wt5912 unit3 week4

Department of Design & Manufacturing TechnologyLecturer/Teacher: Mr. Joseph Lyster Academic Year 2011: Spring SemesterTechnical Support: Mr. Joe Murray & Mr. Richie Hennessy

Notes prepared by: Mr. Joseph Lyster

WT5912TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION & WORKSHOP PRACTICE 2: MATERIALS AND CONSTRUCTIONUnit 3 – Week 4 Planning: Curriculum, Aims & Objectives

Department of Design & Manufacturing Technology

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Why do we need to plan…can’t we just teach?

Planning enables teachers to develop the most effective means of engaging students in the learning experience

Subject matter is a given, but the delivery is an Art in itself.

Effective planning will enable the you to develop clear statements of intent through the organisation and preparation of all aspects inherent to the classroom environment

Fail to prepare, then prepare to fail!


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Understanding Planning:

1. Tyler’ Curriculum Design Process Model2. Stenhouse’s Four-Processes of Schooling3. Tyler’s Curriculum Design Objectives Model4. Bloom’s Taxonomy5. Surrounding Issues


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Construction Studies: Construction Studies is one of those subjects that

engages students on various levels of cognition Students are largely autonomous with regard to project

work etc… Students are encouraged to think divergently in order to

be creative through processes such as design, which involves practical and theoretical work of various nature such as sketching, designing, wood processing, reporting, experimenting, conceptualizing etc…

In planning for this, we need to be organic in our thinking about how we can provide suitable conditions for growth in terms of quality learning and enjoyment.


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Construction Studies:

How can we plan for all this?


Tyler’s Model

Construction Studies Syllabus:

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1. Pedagogical reasons: allows certain types of learning to take place: active learning, promote student responsibility

2. Ethical reasons: allows all to be treated equality etc…

3. Allows important concepts/principles/procedures from subject to be explored

4. Inducts students into subject matter

Curriculum Pedagogy:

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Four processes of schooling (Stenhouse)

Training in new skills e.g. baking a cake, declining irregular French verbs

Instruction – transmission of knowledge e.g. the events of history, the Periodic Table…

Initiation into the culture and values of society – often through the ‘hidden curriculum’.

Induction – into thought processes of the various disciplines e.g. thinking like a scientist, technologist, geographer etc.

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Curriculum Pedagogy:Lets apply Stenhouse to the Construction Studies Setting…

Training in new skills e.g. processing wood using a range of tools/machines, constructing small sections of buildings…

Instruction – transmission of knowledge e.g. evolution of wood practices, building construction etc…

Initiation into the culture and values of society – often through the ‘hidden curriculum’ i.e. What type of work Bob the Builder does…realism.

Induction – into thought processes of the various disciplines e.g. thinking like a technologist, carpenter, construction worker, engineer, architect, etc.

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Statements of goals (Aims) need to indicate both the kind of behaviour to be developed in the pupil and the area of content in which the behaviour is to be applied.

Such closely formulated statements of intent are termed objectives. Educational theorists and psychologists have largely concluded that there

are three main psychological domains to be addressed when formulating statements of intent as follows:

1.Affective2.Cognitive3.Psychomotor

Aims and Objectives:

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Tyler’s Model


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They distinguish three broad areas or 'domains': 1. the cognitive - concerned with intellectual abilities and operations; 2. the affective - concerned with attitudes, values and appreciations; 3. the psychomotor - which covers the area of motor skills.

Within the cognitive domain, six broad levels of understanding (each with subdivisions) are classified, ranging from objectives concerned with simple recall of specific facts to objectives involving the evaluation of complex theories and evidence.

Bloom and his fellow workers have not produced a psychomotor classification, though others have attempted to provide one.

By means of such classifications Bloom hopes to promote greater clarity in thinking about behavioural objectives, a more exact language for communicating about objectives and a more effective means of evaluating objectives so classified.


