EDC 664 : Learning Portfolio
Learn | Make | Use | Join | Teach | Publish | Reflect
At
the beginning of the semester, we were asked to give our thoughts on the social
nature of learning and how people learn in general. My thoughts at the time
were:
Of course, you learn by yourself. No one can learn something for you. As a teacher, I show my students some tools, present them with some ideas. It is up to them to take those ideas and throw then "into fresh combinations". Until they (or I) internalize the knowledge, I'm not sure you can say it is truly learned.
Now, if that question means can you learn in a closet with no social input, probably. The wonder of the human mind is the ability to create endless combinations from bits of language and knowledge. You will be limit in your set of tools, but depending on your spirit, you can construct learning anyhow.
I envisioned the process of learning as
“making a connection between existing knowledge and new experience. One of the quotes I use in my sig file says "Learning is not so much an additive process, with new learning simply piling up on top of existing knowledge, as it is an active, dynamic process in which the connections are constantly changing and the structure reformatted."
Chemistry is a long way behind me, but I remember a process where two elements are mixed and create a new substance with its own characteristics, no longer resembling the two original elements. A chemical change takes place to create something new. That is the same process (whatever it is called!) that reminds me of true learning. You take something you already know, add new information, and synthesize it into something changed and unique.
Although I still stand behind my vision of the process of learning, my ideas about how people learn have changed somewhat. Learning is a social process. In my original statement, I even mentioned that but failed to see it for what it was. I stated that as a teacher I give my students the tools… that exchange of ideas constitutes a social interaction.
I Learned About Theories
My readings this semester exposed me to Smith, Vygotsky, Langer, Wenger, and other theorists who all support the social nature of learning. I learned about the “Official” and “Classical” theories of learning and why our traditional ideas about learning and forgetting appear to be erroneous. The role of “clubs” in the learning process can be critical because club members can “1. help you say what you are trying to say; 2. help you understand what you are trying to understand” (Smith p. 18). Wenger’s communities of practice support members at different levels of involvement, allowing the construction of knowledge to occur as members interact with each other.
Ellen Langer’s directive to learn mindfully, to learn with an openness to new ideas, to become aware of multiple perspectives, and to constantly look for new ways to organize information supported my existing ideas about how people should learn. I found the myths she worked to debunk very interesting. She stated that the myths that undermine true learning are:
- The basics must be learned so well that they become second nature.
- Paying attention means staying focused on one thing at a time.
- Delayed gratification is important.
- Rote memorization is necessary in education.
- Forgetting is a problem.
- Intelligence is knowing “what’s out there”.
- There are right and wrong answers.
These ideas all support the reasons I choose homeschooling as an option in the first place. I see public education subscribing to those myths and knew they were not right. It was gratifying to be able to place solid theory behind my objections.
Especially compelling was Vygotsky’s ideas about the complex interaction of language and thought and his theories that learning leads development. Vygotsky said “thought undergoes many changes as it turns into speech. It does not merely find expressions in speech; it finds reality and form” (Putney p. 42). Through the act of dialogue, inner or with peers, the learner begins to internalize information and makes connections to existing knowledge. Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) views learning and development as dynamically interrelated. The learner is moved from their actual developmental level to their potential developmental goals through interaction with a more capable peer who mentors, pushes, guides, and encourages them to reach farther than they would do otherwise do alone. As I reflected on this concept, I was able to see times in my own learning where I experienced this process.
I Learned That Learning Needs to be Meaningful and Relevant
Learning needs to be authentic and relevant to the learner. I didn't get very far in my original blueprint project, but if I look at how I learn in other situations, I can see that relevance is very important to me. The time I feel I am learning the most is when I am in up to my elbows troubleshooting problems. That forces me to try many combinations, learning what doesn't work as well as what does.
As I struggle with these real-life problems, things that must be solved before moving up to the next level, I reach out to more capable peers (the books, the online communities) to pull me along. I suppose that would be the time I am in my ZPD, and it is the time when I make major leaps in learning. (TI 12/9/02).
Taking part in our learning circle I was able to observe learning goals that started out with good intentions but weren’t meaningful or relevant to the learner. In both cases, the learners became dissatisfied with the progress, or perceived lack of progress, they were making in their projects. They chose projects because they felt they “should” learn to do something instead of finding something they could really become engaged in. The successful projects in our group were ones that became a cycle of learning and development motivated by relevance to the interests and goals of the learners.
I Learned That Learning Goals Need To Be Realistic
One of the most important things I learned was to be more realistic in creating learning goals. While it is fine to have a large project in mind, it must be achievable within the time frame and with the materials available. I had high hopes and great intentions at the beginning of the semester, and as I sat down and developed a timeline, the goal seemed attainable. However, I should have been aware of the variables that I had no control over and factored those into my plans. As it became apparent that I was not going to be able to complete the original project I began to lose interest – it was no longer relevant and meaningful.
I Learned That Learning Happens By Pushing The Limits
For me, learning happens when I encounter problems to solve that require knowledge that I don’t currently have. If these problems exist on the periphery of what I currently know, I am able to scaffold that knowledge to higher levels with the help of more capable peers. Sometimes these peers are colleagues, sometimes they are members of virtual communities that I belong to, and sometimes they are authors of reading materials I consult. “Learning is problem solving and the more complex the problem the deeper the learning" (Riel TI 12/9/02).
I Learned That Failure Isn’t A Bad Thing
Failure can be an opportunity to re-assess learning goals. It is a valuable experience to be able to rule out what doesn’t work as well as learning what does work. In Visions of Vygotsky, Wink and Putney quote Zebrosky as saying “…apparent failure, and backward development, … nonetheless often foreshadow the reorganization and restructuring of experience and prepare for the developmental leap that follows” (Wink p. 89).
Creating Learning Environments
The challenge for me is to take the knowledge gained and apply it. I want to create that authenticity and relevance for my students, to make projects so that they will be challenged to move beyond where they are comfortable and reach out to peers and experts to learn.
Work Cited
How People Learn. Ed. John D. Bransford, Ann L. Brown, and Rodney R. Cocking. Washington, D.C.: National Academy P, 2000.
Kilburn, Debby. "Making Connections." Online posting. 6 Sept. 2002. pep.gsep.ed664.5th-D. 6 Sept. 2002 <news:pep.gsep.ed664.5th-D>.
Kilburn, Debby. "Reflections on Learning.” Online discussion. 9 Dec. 2002. Margaret Riel’s Office. 9 Dec. 2002 <http://www.tappedin.org>.
Kilburn, Debby. "What does it mean to learn something by yourself?" Online posting. 6 Sept. 2002. pep.gsep.ed665.5th-D. 6 Sept. 2002 <news:pep.gsep.ed665.5th-D>.
Langer, Ellen J. The Power of Mindful Learning. Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books, 1997.
Putney, LeAnn, and Joan Wink. A Vision of Vygotsky. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2002.
Smith, Frank. The Book of Learning and Forgetting. New York: Teachers College P, 1998.
Vygotsky, Lev. Thought and Language. Cambridge, MA: The
MIT Press, 1986.
Email: dlkilbur@pepperdine.edu
AIM: kilburnkrew OR fourhweb 
ICQ: 127174826
Tapped In: DebbyKi / office 1018