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Saturday 15 October 2022

An Introduction to Principles of Phenomenology

 

Study the basic principles, features, and tenets of the conscious science of phenomenology. In this free online introductory course, study phenomenology's fundamental principles and characteristics as a philosophical discipline. You will examine some precursors to this movement. Similarly, we will discuss the rise of phenomenology as an influential philosophical concept in the 20th century. By completing this free online course, you will gain an exciting and professional insight into the conscious science of phenomenology. Enrol today! 

Phenomenology is a disciplined study of all phenomena. Etymologically, the term 'phenomenology' comes from two ancient Greek words, 'phenomena' and 'logos'. While the word 'logos' could be interpreted as 'logic', it also has several other meanings, including the 'Word of God' in the biblical New Testament. A phenomenon, also translated as 'appearances', is anything that can appear to conscious awareness, from actual chairs (real) to unicorns (imagined) to ideas (thoughts). As such, it encompasses the whole of human conscious experience. In this free online course, you will learn about the key 'how' and 'what' elements of phenomenology. Then, you will discern why this conscious science's methodological point of departure is the former and not the latter. We will identify the two essential ingredients for attaining the 'how' (also known as the immediate lived experience). You will see why the emphasis of phenomenology on the tonalities and structures of one's immediate experience is the dedicated call - to "return to the things themselves!" Examine the phenomenological law of intentionality and how it relates to the two aspects of 'lived' experience. 


Wednesday 27 October 2021

Meta-cognition in philosophy of education learning

 Meta-cognition is reflective thinking or a level of consciousness that exists through executive cognitive control and self-communication about experiences (Flavell 1979, Mezirow 1981). Good meta-cognition is a principle asset in learning (Flavell, 1979). The importance of meta-cognition in the process of learning is an old idea that can be traced from Socrates’ questioning methods to Dewey’s twentieth- century stance that we learn more from reflecting on our experiences than from the actual experiences themselves (Dewey, 1933). Meta-cognition refers to one’s knowledge concerning one’s own cognitive processes or anything related to them, e.g., the learning-relevant properties of information or data. For example, I am engaging in meta-cognition if I notice that I am having more trouble learning A than B; if it strikes me that I should double check C before accepting it as fact. (Flavell, 1976). Meta-cognition requires students to “externalize mental events” (Bransford et al, p. 67), such as what it means to learn, awareness of one’s strengths and weaknesses with specific skills  or  in  a  given  learning  context, plan what’s required to accomplish a specific learning goal or activity, identifying and correcting errors, and preparing ahead for learning processes. 

Teaching philosophy of education explicitly using this model approach considers these three classroom strategies.  Firstly, pre-assessments—encouraging Students to examine their current thinking. The importance of instructors knowing what students are thinking about a topic prior to trying to teach them something new has been written about extensively. However, pre-assessment can also be helpful for the learner and is a wonderful opportunity for promoting meta-cognition among students. “What do I already know about this topic that could guide my learning?” is an example of a self-question that it at the core of most pre-assessments used by instructors. In completing a task as part of the course, students use the information given on the pre-assessment to help them begin thoughtful planning of how they might approach learning this new idea. Meta-cognitive knowledge leads individuals to select, evaluate, revise or abandon cognitive tasks, goals and strategies in light of their relationships with one another and with their own abilities and interest with respect to an enterprise (Flavell 1979). 

Secondly, one long-standing, active-learning strategy that has been used across many disciplines in classrooms of any size is the “Muddiest Point” (Angelo and Cross, 1993). Giving students Practice in identifying Confusions. “What was most confusing to me about the material being explored in class today?” Similar to pre-assessments, the Muddiest Point is incredibly useful to instructors in gauging what was challenging for or unclear to students. However, the often missed opportunity is for this activity to explicitly charge students to identify what they are confused about and then to embrace, work on, and wrestle with that confusion as they participate in the learning activities of the course. Articulating confusion as part of learning by the student s can drive their independent learning or to generate

Thirdly, Retrospective Post-assessments—Pushing Students to Recognize Conceptual Change. Cognitive psychologists and science education researchers conceptualize learning as a student-centered activity in which students change their ideas about a topic (Posner et al., 1982). This view implies that students will not really learn new information if they do not go through a meta-cognitive realization that requires them to examine how they thought about the topic before and how they are thinking differently about that topic now; this is similar to Dewey’s assertion that reflection on an experience is the key step in learning (Dewey, 1933). A simple tool for explicitly charging students to think about how their ideas are (or are not) changing is a retrospective post-assessment. As its moniker implies, this tool is a post-assessment and occurs after learning may have taken place. It is retrospective, in that students are asked to recall how they were thinking about the topic prior to course learning activities and compare that with how they are now thinking about the same topic afterward. As an example, students might be asked to complete the phrase: “Before this course, I thought evolution was... Now I think that evolution is...” Alternatively, they may be asked to write about three ways in which their thinking about a given topic has changed over a given period of time. Either of these explicit approaches to teaching meta-cognition is a mechanism of training students to self-question, “How is my thinking changing (or not changing) over time?”  .Fourthly, by writing about their meta-cognitive, thinking, and learning strategies regularly, students can create a reflective journal. This serves as a Forum in which students monitor their own thinking. A popular reflective learning model that has influenced research is described by Mezirow (1990) as a process of constructing meaning from experiences through reflection and comparison with previously held beliefs, values and schemata. In his early work, Mezirow (1981) defined three levels of reflectivity. Level one or non-reflection is the absence of reflective thought. Level two reflections are defined as awareness of judgements, observations, and descriptions, evaluation of planning, and  assessment  of decisions. Critical reflection or level three is the process of reflection, and includes assessment of the need for further learning, and awareness that routines are not adequate and a change in perspective is needed. Johns (2000) emphasizes the need to guide reflection for the purpose of exposing contradiction and perceived conflict; to expose and confront self-distortion; to understand self-imposed limitations; to nurture commitment; to gain new insights; to achieve critical levels of reflection; and to empower for resolution of contradiction. Wallace (1996) argues that diversity of experience and learning styles may not be amenable to set criteria related to reflection. Another aspect of this form of learning is shared experiences which (Davies, 1995) rightly noted, “sharing experiences with peers and faculty in a non-judgmental supportive milieu seems to become an essential aspect of the reflective process” (Davies 1995, p. ). So, self-assessment questions to answer while reading can teach students to read philosophy then comparing their self-reflection with the self-reflection of others tend to develop their thinking strategies even more.   The model incorporates learning design and strategies that prompt guided reflection by a mentor who makes the process meaningful, ties it to experiences, and remains available throughout learning. By making familiar but not obvious background information explicit and making instruction more meta-cognitively aware we can improve student learning. Specifically, meta-cognitively informed instruction that explicitly discuss relevant background information assist philosophical novices to more fully develop the skills necessary to read and do philosophy well.   

