Educ4 Module
Educ4 Module
Educ4 Module
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CHAPTER 1
Facilitating Learner Centered Teaching
Learner Centered Teaching (LCT) has become a popular phrase among educators nowadays. It has been named
in several ways such as student-centred approach or learner-centered pedagogy in many textbooks and journal articles.
Looking at the research literature surrounding learner-centred teaching in the past 20 years, a book published in 2002 by
Maryllen Weimer stands as one of the earlier attempts to comprehensively discuss and define what is LCT about.
Balance of Power
In a traditional classroom, the power to decide what lessons to discuss, what learning activities students
must engage in, and what assessment tasks to give mainly belongs to the teacher with little input from
students. On the other hand, in a student-centered classroom, a teacher shares that power by consulting
learners prior to making final decisions.
The traditional exercise of power in the classroom often benefits the teacher more than it promotes
student learning. The uniform instructional approach or ‘one-size-fits-all’ concept certainly is more
convenient on the part of the teacher who has worked hard in planning, implementing, and assessing
outcomes of learning. However, this uniform approach has been criticized by scholars by being
unresponsive to the diversity of needs, interests, and readiness among students.
In order to balance power in the classroom, learners are frequently consulted and given immediate and
ongoing feedback by the teacher. The teacher empowers students by giving them the opportunity to
choose and make decisions like selecting among lesson topics, choose learning activities, determine
pace of learning, and select an assessment task to demonstrate one’s mastery of targeted learning
competencies.
Function of Content
Current research evidence from educational psychology calls for a change in the function of curriculum
content which should be less on covering it and more on using content to develop a learner’s individual
way of understanding or sense-making. Teachers need to allow learners to raise their own questions,
generate their own answers or solutions.
From a constructivist perspective, knowledge cannot simply be given to students: Students must
construct their own meanings” (Stage, Muller, Kinzie, and Simmons, 1998, p. 35). In other words,
learners are capable of constructing and reconstructing their knowledge through active personal effort.
This view debunks the current belief about students’ learning from passively receiving information
transmitted from teachers via lectures.
In order to facilitate learning that changes how students think and understand, teachers must begin by
finding out students’ prior knowledge or conceptions and then design learning activities that will
change these pre-instructional concepts.
Learner-centered teaching also regards content as more of competency-based learning in which students
master targeted skills and content before progressing to another lesson. The more important practice
here is to accommodate students’ differing pace of learning. For instance, some students may be able to
demonstrate they know how to use a microscope in 1 hour while others need 2 hours of practice to
demonstrate proficiency in manipulating it.
With patient guidance and ongoing support from teachers, competency-based learning would ensure
that students advance to new material when they are ready, at their own pace, whether they can move
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A more recent research on the student-centered approach was reported by Kaput in 2018 that was funded by the
Nellie Mae Education Foundation and UMass Donahue Institute. This study surveyed 12 public high schools in New
England in terms of how they apply learner-centered teaching in their classroom practices. The said survey summarized
their findings in to 4 tenets which are:
Kaput’s study reported that the majority of the participating schools were effective in personalizing the learning
of their students and creating an environment where students took ownership of their learning. However, the study also
found that the participating schools struggled with implementing and practicing “anytime, anywhere is learning” due to a
series of challenges that both teachers and administrators faced. Teachers from the participating schools largely
responded that student-centered learning promoted higher student engagement and facilitated learning that was more
relevant to students. Further, a large percentage of the teachers contended that students in student-centered environments
explored the curriculum with more depth and retained knowledge more effectively than in traditional settings.
The American Psychological Association (APA) published in 2015 its top 20 principles for teaching and learning for
basic education teachers. These principles were based on decades of research on human learning and can well serve as
lampposts for today’s teachers on how to facilitate learner-centered teaching. A brief statement of APA on the
implications of the top 20 principles to current teaching practices is quoted below:
“Psychological science has much to contribute to enhancing teaching and learning in the classroom. Teaching and
learning are intricately linked to social and behavioral factors of human development, including cognition,
motivation, social interaction, and communication”
(APA, 2015, p.8)
As a future educator, the top 20 principles revolve around the following key concepts to keep in mind whenever we
design our instructional plans and implement them with our students.
Among the popular instructional approaches that have been extensively researched for more than two
decades are the Cooperative Learning Approach, Differentiated Instruction Approach, and the Personalized
Learning Approach. A comparison of these 3 pedagogical approaches along with the traditional approach is
shown in the table below using the 5 essential elements of Learner-Centered Pedagogy by Weimer.
Table 1
A Comparison of Teaching Approaches
Elements Traditional Cooperative Differentiated Personalized Learning
Instructional Learning Instructional Approach
Approach Approach approach
Johnson and Johnson (1994) described five factors that influence the effectiveness of cooperation in classrooms
which are shown in the figure below.
Positive Interdependence.
Students commit to personal success as well as the success of every member of the group. If students are
having difficulties, their group mates are there to support them.
Positive interdependence can also promote motivation to learn, because students are learning not just for
themselves but also for the benefit of their groups.
Working in groups involved sharing information helping each other in doing the group task so that they
progress together.
Promotive Interaction
Students promote each other's success by sharing resources or information that will help every member.
Peers take time to encourage, and praise each other's efforts to learn.
Group Processing
Group members need to feel free to communicate openly with each other to express concerns as well as to
celebrate accomplishments.
Learners take time to monitor and discuss how well they are achieving their goals and maintaining
effective working relationships.
Students frequently reflect and discuss on how well they are achieving their goals and work to maintain
effective working relationships.
In DI approach, teachers usually differentiate their teaching by modifying three aspects in his/her classroom
practice. Each aspect of practice is presented below with examples on how each is applied in actual teaching practice.
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Differentiating Content
The most important part is to diagnose the learners’ prior knowledge so as to determine his/her readiness to
learn new content. In fact, diagnostic assessments form the foundation for designing differentiated teaching-
learning activities to better construct or build upon students’ prior knowledge.
Via differentiation, teachers respond proactively to differences in students' knowledge, skills, learning styles,
interests, and cognitive needs in order to create multiple access points to content.
Teachers may differentiate several learning tasks or pathways within the same lesson that match the needs of
specific students or student groups.
Teachers should hold all students to the same expectations and goals related to mastery of essential content but
may utilize different techniques and modified activities to help each student meet outlined objectives (Bondie,
Dahnke & Zusho, 2019).
Differentiating Process
Teachers utilize whole-class, small-group, and individual explorations. Students are allowed to work with peers
who show similar academic needs at a given time.
Students of mixed readiness are also allowed to work together so that they may draw upon the strengths of
others.
Students may also choose to work with classmates who have similar interests or learning styles or even
collaborate with those who have different interests or learning style profile.
Students themselves sometimes decide on their work groups and arrangements, and sometimes teachers also
decide.
Teachers may also use technology to create blended learning classrooms that allow for multiple leveled
activities and centers.
Differentiating Product
Flexibility in the work products and performances that students complete to demonstrate newly acquired
knowledge or skills supports accurate evaluation of students' capabilities while also allowing students to
leverage their strengths to achieve the same standards as their peers.
Assessments can be implemented before, during, and after instruction to monitor student progress relative to
differentiated instruction.
Create and implement assessments that accurately measure competencies, analyze assessment results to identify
students who are below mastery level
Students are provided with alternative ways to act skillfully and demonstrate what they know
Flexible Pathways
Learning activities must be meaningful and relevant to learners, driven by their interests, and often are self-
initiated.
Students are provided the opportunity to choose in-school and out-of-school learning modalities that are attuned
to their socio- economic capability, interests and needs.
The table below provides a list of commonly applied teaching strategies under CLA, DIA and PLA.
Table 2
Teaching Strategies According to Approach
Lecture Teacher-demo
Drills Recitation Thin-Pair-Share Tiered Lessons Choice Team Wikis Group
Student Report Role Jigsaw II Boards Graphic Blogs Personal
Play Games Team-Game- Organizers Web-Quests Vlogs
Tournaments Learning Logs Learning Discussion Threads Chat
(TGT) Contracts Gallery Walk Groups Polling
Student-Teams Project e-Portfolio
Achievement Division
(STAD) Numbered
Heads Inside-Outside
circle
People learn through repetition. Learner is a passive blank slate shaped by environmental stimuli, both positive and
negative reinforcement. This topic helps you understand behaviorism and its connection to learning reinforcement.
BEHAVIORISM
This particular learning theory assumes that the learner is essentially passive, simply responding to their
environmental stimuli. Behavioral theorists therefore believe that a learner basically begins as a clean slate, and their
behavior is shaped by positive/negative reinforcement
The theory of behaviorism focuses on the study of observable and measurable behavior. It emphasizes that
behavior is mostly learned through conditioning and reinforcement (rewards and punishment). It does not give much
attention to the mind, and the possibility of thought processes occurring in the mind. Contributions in the development of
the behaviorist theory largely came from Pavlov, Watson, Thorndike and Skinner.
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Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiological is well known for his work in classical conditioning or stimulus
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substitution. Pavlov’s most renowned experiment involved meat, a dog and a bell. Initially, Pavlov was measuring the
dog’s salivation in order to study digestion. This is when he stumbled upon classical conditioning.
Pavlov’s Experiment
Before conditioning, ringing the bell (neutral stimulus) caused no response from the dog. Placing dog food
(unconditioned stimulus) in front of the dog initiated salivation (unconditioned response). During conditioning, the bell
was rung a few seconds before the dog was presented with food. After conditioning, the ringing of the bell (conditioned
stimulus) alone produce salivation (conditioned response). This is classical conditioning.
Figure 1
Pavlov’s Experiment Schematic
Stimulus Generalization. Once the dog has learned to salivate at the sound of the bell, it well salivate at the other
similar sounds
Extinction. If you stop pairing the bell with the food, salivation will eventually cease in response to the bell.
Spontaneous Recovery. Extinguished responses can be “recovered” after an elapsed time, but will soon
extinguish again if the dog is not presented with food.
