FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS. BE DETAILED & USE WRITING INSTRUCTIONS & EVERY ASSIGNMENT MUST BE IN YOUR OWN WORDS. NO COPY & PASTE – NO PLAGIARISM!

Core Textbook: Human Learning, Fifth Edition, 2008 (ISBN-13: 978-0132327497) by Jeanne Ellis Ormrod, Pearson Education

Written Assignment for Unit One

Be sure to refer to this course syllabus (see attached) & use the writing assignment requirements below for instructions on format, length, and other information on how to complete this assignment.

Please answer FOUR of the following in 4 Pages (approximately 250 – 300 words per question):

1. Sometimes we know learning has occurred because the learner engages in a new behavior, one that he or she has never before exhibited. But other kinds of behavior changes may also indicate that learning has taken place. Examine three additional ways in which behavior might change as a result of learning. Give a concrete example to illustrate each one.

2. Distinguish between principles and theories of learning, and give a specific example of each.

3. Theories of learning have both advantages and disadvantages. Examine at least two advantages and one disadvantage; in each case, explain the particular effect that the advantage or disadvantage has on the advancement of our understanding of human learning.

4. The textbook describes five general research methods that scientists use to determine how the brain functions. Examine three of them.

5. Several teachers tell you that they are “teaching to students’ right brains” by spending a lot of time on painting, map interpretation, geometry, and other highly visual and/or spatial activities. Critique their claim using what you have learned about how the human brain functions.

6. Examine and illustrate the advantages and the shortcomings of both classical conditioning and operant conditioning in the classroom, and give examples of each.

Written Assignment for Unit Two

Be sure to refer to this course syllabus (see attached) & use the writing assignment requirements below for instructions on format, length, and other information on how to complete this assignment.

Please answer FOUR of the following in 4 Pages (approximately 250 – 300 words per question):

1. The textbook presents numerous implications of social cognitive theory for classroom practice. Analyze four of these implications, illustrating each one with a concrete example.

2. Analyze what Gestalt psychologists meant by the phrase, “The whole is more than the sum of its parts.” Give two examples in your explanation–one related to perception and one related to learning.

3. Examine at least three benefits of instructional objectives for teachers, students, or both. Evaluate at least one downside using instructional objectives to evaluate
students’ achievement, especially when used in conjunction with high-stakes tests.

4. Cognitive learning theories share a number of common underlying assumptions. Analyze four of these assumptions.

5. Students’ prior knowledge about a topic often influences their ability to learn something new about the topic. Examine how students’ prior knowledge is involved in each of the following long-term memory storage processes:

a. Meaningful learning
b. Organization
c. Elaboration
d. Visual imagery

6. Analyze the factors involved in activating the long-term storage faculties of the brain. Examine how working memory is involved in the process.

Written Assignment for Unit Three

Be sure to refer to this course syllabus (see attached) & use the writing assignment requirements below for instructions on format, length, and other information on how to complete this assignment.

Please answer FOUR of the following in 4 Pages (approximately 250 – 300 words per question):

1. Analyze what theorists mean when they say that long-term memory is associationistic. Examine two different theoretical models regarding how long-term memory might be organized.

2. Choose a concept with which you are familiar, and imagine that you have to teach that concept to a classroom of students. Examine the concept that you will teach, then explain five specific things you could do to help students learn the concept.

3. Analyze the role that construction plays in retrieval. Give a concrete example of how construction can help retrieval and how it can lead to an inaccurate recollection.

4. Assume it is 10 years from now. Someone asks you what the process of elaboration is. You think about this for a minute and then realize that you cannot remember the information. Give four possible explanations, each based on a different theory of forgetting, as to why you are unable to remember this concept from your learning theory course.

5. As a teacher, you want your classroom assessments to help students learn class subject matter more effectively. With the textbook’s discussion of classroom assessment practices in mind, examine three strategies you can use to help your assessments become valuable learning tools for your students.

6. Examine Piaget’s concepts of assimilation and accommodation, showing how they are different processes but also how they are related to each other. Give an example that illustrates each of the two processes.

Written Assignment for Unit Four

Be sure to refer to this course syllabus (see attached) & use the writing assignment requirements below for instructions on format, length, and other information on how to complete this assignment.