 

REFERENCES

Angelo T, Cross K (1993) Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers, 2nd ed., San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass 

 

Bransford, J., Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, and Experience & School. Washington, DC: National Academy Press 

 

Davies E. (1995) Reflective practice: a focus for caring. Journal of Nursing Education 34, 167–174.

 

Dewey J (1933). How We Think: A Restatement of the Relation of Reflective Thinking to the Educative Process, Boston: Heath.

 

J. H. Flavell, “Meta-cognition and Cognitive Monitoring: A New Area of Cognitive- Developmental Inquiry,” American Psychologist 34:1 (1979): 906–11 

 

Johns C. (2000). Becoming A Reflective Practitioner. Blackwell Science Ltd, London, UK. 

 

Mezirow J. (1981) A critical theory of adult learning and education. Adult Education 

 

Mezirow J. and Associates (1990) Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood. JosseyBass Publishers, San Francisco, CA. 

 

Posner GJ, Strike KA, Hewson PW, Gertzog WA (1982). Accommodation of a scientific conception: towards a theory of conceptual change. Sci Educ 66, 211– 227.

 

 

Tuesday 9 January 2018

AN APPLICATION OF COGNITIVE APPRENTICESHIP MODEL TO PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION INSTRUCTION


ABSTRACT
This article describes how cognitive apprenticeship instructional strategies and technology can be applied to facilitate rapid learning of philosophy of education course by especially non-specialised (in philosophy) students. These strategies are adopted from the cognitive apprenticeship framework to support students in the development of strategic thinking to learn and understand complex concepts in a constructivist learning environment. They explore the elements of cognitive apprenticeship, scaffolding, mentoring, coaching, exploration and articulation.
On the intersection of technology and cognitive apprenticeship it discusses systematically designed, computer-mediated instruction with the use of innovative software tools that is based in the cognitive apprenticeship theories. The cognitive apprenticeship instructional strategies offer a rigorous and robust approach to teaching complex problem-solving skills and to developing important competencies within the discipline. This process-oriented inquiry I believe can help both preservice and inservice  teachers  develop  their  meta cognitive skills . Empirical studies have confirmed much of what these theories suggests. This instructional approach provides the classroom environment on which situated learning strives. The paper concludes with a call for more systematic and integrated program of studies working toward the development of guiding principles to support instructional design, teaching, and learning based on the cognitive apprenticeship model.
Keywords; Cognitive Apprenticeship,Scaffolding,Modeling,Coaching,Mentoring Cooperative  learning, Instructional design


INTRODUCTION
To foster student learning, educators regularly engage with a broad range of educational theories and associated teaching strategies. It follows that  philosophy of education  literature employs teaching strategies that   apply  philosophical principles and  theories to  instruction. For example, Cook and Sittler (2008) cover the pedagogical terrain by presenting case studies that include a mixture of direct and student-centered instruction.  In this exploration, the author considers the cognitive apprentice model (CA), which unites the longstanding tradition of learning through apprenticeship programs with classroom practices such as modeling, coaching, and scaffolding.
Apprenticeship is an inherently social learning method with a long history of helping novices become experts in fields as diverse as midwifery, construction, and law. Traditionally apprenticeship has been associated with learning in the context of becoming skilled in a trade or craft—a task that typically requires both the acquisition of knowledge, concepts, and perhaps psychomotor skills and the development of the ability to apply the knowledge and skills in a context-appropriate manner—and far predates formal schooling as it is known today. Simply put, it is a process through which a more experienced person assists a less experienced one. Supporting  students, especially non-specialized students, in a course that is philosophical in nature, is always a concern of philosophers. The standard approach to teaching philosophy is usually teacher-centered, which emphasizes a particular learning style with students. With this method, the lecturer tries to impose his/her knowledge upon the students, who more often than not lose the connections of lessons when dealing with various concept and their interrelationships. On the other hand, the effort to engage students in a genuine learning experience and the application of cognitive apprenticeship in original research is an approach proposed for the teaching and learning of philosophy of education.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