Discrimination. The dog could learn to discriminate between similar bells (stimuli) and discern which bell
would result in the presentation of food and which would not.
Higher-Order Conditioning. Once the dog has been conditioned to associate the bell with food, another
unconditioned stimulus, such as a light may be flashed at the same time that the bell is rung. Eventually the dog
will salivate at the flash of the light without the sound of the bell.
CONNECTIONISM
Connectionism is a learning theory developed by George Siemens and Steven Downs. It stresses the connections
and combinatorial creativity. All the knowledge is out there – it’s a matter of making the connections. Siemens (2004)
states, “A community is the clustering of similar areas of interest that allows for interaction, sharing, dialoguing, and
thinking together.”
For example, if a learner is trying to learn how Donald Trump has risen to power, they may start on a Facebook
post that a friend made, which could then take them to an article, but the text is dense and confusing, so instead the
student the student scroll down to the comments sections and finds another link to blog, and from the blog there is an
embedded YouTube video that they watch to more fully understand the issue. The student has used various forms of
gathering information using the internet, and has gleaned the most salient information by using many different modes to
more fully understand the issue.
Edward Thorndike’s Connectionism theory gave us the original S-R framework of behavioral psychology. More
than a hundred years ago he wrote a text book entitled, Educational Psychology. He was the first one to use this term. He
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explained that learning is the result of associations forming between stimuli and responses. Such associations or “habits”
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become strengthened or weakened by the nature and frequency of the S-R pairings. The model for S-R theory was trial
and error learning in which certain responses came to be repeated than others because of rewards. The main principle of
connectionism (like all behavioral theory) was that learning could be adequately explained without considering any
unobservable internal states. Thorndike’s theory on connectionism stated that learning has taken place when a strong
connection or bond between stimulus and response is formed. He came up with three primary laws.
Edward Thorndike (1898) is famous in psychology for his work on learning theory that lead to the
development of operant conditioning within Behaviorism. Whereas classical conditioning depends on developing
associations between events, operant conditioning involves learning from the consequences of our behavior.
Skinner wasn’t the first psychologist to study learning by consequences. Indeed, Skinner's theory of operant
conditioning is built on the ideas of Edward Thorndike.
Figure 1
Simplified graph of the result of the puzzle box experiment.
He placed a cat in the puzzle box, which was encouraged to escape to reach a scrap of fish placed outside. Thorndike
would put a cat into the box and time how long it took to escape. The cats experimented with different ways to escape the
puzzle box and reach the fish.
Eventually they would stumble upon the lever which opened the cage. When it had escaped it was put in again, and once
more the time it took to escape was noted. In successive trials the cats would learn that pressing the lever would have
favorable consequences and they would adopt this behavior, becoming increasingly quick at pressing the lever.
Edward Thorndike put forward a “Law of effect” which stated that any behavior that is followed by pleasant
consequences is likely to be repeated, and any behavior followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.
THORDIKE’S THEORY ON CONNECTIONISM stated that learning has taken place when a strong connection or
bond between stimulus and response is formed. He came up with three primary laws:
Law of Effect
The Law of Effect stated that a connection between a stimulus and response is strengthened when the
consequence is positive (reward) and the connection between the stimulus and the response is weakened when the
consequence is negative. Thorndike later on, revised this “law” when he found that negative reward, seemingly
pleasurable consequences do not necessarily motivate performance.
Law of Exercise.
Tell us that the more an S-R (stimulus response) bond in practice the stronger it will become. “Practice makes
perfect” seem to be associated with this. However, like the law of effect, the law of exercise also had to revise when
Thorndike found that practice without feedback does not necessarily enhance performance.
Law of Readiness.
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This states that, the more readiness the learner has to respond to the stimulus, the stronger will be the bond
between them. When a person is ready to a stimulus and is not made to respond, it becomes annoying to the person.
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Example, if the teacher says, “Okay we will now watch the movie (stimulus) you’ve been waiting for.” And suddenly the
power goes off, the students will feel frustrated because they were ready to respond to the stimulus but were prevented
from doing so. Likewise, if the person is not at all ready to respond to stimuli and is asked to respond, that becomes
annoying. For instance, the teacher asks the question and expects the students to respond right away when he is still not
ready. This will be annoying to the student. This is why teacher should remember to say the question first, and wait for a
few seconds before calling on anyone to answer.
Usually, people who worked on a maze activity, which you just did, would say they found the second maze
easier. This is because they say that the two mazes were identical, except that the entrance and exit points had been
reversed. Their experience in Maze A was much easier for them to answer Maze B. People are building mind maps of
events that they perceived. These mental maps help them to respond to other things or tasks later, particularly if they see
the similarity. You may start responding with trial and error (behavioral), but later on your response becomes more
internally driven (cognitive perspective). This is what neo-behaviorism is all about. It has behavioral aspects, but it also
has a cognitive perspective.
There are two neo-behaviorism-reflecting theories that stand out; Edward Tolman's purposive behaviorism and
Albert Bandura's theory of social learning. Both theories are influenced by behaviorism (focused on internal elements
and learning).
Purpose behaviorism has also been referred to as sign learning theory and is often seen as a link between
behaviorism and cognitive theory. Tolman 's theory was based on the psychological views of the Gestalt Psychologist
and the behaviorist John Watson.
Tolman believes that learning is a cognitive process. Learning involves building belief in the acquisition of
knowledge about the environment and then the discovery of knowledge through purposeful and objective behavior.
Tolman stated in his sign theory that an organism learns by pursuing signs for a goal, i.e. learning is acquired
through meaningful behavior. He stressed that the organized aspect of learning is acquired through meaningful behavior.
He emphasized that the organized aspect of learning is that the stimuli allowed in are not connected by simple one-to-one
switches to the outgoing reactions. Rather, the incoming impulses are usually worked out and elaborated in the central
control room into a tentative cognitive environment map. And it is this tentative map, indicating routes and pathways,
and environmental relations that finally determines what kind of response the animal will finally make.
Tolman's form of behaviorism underscored the relationship between stimuli rather than stimulus-response.
Tolman said that a new stimulus (sign) would be associated with already meaningful stimuli (significant ones) through a
series of pairings; there was no need for reinforcement to establish learning. In your labyrinth activity, the new stimulus
or "sign" (maze B) has become associated with the already meaningful stimulus, the signicate (maze A). So you may
have connected the two stimuli, Labyrinth A and Labyrinth B, and used your knowledge and experience in Labyrinth A
to learn how to respond to Labyrinth A.
This is a learning theory that was in response to behaviorism. Psychologist who promoted this idea claimed that
behaviorism failed to explain cognition. In this theory, mind is an information processor. It emphasizes understanding the
concept as a whole instead of just the piece.
This is the learning theory that was taught in developing online education using Blooms Taxonomy. Examples
of cognitivist strategies for learning higher-level thinking are starting a lesson with a hook to create interest, a review
quiz to promote prior learning, using learning outcomes, chunking content into organized bite-sized pieces, using graphic
organizers, and the student takes on an active role on learning. The teacher gives lots of encouragement and positive
feedback.
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The social learning theory of Bandura emphasizes the importance of observing and modeling the behaviors,
attitudes, and emotional reactions of others. Bandura (1977) states: “Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to
mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do. Fortunately,
most human behavior is learned observationally through modeling: from observing others one forms an idea of how new
behaviors are performed, and on later occasions this coded information serves as a guide for action. Social learning
theory explains human behavior in terms of continuous reciprocal interaction between cognitive, behavioral, an
environmental influences.
1. People can learn by observing the behavior of the others and the outcomes of those behaviors.
2. Learning can occur without a change in behavior.
3. Cognition plays a role in learning.
4. Social learning can be considered a bridge or a transition between behaviorist learning theories and
cognitive learning theories.
People are often to reinforced for modeling the behavior of others. Bandura suggested that the environment
also reinforces modeling. This is several possible ways;
1. Contemporary theory proposes that both reinforcement and punishment have indirect effects on learning.
2. Reinforcement ad punishment influence the extent to which an individual exhibits a behavior that has been
learned
3. The expectation of reinforcement process that promote learning.
Cognitivism revived the psychological study of thinking, developing scientifically rigorous ways of studying
unobservable mental activity. In this module you will encounter different questions on how cognitivism brings on the
development of learning, and you will find answers or solution to these questions.
What is Cognitivism?
Cognitive theories stress the acquisition of knowledge and internal mental structures and, as such, are closer to
the rationalist end of the epistemology continuum (Bower & Hilgard, 1981). Learning is equated with discrete changes
between states of knowledge rather than with changes in the probability of response. Cognitive theories focus on the
conceptualization of students’ learning processes and address the issues of how information is received, organized,
stored, and retrieved by the mind. Learning is concerned not so much with what learners do but with what they know and
how they come to acquire it (Jonassen, 1991b). Knowledge acquisition is described as a mental activity that entails
internal coding and structuring by the learner. The learner is viewed as a very active participant in the learning process.
Cognitivism, like behaviorism, emphasizes the role that environmental conditions play in facilitating learning.
Instructional explanations, demonstrations, illustrative examples and matched non-examples are all considered to be
instrumental in guiding student learning. Similarly, emphasis is placed on the role of practice with corrective feedback.
Up to this point, little difference can be detected between these two theories. However, the “active” nature of the learner
is perceived quite differently.
The cognitive approach focuses on the mental activities of the learner that lead up to a response and
acknowledges the processes of mental planning, goal-setting, and organizational strategies (Shuell, 1986). Cognitive
theories contend that environmental “cues” and instructional components alone cannot account for all the learning that
results from an instructional situation. Additional key elements include the way that learners attend to, code, transform,
rehearse, store and retrieve information. Learners’ thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, and values are also considered to be
influential in the learning process (Winne, 1985). The real focus of the cognitive approach is on changing the learner by
encouraging him/her to use appropriate learning strategies.
