EDUCATION 187: COGNITION AND INSTRUCTION
Winter 2010
Professor: Gordon Wells
Office: Soc. Sci. 233; email:
Homepage:
Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday 9.30- 10.15; Wednesday 11.30-12.30; and by appointment.
Our understanding of how people learn is now broader than it used to be. Learning, it is now recognized, is always embedded in a cultural and historical context and occurs mainly through interpersonal relationships in the course of doing things together. It therefore involves physical, emotional and social, as well as cognitive, aspects. Much learning occurs without explicit instruction, so teaching is seen as assisting rather than determining the learner’s progress. Furthermore, to be maximally effective, it also involves metacognitive reflection on why and how one is learning so that one can be an agent rather than a passive recipient of instruction.
In planning the course, I have tried to honor these ideas about learning by:
- Giving emphasis to self-directed inquiry;
- Making provision for choice of research topic within a common theme;
- Allowing time for collaborative group work;
- Including instructor-led discussion in small groups as well as well as whole class;
- Encouraging metacognitive reflection.
The emphasis in the course will thus be on learning more than on instruction, since to plan effective instruction one needs to understand about learning and about the diverse ways in which people learn. Engaging with and reflecting on the readings chosen for each week will be essential. We shall spend time in class exploring how our interpretations of them are different as well as similar; we shall also try to make connections between what we read and the other activities in which we take part. For these reasons, it is my hope that those who take the course will be more concerned about developing a deeper understanding of themselves as learners than about figuring out how to get an A grade. The former is likely to lead to the latter, but not vice versa.
The syllabus is set out below. The readings for each week will be found either in the set text, How People Learn, or online. In preparation for the first class, please read the first two chapters of How People Learn as well as the article on metacognition, which can be found at:
Resources
You should purchase the set text, How People Learn, from the Bay Tree Bookstore. Additional readings and other resources will be found on the course webpage. Some activities will require use of Quicktime software. If you do not have Quicktime on your computer you can download it from
Organization
- Complete the readings for each week BEFORE the meeting on Tuesday, when you will discuss them in small groups and come up with issues and questions for the lecture on Thursday.
- Arrange an out-of-class meeting with your group each week to carry out the group activity; groups will report on their progress on Tuesday.
- Keep an individual journal in which you reflect on your learning from the readings and activities.
Evaluation
You will receive comments and suggestions for improvement on individual assignments but the assignments will not be graded. The overall evaluation and grade for the course will be based on a portfolio (see below) and:
- Attendance at all class meetings;
- Participation in discussion and other activities and evidence of effective and productive small group work;
- Evaluations by your study group members;
- The quality of your journal reflections;
- Your Portfolio, which must be delivered to my mailbox by 4.00 p.m on Friday 19 March.
Thisshould contain:
Your mid-term paper and that of the peer you commented on;
Your journal;
A copy of your group curriculum project + an individual rationale for the design choices made in the light of the main ideas of the course.
Weekly Topics and Readings
/ Group Activities- Introduction: Learning, understanding, teaching
Livingston, J.A. Metacognition: An overview. ERIC, 2003.
Set text: How People Learn, Chs. 1 and 2.
Introduction to Group Activities
Check out: / Discuss ‘thinking
metacognitively’
Group Activity 1:
The Magic Square
2. Theories of Learning: Behaviorism to Cognitivism/Constructivism
Questions: How did contemporary theories of education arise? What aspects of
learning and achievement does each explain satisfactorily? What does each
explain less satisfactorily?
Oakes, J. and Lipton, M. Metaphors and myths that have shaped American
schools. In Teaching to change the world (2nd edition), McGraw-Hill, 2003.
Duckworth, E. Either we're too early andthey can't learn it, or we're too late
and they know it already: the dilemma of "Applying Piaget". In 'The having of
wonderful ideas' and other essays on teaching and learning, Teachers College
Press, 1987.
Case, R. Changing views of knowledge and their impact on educational research
and practice. In D.R. Olson & N. Torrance (Eds.) The handbook of education
and_human development. Oxford: Blackwell, 1996.) / Discuss readings
for Week 2
Report on Group
Activity 1
Construct Ground
Rules for
Discussion
Group Activity 2
Start research on
your choice of
Sustainability
Project
3. Vygotsky, Communities of Learners and ZPD
Questions: What is Vygotsky’s explanation of how development occurs? How is
learning related to development? What do you understand by “appropriation”
and by “working in the ZPD”?
Oakes, J. and Lipton, M. Contemporary learning theories: Problem solving,
Understanding and participation. Ch. 3 in Teaching to Change the World (2nd
edition), McGraw-Hill, 2003.
Rogoff, B. (1995). Observing sociocultural activity on three planes:
Participatory appropriation, guided participation, and apprenticeship. In
J. V. Wertsch, P. Del Rio, & A. Alvarez (Eds.), Sociocultural studies of mind
(pp. 139-164). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Galbraith, B., Van Tassell, M-A. and Wells, G. Teaching and learning in the
Zone of proximal development. In G. Wells, Dialogic inquiry. Cambridge
University Press, 1999. / Discuss readings set
for week 3.
------
Report on group
decisions about
Sustainability
Project
Group Activity 3
Share findings from
individual research.
Reflect on your
individual and
group processes.
4. What More is Involved in Learning?
Questions: How are physical state, emotions and social relationships involved in
learning? What is meant by ‘motivation’ and what part does it play?