COGNITIVE APPRENTICESHIP-  This is a way of learning through experience guided by an expert. As a method of teaching, it is aimed primarily at teaching the processes that experts use to handle complex tasks. The focus of this learning-through-guided-experience is on cognitive and meta cognitive skills, rather than on the physical skills and processes of traditional apprenticeships. Cognitive apprenticeship is an instructional design model that emerged from situated learning theory and was introduced in 1989) and developed by Allan Collins, John Seely Brown they propose an alternative model of instruction that is accessible within the framework of the typical American classroom. It is a model of instruction that goes back to apprenticeship but incorporates elements of schooling. We call this model cognitive apprenticeship.(Collins, Brown, and Newman, 1989). It can be described an instructional model that draws upon authentic classroom activities and guided experiences that enable the development of mental skills through reflection, articulation, collaboration, and practice, and that are situated in authentic contexts.(Educational Technology Research & Development, 47 (3),15-31) .An apprenticeship is distinguished from tutoring, mentoring, coaching, and volunteerism by its focus on interaction that is a specific socially and culturally valued activity at which the adult is more skilled (Tisdale 2001). Applying apprenticeship methods to what are largely cognitive skills requires the externalization of processes that are usually carried out internally. Therefore, the thinking and reflection have to be out loud. Observing the processes by which an expert thinks and practices her skills can teach students to learn on their own more skillfully Collins, A., Brown, J. S., & Newman, S. E. (1990)(pp. 453-494). Cognitive apprenticeship is much like traditional or trade apprenticeship, learning occurs as teachers and learners interact socially while focused on completing a task, developing cognitive skills through participating in authentic learning experiences but unlike trade apprenticeship where the process of carrying out a task to be learned is usually easily observable. In cognitive apprenticeship, one needs to deliberately bring the thinking to the surface, to make it visible, whether it’s in reading, writing and problem solving.                                                                                         The goal of cognitive apprenticeship is to address the problem of inert knowledge and to make the thinking processes of a learning activity visible to both the students and the teacher. The teacher is then able to employ the methods of traditional apprenticeship (modeling, coaching, scaffolding, and fading) to effectively guide student learning (Collins et al., 1991). To achieve this goal, CA united instructional techniques found in traditional craft apprenticeship programs to those practices enacted in a classroom.  The resulting method comprises a learning environment that consists of four dimensions
A. Content - Strategies to acquire knowledge that involve not only obtaining the relevant concepts and facts associated with a subject, but also with the best approach for the acquisition of knowledge;
B. Method – Tactics that synthesize modeling, coaching, and scaffolding teaching techniques with methods that promote articulation, reflection, and exploration
C. Sequencing - Approaches that support the increasing complexity of tasks combined with tools that develop skills necessary to master a subject; 
D. The sociology of a learning environment – Policies that create a community of interactive learners.
Within each of the above building blocks are numerous strategies that work to implement the basic CA practice of bringing to light the thought process of an expert. Educators have implemented CA with positive results in a broad range of educational settings from kindergarten to 12th grade and beyond (Dennen and Burner 2008).  In higher education, Schoenfeld (1980) documented his success of employing modeling, coaching, and scaffolding techniques to teach college students how to solve math problems. Palincsar and Brown’s (1984) reciprocal teaching of reading exemplifies many of the features of cognitive apprenticeship and explained that it has proved remarkably effective in raising students’ scores on reading comprehension tests, especially those of poor readers. It is believed to be equally effective in writing and problem solving. Hendricks (2001) conducted an experimental study to determine whether situated instruction was more likely to result in transferable knowledge than traditional instruction. The content area was causality, with a learning goal focused on students being able to determine whether or not a cause–effect relationship was present in particular research studies. The control group received “abstract instruction” in the form of a lecture and practice activity, whereas the treatment group’s “situated instruction” followed the instructional model set forth by J.S.Brownetal. (1989),beginning with discussion, then modeling ,and, finally, coaching and scaffolding to assist the learners in applying the knowledge. Scaffolding was faded and control ceded to individual students as they demonstrated the ability to identify causality ,and , finally,students were asked to reflect aloud, articulating what they had learned. The results demonstrated that students in the treatment group out performed the control group on a posttest administered at the end of the instruction.