According to cognitive theories, transfer is a function of how information is stored in memory (Schunk, 1991).
When a learner understands how to apply knowledge in different contexts, then transfer has occurred. Understanding is
seen as being composed of a knowledge base in the form of rules, concepts, and discriminations (Duffy & Jonassen,
1991). Prior knowledge is used to establish boundary constraints for identifying the similarities and differences of novel
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information. Not only must the knowledge itself be stored in memory but the uses of that knowledge as well. Specific
instructional or real-world events will trigger particular responses, but the learner must believe that the knowledge is
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In a classroom environment, there are many variables that influence and contribute to learning. When creating
and implementing a learning environment, it is imperative that the teachers not only create a setting that promotes
learning, but also take the time to understand each child. Classrooms are widely diverse and complex. Students learn
differently and are at various developmental levels. Teachers who properly manage their classrooms and establish
expectations will be able to incorporate diverse teaching philosophies and create an excellent learning environment for
each student. It is important that teachers create a learning environment that encourages students to do their best
and makes learning interesting. This creates a motivational climate within the classroom.
There are two factors that are critical to motivate students, value and effort. (Classroom Management) Students
must understand that the work they are performing is worthwhile. Value measures the importance of a student's work to
himself and others. Effort is the amount of time and energy students put into their work. Understanding the value of
academic tasks and the effort needed to complete those tasks can motivate students to perform better in the classroom
environment (Classroom Management)
Teachers should carefully assess the current stage of a child's cognitive development and only assign tasks for
which the child is prepared. The child can then be given tasks that are tailored to their developmental level and
are motivating.
Teachers must provide children with learning opportunities that enable them to advance through each
developmental stage. This is achieved by creating disequilibrium. Teachers should maintain a proper balance
between actively guiding the child and allowing opportunities for them to explore things on their own to learn
through discovery.
Teachers should be concerned with the process of learning rather than the end product. For example, the teacher
should observe the way a child manipulates play dough instead of concentrating on a finished shape.
Children should be encouraged to learn from each other. Hearing others' views can help breakdown
egocentrism. It is important for teachers to provide multiple opportunities for small group activities.
Piaget believed that teachers should act as guides to children's learning processes and that the curriculum should
be adapted to individual needs and developmental levels.
Cognitive games are designed to help stimulate various regions of the brain. These games are used to improve
reflexes, help people learn, promote critical thinking, and help people learn different patterns of association. Cognitive
games are helpful when used to learn a foreign language and memorize new material. Various learning techniques are
used in the classroom because there are various learning styles. There are many games that promote and influence
cognitive learning.
Sorting Games
Sorting games require individuals to utilize recognition and reasoning. Teachers can engage children in games in which
the children sort items by various criteria, such as color, size, texture, and other physical attributes of the items. A more
advanced approach to sorting is discussing how the items are similar. This process promotes critical thinking.
Flash Cards
Flash cards can be used various tasks. This involves notecards or an even scrap of paper in which two parts of
information is written on either side of the notecard. These can be as simple as having cards with a red dot on one side
and the word red on the other. Flash cards are typically used in a classroom for drills or in private study. These cards are
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used to aid memorization. Pre-made flash cards are available for many subjects. Teachers and students may also make
homemade flash cards, depending on how and what they are studying. Flash cards may also be personalized and printed
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from certain websites. (Flashcards) Flash cards can be utilized into various games as well.
Board Games
Teachers may include board games in their classrooms to promote cognitive development. Unlike computer and video
games, board games are tangible. Children can manipulate different pieces in the game. Board games can be
implemented to enhance mathematical and linguistic skills and enhance a child's ability to understand and follow
directions. Example, monopoly and bingo
Puzzles
Finding a solution to a puzzle develops a child's problem solving ability. Children who actively solve puzzles that they
are able to touch and piece together are more likely to understand certain concepts and develop their own theories about
those concepts.
CONSTRUCTIVISM
In this unit you will be introduce to many of the issues understanding and applying
Constructivism and constructivist principles for instructional design purposes.
Students learn new things through experience. They build knowledge through experiences and interactions. In
cognitive learning, the students are taught to do something in constructivism. The students are encouraged to discover
something on their own; this is known as self-directed learning. The major difference is that cognitive learning is about
building on prior knowledge, and constructivism is about building new ideas and concepts based on your own
discoveries.
Constructivism's central idea is that human learning is constructed, that learners build new knowledge upon the
foundation of previous learning. This prior knowledge influences what new or modified knowledge an individual will
construct from new learning experiences (Phillips, 1995).
The second notion is that learning is an active rather than a passive process. The passive view of teaching views the
learner as ‘an empty vessel’ to be filled with knowledge, where constructivism states that learners construct meaning
only through active engagement with the world (such as experiments or real-world problem solving). Information may be
passively received, but understanding cannot be, for it must come from making meaningful connections between prior
knowledge, new knowledge, and the processes involved in learning.
Learning is a social activity - it is something we do together, in interaction with each other, rather than an abstract
concept (Dewey, 1938). For example, Vygotsky (1978), believed that community plays a central role in the process of
"making meaning." For Vygotsky, the environment in which children grow up will influence how they think and what
they think about.Thus, all teaching and learning is a matter of sharing and negotiating socially constituted knowledge.
For example, Vygotsky (1978) states cognitive development stems from social interactions from guided learning within
the zone of proximal development as children and their partner's co- construct knowledge.
4. All knowledge is Personal
Each individual learner has a distinctive point of view, based on existing knowledge and values. This means that same
lesson, teaching or activity may result in different learning by each pupil, as their subjective interpretations differ. This
principle appears to contradict the view the knowledge is socially constructed. Fox (2001, p. 30) argues (a) that although
individuals have their own personal history of learning, nevertheless they can share in common knowledge, and (b) that
although education is a social process, powerfully influenced by cultural factors, nevertheless cultures are made up of
sub- cultures, even to the point of being composed of sub-cultures of one. Cultures and their knowledge-base are
constantly in a process of change and the knowledge stored by individuals is not a rigid copy of some socially
constructed template. In learning a culture, each child changes that culture.
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The constructivist theory posits that knowledge can only exist within the human mind, and that it does not have to match
any real world reality (Driscoll, 2000). Learners will be constantly trying to develop their own individual mental model
of the real world from their perceptions of that world. As they perceive each new experience, learners will continually
update their own mental models to reflect the new information, and will, therefore, construct their own interpretation of
reality.
Cognitivist teaching methods aim to assist students in assimilating new information to existing knowledge, and enabling
them to make the appropriate modifications to their existing intellectual framework to accommodate that information.
According to social constructivism learning is a collaborative process, and knowledge develops from individuals'
interactions with their culture and society.
Social constructivism was developed by Lev Vygotsky (1978, ) who suggested that, every function in the child's cultural
development appears twice: first, on the social level and, later on, on the individual level; first, between people
(interpsychological) and then inside the child (intrapsychological).
Radical constructivism was developed by Ernst von Glasersfeld (1974) and states that all knowledge is constructed rather
than perceived through senses. Learners construct new knowledge on the foundations of their existing knowledge.
However, radical constructivism states that the knowledge individuals create tells us nothing about reality, and only helps
us to function in your environment. Thus, knowledge is invented not discovered. The humanly constructed reality is all
the time being modified and interacting to fit ontological reality, although it can never give a ‘true picture’ of it. (Ernest,
1994, )
The primary responsibility of the teacher is to create a collaborative problem-solving environment where students
become active participants in their own learning. From this perspective, a teacher acts as a facilitator of learning rather
than an instructor. The teacher makes sure he/she understands the students' preexisting conceptions, and guides the
activity to address them and then build on them (Oliver, 2000).
Scaffolding is a key feature of effective teaching, where the adult continually adjusts the level of his or her help in
response to the learner's level of performance. In the classroom, scaffolding can include modeling a skill, providing hints
or cues, and adapting material or activity (Copple & Bredekamp, 2009).
Tam (2000) lists the following four basic characteristics of constructivist learning environments, which must be
considered when implementing constructivist teaching strategies:
The Philippine Government has consistently pursued teacher quality reforms through a number of initiatives. As
a framework of teacher quality, the National Competency-Based Teacher Standards (NCBTS) was institutionalized
through CHED Memorandum Order No. 52, s. 2007 and DepED Order No. 32, s. 2009. It emerged as part of the
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implementation of the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda (BESRA), and was facilitated by drawing on the learning
considerations of programs, such as the Basic Education Assistance for Mindanao (BEAM), the Strengthening
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Implementation of Visayas Education (STRIVE) project and the Third Elementary Education Project (TEEP).
The K to 12 Reform (R.A. 10533) in 2013 has changed the landscape of teacher quality requirements in the
Philippines. The reform process warrants an equivalent supportive focus on teacher quality – high quality teachers who
are properly equipped and prepared to assume the roles and functions of a K to 12 teachers.
The Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers, which is built on NCBTS, complements the reform
initiatives on teacher quality from pre-service education to in-service training. It articulates what constitutes teacher
quality in the K to 12 Reform through well- defined domains, strands, and indicators that provide measures of
professional learning, competent practice, and effective engagement. This set of standards makes explicit what teachers
should know, be able to do and value to achieve competence, improved student learning outcomes, and eventually quality
education. It is founded on teaching philosophies of learner-centeredness, lifelong learning, and inclusivity/inclusiveness,
among others. The professional standards, therefore, become a public statement of professional accountability that can
help teachers reflect on and assess their own practices as they aspire for personal growth and professional development.
The Philippine Professional Standards for Teachers defines teacher quality in the Philippines. The standards describe the
expectations of teachers’ increasing levels of knowledge, practice and professional engagement. At the same time, the
standards allow for teachers’ growing understanding, applied with increasing sophistication across a broader and more
complex range of teaching/learning situations.
