This week’s course content had a focus on learning, motivation, and theory. For the purpose of this post, I am going to focus on a disagreement that I have with a course reading and the theory that I currently rely on as a teaching style.
A piece of the content that I disagreed with was the fact that these theories have a Eurocentric approach and therefore are catered for dominant society. There is a lack of equity through not recognizing that there are more facets to education. The recognition of holistic teachings and education that is not seen as traditional needs to be incorporated into these theories. An example of traditional schooling in this reading is the use of two plus four written down in an equation as well as the common practice of flashcards being considered (West, 2018). The reliance on Eurocentric education is a harmful practice that oppresses a significant number of learners.
The theory that I relate to the most is the constructivist theory. This theory has more room for development and exploration through the mind of the learner. I particularly found the emphasis on interpretation to be an interesting concept because it recognizes the various lenses that each individual uses to see the world uniquely (West, 2018). This theory can also incorporate various learning styles and creates room to explore multiple teachings instead of taking a route that has only one way to reach the learning goal. When in a group of people there are so many unique learners and some may have had an experience in life that another individual perhaps did not even know could occur, that shows the constructivists mindset of allowing space for individual lived experiences as well as an opportunity to recognize the role that intersectionality plays in learning.
In addition to this theory, I believe that my instruction style includes a small portion of each theory and not solely follows one theory. Some examples of this include, being in agreeance of the importance of habits as explained by the behaviourist theory (West, 2018). I also relate to the approach used in cognitive theory that understands the learning process that each student carries on their learning journeys (West, 2018). Overall, these theories can all be used in learning as they each carry qualities that can be used together in creating learning environments that cater to a larger range of people.
References
West, R. E. (2018). Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology (1st ed.). EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/lidtfoundations
Anastassiya January 31, 2023
Hi Mikaela! Thank you for sharing your thought on learning theories! Your conclusion resonates with me – all learning theories help us learn, depending on the specific context and learning outcomes that we want to achieve. Learning is a complex process and requires various approaches!
I like the idea of holistic education, which trains learners’ “hearts,” “heads,” and “hands” and supports relationships (Satish Kumar, 2013 – https://youtu.be/VAz0bOtfVfE). From a neoliberal perspective; the curriculum should be mainly focused on “head” development. Countries compete for the highest math scores, promote STEM subjects to show their “intellectual” power. People who work with their minds are valued more than those who work with their hands. “Head” people are even considered more thoughtful than “Hands” people. It is more prestigious to be an intellectual labour worker than a physical one. In pursuit of intellectual achievements, we lose connections with the world and others.
From a holistic perspective, however, a “complete” person/learner should be exposed to various experiences to train their mind, body, and soul. I hope there will be more integration of the Indigenous way of knowing into the curriculum! The video below is an excellent example of holistic education. At Aya7Ayulh Chet school, children learn to respect a shared worldview of environmental livability and sustainability related to our intellectual, physical, emotional/social, and spiritual learning” (VIU Centre for Innovative Educational Leadership, 2016 – https://youtu.be/Cb1XN1udack).