Memory and the Brain

We all rely on memory to get us through life. Whether we are learning or trying to remember a simple grocery list, memory is something we rely heavily on. Tied to memory is the information processing theory. The are many theories about information processing. One that I found interesting was levels of processing theory. Levels of process theory says "...learners utilize different levels of elaboration as they process information."(Huitt, W 2003)  The way we process information depends on how we receive the information. It is kind of like the light bulb effect. Something stimulates learning and we began to process it. Something else I found interesting was the assumption of a limited capacity. It the thought that we have a capacity to how much information we can process. Honesty, I do feel sometimes my brain has met its capacity because I'm trying to retain so much information. There is a difference in between remembering something short term and processing it into long term memory.
Memory and learning is very important in the classroom. As a teacher, I would have to find way to help my student retain the information they are learning. I have to plan my lessons to play on their emotions. "Information is easiest to digest when there is emotional "seasoning" — humor, empathy, sadness, and fear all make "dry" facts easier to swallow." (Dr. Bruce Perry) Also want my students to be able to connect the lesson to something they can remember to allow retrieval to be easier.
Both article I read very very informative. I learn a lot of information I can use in the future. I would refer to these sources again.

References

 

Huitt, W. (2003).The Information Processing Approah to Cognition. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved [ November 9, 2012], from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/infoproc.htm

 

Perry, B. (2012). How the brain learns best. Scholastic Journal. Retrieved [November 9, 2012] from http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/bruceperry/brainlearns.htm  

Week 1 Post

I read 3blogs related to instructional design and the education field. The articles I read gave some insight on instructional design and the changes it can make to the education field. In the blog "10 Qualities of the Ideal Instructional Designer," describes characteristics of an instructional designer. Out of the top 10 list of instructional designers qualities the ones that stood out to me are 1. conceptually and intuitively understand how people learn, 4. be obsessed with learning everything, 5. brainstorm creative treatments and innovative instructional designers. These are characteristics things we are currently learning in our program. http://theelearningcoach.com/elearning_design/10-qualities-of-the-ideal-instructional-designer/
The second I read was about 3 fairly new trends in higher education. The article talks about different schools and the programs that are using in their curriculum. The three new trends took innovation and instructional design. The 3 new trends are competency learning, personalized student learning, and changing the role of the instructor. Competency learning is fast pace learning that does not require attendance. Basically when the student feels ready they take the test to determine whether they passed or not. Personalized student learning is choose what learning style is best for them and customize their program. This allows the student to be flexible and learn to their best abilities. The final trend is changing the role of the professor. The role of the professor is now a mentor. Students use peer to peer learning and study groups. "The professor is not the only source of knowledge." The professor is now an advisor. http://onlinelearninginsights.wordpress.com/2012/10/25/three-trends-in-higher-education-that-defy-the-status-quo/
The final blog i read was about using instructional model for e-learning. The blog discussed topics we read about this week (behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism). The blog also attached a copy of the paper he wrote about instructional design and e-learning. http://reflectivereading.wordpress.com/2012/10/23/an-instructional-model-for-web-based-e-learning-education-with-a-blended-learning-process-approach-alonso-et-al/ I think all the blogs I read were well written. I will refer back to these blogs throughout my course work.