The following describes the breadth of 7 Domains that are required by teachers to be effective in the 21st Century in the
Philippines. Quality teachers in the Philippines need to possess the following characteristics:
Recognize the importance of mastery of content knowledge and its interconnectedness within and across
curriculum areas, coupled with a sound and critical understanding of the application of theories and principles of
teaching and learning. They apply developmentally appropriate and meaningful pedagogy grounded on content
knowledge and current research. They display proficiency in Mother Tongue, Filipino and English to facilitate
the teaching and learning process, as well as exhibit the needed skills in the use of communication strategies,
teaching strategies and technologies to promote high-quality learning outcomes.
Provide learning environments that are safe, secure, fair and supportive in order to promote learner
responsibility and achievement. They create an environment that is learning-focused and they efficiently
manage learner behavior in a physical and virtual space. They utilize a range of resources and provide
intellectually challenging and stimulating activities to encourage constructive classroom interactions geared
towards the attainment of high standards of learning.
Establish learning environments that are responsive to learner diversity. They respect learners’ diverse
characteristics and experiences as inputs to the planning and design of learning opportunities. They encourage
the celebration of diversity in the classroom and the need for teaching practices that are differentiated to
encourage all learners to be successful citizens in a changing local and global environment.
Interact with the national and local curriculum requirements. They translate curriculum content into learning
activities that are relevant to learners and based on the principles of effective teaching and learning. They apply
their professional knowledge to plan and design, individually or in collaboration with colleagues, well-
structured and sequenced lessons that are contextually relevant, responsive to learners’ needs and incorporate a
range of teaching and learning resources. They communicate learning goals to support learner participation,
understanding and achievement.
Apply a variety of assessment tools and strategies in monitoring, evaluating, documenting and reporting
learners’ needs, progress and achievement. They use assessment data in a variety of ways to inform and enhance
the teaching and learning process and programs. They provide learners with the necessary feedback about
learning outcomes that informs the reporting cycle and enables teachers to select, organize and use sound
assessment processes.
Establish school-community partnerships aimed at enriching the learning environment, as well as the
community’s engagement in the educative process. They identify and respond to opportunities that link teaching
and learning in the classroom to the experiences, interests and aspirations of the wider school community and
other key stakeholders. They understand and fulfill their obligations in upholding professional ethics,
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accountability and transparency to promote professional and harmonious relationships with learners, parents,
schools and the wider community.
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Value personal growth and professional development and exhibit high personal regard for the profession by
maintaining qualities that uphold the dignity of teaching such as caring attitude, respect and integrity. They
value personal and professional reflection and learning to improve their practice. They assume responsibility for
personal growth and professional development for lifelong learning.
The 7 Domains of teacher practice comprise of 37 strands that refer to more specific dimensions of teacher practice.
Domain 1
Content Knowledge &Pedagogy (7 strands)
1. Content knowledge and its application within and across curriculum areas
2. Research-based knowledge and principles of teaching and learning
3. Positive use of ICT
4. Strategies for promoting literacy and numeracy
5. Strategies for developing critical and creative thinking, as well as other higher-order thinking skills
6. Mother Tongue, Filipino and English in teaching and learning
7. Classroom communication strategies
Domain 2
Environment (6 stands)
Domain 3
Diversity of Learners (5 strands)
Domain 4
Curriculum and Planning (5 strands)
Domain 5
Assessment and Reporting (5 strands)
Domain 6
Community Linkages and Professional Engagement (4 strands)
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Domain 7
Personal Growth and Professional Development (5 strands)
1. Philosophy of teaching
2. Dignity of teaching as a profession
3. Professional links with colleagues
4. Professional reflection and learning to improve practice
5. Professional development goals
Teacher professional development happens in a continuum from beginning to exemplary practice. Anchored on
the principle of lifelong learning, the set of professional standards for teachers recognizes the significance of a standards
framework that articulates developmental progression as teachers develop, refine their practice and respond to the
complexities of educational reforms.
The following statements, which define the work of teachers at different career stages, make explicit the
elements of high-quality teaching for the 21st century. They comprise descriptors that have been informed by teachers’
understandings of what is required at each of the four Career Stages. The descriptors represent a continuum of
development within the profession by providing a basis for attracting, preparing, developing and supporting teachers.
exhibit exceptional capacity to improve their own teaching practice and that of others.
recognized as leaders in education, contributors to the profession and initiators of collaborations and
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partnerships.
create lifelong impact in the lives of colleagues, students and others.
consistently seek professional advancement and relevance in pursuit of teaching quality and excellence.
exhibit commitment to inspire the education community and stakeholders for the improvement of
education provision in the Philippine.
CHAPTER 2
Cognition of Learners
2.1 COGNITION OF LEARNERS
Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) proposed the multi-store memory model also known as modal model which is
basically a structural model. Together they proposed the notion that memory consists of three stores:
• a sensory register
• short-term memory (STM)
• long-term memory (LTM).
To this, they held that information goes through the process in a linear way which has been described as the
information processing model so much like how a computer works with an input, process and output.
As such, information is said to be detected by the sense organs which then proceeds to the sensory memory.
This, if attended to can enter the short term memory. When the information from the short-term memory is rehearsed
(repeated), it gets transferred to the long-term memory. However, without maintenance rehearsal (repetition) information
may be forgotten and gets lost from short-term memory by the process of displacement or decay.
Each store is a unitary structure and has its own characteristics in terms of encoding, capacity and duration. Encoding is
the way information is changed so that it can be stored in the memory. There are three main ways in which information
can be encoded (changed):
1. visual (picture),
2. acoustic (sound),
3. semantic (meaning).
Mcleod (2017) pointed out the study conducted by Glanzer and Cunitz (1966) which showed that when learners
were presented a list of words only the first few and last few of those have the tendency to be remembered while the
words in the middle list are likely to be forgotten.
The result supports that a separate LTM and STM exists because of the observed primacy and recency effect
where words presented early on in the list have been put into the long-term memory (primacy effect) due to the span of
time to rehearse the word while those words at the end part proceeded to the short term memory (recency effect).
Moreover, there have been different types of long term memory identified such as episodic (memories of
events), procedural (knowledge of how to do things) and semantic (general knowledge).
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In 1971, a Canadian researcher Allan Paivio proposed ‘that the human mind operates with two distinct classes of
mental representation (or “codes”), verbal representations and mental images, and that human memory thus comprises
two functionally independent (although interacting) systems or stores, verbal memory and image memory.’ (Thomas,
2014).
Source: https://classteaching.wordpress.com/2019/04/24/explaining-through-dual-coding/
The two codes or channels in our memory deal with visual and verbal stimuli and though they store those
stimuli separately, they are linked to each other and hence make retrieval easier. Both, words or images stimulate the
retrieval of the other.
‘While being independent of each other, they are also able to create what Paivio called “associative
connections” between them. So, they are both apart from one another but can cooperate in forming linked pairs of words
and images. By forming such a link, the encoding process is enriched. It leaves a double memory trace and, in the words
of Professor Paul Kirschner, results in “double-barrelled learning” because of the resultant double opportunity of being
retrieved by either verbal or visual means.’ (Caviglioli, 2019)
No wonder teachers who employ a Dual Coding mindset in preparing instructional materials have learning
improved because the students’ working memory is increased and cognitive load is reduced.
Further, Paivio as cited by Caviglio (2019) defined visual information as being synchronous or simultaneous in
structure and that these synonymous terms explains that diagrams can be viewed at one time bearing most, if not all
elements presented.
Meanwhile, verbal information is sequential by nature wherein each word is addressed one at a time. There is a
need to relate each word to other words to make sense of it. There is a distance that requires cognitive effort so as to
come up with the necessary inferences and finally make sense of the whole text.
It is, therefore, worth to note that “Visuals ignored, don’t teach”. (Clark and Lyons, 2004 cited by Caviglioli,
2019) Diagrams should be presented to give information requiring less effort to understand it and for students to think
about or else not much learning can take place. They should be thought of as platforms that enable learners to better
analyze texts.
As sure as the sunrise, human beings tend to forget things learned in the past. This lesson will help us
understand how fast we forget.
The ‘forgetting curve’ which refers to the loss of learned information has been a product of a series of
experiments conducted on memory by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850-1909). ‘The theory is that
humans start losing the memory of learned knowledge over time, in a matter of days or weeks, unless the learned
knowledge is consciously reviewed time and again. A related concept to the forgetting curve is strength of memory,
which states that the time period up to which a person can recall any memory is based on the strength of the particular
memory.’ (Shrestha, 2017)
In an article by Wadsworth (2019), he mentioned in particular its implications to college students who after a
day or two of attending classes, will have forgotten 75% of what was learned and that forgetting occurs within the first
hour. Interestingly, although this is said to be a natural process, it is possible to disrupt the process.
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Looking at the graph, it can be noticed that our memory starts to fade as days go by.
Again, simple processes can be employed to delay forgetting and can help us retain the information needed at a
later date.
As mentioned earlier, forgetting can be slowed down or disrupted. It can be observed in the second graph that
forgetting can be overcomed by spaced learning. What does spaced learning tell us?
‘While an initial review of material will help you remember in the short term, reviewing material multiple times
and at different intervals will help you retain it for much longer.’ The graph ‘shows how review affects memory. You can
see that every time you review material you both retain much more information, and your forgetting curve steadies out at
a much higher level. Each time you review material you take much more away. Research indicates that the minimum
amount of review is three.’ (Whitman, yyyy)
The dramatic increase proves how much review can do to students in retaining learned information over a period
of time. ‘Unfortunately, it also shows that without additional intervention one day after material is learned content is lost,
and one week after, recall is almost as if the review never happened at all.’ (Whitman, yyyy)
As a memory technique, Spaced Retrieval (SR) is evidence-based and makes use of ‘procedural memory to help
people recall information over progressively longer intervals of time.’ (Desai, 2020).
