Reflective Break

Think back on your own education. Which of these theories of learning most characterized your experiences? Did you learn through a Behaviorist style of positive reinforcement (hopefully not punishment!) or a Positive Psychology emphasis on the intrinsic motivation for learning?

Comprehension Check

Instructions: Match each of the eight theories with one way to apply that theory. As mentioned above, many of the theories overlap. Thus, there can be more than one correct pairing of applications and theories. Please look carefully for key words.

Theories

1.     Behaviorism

2.     Cognitivism

3.     Socio-Cultural Theory

4.     Humanistic Psychology

5.     Positive Psychology

6.     Multiple Intelligences Theory

7.     Self-Determination Theory

8.     Social Interdependence Theory

 

Applications

a.      One basis for forming heterogenous groupings in CL is to mix people who are stronger in and enjoy using different intelligences. In that way, group members can share their talents with each other to help everyone develop in a well-rounded way. For example, the person highest in Visual-Spatial Intelligence should not do all the drawing or other visuals.

b.     In CL, groups need goals. These goals need to be clear to everyone in the group, and everyone should agree to the goals. The group members should have a sense of accomplishment when they reach or approach those goal. Even if they fail, they can learn from failure, and they can derive meaning and positive emotions from the relationships they build as they engage together toward meeting the goals.

c.      Interdependence examines how people feel toward each other. Positive interdependence means we feel as though we benefit when others succeed. Negative interdependence means we feel as though what hurts others benefits us. Finally, no interdependence is the feeling that what happens to others has no impact on us. CL uses various strategies to encourage students to feel positively interdependent with groupmates and others.

d.     Students, both students alone and groups of students, need autonomy. They need to be able to follow their intrinsic motivations to learn important ideas and skills in their curriculum and according to their own intrinsic motivation. Students need to feel some control. When teachers facilitate peer interactions, the teachers are giving some control to students, while guiding that interaction.

e.      Students develop and use the cooperative skill of giving each other positive reinforcement, including explaining the reasons for their praise.

f.      Students scaffold for their groupmates. Scaffolding involves providing help and then later removing that help so that each individual group member can demonstrate what they have learned on their own. This scaffolding brings tasks into students’ Challenge Zone.

g.     By teaching, discussing with, and sometimes disagreeing with each other, including explanations, examples, comparisons, evaluations, analysis, creations, and applications, students develop thinking skills.

h.     While working together students need to learn how to provide each other with a feeling of belonging (for example, if one student is absent, groupmates update them on what happened in class), esteem (students provide each other with deserved praise for what they do and the effort they make), and self-actualization (fulfilling their potential as they function as group members).

 

One Possible Set of Answers

1.    e

2.    g

3.    f

4.    h

5.    b

6.    a

7.    d

8.    c