Instructional strategies and models associated with cognitive apprenticeship
Intentional teaching and learning through cognitive apprenticeship require making tacit processes visible to learners so they can observe and then practice them (Collins et al., 1989).this model is  slightly different from Collins et al.’s (1989) five-stage model of cognitive apprenticeship which included Modeling Coaching Reflection articulation exploration.Collins and colleagues’ (1989) model generally is considered the foundational one, but other slightly different versions have been proposed. Gallimore and Tharp (1990) identified six forms of scaffolded assistance: (1) instructing, (2) questioning, (3) modeling, (4) feeding back, (5) cognitive structuring, and (6) contingency management. Enkenberg (2001) added scaffolding and explanation as key strategies. LeGrand Brandt et al. (1993) presented a sequential model of modeling (both behavioral and cognitive), approximating, fading, self-directed learning, and generalizing. Liu (2005), who used a cognitive apprenticeship approach to support preservice education, offers instructional designers a three-phase Web-based CA model with a dynamic relationship between the initial modeling–observing phase and the second scaffolding–practice phase, which then is followed by the guiding–generalizing phase. The similarities across these models are their reliance on instructional strategies that provide learner guidance and engage learners in different types of practice until the guidance is no longer needed.
This model consists of the following strategies-
(i)      Coaching
(iv)    Scaffolding
(vii)   Reflection and replay
(iv)    Articulation
(v)     Mentoring
(vii)   Modeling
(viii)  Exploration
(ix)    Specific type of cooperative learning
These cognitive apprenticeship methods and strategies are designed to give students the opportunity to observe, engage in, and invent or discover expert strategies in context. Such an approach will enable students to see how the strategies combine with their factual and conceptual knowledge and how they use a variety of resources in the social and physical environment. The teacher provides guidance in the learning process, directs learning by presenting the environment and technology that stimulates and encourages critical thinking and problem solving skills in learners.
Modeling
This involves an expert performing a task so that the students can observe and build a conceptual model of the processes that are required to accomplish it. In cognitive domains, this requires the externalization of usually internal processes and activities-specifically, the heuristics and control processes by which experts apply their basic conceptual and procedural knowledge. For example, a teacher might model a decision-making process by talking aloud about the considerations taken and explaining the rationale for the end result. Learners may observe the reasoning as presented by an expert or the teacher .The learner in this case would not be engaged in direct imitation but, rather, use of similar strategies in a related context .The impact of modeling is strongest when it is an explicit process. Individuals who engage in a process of expert observation, reflection, and practice being more likely to be able to apply the learned knowledge in a different setting than those who receive a passive model (Cooper, 1999).
Coaching
This can be defined as observing a learner‘s performance and providing encouragement, diagnosis, directions, and feedback. Specifically, coaching involves providing motivational prompts, monitoring, and regulating learner performance, provoking reflection, and perturbing learners’ models. (K. L. Murphy et al 2005).Coaching consists of observing students while they carry out a task and offering hints, scaffolding, feedback, modeling, reminders, and new tasks aimed at bringing their performance closer to expert performance. Coaching may serve to direct students’ attention to a previously unnoticed aspect of the task or simply to remind the student of some aspect of the task that is known but has been temporarily overlooked. It can also be used to guide learners in developing task management skills particularly in constructivist environments, which require learners to be their own task managers. The content of the coaching interaction is immediately related to specific events or problems that arise as the student attempts to accomplish the target task.
Mentoring
 This can be defined as a one-on-one relationship between an expert and a novice in which the expert guides the novice by behavioral and cognitive modeling, academic and career counseling, emotional and scholarly support, advice, professional networking, and assessment( K. L. Murphy et al (2005). A mentor is one who mediates expert knowledge for novices, helping that which is tacit to become more explicit. The many definitions of mentoring are related to the social constructivist model of cognitive apprenticeship and often incorporate collaboration, interaction, modeling, scaffolding, and communities of practice. Mentoring support takes the form of expert-to-novice transfer of professional information.                                                                                                                                                                                                           
Scaffolding
 Scaffolds (Rosenshine & Meister, 1992West, Farmer, & Wolff, 1991) include all devices or strategies that support students' learning. One example of scaffolds for writing instruction is reflected in the work of Englert and colleagues (1991), who developed an acronym to represent their approach to solving the problem of writing well (POWERP refers to planning; O to organizing, W represents writing the preliminary draft, E is for editing, and R stands for revision). Other expert writers may attach different labels and make different divisions in the composing activities, but whatever the labels, the common tasks include planning, organizing, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading. Scaffolds to support students' efforts to plan and organize their writing may also be graphic in design. This can be used either during the initial planning of an essay (as an alternative to the traditional outline, a scaffold used frequently in composition) or may be used after the essay draft has been completed. When it is used after a draft has been written, the writer attempts to place all the text into one of the areas on the scaffold; in this way missing elements or under-developed sections of the text can be revealed. Instructors need to model the use of the scaffolds; without explicit instruction, students may fail to accept their value or fail to understand how to use them.

Reflection
In reflection, learners reflect on work they have already performed and analyze or deconstruct it.  Through this process, they can increase their “awareness of their own knowledge” (also called meta cognition) and be able to compare what they know with what others know. Here, the cognitive master role is to provoke students to compare their problem solving processes with the master's work, with that of other students, and with an internal cognitive model of the relevant expertise.  Such comparisons aid students in diagnosing their difficulties and in incrementally adjusting their performance until they achieve competence. Reflection is facilitated by the provision of abstracted replay that contrasts students’ own performance with that of the expert (Collins and Brown, 1989). Shared articulation and reflection usually magnifies the benefits of these processes.

Exploration
It encourages the expansion of research tools. In exploration, learners try out different hypotheses, methods and strategies by exploring their project and work environment.  Through exploration they can learn how to set achievable goals, form and test hypotheses, and make independent discoveries.  Here, the cognitive master role is to encourage students to be independent learners;  identify personal interests; and pursue personal goals. In fact, forcing students to engage in exploration teaches them how to frame interesting questions and to identify difficult problems on their own.  Giving students an interesting assignment with only generally formulated goals gives students the latitude to explore and thus extend their understanding of a subject. Exploration can also help students gain confidence in their ability to learn on their own
Articulation
It serves to foster explanations of how to research a topic. In articulation,  learners are required to “explain and think about what they are doing” by making their knowledge explicit. Therefore, they can see other applications for their knowledge, and test their understanding of knowledge.  The role of the cognitive master here is to encourage students to explicate their knowledge, reasoning, and problem solving strategies. Such activities provide the impetus for students to engage in the refinement and reorganization of knowledge.  Such tasks require students to participate in generating knowledge and evaluating the outcomes of knowledge building activities as part of collaborative learning activities.  
Specific type of cooperative learning
Cooperative learning has been defined as a classroom learning environment in which students work on academic tasks in small, heterogeneous groups (Parker 1985).I highlight Johnson and Johnson basic elements of cooperative learning . According to the Johnson & Johnson model, cooperative learning is instruction that involves students working in teams to accomplish a common goal, under conditions that include the following elements (7): (Johnson, D. W.; Johnson et al 1998)
1.Positive interdependence: Team members are obliged to rely on one another to achieve the goal. If any team members fail to do their part, everyone suffers consequences.
2. Individual accountability: All students in a group are held accountable for doing their share of the work and for mastery of all of the material to be learned.
3. Face-to-face promotive interaction: Although some of the group work may be parceled out and done individually, some must be done interactively, with group members providing one another with feedback, challenging reasoning and conclusions, and perhaps most importantly, teaching and encouraging one another.
4. Appropriate use of collaborative skills: Students are encouraged and helped to develop and practice trust-building, leadership, decision-making, communication, and conflict management skills.
5. Group processing: Team members set group goals, periodically assess what they are doing well
The basic elements of cooperative learning can be considered essential to all interactive methods. Student groups are small, usually consisting of two to six members. Grouping is heterogeneous with respect to student characteristics. Group members share the various roles and are interdependent in achieving the group learning goal. While the academic task is of primary importance, students also learn the importance of maintaining group health and harmony, and respecting individual views. These groups are where students learn and become comfortable applying the different techniques of working together cooperatively. (Johnson, et al., 2006, p.2:2)

