ETEC 512

Applications of Learning Theories to the Analysis of Instructional Settings

How do people learn?

Instructor: Dr. Sunah Cho

Semester: Summer 2023

Course website: https://met.ubc.ca/courses/etec-512/

KEY LEARNINGS

DEVELOP A PERSONAL LEARNING THEORY (PLT)

As humans, we are constantly theorizing about how the world works, including basic human qualities. These theories are typically implicit and intuitive, and have a large influence over our behaviours and expectations. Often these theories are quite entrenched and do not change even when we are exposed to evidence that contradicts our theories. However, as educators especially, it is important to identify and revisit our assumptions and biases on a regular basis.

One way to identify such biases is to make our implicit theories explicit. Thus, the goal for this task is to begin put into words your beliefs about how people learn and why. Starting with an explicit understanding of your own perspective will ensure you interact with the course material in a more deep and meaningful way. A major outcome of this course is for you to be able to articulate a clear, personally-relevant, theoretically-sound perspective of learning.

  • Make explicit your current thoughts and feelings.
  • There is no right or wrong answer for this task as there is no “best” or “right” theory of learning.
  • There are many perspectives on learning, each warranting its own merits, depending on the learning situation.
  • Reflect on what your thoughts on learning are at this particular moment.
  • Having a starting point will help you synthesize and integrate the various theories you will learn about during the course.
  • Try not to compare yourself with others. You are all coming to this course with equally valid, but very different, backgrounds and experiences.
  • Revisit your PLT as the course progresses to update, synthesize, and reflect on your previous thinking.

In week 13 we will revisit your initial thoughts on learning, and to document how they have changed along the way.

There is no best or right theory that can account for all aspects of human learning.

Therefore the goal for ETEC 512 was to expose a variety of learning theories, each which has the potential to be useful for understanding learning and teaching in a variety of settings. ETEC 512 discussed traditional learning theories and their relevance to online learning. In addition, this course provided an introduction to emergent and evolving perspectives and approaches to online learning (e.g., Gamification, Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and MOOCs).

Online Learning Conference

This was our group project for the ETEC 512 Online Learning Conference that took place over weeks 11 and 12 of the course. Our topic was “Diversity in Learning” which was broad and challenging to narrow dow the scope of the presentation. The end result was a website designed in Canva that told the story of 3 different students on their learning journey.

View our project here: https://etec512.my.canva.site/ or ETEC 512 - Final Project - Online Learning Conference.

FINAL REFLECTION QUESTIONS

Based on your concept map, how do you think people learn?

What theory (or theories) is the primary influence on your pedagogy or learning?

What has been the biggest change to your thinking about learning over the past 12 weeks?

Thinking about an educational technology, and specifically, online learning, do you think it is fundamentally different than how we learn in a face-to-face environment?

How will your approach to education and teaching change as a result of taking this course?