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Education
& Learning |
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A wise
system of education will at least teach us how little man yet knows,
how much he has still to learn. J Lubbock,
The pleasure of life.
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Why do we learn? |
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We learn to shape our
various intelligences. A general definition of intelligence is the ability
to create useful products and solve daily problems.
In history the only necessary
learning was done on the job to provide a living. Craftsmen passed their
skills, knowledge and wisdom on to their offspring and pupils. Today we
need to learn to function in a high complex post-industrial western
society with the emphasis on information. Education is institutionalized
and offered in schools. Schools are generally differentiated between
three phases (this might differ from country to country)
- Primary school (basic language
skills as reading and writing, mathematics and emotional intelligence),
- Secondary school (advanced
language and math-skills or algebra, second language, and sciences
like chemistry, biology, history, geography, economics, some schools
also include social science, sports or gymnastics, music, drama and
skill-based classed like first aid, typing, and driving. These last
are mostly facultative.
- Trade-school or Higher education choosing a
profession or a specific science.
We assume that between the second and
third phase one makes a good choice and that there is a job or profession that
fits the education at the end of these three phases. Nowadays we know we
have to "update" our knowledge frequently throughout our lives
because of changed technology. This continuous learning effort is called
life-long-learning. In politics this needed learning might be reduced to
an employability-policy which gives the concept a somewhat negative
connotation.
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Intelligence |
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We have several intelligences
to learn and develop (according to Howard Gardner / Collin Rose); these
intelligences are:
| Linguistic (reading /
writing) |
| Mathematical / Logical (numbers,
charts, reasoning) |
| Visual / Spatial (visualizing,
direction / navigation) |
| Musical (rhythm / melody) |
| Bodily / Physical (arts /
crafts / sports) |
| Interpersonal / Social (read
emotions / parenting / teaching) |
| Intrapersonal / Quiet control
(self-knowledge) |
In 1996 Gardner added an
eighth intelligence – Naturalistic – or nature smart. This
intelligence deals with sensing patterns in and making connections to
elements in nature – observing, collecting, categorizing and analyzing.
Charles
Handy (1998) also
identifies at least nine forms of intelligence which align with and
enhance Gardner’s multiple intelligences (Factual, Analytical,
Linguistic,
Spatial,
Musical,
Practical,
Physical,
Intuitive,
and
Interpersonal)
When
a range of intelligences are involved the learning ability is greatly
enhanced. Each type of intelligence represents a different way to explore
the subject and provides a different ability to call on when faced with a
problem-solving task.
[Source:
Brian Tracy Tapes & News article: The
Future belongs to the competent]
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Learning Systems |
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The learning-systems we
use are based on old traditions and the way society of interaction. The
conventional system could generally be described as supply-based linear
learning with a clear beginning and end.
New systems should be more flexible
and more modular demand-based because of the high differences in
experience, backgrounds and different preparatory training which must fit
in non-linear learning scenarios which is common today.
In my vision education on all
levels should be available to everyone, everywhere, and at any time. My
ideal would be a worldwide open-source e-educational system, instantly
bilateral translation of all structured meta and content-information
(including multimedia) needed for comprehension of a subject. Open
source-education as a concept has many similarities to open
source-software. The development of Linux, the most known (and popular)
open-source alternative operating system, is therefore interesting in more
ways than the related software-products alone.
Open-source software is the process of systematically harnessing open
development and decentralized peer review to lower costs and improve
software quality. The idea is simple: When programmers can read, redistribute, and modify
the source code for a piece of software, the software evolves. People
improve it, people adapt it, people fix bugs. And this can happen at a
speed that, if one is used to the slow pace of conventional software
development, seems astonishing.
[Open
Source Initiative] Because
the source-codes or program-instructions are available with the
distribution, everyone can change and add functionality to the distributed
program, or write its own programs with parts of available distributed
content. Because of our current use of information and communication
technology this concept of sharing, adapting and improving content (and I
also refer to education) may well be the constructive principle of our new
information society. The
challenge is to create new ways of combining formal and informal learning
processes and worldwide collective agreement on the funding and public use
of educational information. Initiatives like open source for the
ICT-infrastructure and Transcopyright
for the information content could bring mondial educational information
exchange within closer reach. |
What is learning? |
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Learning as a
psychological concept can be defined in more than one way. The most
popular definitions are:
| Learning: To gain knowledge,
comprehension, or mastery through experience or study. |
| Learning is a relatively
permanent change in behavior or in behavioral potentiality that
results from experience and cannot be attributed to temporary body
states such as those induced by illness, fatigue or drugs. (Kimble) |
A science requires an observable,
measurable subject matter, and within the science of psychology, that
subject matter is behavior. The qualification "relatively
permanent" in the definition of learning means sensitization
and habituation are examples of behavior modifications that results
from experience in a relatively short period of time. Sensitization is the
process whereby an organism is made more responsive to certain aspects of
its environment. Habituation is the process whereby an organism becomes
less responsive to its environment.
What is learned may not be utilized
immediately. This is a very important distinction between learning and
performance. Learning refers to a change in behavior potentiality; and
performance refers to the translation of this potentiality into behavior.
Not all behavior is learned. Much simple behavior is reflexive. A reflex
can be defined as an unlearned response in reaction to a specific class of
stimuli. Complex behavior can also be unlearned. When complex behavior
patterns seem to be genetically determined, they are generally referred to
as instinctive. Instinctive behavior includes such activities as nest
building, migration, hibernation and mating behavior. This is also
classified as species-specific-behavior. Research supports the contention
that species-specific-behavior is both learned and unlearned. A newly
hatched duckling would form an attachment to any kind of moving object and
follow it as its mother, provided the object was presented at just the
right moment in the duckling's life. (Lorenz)
The formation of an attachment between an organism and an environmental
object is called imprinting. Imprinting was found to occur only during a
critical period, after which it was difficult, if not impossible to
imprint the duckling to anything. Imprinting is a combination of learned
and instinctive behavior.
Learning is a general term used to
describe changes in behavior potentiality resulting from experience.
Conditioning (classical or instrumental) is more specifically used as a
term to describe actual procedures
that can modify behavior.
[Source: B.R.
Hergenhahn, An introduction to theories of learning. ISBN 0-13-498874-4]
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Intentional learning |
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While searching on the
subject of Intentional learning I found some interesting links I would
like to share:
| Intentional
Learning Projects; Learning Orientations describe the primary
sources for individual learning differences and the powerful, guiding
effects of higher-order psychological factors on learning outcomes and
performance... The construct presents a comprehensive, human view that
examines the dynamic flow between (1) deep-seated psychological
factors (conative, affective, social, and cognitive), (2) learning
orientations, (3) subsequent choices for learning preferences, styles,
strategies, and skills, and (4) learning treatments and outcomes. |
| An example of Intentional
Learning: A Process for Learning to Learn in the Accounting Curriculum
(from the American
Accounting Association) Our description of intentional learning is
an attempt to simplify and operationalize what psychologists call
"metacognition" and accounting educators seem to mean by
"learning to learn." We do not claim that intentional
learning includes all that accounting professionals need to know or be
able to do. We do maintain, however, that introducing the attributes
of intentional learning can be an effective way to help accounting
students learn to learn and begin to become independent learners. |
| The
Four Temperament Learning Styles |
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Other personal related
subjects |
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ICT and new media in
higher education is the subject I did my graduation essay about. Some of
the Internet-resources I used are linked here. (in Dutch)
ICT in Hoger Onderwijs |
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