Now let us discuss a little about memory. According to Desai (2020) ‘A memory is simply a pattern of
information in the brain that is stored and retrieved.’ She added that oftentimes long-term memory is described as either
declarative or non-declarative. Declarative memory consists of those which can be consciously recalled like facts
(semantic memory) as well as personal events (episodic memory) while Non-declarative memory (also called procedural
memory) refers to implicit memory responsible for helping us carry out common tasks even without the conscious
thinking of it. (e.g. riding a bike, washing dishes, etc.)
Moreover, Rawson et. al, (2013) stressed three principles that promote effective long term learning which
include meaningful connections, retrieval practice and spaced practice.
As such teachers need to establish meaningful connections by explaining new concepts in relation to concepts
previously learned. Also, they need to keep the information accessible for retrieval practice and promote spaced practice
that is to distribute practice repetitions over time.
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In 2013 Rawson et. al, studied how much Spaced Retrieval practice have helped students utilize memorization
for an upcoming examination.
The participants were observed using the Spaced Retrieval Practice and Restudy strategies. For SR Practice
learning a concept progressed in three steps (retrieval, monitoring and feedback). While, in Restudy strategy a concept is
presented at least five times more after initial presentation.
Its findings revealed that during the exams, concepts learned with the use of Spaced Retrieval were better
remembered as compared to the Restudy strategy and other strategies. Interestingly, SR practice ‘did not just yield better
results on the exam but prevented the post-exam rapid forgetting.’ In short, concepts learned remain in the minds of the
students long after the exam was taken.
The above-mentioned study is proof how SR can be employed in the classroom to ensure better learning for
students.
Right hemisphere functions include the following; judging the position of objects in space, understanding of
body position, comprehending and remembering things you do and see, putting pieces of information together to make an
entire picture, and motor control of the left side of the body.
Left hemisphere functions include the following: Use of language (listening, reading, speaking and writing),
memory for spoken and written language, analysis of information in detail, and motor control of the right side of the
body. These skills develop over time in children and deficits in related areas of functioning suggest problems with this
process.
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Lateralization is the differing functions of the left and right hemispheres of the brain. Research over the years has
shown that damage to one hemisphere or the other can produce different problems and knowing this can help
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predict behavior.
Table 1
Summary of Differences in Cognitive Functions between the Left and Right Hemispheres
Functions Controls the muscles on the right side Controls the muscles on left side of the
of the body body
Regulates positive emotions Regulates negative emotions
Controls muscles used in speech Responds to simple commands
Controls the sequence of movements Memorizes music and shapes
Memorizes words and numbers Interprets visual images
Regulates speaking and writing Understands relationships in space
Understands spoken and written Recognizes faces
forms
Whole- Brained People are those individuals that enjoy best of both worlds. They have the skill to shift task to
the hemisphere of the brain that suits with the situation. These people are both logical and creative thinkers. They enjoy
logical task like sequencing, solving puzzles and quizzes. They also love arts, crafts and music. The whole brained
learners can see both the forest and tree. But they may lack the organization strength of the left-brained and the creative
brilliance of right-brained learners.
Intelligence has many definitions and people have different perceptions of what it really is. In the field of
education, identifying intelligence and assessing its value is one of the most important aspects for it will help you in the
delivery of instruction and conduct of assessment. But the biggest problem comes with identifying the real definition of
intelligence. Different theories are created to explain what intelligence is and these theories will help future teachers to
understand their learners better.
Howard Gardner in his book Frames of Mind (1983) explained that intelligence does not come in one type but
in 9 different types. He explained that intelligence comes in different forms and understanding these different types of
intelligence can help people especially teachers in understanding the learners better.
This intelligence focuses its ability to think in three dimensions. Some of its strength includes spatial reasoning,
artistic skill, active imagination and image manipulation. People with spatial intelligence enjoy jigsaw, puzzles,
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English Psychologist Charles Spearman developed the two-factor theory in 1904. In this theory he proposed
that intellectual abilities were comprised to two factors: the first ability is called the as the “G” factor which is the general
ability or the common ability; the second is called as the “S” factor which is a group of specific abilities.
The “G” factor involves the ability of an individual to do difficult mental task such as problem solving,
analyzing and critical thinking. The greater the “G” in an individual the greater its chance to live a successful life.
The “S” factor is acquired from the environment. This varies from an individual to and individual and from
activity to activity in the same individual. Therefore, the S-factor can be modified by learning and habitual training.
1. Numerical Factor (N) - This ability involves fast and accurate mathematical calculations.
2. Verbal Comprehensive Factor - This ability involves accurate understanding verbal materials,
vocabulary and reading comprehension.
3. Verbal Fluency Factor - The ability to produce words, sentences and other verbal material.
4. Perceptual Speed Factor - This ability involves proofreading and rapid recognition of numbers and
letters.
5. Inductive Reasoning Factor - The ability to create generalization- reasoning from specific to general
thinking.
6. Spatial Visualization Factor - The ability to manipulate imaginary object in space.
7. Memory Factor - The ability to memorize quickly.
8. Deductive Reasoning - Ability to use general result correctly.
9. Problem Solving Ability Factor - This ability focuses on the skill to solve problem independently.
1. Analytic Intelligence - generally defines as the academic ability. This intelligence helps us to solve
problems and acquire new information. Problem solving involves encoding information, combining and comparing
evidences and finally generation of solution.
2. Creative Intelligence - the ability to adapt within a situation and to learn from experiences. This
intelligence helps the learners to related current situation to the past experiences whether it is similar or different. The
result of such experience helps an individual to solve problems rapidly.
3. Practical Intelligence - also known as the street smart, help learners to adapt to the demand of their
environment. This intelligence involves dealing with common personal o practical problems. This intelligence also
involves dealing with unusual problem in our daily life.
2.7 METACOGNITION
Metacognition means “thinking about thinking” coined by John Flavell, the founding father of the concept of
metacognition. Flavell said that metacognition is an individual’s knowledge about how he/she thinks. Flavell (1979)
explicitly said, “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 tasks or process you undertake and to select and
utilize the appropriate strategies necessary in your intercultural interactions.”
Elements of Metacognition
Specialists recognize metacognitive information and metacognitive guideline (Flavell, 1979, 1987; Schraw and
Dennison, 1994). Metacognitive information alludes to what people think about themselves as psychological processors,
about various methodologies that can be utilized for learning and critical thinking, for a specific learning task.
Metacognitive guideline alludes to alterations people make to their procedures to help control their learning, for example,
arranging, data the systems, appreciation checking, de-irritating methodologies, and assessment of progress and
objectives. Flavell (1979) further partitions metacognitive information into three classifications:
• Person variables: What one recognizes about his or her strengths and weaknesses in learning and processing
information.
• Task variables: What one knows or can figure out about the nature of a task and the processing demands required
to complete the task—for example, knowledge that it will take more time to read, comprehend, and remember a
technical article than it will a similar-length passage from a novel.
• Strategy variables: The strategies a person has “at the ready” to apply in a flexible way to successfully accomplish
a task; for example, knowing how to activate prior knowledge before reading a technical article, using a glossary
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to look up unfamiliar words, or recognizing that sometimes one has to reread a paragraph several times before it
makes sense.
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Metacognitive Strategies
As an active learner, you are capable of monitoring your progress related to your learning and the tasks at hand.
There are metacognitive strategies that can be learned which will serve as your mechanism for controlling your thinking
activities and to ensure you are meeting your goals.
As an example, metacognitive strategies for learning a new language can include the following:
monitoring whether you understand the language lessons;
recognizing when you fail to comprehend information communicated to you in the new language;
identifying strategies that help you to improve your comprehension;
adjusting your pace for learning the information (for example, studying for 2 hours, rather than 1 hour, every day);
maintaining the attitude necessary to ensure you complete the lessons in a timely manner;
creating a check-in system at the end of each week to make certain you understand what you have learned.
Metacognition has been emphasized in the field of education for it makes learning active. It takes away the
concept of just absorbing information form the surrounding without processing it. The main goal of metacognition is to
help learners to be a better thinker. In a way that it presents task that will develop the thinking capabilities of the child
that in the near future they can use it in their future works or jobs.
CHAPTER 3
Motivation of Learners
Meaning of Motivation
Motivation is an inner drive that causes you to do something and persevere at something. It energizes you to do
something. It is the strength of the drive toward an action. While ability refers to what children can do, motivation refers
to what these children will do. Motivation refers to the initiation, direction, intensity and persistence of behavior. When
we get motivated to do something, it is not enough that we start working at that thing but that we get attracted to it. Our
attraction towards it becomes so intense that we persist working on it through thick and thin until its completion.
Learner’s motivation is the primary factor influencing both performance and success in school.
A student who is highly motivated to learn enjoys learning and learns much more than the one who is not as
motivated. S/he persists and perseveres in her/his studies even when things turn out to be difficult. S/he does not give up
easily. As a result, his/her performance is satisfactory. In contrast, a student who is not motivated to learn does not enjoy
learning, does not study unless “pushed”. When s/he feels the difficulty of study, s/he readily gives up. S/he lacks
perseverance.
Types of Motivation
Motivation is classified as either intrinsic or extrinsic. It is intrinsic when the source of motivation is from within
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the person himself/herself or the activity itself. It is motivation to engage in an activity for its own sake (Schunk et al,
2008). An example is when a student reads pocketbooks because s/he herself/himself wants to read them or because
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reading them is in itself worthwhile and enjoyable. Motivation is extrinsic when that which motivates a person is
someone or something outside him/her. When a student studies because s/he was told by her/his teacher or because s/he is
afraid to fail and his/her parents will make her/him stop schooling or because it will lead to a good grade, we can say that
s/he is extrinsically motivated. Extrinsic motivation is motivation to engage in an activity as a means to an end. In our
examples, the student studies to please her/his teacher, parents or to get a good grade. He does not study for the joy of
studying.