Please answer FOUR of the following in 4 Pages (approximately 250 – 300 words per question):

1. Examine the role that each of these four factors–working memory capacity, storage in long-term memory, retrieval from long-term memory, and metacognition–plays in prob- lem solving. Illustrate the role of each with a concrete example.

2. Imagine that you are teaching a course in human learning to future teachers. You want students to transfer what they learn in their class to their own teaching practice.
Analyze three strategies you might use to help students transfer what they learn in your class.

3. In recent years whole-class and small-group student discussions have become increas- ingly popular as methods of helping students master classroom subject matter. Analyze at least five different ways in which peer-interactive approaches can enhance students’ learning.

4. Examine a particular instructional objective that students might be able to achieve through one of the following approaches to instruction:
• Class discussion
• Reciprocal teaching
• Cooperative learning
• Peer tutoring
• A community of learners
In three or four paragraphs, explain in specific terms what the instructional unit would involve. Be sure that your discussion incorporates guidelines presented in the textbook regarding the instructional method in question.

5. Examine the basic idea underlying self-worth theory. In a second paragraph, analyze what self-handicapping is and the role it plays with regard to self-worth. To illustrate your discussion, examine two different kinds of self-handicapping that might occur.

6. Many principles of motivation can be summed up with the mnemonic “TARGET”: task, autonomy, recognition, grouping, evaluation, and time. In six paragraphs, describe six strategies–one each related to each of the six TARGET variables–you might use to moti- vate students in a classroom. Illustrate each strategy with a specific, concrete example of what you might do.

Written Assignment Requirements

• Begin each written assignment by identifying the question number you are answering followed by the actual question itself (in bold type).

• Use a standard essay format for responses to all questions (i.e. an introduction, middle paragraphs and conclusion).

• All responses must be typed double-spaced, using a standard font (i.e. Times New Roman) and 12 point type size for ease of reading and grading.

• All online responses must be submitted as a MS Word Document file only.

Written assignments are judged on the quality of the response in regard to the question. Word count is NOT one of the criteria that is used in assigning points to written assignments. However, students who are successful in earning the maximum number of points tend to submit written assignments that fall in the following ranges: 750 – 1000 words or 4 – 5 pages.

Plagiarism

All work must be free of any form of plagiarism. Put written answers into your own words. Do not simply cut and paste your answers from the Internet and do not copy your answers from the textbook.

Plagiarism consists of taking and using the ideas, writings or inventions of another, without giving credit to that person and presenting it as one’s own. This is an offense that the University takes very seriously

Citation Styles

The majority of your response should be your own original writing based on what you have learned from the textbook. However, if you choose to use outside material to answer a written assignment question, be sure to provide a reference (or citation) for the material. The following points are designed to help you understand how to provide proper references for your work:

• References are listed in two places.

• The first reference is briefly listed within your answer. This includes identifying information that directs the reader to your List of References at the end of your Written Assignment.

The second reference is at the end of your work in the List of References section.

All references cited should provide enough identifying information so that the reader can access the original material.

