The deal between anchored instruction, WISE, LfU, and T-GEM

A goal of anchoring instruction is to foster students engagement in learning activities in which they are actively involved in the construction of their own knowledge through exploration. In the reading I have done on anchored instruction I noticed that its major goal is to support students in building relationships and connections with prior knowledge while constructing new knowledge. The students develop the ability and skills to identify, define, and solve their own problems. In regards to WISE, it is an online science inquiry learning environment that supports deep understanding with features such as (1) observation – where the students make observation of authentic artifacts anchored in authentic situations, (2) interpretation and construction – where the students construct interpretations of observations and construct arguments for the validity of their interpretations, (3) contextualisation – the students access background and contextual materials of various sorts to aid interpretation and argumentation, (4) cognitive apprenticeship – the students serve as apprentices to master observation, interpretation and contextualisation, (5) collaboration – the students collaborate in observation, interpretation and conceptualisation, (6) multiple interpretations – the students gain cognitive flexibility by being exposed to multiple interpretations, (7) multiple manifestations – the students gain transferability by seeing multiple manifestations of the same interpretations.

In regards to LfU, the goal of this model of instructional design is to embed instruction in activities that facilitate knowledge construction. The model is based on the principle that the structure of knowledge continuously changes while experiencing and exploring of new concepts. T-GEM has a straightforward framework where the students engage into a cyclical reflection process that is generate, evaluate, and modify knowledge. Over this process, they naturally acquire new knowledge that anchored their prior knowledge.

I have noticed that the principle into practice is different for each of these technology enhanced learning tools. However, the theory of learning elaborated in their framework revolves around constructivism. All these four tech enhanced learning tools help the student in constructing their own understanding and knowledge of the world, through experiencing things and reflecting on those experiences. They allow the students to reconcile everything new that they encounter with their previous ideas and experience, maybe changing what they believe, or maybe discarding the new information as irrelevant. In Mathematics, these instructional tools are useful in creating authentic tasks that engage students into active learning. I find anchored instruction, WISE, LfU, and T-GEM very helpful to design instruction in math in a way that address students’ preexisting conceptions and help them to build on them. There are also very helpful in creating activities that constantly assess students understanding in math and develop increasingly strong abilities to integrate new information.

References:

Petra, S. F., Jaidin, J. H., Perera, J. Q., & Linn, M. (2016). Supporting students to become autonomous learners: the role of web-based learning. The International Journal of Information and Learning Technology, 33(4), 263-275.

Edelson, D. C. (2001). Learning‐for‐use: A framework for the design of technology‐supported inquiry activities. Journal of Research in Science teaching, 38(3), 355-385.

Serafino, K., & Cicchelli, T. (2003). Cognitive theories, prior knowledge, and anchored instruction on mathematical problem solving and transfer. Education and Urban Society, 36(1), 79-93.