Obviously, intrinsic motivation is more beneficial than extrinsic motivation because intrinsic motivation comes
from within the person himself/herself. If that which motivates a person is something or someone outside, the moment
that person or that something is gone, the person’s motivation is also gone. Intrinsic motivation is evident when people
engage in an activity for its own sake, without some obvious external incentive present. Reading for no reason other than
the joy of reading illustrates intrinsic motivation.
Research indicates that intrinsic motivation is preferable because of its focus on learning and understanding.
1. Attention - it refers to the learners’ interest that is critical to get and hold their interests and attention.
Two ways to gain attention:
a. Perceptual arousal – uses surprise or uncertainly to gain interest. Uses novel, surprising, incongruous,
and uncertain events
b. Inquiry arousal – stimulates curiosity by posing challenging questions or problems to be solved.
Methods for grabbing attention:
i. Active participation - Adopt strategies such as games, role-play or other hands-on methods to get learners
involved with the material or subject matter.
ii. Variability – To better reinforce materials and account for individual differences in learning styles, use a
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variety of methods in presenting material (e.g. use of videos, short lectures, mini-discussion groups).
iii. Humor - Maintain interest by use a small amount of humor (but not too much to be distracting)
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iv. Incongruity and Conflict – A devil’s advocate approach in which statements are posed that go against a
learner’s past experiences.
v. Specific examples – Use a visual stimuli, story, or biography.
vi. Inquiry – Pose questions or problems for the learners to solve, e.g. brainstorming activities.
2. Relevance can assist increase a learner’s motivation. Using concrete language and examples with which
the learners are familiar. The learning process should show the usefulness of the content so that learners can bridge the
gap between content and the real world.
This includes:
i. Experience – Tell the learners how the new learning will use their existing skills.
ii. Present Worth – What will the subject matter do for me today?
iii. Future Usefulness – What will the subject matter do for me tomorrow?
iv. Needs Matching – Take advantage of the dynamics of achievement, risk taking, power, and affiliation.
v. Modeling – First of all, “be what you want them to do!”
vi. Choice – Allow the learners to use different methods to pursue their work or allowing s choice in how they
organize it.
3. Confidence helps students understand their likelihood for success. If they feel they cannot meet the objectives or
that the cost (time or effort) is too high, their motivation will decrease. This component focuses on developing success
expectation among learners, and success expectation allows learners to control their learning processes.
Components:
i. Grow the Learners – Allow for small steps of growth during the learning process.
ii. Feedback – Provide feedback and support internal attributions for success.
iii. Learner Control – Learners should feel some degree of control over their learning and assessment. They
should believe that their success is a direct result of the amount of effort they have put forth.
4. Satisfaction - learning must be rewarding or satisfying in some way, whether it is from a sense of achievement,
praise from a higher-up, or mere entertainment. There is direct relation between motivation and satisfaction. Learners
should be satisfied of what they achieved during the learning process.
Three forms:
CHAPTER 4
Emotion of Learners
of embarrassment or a burst of anger. Others, such as long-lasting love or simmering resentment, are protracted, lasting
hours, months, or even years (in which case they can become a durable feature of an individual’s personality).
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An emotion may have pronounced physical accompaniments, such as facial expression, or it may be invisible to
observers. An emotion may involve conscious experience and reflection, as when one “wallows” in it, or it may pass
virtually unnoticed and unacknowledged by the subject. An emotion may be profound, in the sense that it is essential to
one’s physical survival or mental health, or it may be trivial or dysfunctional. An emotion may be socially appropriate or
inappropriate.
b. Physiological Response
If you've ever felt your stomach lurch from anxiety or your heart palpate with fear, then you realize that
emotions also cause strong physiological reactions.
Many of the physiological responses you experience during an emotion, such as sweaty palms or a racing
heartbeat, are regulated by the sympathetic nervous system, a branch of the autonomic nervous system.
The autonomic nervous system controls involuntary body responses, such as blood flow and digestion. The
sympathetic nervous system is charged with controlling the body's fight or flight reactions. When facing a threat, these
responses automatically prepare your body to flee from danger or face the threat head-on.
While early studies of the physiology of emotion tended to focus on these autonomic responses, more recent
research has targeted the brain's role in emotions. Brain scans have shown that the amygdala, part of the limbic system,
plays an important role in emotion and fear in particular.
The amygdala itself is a tiny, almond-shaped structure that has been linked to motivational states such as hunger
and thirst as well as memory and emotion. Researchers have used brain imaging to show that when people are shown
threatening images, the amygdala becomes activated. Damage to the amygdala has also been shown to impair the fear
response.6
c. Behavioral Response
The final component is perhaps one that you are most familiar with—the actual expression of emotion. We
spend a significant amount of time interpreting the emotional expressions of the people around us. Our ability to
accurately understand these expressions is tied to what psychologists call emotional intelligence, and these expressions
play a major part in our overall body language.
Research suggests that many expressions are universal, such as a smile to indicate happiness or a frown to
indicate sadness. Sociocultural norms also play a role in how we express and interpret emotions.
In Japan, for example, people tend to mask displays of fear or disgust when an authority figure is present.
Similarly, Western cultures like the United States are more likely to express negative emotions both alone and in the
presence of others, while eastern cultures like Japan are more likely to do so while alone.
Academic Emotions
As future educators, we need to fully recognize the role of emotions in learning. We need to view our students’
emotional state as a subjective experience, physiological response and behavioral response within the learning
environment that is being created and managed by the teacher. Rentiers and Rivers (2014) in fact described emotions as
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playing a critical role in the learning and teaching process because they impact on learners’ motivation, self-regulation
and academic achievement.
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According to Pekrun’s UNESCO book series on Emotions in Learning published in 2014, there are four groups
of academic emotions that are especially relevant for students’ learning which are shown in the figure below.
Achievement Emotions relate to achievement activities and to success and failure resulting from these activities.
Achievement emotions are pervasive in academic settings, especially so when the importance of success and failure is
made clear to students. Examples are
enjoyment of learning;
hope and pride related to success;
and anxiety and shame related to failure.
Epistemic Emotions are emotions triggered by cognitive problems. Epistemic emotions are especially important
in learning with new, non- routine tasks. Examples are
curiosity or surprise about a new learning task
confusion and frustration about obstacles
delight when the problem is solved
Topic Emotions pertain to the topics presented in lessons. Both positive and negative topic emotions can trigger
students’ interest in learning material. Examples are
empathy with the fate of one of the characters portrayed in a novel
anxiety and disgust when dealing with a health pandemic issues
enjoyment of a painting discussed in an art course
Social Emotions relate to teachers and peers in the classroom. These emotions are especially important in
teacher/student interaction and in group learning. Example are
love for peers and teacher
sympathy and compassion for classmates
admiration for teachers and group mates
contempt or anger for negligence of peers in group tasks or projects
social anxiety over peer acceptance
Given these different triggers of emotions in the classroom, it is no wonder that a teacher must be equipped and
ready to manage and respond proactively to the emotional state of the learners.
Being ignorant or blind to the emotional undercurrents in the learning environment can be very
counterproductive to a learner-centered approach to teaching. You must learn to become sensitive to the academic-related
emotions of learners as a subjective experience, a physiological response, and a behavioral response in your class.
As a teacher, we always say that emotional intelligence plays an important role for an individual to keep going. Indeed, it
is an important foundation in the academic path of every student. In fact, even a child is interested to learn what is
happening around him/her.
With emotional intelligence, students are not only lead to achievement but success in learning as well. This is due to the
positive experiences of students.
Emotional Intelligence includes the ability to engage in sophisticated information processing about one's own and others'
emotions and the ability to use this information as a guide to thinking and behavior.
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Components
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Mayer & Salovey (2000) suggest that there are four different levels of emotional intelligence including emotional
perception, the ability to reason using emotions, the ability to understand emotions, and the ability to manage emotions.
1. Perceiving emotions
The first step in understanding emotions is to perceive them accurately. In many cases, this might involve understanding
nonverbal signals such as body language and facial expressions.
3. Understanding emotions
The emotions that we perceive can carry a wide variety of meanings. If someone is expressing angry emotions, the
observer must interpret the cause of the person's anger and what it could mean. For example, if your teacher is acting
angry, it might mean that they are dissatisfied with your work, or it could be because they got caught in a check point on
their way to work that morning or that they have been fighting with their partner.
4. Managing emotions
The ability to manage emotions effectively is a crucial part of emotional intelligence and the highest level. Regulating
emotions and responding appropriately as well as responding to the emotions of others are all important aspects of
emotional management.
The four branches of this model are arranged by complexity with the more basic processes at the lower levels and the
more advanced processes at the higher levels. For example, the lowest levels involve perceiving and expressing emotion,
while higher levels require greater conscious involvement and involve regulating emotions. The chart below can best
explain the levels of EI.
Interest in teaching and learning social and emotional intelligence has grown in recent years. Social and emotional
learning (SEL) programs have become a standard part of the curriculum for many schools.
The goal of these initiatives is not only to improve health and well- being but also to help students succeed academically
and prevent bullying. There are many examples of how emotional intelligence can play a role in daily life. Emotionally
intelligent people know that emotions can be powerful, but also temporary. When a highly charged emotional event
happens, such as becoming angry with a co-worker, the emotionally intelligent response would be to take some time
before responding. This allows everyone to calm their emotions and think more rationally about all the factors
surrounding the argument.
Emotionally intelligent people are not only good at thinking about how other people might feel but they are also adept at
understanding their own feelings. Self-awareness allows people to consider the many different factors that contribute to
their emotions. A large part of emotional intelligence is being able to think about and empathize with how other
people are feeling. This often involves considering how you would respond if you were in the same situation.
intelligence include:
(The picture depicts the many different ways in one’s life how we use emotional intelligence)
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Being able to accept criticism and responsibility
Being able to move on after making a mistake
Being able to say no when you need to
Being able to share your feelings with others
Being able to solve problems in ways that work for everyone
Having empathy for other people
Having great listening skills
Knowing why you do the things you do
Not being judgemental of others
Emotional intelligence is essential for good interpersonal communication. Some experts believe that this ability is more
important in determining life success than IQ alone. Fortunately, there are things that you can do to strengthen your own
social and emotional intelligence. Understanding emotions can be the key to better relationships, improved well-being,
and stronger communication skills.