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Aims and Objectives: A. COGNITIVE DOMAIN (In brief context of Construction Studies)

1. Level 1: KNOWLEDGE 'To make pupils conscious of the principles of Constructions Studies' 'Knowledge of a relatively complete formulation of the evolution of Construction'

2. Level 2: COMPREHENSION 'Skill in the art of communication for Construction Studies i.e. reading a drawing' 'Skill in predicting continuation of trends i.e. Wall design in 10 years time'

3. Level 3: APPLICATION 'The ability to apply a range of skills in performing tasks, both practical and theoretical'

4. Level 4: ANALYSIS 'Skill in distinguishing facts from hypotheses'

5. Level 5: SYNTHESIS 'Ability to incorporate personal experience and interests with a wide range of thoughts

and ideas to develop a response to a given task'6. Level 6: EVALUATION

'The comparison of methods used, how it was applied and what could be done more effectively'

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Bloom’s Krathwohl's


Aims and Objectives: A. COGNITIVE DOMAIN

Evaluate

Create

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Aims and Objectives:A revision of Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (Based on Krathwohl’s extension of Bloom’s taxonomy) Knowledge dimension versus

Cognitive process dimension Because emphasis is place

on reaching a point of ‘creation’ this it is reasonable to suggest that this taxonomy is closely relation to technological activity.

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Aims and Objectives:B. AFFECTIVE DOMAIN

1. Level 1: RECEIVING (ATTENDING.) 'Attends carefully when others speak in direct conversation,

on the telephone, in audiences'2. Level 2: RESPONDING

‘Finds pleasure in reading for recreation'3. Level 3: VALUING

'Assumes responsibility for drawing reticent members of the group into conversation'

4. Level 4: ORGANIZATION 'Forms judgements as to the responsibility of society for conserving

human and material resources'5. Level 5: CHARACTERIZATION BY A VALUE OR VALUE COMPLEX

'Readiness to revise judgements and to change behaviour in the light of evidence

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How the Brain Operates: Kolb


A Few Surrounding Issues

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Motivational Needs:

Maslow's Theory of Hierarchical Needs

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An engineering education paper by Felder and Silverman (1988) identified different dimensions of learning and teaching styles.

The paper highlights aspects significant to engineering education such as the way in which students like to learn and how students can be reached through teaching and learning.

The dimensions of teaching and learning styles shown identify a range of preferred learning styles that can be achieved by a range of corresponding teaching styles.

Learning Styles at a Glance:

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Learning Styles at a Glance: Kolb

David A. Kolb’s (1984) theory on experiential learning suggests that development of learning is based on two dialectic processes, namely conceptualising/experiencing and acting/reflecting (Mainemelis et al, 1999).

The dialectic processes can be identified in the studies of Felder and Silverman (1988) and Prince (2004) along with Lev Vygotsky’s (1978) theory on the zone of proximal development (ZPD).

Kolb’s theory is central to the ideas of balanced learning styles and specialised learning styles.

“Individuals with balanced learning profiles on these dimensions are hypothesized to be more sophisticated

(adaptively flexible) learners than those with specialized learning styles”

(Kolb, 1984) Kolb’s model of experiential learning addresses the processes

involved in experiential learning which is identified as a dominant feature of construction studies pedagogy.

Kolb’s theory is significant in terms of how is pulls together core elements similar to that of collaborative and problem based learning.

Research shows that Kolb’s theory has been adapted to related disciplines such as architecture, design and engineering education.

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Learning Styles at a Glance:Kolb

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A study by Prince (2004) addresses the aspect highlighted in the paper by Felder and Silverman (1988). It measured the effect of both active learning and passive learning models.

It was found that the new active-engagement methods resulted in a higher percentage understanding among students than with previous and traditional instruction methods of learning.

A study by McCarthy and Anderson (2000) further supports this finding stating that students of active learning methods retained more information than those of traditional methods.

Active-engagement vs. traditional instruction (Prince, 2004)

Active Learning:

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Research shows that philosophical theories of constructivist learning describe it as a descriptive theory of learning rather than a prescriptive theory of learning.

For example; a descriptive theory of learning reflects knowledge naturally constructed from experience where as a prescriptive theory of learning reflects knowledge constructed in a conditioned learning environment as directed by an instructor (Richardson, 1996).

