A major concept when it comes to cognitive learning is making deeper connections. I think it is an essential skill for students to try and make connections with the topic at hand, and for teachers to provide them with examples of connections and related real life situations. Instead of just teaching lessons on new topics I believe it is very important to set up connections prior to the lesson, and to ask students what they already know about the topic for the day. Talking about connections is important because students may not realize they know a little bit about the new topic unless we talk about prior knowledge, or show examples for the students who do not have prior knowledge. Prior knowledge leads to making connections which leads to keeping those connections and the new content in ones memory. I want my students to be able to relate topics back to real life situations. Most anything can be related to something else, and even if one student does not have a relatable situation to the topic another student in the class will. When we get our students to share their prior knowledge they can help other students who have no background information of their own to grasp the concept better. This stems from a lot of cognitive theory being based off of learning and observing one another. To me the most important thing is connections! In an article it lists developmental cognitive milestones elementary school students can reach at each grade level. I thought this was interesting, but I do not think that there is a specific time for every developmental milestone.
Morin, Amanda. "Developmental Milestones for Elementary School".
http://childparenting.about.com/od/schoollearning/tp/developmental-milestones-elementary-school.htm
How
might your knowledge of the memory processes guide your instructional decisions?
Again, I believe that prior knowledge is key especially when it comes to memory processes. The book says memory is the ability to mentally save something that has been previously learned; also, the mental "location" where such information is saved.
In the article "Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention" by Milton J. Dehn, It is important to remember that "the key to successfully educating and retraining the brain for memory is enrichment and treatment at critical developmental stages". In my instructional strategies and cognitive lesson plans I will be sure to activate prior knowledge, set objectives, and build connections. I think it is important to train students with different thinking and memory strategies to enhance long term memory storage.
Dehn, Milton J. "Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention". John Wiley & Sons Inc. New Jersey. 2008
I really like your idea of helping students make deeper connections on a cognitive level. This is such an important idea in the classroom. And your prior knowledge mention is also a good point when thinking about memory in a classroom.
ReplyDeleteI like how you pointed out that even if one student does not have any prior connections to a topic, perhaps another student will. I think you are absolutely right that students can benefit from the knowledge and experiences of their peers.
ReplyDelete