Cognition
The student who drew this picture is learning about natural disasters. He has depicted a tsunami. There is a man on top of the gigantic wave. He is surfing and seems to be enjoying himself in the process.
Students come to a formal learning environment with their own beliefs and understandings based on their personal experiences. Children are constantly trying to make sense of the world. They learn from what they see and hear around them; they also learn by mimicking people. The perceptive educator is aware of this when conducting a pre-assessment activity. What conceptions or misconceptions does this child have?
The above picture clearly reveals that the child is aware that the tsunami is a giant wave. However, the picture also reveals that he associates this with surfing. He may have come across a video or pictures of people enjoying themselves in the ocean. While learning about the tsunami, he made an association that was incorrect.
"Learning is a search for meaning that is contextual."(De Beers, 2006). In other words, students always try to connect what they learn, with the world around them. Based on this fact, it makes perfect sense to contextualize learning. By understanding where their students come from, and what they know, teachers can create meaningful lessons which can help the students stay engaged and construct new meaning.
Using realia and advance organizers are great ways to do this.
Transfer of Learning
Once students have grasped a concept, they need to be provided with ample opportunities to transfer this learning. Real-life applications of concepts help students retain knowledge. If a teacher merely tests a student on their understanding, the student may simply regurgitate this knowledge and forget about it once the 'threat' of the test has receded.
Memory can be sensory, short-term or long-term. If I visit a classroom in another school, I will observe children learning. This information will be registered in my brain. As I walk out of the room, I will have little knowledge of who the students are and how they look like.
If I happen to meet one of these students several times in the following weeks, the memory of this student will be stored as short-term, as I may forget this child a few months later. However, if the child is transferred to my school and I get to see him repeatedly over a few years, he will become part of my long term memory. The reason he will become part of my long-term memory is due to the fact that I will be able to associate many things with him. The school environment will allow plenty of contextual scaffolding which will enable me to remember this child.
Students thus need plenty of opportunities to use their learning in a real-life context in order to retain information.
If I happen to meet one of these students several times in the following weeks, the memory of this student will be stored as short-term, as I may forget this child a few months later. However, if the child is transferred to my school and I get to see him repeatedly over a few years, he will become part of my long term memory. The reason he will become part of my long-term memory is due to the fact that I will be able to associate many things with him. The school environment will allow plenty of contextual scaffolding which will enable me to remember this child.
Students thus need plenty of opportunities to use their learning in a real-life context in order to retain information.