LESSON 6

IT ENTERS A NEW LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

It is most helpful to see useful models of school learning that is idea achieving instructional goals to preferred application of educational technology. These are the models of Meaningful Learning, Discovery Learning, Generative Learning and Constructivism.
In these conceptual models, we shall see how effective teacher best interact with students in innovative learning activities, while integrating technology to the teaching-learning process.

MEANINGFUL LEARNING

If the traditional learning environment gives stress to rote learning and simple memorization, meaningful learning gives focus to new experience that is related to what the learner already knows. New experience departs from the learning of a sequence of words but gives attention to meaning. It assumes that.

• Students already have some knowledge that is relevant to new learning.
• Students are willing to perform class work to find connections between what they know and what they can learn.

In the learning process, the learner is encouraged to recognize relevant personal experiences. A reward structure is set so that the learner will have both interest and confidence, and this incentive system sets a positive environment to learning. Facts that are subsequently assimilated are subjected to the learner’s understanding and application. In the classroom, hands-on activities are introduced so as to simulate learning in every living.

DISCOVERY LEARNING

Discovery Learning is differentiated from reception learning in which ideas are presented directly to students in a well-organized way, such as through a detailed set of instructions to complete an experiments or task. To make a contrast, in discovery learning students perform task to uncover what is to be learned. New ideas and new decisions are generated in the learning process, regardless of the need to move on and depart from organized setoff activities previously set. In discovery learning, it is important that the student become personally engaged and not subjected by the teacher to produces he/she is not allowed to depart from.

In applying technology, the computer can present a tutorial process by which the learner is presented key concepts and the rules of learning in a directed manner for receptive learning. But the computer has other uses rather than delivering tutorials. In a computer simulation process, for example, the learner himself is made to identify key concepts by interacting with a responsive virtual environment. The learner thus discovers the concepts from the experience the virtual environment proves.

SELF-HELP
By way of small-group discussion, add your ideas/personal explanations to the above graph figure. Each group will prepare a cartolina presentation on the results of discussion.

GENERATIVE LEARNING
In generative learning, we have active learners who attend to learning events and generate meaning from this experience and draw inferences thereby creating a personal models or explanation to the new experience in the context of existing knowledge.
Generative learning is viewed as different from the simple process of storing information. Motivation and responsibility are seen to be crucial to this domain of learning. The area of language comprehension offers examples of this type of generative learning activities, such as in writing paragraph summaries, developing answers and questions, drawing pictures, creating paragraph titles, organizing ideas/concepts, and other. In sum, generative learning gives emphasis to what can be done with pieces of information, not only on access to them.

CONSTRUCTIVISM
In constructivism, the learner builds a personal understanding through appropriate learning activities and a good learning environment. The most accepted principles constructivism are:
• Learning consists in what a person can actively assemble for himself and not what he can receive passively.
• The role of learning is to help the individual life/adapt to his personal world.
These two principles in turn lead to three practical implications:
• The learner is directly responsible for learning. He creates personal understanding and transforms information into knowledge.
• The context of meaningful learning consist in the learner “connecting” his school activity with real life.
• The purpose of education is the acquisition of practical and personal knowledge, not abstract or universal truths.

There are common themes to these four learning demands. They are given below:
Learners

• Are active, purposeful learners.
• Set personal goals and strategies to achieve these goals
• Make their learning experience meaningful and relevant to their lives.
• Seek to build an understanding of their personal words so they can work/live productively.
• Build on what they already know in order to interpret and respond to new experiences.

Through this new conceptual models of learning, we now know that there are better ways to learn other than rote learning or memorization and that learning is for use not only in school but in real life.