Positive relationships
Context in positive relationships
In most accounts of positive relationships, teachers describe teacher or student interpersonal behavior taking place out of
class. Most behaviour described in positive relationships took place outside the class context. Although mainly situated
before or after the lesson in the classroom or in the hallway, teachers recognize fieldtrips as important opportunities to
build and maintain relationships and contact with students outside school life, such as on occasions when meeting up to
go to a movie or a concert or coincidental meetings that occur due to living in the same areas.
Topic of talk in positive relationships
In class, the topic of talk mainly revolves around the subject taught and coursework or classroom management, although
informal talk like joking around with the student is also possible.
In the out-of-class context, the topics of conversation can be more diverse. Talk again involves the subject taught or
classroom management. It can also involve student need, disturbing student behavior and, mostly, informal talk. When a
student's need becomes the topic of the conversation, this mainly concern problems a student experienced at home,
problems at school in general like bullying or problems with the student's future career like what subjects to choose.
Informal talk mainly concerns mutual interests such as hobbies or interest in one another's private life, joking around or
greeting each other when passing. Although in some accounts of positive relationships the topics could be highly varied,
there are others where teacher and student talk mainly involved one topic. This especially applies to informal talk,
student's needs, and subject as main topics for conversation.
Complementarity on the communion dimension is a friendly interaction such as a teacher showing supportive behavior
and a student reacting in a collaborating manner while a hostile interaction such as the teacher showing confronting
behavior and a student reacting in an equally confronting manner. Complementarity, teacher shows behavior high on
agency such as directing, supporting, confronting and imposing followed by submissive student behavior. Teacher
behavior low on agency such as understanding, acquiescing, hesitating and objecting followed by student behavior high
on agency.
Thus, teacher–student relationships require effort from the teacher, especially when there is a lack of connection on a
personal level with a student. Teachers need to investigate the effectiveness of conscious strategies in which non
complementary teacher behavior is used to improve relationships with students within classrooms. It has been found out
that the positive effects of teacher programs focused on teacher– student relationships are very important (e.g., Alvarez,
2007; Roorda, Koomen, Thijs, & Oort, 2013). Reflecting on their positive and problematic relationship may increase
teachers' awareness of their idiosyncratic presuppositions and biases in the emerging of teacher– student relationships.
This awareness may help teachers to maintain a professional stance; not to react to student behavior based on biases, and
making an effort to connect with all students.
Finally, positive relationships with individual students is an important source of enjoyment and motivation of teachers
and problematic ones as causing stress and negative emotions (Friedman, 2006 ; Hargreaves, 2000 ; Yoon, 2002).
The interactions among peers in the classroom are a normal and essential part of the learning process that influences the
lifelong learning habits of students. The potential effects of peer relationships are reciprocal: some students are more
receptive than others. On one extreme, for example, is the student who values and seeks peer input on every decision. On
the other side is the social isolate who avoids interaction in and out of the classroom. This entry can influence learners,
including developmental differences, motivational and learning considerations, and the function of the classroom
contexts.
Most people would agree that few things impacted their school lives as much as their relationships with their peers—
friends, acquaintances, or otherwise. Peer relationships play an important role in children’s school lives, and relationships
with peers become even more influential as children enter adolescence.
Positive peer relationships often distinguish between friendship and peer acceptance. High-quality friendships involve not
only companionship, but also caring, validation, and support. In addition to playing together, good friends feel
comfortable opening up to each other and are motivated to resolve conflicts that arise.
Peer acceptance, sometimes referred to as popularity, focuses on how much students like or like to play with their
classmates which has been found to affect students’ sense of belonging in school and their academic achievement.
Abraham H. Maslow viewed the need for love and belongingness as a step toward achievement in his hierarchy of
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motivation model, which he described in 1954. In this view, the deprivation of more basic needs hinders progress along
the path to achievement. In Maslow's model, people must have love and belongingness issues satisfied in order to address
needs of achievement. For example, a student with deprived relationship concerns will be less able to participate in
classroom learning opportunities. The ability to learn is built on a foundation of comfortable relationships with others,
including peers and family, and classroom learning is all about learning with and in the presence of others.
"Expectancy by value" theories define motivation as the product of the amount of success on a task that an individual
expects to earn times the amount of value the individual places on the task. Thus, a task that the individual values and
expects to be successful at will be motivating compared to a task with lower expected success or value. Whereas past
experience can predict the expectancy aspect of this model such as the student has done well on prior essay exams
wherein the value placed on the task is more mediated by outside factors, such as peers and family giving respect to the
student's opinions. Related motivational theories include the incentive or rewarding aspects of motivation, which may
also stem from relationships with others.
Behaviorism provides one way to explain the association between motivation to learn and peer interactions. In basic
behaviorist theories, relationships between people affect learning only as much as people reinforce each other (or not) in
the academic arena. For example, if the peer group encourages education and learning, then the individual student within
that group will value learning, because the individual is reinforced, or rewarded, for behaviour that indicates that learning
is valued. Students in peer groups that do not value education lack the stimulation and reinforcement needed to encourage
personal learning. These peer groups presumably stimulate and reinforce other values.
Albert Bandura's social learning theory speaks precisely to the human interactions involved in learning. Observational, or
"vicarious" learning is based upon learning by watching then "modeling" or acting similarly to others. If the student views
and works with people who appreciate learning by engaging in learning activities, then the student too will engage in
learning and might work harder at learning. Peers with positive attitudes and behaviours toward education will allow and
teach each other to set goals that include opportunities to learn and achieve. If peer models do not convey positive
attitudes toward learning, then the students observing these models will not prioritize learning in their own lives. They
will learn to prioritize other goals.
In 1978 Lev Vygotsky also presented ideas on the facilitation of learning through experiences mediated by other people.
In his explanations, the learner cannot reach full potential without the aid of others. The processes of guiding the learner
to higher stages of cognitive functioning rely on interactive human relationships. Mentors– for example, teachers or more
capable peers–can raise the student's competence through the zone of proximal development (ZPD). ZPD is defined as
the gap between what a student can do alone and what the student can achieve with assistance. In this view assistance is
transitional, a "scaffold" that is removed when it is no longer needed and the student has internalized another's support.
In sum, varied theories agree that the values and attitudes of the peer group are essential elements in motivation and
learning. Students who surround themselves with academically focused, goal-oriented peers will be more likely to
appreciate, internalize, and exhibit these features themselves.
Classroom Dynamics
The educational process can be structured to boost the learning of individuals for younger students by providing a whole-
class environment that enriches learning opportunities with teachers who model positive learning values which will set
the new learner on a path toward academic achievement.
Encouraging students to interact with peers, adults, and family members who have strong learning desires can support
the students' development as learners.
Although peer influences may not yet be as powerful as they will become in student achievement motivation, the effects
of young students' interactions cannot be disregarded. As the learner matures the importance of how peers view the
learner's actions and decisions may well supersede the opinions of others, possibly even the views of the learners
themselves.
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The academic environment needs to be structured in a fashion that allows for student interaction but sets boundaries that
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afford pro-social behavior. Students who are concentrating on unresolved issues in their social life, whether these issues
result from social isolation or from social or home crisis, will be less able to profit from classroom opportunities.
Recognition of the strategic effort required to maintain classroom social and academic order can help both the learner and
the teacher decide how to approach problems.
Within the classroom, time and organization can be established to focus students on their learning. Pairing and grouping
students by their devotion to academics for example, may benefit all involved. Those who value learning can share their
enthusiasm and act as mentors for those who have other priorities. Students who motivate themselves in non-academic
directions can view and appreciate the choices of peer learners.
These dynamics must include consideration of the types of classroom curricula. The well-known and intended analytic
curriculum taught to pre service educators and recorded in the lesson plans and assignments may easily disregard the
underlying informal curriculum of social and human interaction. As Mary McCaslin and Tom L. Good noted in 1996,
"Learning is socially situated"; the achievement of the student is a small part of who the student is and what she does. The
responsibilities of education include helping students recognize their own place as social contributors and maximizing the
resources available to them through interpersonal relationships. For example, cooperative learning and help- seeking
behaviours are essential resources for students in the classroom that facilitate both student achievement and social
competence.
Some students and educators view help-seeking as a sign of dependence or weakness, but research supports the
contention that help- seeking is a sign of social competence that increases students' chances of academic success.
Negative attitudes toward help-seeking may discourage low-achieving students from approaching peers and teachers and
may further isolate them. This is especially detrimental to older students.
Students are not isolated in the pursuit of knowledge. They are social beings who need to interact and establish social
contacts. Social learning is as much a part of any classroom curriculum as the printed guidelines. At a minimum, the
influence of peers and a student's relationships with them can be understood as a function of student age, motivation,
learning, and classroom opportunities.
CHAPTER 5
Inclusive Learning Environment
One positive development in special education is the implementation of Republic Act 7277, otherwise known as the
Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, an Act providing for the rehabilitation, self-development and self- reliance of disabled
persons and their integration into the mainstream of society. In support of this legislation, the Department of Education
has directed all school divisions in the country to establish Special Education Centers to help provide effective delivery of
special education services nationwide
Students who are gifted and also have learning disabilities are those who possess an outstanding gift or talent and are
capable of high performance, but who also have a learning disability that makes some aspect of academic achievement
difficult. Some of these students are identified and their needs are met. This happens only rarely, however, unless a
school specifically decides to identify and then serve these students. The majority of students who are gifted with learning
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1. Those with subtle learning disabilities that are formally identified as gifted.
Children have been formally recognized as gifted owing to their high levels of achievement and/or high IQ scores.
However, as they grow older and the work given to them at school becomes more complex and challenging, discrepancies
between their level of intelligence and their academic performance begin to become evident.