Suggested Readings

Brooks, Jacqueline Grennon, Martin G. Brooks. In Search of Understanding: The Case for Constructivist Classrooms. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1999.
Brown, Ann (editor), How People Learn : Brain, Mind, Experience, and School: Expanded Edition. National Academy Press, 2000.
Buehl, Doug. Classroom Strategies for Interactive Learning. International Reading Association, 2008.
Christensen, Clayton M., Curtis W. Johnson, Michael B. Horn, Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns. McGraw-Hill, 2008
Darling-Hammond, Linda Powerful Learning: What We Know About Teaching for Understanding. Wiley, 2008.
DuFour, Richard , Robert Baker, Robert E. Eaker, Professional Learning Communities at Work: Best Practices for Enhancing Student Achievement. Solution Tree, 1998.
DuFour, Richard. Learning by Doing : A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work. Solution Tree, 2006.
Furth, Hans. Thinking Goes to School: Piaget’s Theory in Practice. Oxford U. Press, 1975. Jensen, Eric P. Brain-Based Learning: The New Paradigm of Teaching. Sage Publications,
2008.
Jensen, Eric, Teaching with the Brain in Mind. Associaton for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2005.
Johnson, David. Cooperative Learning in the Classroom. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1995.
Klingberg, Torkel. The Overflowing Brain: Information Overload and the Limits of Working Memory. Oxford University Press, 2008.
Levine, Mel, A Mind at a Time. Simon and Schuster, 2003
Marzano, Robert. Dimensions of Learning. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1997.
Pass, Susan. Parallel Paths to Constructivism : Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. Information Age Publishing, 2004.
Schacter, Daniel L. The Seven Sins of Memory : How the Mind Forgets and Remembers.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2002.
Smith, Frank. The Book of Learning and Forgetting. Teachers College Press, 1998. Sprenger, Marilee. How to Teach so Students Remember. Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development, 2005.
Strange, Christopher M. Brain In Your Pocket. Metro Books, 2008.
Sullo, Bob. Activating the Desire to Learn. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2007.
Willis, Judy M.D., Research-Based Strategies to Ignite Student Learning: Insights from a Neurologist and Classroom Teacher. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2006.
Wolf, Patricia. Brain Matters: Translating Research into Classroom Practice. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2001.

Suggested Online Resources

Brain-based learning www.funderstanding.com/content/brain-based-learning www.brains.org/ www.emtech.net/brain_based_learning.html http://brainconnection.postitscience.com www.designshare.com/Research/BrainBasedLearn98.htm

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives
www.skagitwatershed.org/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html

Classroom Motivation http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Six_C%27s_of_motivation www.priceless-teaching-strategies.com/student_motivation.html

Cognitive Development (Piaget and others) www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cogsys/piaget.html www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/development/piaget.shtml www.nfxf.org/html/cognitive.htm

Constructivism
www.funderstanding.com/content/constructivism http://carbon.cudenver.edu/~mryder/itc_data/constructivism.html

Cooperative Learning
www.co-operation.org http://edtech.kennesaw.edu/intech/cooperativelearning.htm www.teach-nology.com/currenttrends/cooperative_learning/

Learning Theories
www.learning-theories.com/ www.funderstanding.com/content/theories www.emtech.net/learning_theories.htm http://tip.psychology.org/theories.html
http://my-ecoach.com/idtimeline/learningtheory.html http://teachnet.edb.utexas.edu/~lynda_abbott/Social.html www.learning-theories.com/social-learning-theory-bandura.html

Memory
www.mindtools.com/memory.html www.skagitwatershed.org/~donclark/hrd/learning/memory.html www.cc.gatech.edu/classes/cs6751_97_winter/Topics/human-cap/memory.html www.brainrules.net/the-rules

Mind-Mapping
www.imindmap.com/
Paper Comments Written Assignment Requirements

• Begin each written assignment by identifying the question number you are answering followed by the actual question itself (in bold type).

• Use a standard essay format for responses to all questions (i.e. an introduction, middle paragraphs and conclusion).

• All responses must be typed double-spaced, using a standard font (i.e. Times New Roman) and 12 point type size for ease of reading and grading.

• All online responses must be submitted as a MS Word Document file only.

Written assignments are judged on the quality of the response in regard to the question. Word count is NOT one of the criteria that is used in assigning points to written assignments. However, students who are successful in earning the maximum number of points tend to submit written assignments that fall in the following ranges: 750 – 1000 words or 4 – 5 pages.

Plagiarism

All work must be free of any form of plagiarism. Put written answers into your own words. Do not simply cut and paste your answers from the Internet and do not copy your answers from the textbook.

Plagiarism consists of taking and using the ideas, writings or inventions of another, without giving credit to that person and presenting it as one’s own. This is an offense that the University takes very seriously

Citation Styles

The majority of your response should be your own original writing based on what you have learned from the textbook. However, if you choose to use outside material to answer a written assignment question, be sure to provide a reference (or citation) for the material. The following points are designed to help you understand how to provide proper references for your work:

• References are listed in two places.

• The first reference is briefly listed within your answer. This includes identifying information that directs the reader to your List of References at the end of your Written Assignment.

The second reference is at the end of your work in the List of References section.

All references cited should provide enough identifying information so that the reader can access the original material.