Incorporating  CA strategies in philosophy instruction
One might ask why instructors need another teaching approach given the rich instruction literature available to date. The author believes that CA offers a flexible framework for planning and implementing philosophical sessions from which all levels of students may benefit.  What’s more, CA has the potential to provide instructors with a structure and alternatives to fall back on or choose from, for what most consider stereotype philosophy classroom lecture. My entry point for engaging with CA focuses on the method dimension, which encompasses teaching strategies considered by collins, brown, and newman (1989) to be the nucleus of CA. The method component brings into play tactics that synthesize modeling, coaching, and scaffolding teaching strategies with techniques that promote student articulation, reflection, and exploration. Among these strategies, the modeling aspect stands out as a critical component for introducing the students to philosophy literature.  Collins, brown, and newman state that modeling “involves an expert’s carrying out a task so that students can observe and build a conceptual model of the processes that are required to accomplish the task” (1989, 481).this activity is deeply rooted in the apprenticeship process where new apprentices devote considerable time to pre-practice observation.
The structure of enquiry of Philosophy differ from mathematics and other science disciplines depending on what it questions. Scientific inquiry questions the world outside man, while philosophical questions the world inside man. Philosophical inquiry, though implicitly stated, can be summed up to this statement. It is the transcendence of common knowledge through the entire involvement of the other through discourse and sharing of common experiences with the hope of giving birth to new knowledge through shared reflection. What is meant by this is simple, philosophical inquiry involves another person in order for it to occur. There must be a tension between one and another, a question must be asked regarding the common knowledge that in which is comfortable to one or the other. Logic, Phenomenology, and Meta-Pragmatics are the three modes of Philosophical Inquiry given by (Johann 1973). Logic deals with the rational and sensible organization of experiences. Phenomenology is the process of making these rational and sensible organizations of experience practical and applicable to daily life. Logic must contain phenomenological adequacy so as it to be pragmatic. Lastly, meta-pragmatics is making this phenomenological adequacy useful to man and his community. It is transcending the sphere of knowledge that has been set by society. Philosophy has made progress through the development of these specialized methods that fragment the knowledge that philosophy eternally seeks.
Think aloud modeling has been used successfully in technical skills instruction, mathematics instruction, reading and writing instruction. It would therefore seem to have potential as a vehicle for the developing the Philosophical inquiry mind in students. When preparing writing instructions or assignments  instructors can  "situate" assignments so that they more closely resemble the writing done in the workplace (e.g., using workplace topics, including collaborative writing and peer review in the classroom), students will be more likely to see the connection to the  real world. Brown, Collins, and Duguid (1989), Gick and Holyoak (1987), and Perkins and Salomon (1988) are among the researchers who agree that learning can be enhanced when content is contextualized-when authentic situations are created during learning that are similar to the situations in which the knowledge will ultimately be applied. Incorporating the instructional methods of cognitive apprenticeship-specifically think aloud modeling and scaffolding-into philosophy of education classrooms can take the form of writing instructions for the students. Instructors can think aloud to model composing activities for students, instructors must become aware of, and be able to articulate their own writing processes. As instructors attempt to verbalize each thought, step, and strategy that they employ while completing a task, they cannot mention everything because people think more rapidly than they speak (Hayes & Flower, 1980). But, incomplete or not, these verbal protocols provide the only available window into the mind of the expert writer. Studies in the use of think aloud modeling have produced positive results (Bereiter & Bird, Collins et al., 1991; Collins et al., 1987; 1985; Palincsar & Brown, 1984Schoenfeld, 1985). Students have developed the skills that were modeled and learned to apply the strategies they were taught.Think aloud modeling reveals the most complete description possible of their cognitive activities and strategies, while providing organizational scaffolds for the students. Instructors describe what they are thinking and doing, why they are doing what they are doing, and verbalize their self-correction processes.  As the students try to  replicate this  CA inspired model, they  develop their understanding of  meaning  and relationship of concepts in context. . I transition into the role of a coach. Coaching, according to Collins, Brown, and Newman, “consists of observing students while they carry out a task and offering hints, scaffolding, feedback, modeling, reminders, and new tasks aimed at bringing their performance closer to expert performance” (1989, 481).  To accomplish this procedure, Instructors  consult the students  individually, proposing alternative----- terms, solving problems, and giving encouragement.  Students, in turn, work on their assignments using the prompts both visual and verbal as guideline. Instructors also support students by demonstrating the use of scaffolds and explaining the principles and rules that apply to the  task. Each successive problem is designed to be increasingly complex, and the instructor provides less and less assistance as the students gain experience. Ultimately, students develop competency and solve problems and develop their own expertise.  .Bereiter and Bird (1985)Collins, Brown, and Newman (1987), Hayes (1990), and Flower (1993) and her colleagues (Flower, Wallace, Norris, & Burnett, 1994) are just some of the individuals who have examined cognitive apprenticeship in writing instruction. Stasz, Ramsey, Eden, DaVanzo, Farris, and Lewis (1993) describe a college-preparatory English course in which the instructor included workplace situations, situated learning, modeling, scaffolding, and coaching.
Writing assignments about the literature in context  were "situated" in the students' own cultural experiences by requiring them to consider how the literature reflected existing problems in their own lives. By grounding the work in realistic and meaningful contexts and purposes, the instructor made the writing tasks relevant to students as individuals. The instructor included think aloud modeling in his repertoire of teaching techniques. Scaffolding took the form of optional organizational structures for the assignment or   writing task on the board or screen. Coaching consisted of providing hints to students, who knew that the hints were directive and not answers in themselves. Rounding out the method dimension are techniques to promote student articulation, reflection, and exploration. Collins, Brown, and Newman consider articulation to include “any method of getting students to articulate their knowledge, reasoning, or problem-solving processin a domain” (1989, 482).  Reflection in the CA context assists learners to compare their own performance with that of a teacher, another student, or their own thought process from the beginning of class. It stands to reason that after students have reflected upon and articulated what they have learned, they are ready for further exploration.  Exploration is an outgrowth of the fading process, arising when students are ready to take on variations of the assigned tasks. During the philosophy sessions, I foster articulation by asking students to describe their reading  strategy and subsequent results.  As the class winds down, The instructor suggest that the students reflect upon what they learned.  The instructor inquire if they have located enough meaningful research.  At the end of the session, the instructor encourage further exploration by directing the students to additional philosophy resources or to the reference desk for further assistance.