Example: Children may read or speak brilliantly, while struggling to spell or hand- writes at an age-appropriate level.
They may perform incredibly well on tests, yet seem to struggle a great deal when it comes to organizing large projects or
completing homework assignments properly and on time.
Many of these children are continually being told that they need to “try harder”, even though they are actually trying to
the best of their ability; inevitably, frustration, resentment, and apathy often develop as a result.
2. “Average” achievers whose normal level of achievement hides their learning disabilities.
Children in group two often go unnoticed for either their giftedness or their learning disabilities: As their giftedness
masks their disabilities and vice versa, they run a very real risk of never getting neither the help they need, nor the
recognition they deserve.
Example: They are struggling valiantly to remain at grade level, using their advanced intellect to compensate for the
difficulties in their learning disabilities. The path to hell is truly paved with good intentions.
In order to identify these children, educators will often need to remain vigilant for exceptional talents that emerge only in
specific situations, or when encouraged by a particularly attentive teacher (usually one who uses a creative approach to
learning.
3. Children who have an identified learning disability and who are also gifted.
Children who are bright, often struggle profoundly at school, hence being recognized as learning disabled.
Example: These children are in very real danger of missing out on their gifts entirely because all the attention is being
placed on what is “wrong” with them, rather than trying to uncover their talents. As to the result. If talents are identified
at all, they are often used merely as a tool to mitigate the child's weakness.
Regardless of how services are delivered, there are some common elements which characterize an individualized program
appropriate for a student who is gifted and talented:
It is different in pace, scope, and complexity, in keeping with the nature and extent of the exceptionality.
It provides opportunities for students to interact socially and academically with both age peers and peers of
similar abilities (intellectual peers).
It incorporates adaptations and/or extensions to content, process, product, pacing and learning environment.
It goes beyond the walls of a school and into the larger community.
Supplemental services for gifted and talented students could include (but not be limited to) some of the following
elements:
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flexible groupings which provide opportunities for learning with intellectual peers
mentorships consultative services to assist teachers in expanding experiences in the regular classroom
accelerating/telescoping/compacting some or all of1student's program11
opportunities to take enriched courses such as modified courses with eight designations (such as World
Geography 3282 which indicates World Geography with outcomes added or extended upwards), Advanced
Placement, International Baccalaureate, or honors’ courses
It is important to recognize the individual characteristics of schools and their communities in designing services for
students who are gifted and talented. For example, students who are gifted and talented may benefit from the use of
information technology which will increasingly facilitate access to information sources and program and instructional
opportunities not readily physically available in all communities.
Learning about the nature of self-deception is a key aspect of Indigenous preparation for learning.
Tribal teachers realize that striving for real knowledge requires a cultivated sense of humility. The human
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tendencies toward pride, arrogance, and ego-inflation have to be understood and avoided in the search for one's
true face, heart, and vocation.
Knowledge and action are considered parts of the same whole/
A concept of "each person's work," akin to the Hindu concept of "karma," is honored in the processes of
Indigenous education.
RTI is designed to provide an early support and intervention for all learners.
It is typically grounded on a three-tier framework with increasing support or interventions for students who
are not making satisfactory academic or behavioral progress. It begins with universal screening, an
assessment in the core curriculum, or behavioral areas that identify students who may need additional
support.
It is based on effective teacher instruction using research- validated strategies and curriculum in the general
education classroom. Students’ progress is monitored on specific skills using a curriculum-based assessment.
Thus, the result will be beneficial to the teachers to guide them in the instruction.
Reference: www.interventioncentral.org
UDL was developed by the researchers of the Center for Applied Special Technology developed UDL. Its goal focuses
on ways to eliminate barriers in learning and meeting the needs of the students. It aims to enable learners to learn and
demonstrate their knowledge through multiple learning preferences (auditory, visual, kinesthetic, tactile, etc.).
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UDL is designed to engage all learners in the instructional process. It is a brain-based instructional framework based on
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the concept that every learner learns differently. Through UDL, the instructional process, materials, and assessments are
utilized to reinforce learning for all students, including those with disabilities and exceptionally gifted.
It has three main principles of multiple Means of Representation, Multiple Means of Action and Expression, and Multiple
Means of Engagement.
Four underpinning values of learners’ voice that enable school for improvement through enhancing social
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Tetler et al. (2010) posited that for learners to be engaged in the learning and eventually develop autonomy, they
must be involved in the teaching, planning, and evaluation processes. Similarly, in grasping the students’ desire to
learn and transforming it into sustainable practice, the school has to be creative, persistent, and emphatic. Miller et al.
(2005) stated that learners’ preference is a critical variable to their academic performance. Disregarding their voices
may result in disappointment, discouragement, and reluctance to perform. Hence, the school’s services, resource
allocation, and educational advocacy are vital in education.
Nuthall (2007, p. 84) noted that learners’ experiences are shaped continuously by three worlds that take place
in the classroom:
The public world that the teacher sees and manages – structured by the learning activities that the teacher
designs
The semiprivate world of on-going student relationships, where students establish and maintain their social
role and status
The private world of the child’s mind, where children’s knowledge and beliefs change and grow
Teachers need to consider the power of learners’ relationships, social conditions, knowledge, and cultural
diversity. According to Swann et al. (2012), teachers need to understand both external forces (i.e., organization and
relationship of learning, curriculum, assessment) and internal forces, such as intellectual, affective, and social) as they
impact the learning drive of learners. Hence, teachers need to understand these factors to empower and reinforce
learners’ abilities. In practice, this includes expanding the opportunities to learn and establishing a creative consensus
on transformative pedagogy, curriculum, assessment, and relationships.
Specific factors that impact the achievements of the learners according to Hattie (2009)
a. quality and quantity of instruction
b. disposition
c. class environment level of challenging
d. peer tutoring
e. parental involvement
f. cognitive ability
g. home
Personalized learning
Personalized learning is an educational approach that revolves around the optimization of each learner’s
needs and learning styles. It sets high expectations for progress, participation, and success for all learners equally,
including those who identified as having Special Educational Needs (UNESCO, 2009).
In terms of learning and achievement, researches show that one of the most effective ways of enhancing
attainment is by facilitating learners to become reflective and independent (Hattie, 2009). The teachers scaffold
appropriate skills, engages students in inquiry activities and collaborative techniques to create relevance and
excitement to learn.
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Differentiation and individualization include the teachers in providing instruction and accommodating the
learning needs of a group of learners or individual learners, respectively. In personalization, learners are actively
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involved in the planning and designing of their education As agents of learning. They also connect their learning to
their passions, interests, and explore different ways to learn in flexible learning spaces.
Gateways to personalizing teaching and learning Hargreaves
(2004):
learning to learn and the new technologies
curriculum and advice/guidance
workforce development and mentoring/coaching
organization and design of the school and leadership from teachers and leaders of all levels
Kern and Clemens (2007) identified the factors to effective teaching and positively functioning classroom:
Use of direct, simple, transparent policies, rules and expectations which are consistently and must be firmly
applied
• Establish routines, cues, signals to prompt upcoming events, including content duration, and consequences for
actions
• Use verbal and non-verbal praise occasionally or when needed. Commendation should be descriptive and
specific. The teacher should avoid overpraising students.
• Students’ task should be well-monitored. All students are required to contribute to the assigned task given,
especially during group activities.
• Practice inclusivity in the classroom. Students are given equal opportunities to participate in the classroom
task, use available materials, and learn safely and fairly.
Having everyone to respond to the teachers’ queries rather than just focusing on one correct response from
those who are always active
Seating arrangements: changing rows periodically (as necessary) may help to break the monotonous
atmosphere in the classroom
• Instructions and guidelines may be preceded by prompting the pupils’ attention. Subsequently, present the
dos and don’ts in a calm yet firm and compelling voice. Also, give time for students to comply and absorb
them.
• Deliver the instructions in a precise, specific, and direct and well- paced manner. Follow praises when
necessary upon compliance.
• Teacher performance feedback: Performance feedback enables teachers to reflect, thereby changing their
ways to meet students’ needs.
• Class-wide incentives: Interventions and incentives may work better when given as a whole class rather than
on specific learners only. This will reduce class competition and promotion the cooperation of the learners.
• Noise management: Reduction of noise levels can direct students’ focus to the lesson and the classes in
adjacent rooms.
• Managing transitions: Establishing clear, specific rules as a group rather than individually may better assist in
regulating behavior and changes. • Fudge et al. (2008) claimed the use of a color- coded system with
matching signals to show applicable rules at the given time could serve as a guide.
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• Enhancing engagement: Make variations on how the teachers solicit an answer from the students to
encourage full participation
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• Relationship building: Patterson (2009) explained that when a teacher is involved in learners’ small talk
outside of the class may prevent them from misbehaving in the class, especially those attention seekers.
Coloroso (1994) suggested a six-step process for behavioral problem-solving. The goal is to utilize this
process with students until they learn how to implement the process on their own. The six steps are as follows:
1. Define the problem
2. Evaluate the possible solutions against a set of criteria
3. Select an option
4. Plan the implementation
5. Review the problem
Four basic ‘power’ strategies that teachers can use to enhance student relationships and classroom control
(Alderman and Green, 2011).
• Coercive power - involves the teacher’s prudent use of authority to attain behavior modification. It comprises
classroom points systems, modes of correction, and supportive interactions intended to modify behavior.
• Manipulative social power – encompasses the teacher’s using subtle tactics such as giving options for task
completion, presenting behavior choices, and self-monitoring, introducing engaging activities to motivate,
and increasing the probability of success in academic activities.
• Expertness social power - includes providing academic supports that assist students in overcoming challenges
that they cannot find a solution on their own. The teacher must listen actively and then identify the potential
resources or sources that will best assist the learners.
• Likeability social power – encompasses the teacher’s use of their characteristics such as passion, interest,
humor, and friendliness to encourage positive behavior in pupils.
REFERENCE:
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