On Snack Food and Learning Theory

I work in a small office where two out of three of us are in grad school. We got to talking and realized that we were having some similar physical symptoms. Not only did we feel that we had roots that attached us to the chairs we read and did work in, but our brains were full and couldn’t hold anymore…which leads me to the reason that I chose this week’s photo. The analogy that I often use to explain learning to students is that when we connect something we’re studying to something else it makes tiny !pop! of learning. Hence the popcorn…massive quantities of popcorn…

And if my brain feels like it’s going to explode it’s no wonder. In the February issue of Wired, Kevin Kelly quotes Hal Varian of UC Berkley as stating that worldwide information is increasing at 66% a year… The paradox of science is that every answer breeds at least two new questions. More answers mean even more questions, expanding not only what we know but also what we don’t know. Every new tool for looking farther or deeper or smaller allows us to spy into our ignorance (124).

The brain is an amazing three pounds of matter. In 1999 the mother of two of my students was in an accident which caused traumatic brain injury. I watched as the long arduous healing process began and she needed to relearn even the smallest facets of life. But she did learn and her brain rewired itself and she wrote an amazing memoir called “Gifts from the Broken Jar.” Just months after reading her book my 22-year old son had a seizure and was diagnosed with an astrocytoma brain tumor. Through his surgery and treatment I was able to hold onto the fact that I knew the brain could construct new wiring. It in fact did, relatively quickly and my son is in remission.

Learning appears to be this constant new construction of our networking on a neurological level. So our brain is not an empty vessel waiting to be filled up as the behaviorists thought and this is a new paradigm for education. One where the learner plays the central role in education and the teacher plays the role of guide on the side. I resonated with the quote in Chapter 2 of “How People Learn:”

Teachers found it useful to replace their previous model of “answer-filled experts” with the model of “accomplished novices.” Accomplished novices are skilled in many areas and proud of their accomplishments, but they realize that what they know is minuscule compared to all that is potentially knowable. This model helps free people to continue to learn even though they may have spent 10 to 20 years as an “expert” in their field.

I think this way of looking at being a teacher brings the learning experience to one of collaboration where peers are learning together. This constructivist theory where learning happens as a result of the construction of new ideas built on one’s already existing knowledge means everyone brings something valuable to the table. Obviously the teacher is still the class authority, but not an authoritarian.

I pondered the question of how this new paradigm shift will take place within education because I still struggle sometimes with the blurred roles of teacher and student. I love learning and so have no problem taking responsibility for it, but last Ped II class I told Elaine I was uncomfortable being part of the process of deciding how my final project would be evaluated. In her thesis “Constructivism in Practice,” Kim Osberg quotes Cunningham, It is a difficult and subtle discrimination to decide when to intervene and when to let students struggle with the construction process…In my experience, some students are unable or unwilling to assume responsibility for their own learning. Those who are unable should be coached. Those who are unwilling need to be persuaded.

Next week I will be trying to understand an emerging theory called Connectivism. It ties learning theory to quantum physics and chaos theory. I found this graphic in Brenda Mergel’s paper called “Instructional Design and Learning Theory” and felt it tied in well.

I began to understand a bit more why this grad school process was really making me feel so different. In “The Creating Brain: The Neuroscience of Genius,” Nancy Andreasen tells us that neuroscience makes us aware that experiences throughout life change the brain throughout life. We are literally remaking our brains – who we are and how we think with all our actions, reactions, perceptions, postures, and positions – every minute of the day and every day of the week and every month and year of our entire lives. Your brain is being changed by the process of reading this (146). This discovery of neuroplasticity or the ability of the brain to change its structure is a new field of science, but a fascinating one full of potential for education. In the January 29, 2007 issue of Time Magazine, Stephen Pinker writes about “The Mystery of Consciousness:” As scientists probe the limits of neuroplasticity, they are finding that mind sculpting can occur even without input from the outside world. The brain can change as a result of the thoughts we think! That's real food for thought.