Sociology of learning environment
The final dimension of a CA classroom addresses the sociology of learning.
I provide a checklist of 9 design elements.
1. Real-world relevance: Students brainstorm on The various implications of the schools of philosophy on the methods ,strategies, techniques and perspectives of the actual practice teaching and learning employed in educational practise. they examine these philosophies and concepts so as to develop an informed opinion on their strengths and relevancy to educational practice and activities.
2.  ill Defined problems: The Challenges posed by this task cannot be solved easily by the application of the existing algorithm; instead, authentic activities are relatively undefined and open to multiple interpretations, requiring students to identify for themselves the tasks and subtasks needed to complete the major task.
3. Sustained investigation: These Problems cannot be solved in a matter of minutes or even hours. Instead, authentic activities comprise complex tasks to be investigated by students over a sustained period of time, requiring significant investment of time and intellectual resources.
4. Multiple sources and perspectives: Learners are given a list of resources as examples but are not limited. Authentic activities provide the opportunity for students to examine the task from a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives, using a variety of resources, and require students to distinguish relevant from irrelevant information in the process.
5. Collaboration: Success is not achievable by an individual learner working alone. Authentic activities make collaboration integral to the task, both within the course and in the real world. This also refers to the creation of a learning environment in which the participants actively communicate in dialogue comparing their thoughts can develop higher learning strategies, skills and expertise, where expertise is understood as the practice of solving problems and carrying out tasks in a domain. Activities designed to engender a community of practice for reading might engage students and teacher in discussing how they interpret what they read and use those interpretations for a wide variety of purposes, including those that arise in other classes or domains.
6. Reflection ( meta cognition): Authentic activities enable learners to make choices and reflect on their learning, both individually and as a team   or community.
7. Interdisciplinary perspective: Relevance is not confined to a single domain or subject matter specialization. Instead, authentic activities have   consequences that extend beyond a particular discipline, encouraging students to adopt diverse roles and think in interdisciplinary terms.
8. Appropriate assessment: Assessment is not merely summative in authentic activities but is woven seamlessly into the major task in a manner that reflects real-world evaluation processes.
9. Multiple interpretations and outcomes: Rather than yielding a single correct answer obtained by the application of rules and procedures, authentic activities allow for diverse interpretations and competing solutions culminating in the creation of a whole product, valuable in its own right.
In adapting cognitive apprenticeship as a method of instruction and learning in a philosophy of education classroom, then, the challenge is to identify the task and its processes and make them visible to students situate the abstract tasks of the school curriculum in contexts that make sense to students i.e. situate abstract tasks in authentic contexts, so that students understand the relevance of the work so also vary the diversity of situations and articulate the common aspects.

Computer-Mediated Learning
Within the framework of cognitive apprenticeship, computer-based technologies can be powerful pedagogical tools that enhance and expand the power and flexibility of the resources that can be deployed to support the various component of cognitive apprenticeship discussed earlier. In turn, cognitive apprenticeship approach can serve as solid foundation for the instructional design of computer-based environments whether it is a multimedia, hypermedia, web-based, or any means of technological delivery systems (Casey, 1996).  Using the cognitive apprenticeship framework, innovative and successful software tools can be employed that enable students to quickly learn the essentials of philosophy. Adobe captivate , articulate storyline and moodle are just some few software that can be used to create and/or supplement the tutorials for individual students by simulating the live classroom experience and instructing students online in real time as they conduct their studies. 

 

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE: RESEARCH AND PRACTICE

It is generally acknowledged that psychology, especially learning theory, should inform the design of instruction In short, one need not defend the claim that cognitive psychology is a primary source of basic research that informs the applied research associated with instructional science. However, how philosophy might inform the design of instruction has not been well articulated. There is not such a clear connection between philosophy and instructional design as there is between psychology and instructional design, in spite of the excellent foundation laid by Dewey and other philosophers. Although the historical roots of cognitive apprenticeship in education are clear, the future is not. It seems likely that corporate and computer training will continue to use methods of cognitive apprenticeship, which are appropriately focused on moving one’s ability from novice-level to expert level skills However,much cannot be said of its application to the liberal arts like philosophy. The purpose of this article is to provide a general description of how cognitive apprenticeship model can be applied to philosophy of education instruction. Researchers should consider it imperative to explore and understand the nature of philosophical inquiry along with the cognitive apprenticeship framework. In doing this educators might consider how the foundational principles of CA (content, method, sequencing, and sociology) can provide a theoretical framework for philosophy of education instruction.

