’s ability to comprehend material, which will assist me in designing instructional material that will have the greatest impact on the learner.  I believe my future design and development of training material will take into account a number of the suggestions and tools I have gained through this course, and as a result will have a greater return on investment for my customer and a greater learning impact on the participants.  

Fitting the Pieces Together

In my career as an educator, and now an Instructional Designer, I consistently try to focus on the different learning styles and develop my training material/curriculum in a way that incorporates a variety of learning styles. Prior to learning the different theories and styles I have always thought of the learning styles as simply: auditory, visual, and kinesthetic and organized my training material to address these learning styles.  When reflecting on my personal learning style I have always thought of myself as a combination of both visual and kinesthetic. While learning new material I tend to visualize the concept and connect them to things I have learned in the past.  In that manner I am representative of the constructivist theory of learning. With the constructivists belief of understanding concepts through interpretation of our own past experiences, my visual connection of new material to past learning would fall in the constructivist range.


Throughout this course I have learned a great deal about a number of learning styles that can further explain my own personal preferences.  For example, I have always learned best by “doing”, or by applying the new concept to actual experience.  This type of learning I would connect with behaviorism. Behaviorism is tied to observable performance, and a kinesthetic way of learning is hands on, and therefore extends itself to a performance that is observable. Again, as an instructional designer I attempt to incorporate activities that allow the learners to apply what they are being taught in order to address the needs of the kinesthetic learners.  Another learning theory that has enlightened my understanding of my own style is the Cognitivist.  Cognitivism introduced a number of tools to instructional design such as graphic organizers, “chunking” information, and organization of information from simple to complex so learners can build upon prior knowledge.  All of these are things I utilize in my role as an Instructional Designer, but also utilize as a learner since these tools are a great way to organize your thoughts and map the concept in a way that is easily visualized. 

As for technology, it has become an integral part of both my learning and my instructional design role.  Technology has enabled me to earn a masters degree in an online program that fit perfectly into my lifestyle when a traditional classroom did not.  Technology has again offered me the opportunity to participate in another online degree program that will benefit me greatly in my career.  Technology is at the core of my daily routine as an ID as I develop all of my course material through various computer programs, I deliver training via Adobe Connect sessions, I attend Webinars and video conference meetings on a daily basis, and I use technology as my means of communication with my co-workers all over the world.  Online learning is definitely not something for everyone, but for me the ability to attend classes online, deliver training classes online, and receive various training content online has enriched my personal learning and my performance in my career. 

As I reflect on my life as a learner, and my adult life as an educator, I believe my learning style has changed many times over the years and I believe most people are similar to me and their learning styles evolve over time and become somewhat of a combination of many styles.  I also believe; however, as educators and instructional designers we have a responsibility to our learners to evolve our teaching methods to the best of our ability in order to reach the maximum number of learners and learning styles.

Mapping My Learning Connections

While I was creating my mind map I did a great deal of reflection on how each network has become an avenue of learning for me.  Adult learners are not limited to learning in a classroom, but instead can derive learning opportunities from a wide variety of sources.  I have come up with the following networks as being my main sources for communication, support, and knowledge:    

Personal Network:  My personal network is made up of family, friends, and church (including my children’s Catholic school connections).  I engage in discussions regarding education, religion, parenting, finances, basically any and all issue or topic possible.  I am blessed to be surrounded by people who are thought provoking and discussion oriented which enables me to learn from their experience, as well as share my own thoughts.

Online-  Included in this category would be a variety of social network sites such as Facebook, Wiki, and Blogs.  It would also include online communications like email, sametime and instant messaging.  My online network gives me the opportunity to engage in conversation with individuals from all over the globe and individuals who have much different perspectives and experiences.  Through the Internet, search engines like google and Bing, I can obtain information at a click of the mouse that might have taken hours to research in the past.  

Walden University – My Walden online network is made up of my relationships with classmates and my discussion or classroom forums.  Through my Walden network I am able to engage in dialogue with highly educated people who share their knowledge and push me to think outside the box and broaden my own knowledge base.  Through my classroom forum I have access to a great deal of technology such as the Walden Tech Resources, Library, Writing Center, and of course the faculty and administrative resources.  

Work – My professional network includes my co-workers, project teams I am involved with, and the business partners I support with my training efforts.  Through meetings, sametime conversations, adobe connect sessions, webinars, sharepoint sites and virtual learning opportunities I stay connected and learn a great deal from my professional network.  I gain a great deal of knowledge about key performance indicators, returns on investment, and the state of our economy from my professional network.  My professional network also provides me access to massive amounts of technology I would not otherwise have access to.  This technology enables me to broaden my skills as an instructional designer and employee.  

Additional Points:

Which digital tools best facilitate learning for me – definitely the online classroom environment.  I learn a great deal from the conversations I have in the discussion forums, as well as the weekly reading and the tech resources made available to students.  The digital tools I learn the least from are definitely blogs!  I do not enjoy blogging, and I do not feel I gain greater knowledge from participating in blogs…just a personal opinion of mine.  

In what ways does my personal learning network support the ideas of connectivism? - Siemens explains, “Connectivism is presented as a learning theory that integrates technology, social networks, and information” (2011). The ability to incorporate multiple facets for learning (i.e. online, instructor led, systems based, etc) and the incorporation of self-directed learning, partnered with social networking enables me to become connected to my peers while at the same time being empowered to work at my own pace and identify how the learning will directly impact my life. This, in my opinion, is the basic framework for a successful learning situation.

References:

Siemens, G. (n.d.). Connectivism, Video resources Walden University