Immordino-Yang, M.H & Damasio, A. We feel, therefore we learn: The
relevance of affective and social neuroscience to education. Mind, Brain and
Education, 1: 3-10,
Mahn, H. & John-Steiner, V. The gift of confidence: A Vygotskian view of
emotions. In Wells, G. and G. Claxton, Eds. Learning for life in the 21st
century. Oxford, Blackwell, 2002.
McKinney, K. Encouraging students' intrinsic motivation.
(21 October, 200e9).
Lumsden, L.S. Student Motivation To Learn. ERIC Digest 92, 1994
See also the brief overviews of a wide variety of theories of learning and
development at: / Discuss readings
set for week 4.
Review progress on
Sustainability
Project
Group Activity 4:
Consolidate
findings from
research; plan
group presentation
on Sustainability
topic.
5. How Do Children Learn?
Questions:How are genetic inheritance and life experience related?
How much could children learn without the assistance of other people?
Tomasello, M. A puzzle and a hypothesis. In The Cultural Origins of Human
Cognition. Harvard University Press, 1999.
Donald, M. The central role of culture in cognitive evolution: a reflection onthe myth of the "isolated mind." In L. P. Nucci, G. B. Saxe & E. Turiel (Eds.)
Culture, thought, and development. Erlbaum, 2000.
Nelson, K. Perspectives on meaning. In Young minds in social worlds. Harvard
University Press, 2007.
Wells, G. 'The negotiation of meaning: talking and learning at home and at
school.' In B. Fillion, C. Hedley & E. DiMaretino, (Eds.). Home and school:
Early language and reading. Norwood, NJ: Ablex, 1987.
How People Learn, Chapter 4. / Discuss readings set
for week 5.
Group Activity 5
Share drafts of
Midterm papers in
pairs and provide
feedback.
6. Dialogue, Thinking,and Literacy
Questions: Why is it being argued that dialogue is important for learning? Why
is so much emphasis placed on literacy? In what ways do dialogue, reading and
writing contribute to learning and development?
Mercer, N. Developing dialogues. In Wells, G. & Claxton, G. Learning for life
in the C21st: Sociocultural perspectives on the future of education. Oxford:
Blackwell, 2002.
Heath, S.B. 'What no bedtime story means.' Language in Society, 11 (1), 49-76,
1982.
Wells, G. Writing: Thinking and learning with the aid of texts (unpublished) / Discuss readings set
for week 6.
Introduction to
Curriculum Unit
Group Activity 6:
Brainstorm Ideas
for Curriculum
Project.
Submit final
version of
midterm paper on
Thursday 11 Feb.
7. Diversity: Problem or Resource?
Questions: What do you understand by “diversity”? How might it be an
advantage to be a member of a diverse group? What does “equality of
educational opportunity” mean, in your opinion? Is it currently being achieved?
How should schools be organized to ensure equality of opportunity for ALL
students?
Moll, L. and Whitmore, K. 'Vygotsky in classroom practice: Moving from
individual transmission to social transaction.' In E. Forman, N. Minnick & C.A.
Stone (Eds.) Contexts for learning: Sociocultural dynamics in children's
development. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.
Tough, P. (2006) “What It Takes to Make a Student.” New York Times,
November 26, 2006.
Oakes, J. and Lipton, M. Grouping and categorical programs: Can schools teach
all children well?' Ch. 8 in Teaching to Change the World (2nd edition),
McGraw-Hill, 2003. / Discuss readings set
for week 7.
Group Activity 7:
Start planning your
curriculum unit.
- Curriculum Planning and Evaluation
purposes should evaluation serve? How can these purposes best be achieved?
How People Learn, Chapters 6 and 7.
Rendell et al. Teachers learning about teaching children in a community. In B.
Rogoff, C.G. Turkanis, & L. Bartlett (Eds.)Learning together. New York:
Oxford University Press, 2001.
Perkins et al. Articles from Educational Leadership, 51 (5): Teaching for
Understanding,
Wiliam, D. Keeping learning on track: Integrating assessment with instruction.
Educational Testing Service. Talk given to the International Association for
Educational Assessment (IAEA) held in June 2004, Philadelphia, PA. / Discuss readings set
for week 8.
Group Activity 8:
Complete work on
Curriculum Unit
9. Curriculum Planning (cont.)
Questions: Is the curriculum plan your group is developing meeting the
pDrinciples proposed in the readings for weeks 7 and 8?
Dalton, S. S. & Tharp, R. G. Standards for pedagogy: Research, theory and
practice. In Wells, G. & Claxton, G. Learning for life in the C21st: Socio-
cultural perspectives on the future of education. Oxford: Blackwell, 2002.
Donoahue, Z. Science teaching and learning: Teachers and children plan together.
Networks, 6 (1). February 2003. / Discuss readings
set for week 9.
Group Activity 9:
Discuss curriculum
planning in the
light of the course
readings and
lectures.
10. The Roles of the Teacher
Questions: What are the teacher’s responsibilities – with respect to a) her/his
Students; b) to society; and c) to the school and district?
How People Learn, Ch. 8.
Brooks, J.G. & Brooks, M.G. Becoming a constructivist teacher. In In search of
understanding: The case for constructivist classrooms. Alexandria, VA:
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1993.
Wells, G. Schooling: the contested bridge between individual and society.
Pedagogy. (2009) / Present Curriculum
Projects
Write solo paper
justifying the
planning of the
curriculum unit
in the light of the
ideas encountered
during the course.
Exam Week / Complete solo
paper.
Submit Portfolio
by 4 p.m., Friday
19March.