Constructivist approach to learning involves the mindful and effortful involvement of the learner in the processes of knowledge and skill acquisition interacting with the environment by constructing knowledge through social interaction, negotiation and cooperation (De Corte, 2000).

It is often referred to as an active learning model (Prince, 2004). Advanced cognitive constructivist theories produced by theorists such as Vygotsky (1978),

Piaget (1989), Bruner (1977) and Kolb (1984) outline various approaches to cognitive constructivist learning (see appendix 1.4.1). Vygotsky added that:

“As meaning-making is a dialogic and dialectic process mediated through language, individuals construct knowledge when they engage socially in talk and activity about shared problems or

tasks.” (Vygotsky, 1978)

Constructivism

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When outlining pedagogical strategies, in particular for practical subjects, constructivist approaches must be considered.

Merrill (1991) sums up constructivist learning in five key points showing that:

1. “knowledge is constructed from experience;2. learning is a personal interpretation of the world;3. learning is an active process in which meaning is developed on the basis of experience;4. conceptual growth comes from the negotiation of meaning, the sharing of multiple perspectives

and the changing of our internal representations through collaborative learning;5. and learning should be situated in realistic settings, testing should be integrated with the task and

not a separate activity.” (Merrill, 1991)

Two aspects of behavioural learning of interest are stimulus and response (Cunia, 2005). Stimulus and response can be introduced to the constructivist learning environment provided adequate

support structures are in place to develop appropriate use (Dillenbourg, 2002). Research indicates that teacher facilitation of group learning results in a better use of resources by

students. Collaboration can be influenced anticipatively, by structuring the collaborative process in order to favour

the emergence of productive interactions, or retroactively, by regulating interactions, as tutors do. These two approaches are complementary

Constructivism

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The constructivist style of teaching and learning, for example student centred learning, promotes a more interactive learning experience which accommodates collaborative group work (Kirschner et al, 2009).

Educational psychologists have long been interested in the potential of collaborative learning activities to produce high-level learning (Volet et al, 2008). However, the nature of group work in schools is a complex phenomenon (Hanham & McCormick, 2008).

In the context of group interactions, high-level cognitive processing can refer to elaborations, speculations, justifications, inferences, drawing relations, asking thought-provoking questions and negotiation; all assumed to contribute to the co-construction of knowledge.

In contrast, low-level cognitive processing can refer to sharing information, exchanging ideas, clarifying understanding, or providing definitions without evidence of transformation or integration with own mental representations (Volet et al, 2008).

Collaborative Learning

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Over the last century, researchers in the psychological tradition, from Baldwin to Vygotsky and including earlier writings of Piaget, have underlined the importance of interaction between social, affective and cognitive states in development and learning and have thus provided a theoretical rationale for the use of groupings in instructional settings (Blatchford et al, 2003).

A recent study for science by Gillies and Khan (2008) reflected the positive impact of collaborative learning commenting that:

“Teaching students to engage critically and constructively with each other’s ideas, challenge and counter-challenge proposals, and discuss alternative propositions before reaching agreement are important if students are to talk and reason effectively together and when students were taught to talk and reason together and apply those skills in the study of science they made greater gains in measures of individual reasoning than students who have not had such teaching.”

(Gillies & Khan, 2008)


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A study by Gokhale (1995) investigated learning through collaboration. Gokhale concluded that collaborative learning for example group work fosters the development of critical thinking through discussion, clarification of ideas and evaluation of other ideas.

Cooperative learning methods improve problem-solving strategies because students are confronted with different interpretations of the given situation (Bruner, 1985).

Vygotsky (1978) commented that students perform on a higher intellectual level in a collaborative setting. Ghaith (2000) highlighted the assessment of collaborative learning commenting that:

“Cooperative activities which use student learning groups to promote students' active involvement in their own learning, "can be used to facilitate alternative assessment given that it provides opportunities for continuous improvement and possibilities for assessing individual and group outcomes in a supportive and stress-reduced environment”

(Ghaith, 2002)


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A Suggested Approach to Construction Studies Pedagogy:

1 2 3

Aim(s)

Objective 1: Affective

Evaluation/AssessmentObjective 2: Cognitive

Objective 3:Psychomotor

Influential Factors

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