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Wednesday 6 May 2015

A CONSTRUCTIVIST PERSPECTIVE OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION



ABSTRACT:
The paper discuses the learning theories behaviorism and cognitivist versus constructivism. It focuses on the common and distinguishing features among these three theories that have deep significance for pedagogical science and vocational education. The article strives for a deeper understanding of the nature of constructivist learning in vocational education, It discusses the competing psychological and pedagogical theories of learning but the focus is on identifying the significant feature of constructivism or underlying factor that guide and inspire a variety of different teaching and learning techniques in vocational technical education.
Traditionally, vocational education has prepared its students to be able to “do,” to apply knowledge to practice. With a constructivist perspective, however, vocational educators must extend that emphasis to knowing under what circumstances and in what way knowledge is to be applied. This focus is congruent with the demands of today’s society .
Keywords: constructivism,behaviorism, cognitivism,vocational context, situated learning, authentic learning

CONSTRUCTIVISM VS BEHAVIORISM:
Behaviorism is a philosophy based on the proposition that all things which organisms do including acting, thinking and feeling, can and should be regarded as behaviors. In education, behaviorist approaches emphasize changing behavior through rewarding correct performance. Behaviorism learning or knowledge takes the form of a response to stimuli (e.g. teacher holds up a flash card that says 2 + 2 = and the student says 4) – the primary focus is how the association between the stimulus and response is made, strengthen and maintained. Responses followed by reinforcement are more likely to recur in the future.
The constructivist psychologies theorize about and investigate how human beings create systems for meaningfully understanding of their worlds and experiences. In education, constructivist approaches emphasize active engagement of learners with the conceptual content through strategies such as talking (not just listening), writing (not just reading), and interaction, problem-
solving and other 'active' approaches. bakeramitchell (2011). states -Constructivism is based on a set of assumptions about what goes on inside the learner’s head. Piaget’s constructivism assumes that genetically controlled brain development governs an assumed time-table of when a child is capable of learning. This idea asserts that our brain constructs its own meanings from the social environment when it is ready according to our genetic abilities and that teachers can have only a minimal effect on learning. Fortunately or unfortunately for constructivists none of these assumptions can be, or have been, proven. They can only be inferred to be correct. We cannot pry a subject’s skull open to see what’s going on inside. The same can be said for the psycho-analytical psychologists and their theories about the effects of our past as being abused as children, spoiled as children, ignored as children, or whatever, on the motives governing our present or future actions (and thoughts).
He went further to explain- behaviorism eschews all discussion about what goes on inside the head because we cannot directly measure or observe it. Likewise, the genetic issue is immaterial to the behaviorist. The behaviorist focuses on:-the present environment of a subject and what behavior is exhibited in that environment and what consequences follow. According to a behavioristic view of learning, a learning result is indicated by a change in the behavior of a learner (Skinner, 1938; Venezky & Osin, 1991). According to a constructivist view, learning is seen as the construction of meanings by the learner (Cunningham,1991; Duffy& Jonassen, 1991). Neither of these views can be regarded as exclusively right or wrong. It is, however, important to know that constructivism is presently accepted as the most relevant view of learning and that education policies, education models and education practices focus on constructivism (Brown,2005). Constructivists champion practices that emphasize learning through natural peer group social interactions. These practices include such concepts as “brain-based learning,” multi-sensory learning styles, discovery learning, inquiry methods, whole language reading, balanced literacy, authentic learning environments, and many more (bakeramitchell,2011).


CONSTRUCTIVISM VS COGNITIVISM
Cognitivism is the theory that describes how information is processed to produce learning. It is the change in a learner’s mental behavior. Cognitive theory looks at how information travels from the sensory memory to the working memory to the long-term memory. it focusses more on complex cognitive processes such as thinking, problem solving, language, concept formation and information processing, It’s about equipping learners with effective learning strategies to process the information that they are given – as well as factoring in the students own beliefs and thought processes in interpreting and measuring how well they understand the knowledge acquired . Much more emphasis on connecting prior knowledge (which might not be exactly the same but close) to new knowledge – use of analogy to make new concepts seem familiar more quickly. More about how to learn than how to teach. Knowledge acquisition is described as a mental activity that entails internal coding and structuring by the learner. The learner is viewed as a very active participant in the learning process
Cognitivist, like behaviorism, emphasizes the role that environmental conditions play in facilitating learning. Instructional explanations, demonstrations, illustrative examples and matched non-examples are all considered to be instrumental in guiding student learning. Similarly, emphasis is placed on the role of practice with corrective feedback.
Cognitive theories contend that environmental factors and instructional components alone cannot account for all the learning that results from an instructional Situation. Additional key elements include the way that learners attend to, code, transform, rehearse, store and retrieve information. Learners’ thoughts, Beliefs, attitudes and values are also considered to be valuable in the learning process. Learning results when information is stored in the memory in an organized, meaningful manner. Teachers/designers are responsible for assisting learners in organizing that information in some optimal way. Designers use techniques such as advance organizers, analogies, hierarchical relationships and matrices to help learners relate new information to prior knowledge.
While in constructivism authentic learning activities allow learners learn in their own cultural context. A critical element of fostering learning is to have students carry out tasks and solve problems in an environment that reflects the multiple uses to which their knowledge will be put in the future. Situated learning serves several different purposes. First, students come to understand the purposes or uses of the knowledge they are learning. Second, they learn by actively using knowledge rather than passively receiving it. Third, they learn the different conditions under which their knowledge can be applied, students have to learn when to use a particular strategy and when not to use it (i.e., the application conditions of their knowledge). Fourth, learning in multiple contexts induces the abstraction of knowledge, so that students acquire knowledge in a dual form, both tied to the contexts of its uses and independent of any particular context. This unbinding of knowledge from a specific context fosters its transfer to new problems and new domains. For example, reading and writing instruction might be situated in the context of students putting together a book on what they learn about science.


ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS:
Learning theory has evolved into three paradigms: behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. The basic difference between these paradigms is the consideration of objective reality verses relative reality and external environments versus internal processes. Behaviorism characterizes knowledge as object reality and learners as passive vessels into which knowledge can be placed (Driscoll, 1994). Behaviorism is criticized because knowledge is often disconnected from complex, realistic contexts and fragmented into manageable chunks (Slavin 1991). Cognitivism focuses on mental operations and the role of the mind in gaining knowledge. Cognitivists tend to view knowledge as largely objective in nature yet as something developed through internal processes (Driscoll, 1994; Slavin, 1991). Constructivism is essentially an extension of cognitivism. Constructivists emphasize three major points with regard to learning: knowledge is not object reality but is experienced reality, knowledge is situationbound or context-dependent, and knowledge is not passively received but actively constructed (Driscoll, 1994; Pascual-Leone
& Irwin, 1998). Proponents of constructivism argue that knowledge is based on learners' individual perceptions and experiences. As a consequence, pertinent learning experiences are vitally important for learners to construct knowledge. Since knowledge construction is situation-bound, realistic situations and authentic tasks aid learners in development of relevant skills and enhance learners' motivation (Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt,1990). The learner must ultimately understand the how, when, what, and why of information concepts and relationships. Constructivists argue that through purposeful manipulation, careful observation, and thoughtful analysis learners can develop a deep insight and understanding of the subject matter at hand. Cognitive psychologists, such as Resnick (1976), have underscored a troubling feature of typical classroom learning: its decontextualized character. In authentic contexts, learning gets support in a number of ways absent in the typical classroom. In authentic contexts: apprentice-like relationships are common; relevant knowledge and skills figure conspicuously in making progress on tasks; tasks allow learners to establish meaningful representations and connections within the knowledge domain; instruction is situated in engaging, problem-rich environments; and a social network functions to support and sustain performance.
Furthermore, Workplace settings are now global in nature and are located anywhere, including the home. Work activities are customer focused and involve teamwork, cooperation, and collaboration among people who are diverse in culture, language, age, life experience, work history, knowledge, and skill level. For learners to be able to transfer knowledge to the complex and diverse environments in which it is to be applied, they must be able to learn in similar settings. Transferring knowledge from one situation to another is difficult, especially when the circumstances or conditions of practice in the transfer setting are remote (e.g., from the vocational classroom to the workplace) (Billett 1997). Thus, in keeping with a constructivist viewpoint, the essential role of vocational education is to “facilitate construction of knowledge through experiential, contextual, and social methods in real-
world environments” (Lynch 1997, p. 27). “The end product is self-directed learners who make connections to workplaces and other environments based on personal and social experiences” (ibid


CONCLUSION
Arising from my analysis, I have identified that context is such an important factor in constructivism and vocational learning that it warrants separate consideration. It became clear that the vocational context is largely responsible for defining the nature of the learning that will take place which in turn defines the constructivist approaches, teaching strategies and methods to be applied. To buttress this , The Institute for learning (IfL) stated that brilliant teaching and training comes from the combination of a deep understanding of learning and the use of ‘learning to learn’ strategies applied within the context of a vocational subject and workplace setting (IfL, 2010) Also on the importance of context on the effectiveness of learning, ‘other key features of knowledge construction are functional context, social context and usefulness. The process works most effectively when it is embedded in a context in which knowledge and skills will be used.’ (Kerka 1997).
The results of my analysis of the learning discourse are neither meant to serve as how-to knowledge for ameliorating learning processes nor do I regard them as an elaborated or new theory of learning as some ideas developed in this paper have a long tradition. Instead they can contribute to a more complex observation of these processes, aiming at a second order observation of the complicated, since complementary, interrelations between the individual, the socio-cultural, the institutional, and the situational components of the domain called “learning.” In other words, I try to demonstrate the plausibility of observing vocational learning from the constructivist perspective . Successful implementation of constructivist theory in vocational education requires realistic assessment of available resources This may automatically require resources that are not readily available in schools and educational institutions (e.g, technology ,time and money for expert modeling).as constructivism affords both opportunities and challenges . 

REFERENCES 

Baker , Mictchell.The Great Pedagogical Debate: Behaviorism vs. Constructivism Posted on May 20, 2011 by bakeramitchell available on http://bakeramitchell.com/2011/05/20/behaviorism-vs-constructivism/

Billett, Stephen. “Constructing Vocational Knowledge: History, Communities, and Ontogeny.” Journal of Vocational Education and Training 48, no. 2 (1996): 141-154. (ERIC No. EJ 531 851)

Brown, T. H. Education Today, issue 2 of 2005, Aries Publishing Company,Thames, New Zealand.

Driscoll, M. P. (1994). Psychology of learning for instruction. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Jonassen, D. (1991,). Evaluating Constructivist Learning. Educational Technology, 36(9), 28-33

Kerka, Sandra. Constructivism, Workplace Learning, and Vocational Education. ERIC Digest No. 181. Columbus: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, Center on Education and Training for Employment, the Ohio State University, 1997a. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 407 573)

Lynch, Richard L. Designing Vocational and Technical Teacher Education for the 21st Century. Implications from the Reform Literature. Information Series No. 368. Columbus: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, Center on Education and Training for Employment, the Ohio State University, 1997. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 405 499)

Pascual-Leone, J., & Irwin, R. R. (1998). Abstraction, the will, the self, and modes of learning in adulthood. In M. C. Smith & T. Pourchot (Eds.), Adult learning and development. Mahwah, NJ: 
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Slavin, R. E. (1991). Educational psychology (3rd ed). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prenctice Hall.

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