Scaffolding: An instructional process in which the teacher adjusts the amount and type of support offered to the student to suit their abilities, withdrawing support as they become more skilled.
Example: When Jorge is first learning English, his teacher works directly with him until he is able to work with the other students. Then the teacher slowly decreases her level of assistance.
Resources:
http://edglossary.org/scaffolding/
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/scaffolding-lessons-six-strategies-rebecca-alber
Schema: A mental representation of something that is comprised of pieces of information that have been learned separately. Sometimes described as a cognitive framework used to organize knowledge.
Example: Jeff’s schema of a giraffe includes a long neck, a tail, four legs, and an herbivore.
Resources:
http://psychology.about.com/od/sindex/g/def_schema.htm
http://www.uri.edu/research/lrc/scholl/webnotes/Dispositions_Cognitive-Schema.htm
Self-efficacy: the measurement of an individual’s own emotional, mental, and physical capacities. The extent to which someone believes they can accomplish an activity with satisfactory results.
Example: I am asked to make cookies for dessert for my girlfriend. I accept this task confidently because I know I am capable of baking excellent cookies. My self-efficacy in the baking art of cookies is strong.
Resources:
http://www.apa.org/pi/aids/resources/education/self-efficacy.aspx
http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/self_efficacy.htm
Self-regulated learning: A method of acquiring information and knowledge that requires an individual perform multiple inquiries without the need for direct supervision. This requires a degree of autonomy and self-motivation.
Example: As a self-regulated learner in P540 with Dr. Bonk, I actively seek out challenging material outside of the course readings that require critical thinking in order to tie the information with the course. I am constantly gathering, synthesizing, and constructing knowledge from multiple sources simultaneously while in class and outside of class. If I need help, I am not afraid to ask Dr. Bonk or any of my classmates.
Resources:
https://teal.ed.gov/tealguide/selfregulated
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTa1vOH6JjA
Selective attention theory: describes a cognitive ability that allows an individual to sift out all unnecessary incoming information and only focus on information that is important. Selective attention can be a conscious effort, but also can be an unconscious behavior.
Example: I am working hard on my final project for Dr. Bonk's P540 course. My dog is trying to get my attention by scratching at the door. Consciously, I can hear my dog but I do not respond and instead continue to work on my final project.
Resources:
http://psychology.about.com/od/cognitivepsychology/fl/What-Is-Selective-Attention.htm
http://www.simplypsychology.org/attention-models.html
Selective Memory: relating to sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste, this stage precedes short-term memory. Before information can be stored in short-term memory, stimuli must first pass through and assessed in sensory memory. Once assessed—within second or two—an individual can determine whether the stimuli are worth processing further.
Example: On average, I am subjected to a huge array of stimuli every minute of the day and most of these I ignore and or deem not important enough to put into short-term memory. I might walk into a candle store and encounter hundreds of smells, but if I come across the sent of lemons I might recall that my mom likes lemons and candles and I might remember to buy the candle for her birthday.
Resources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/selective-memory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvo
Shaping: A method used in operant conditioning that involves calculated and systematic reinforcements that are implemented in order to produce a desired behavior. See: operant conditioning
Example: I want to teach my dog how to stand on two legs. I develop a plan to successively reinforce this behavior by rewarding him with treats each time he does this. This plan effectively shapes his behavior to conform to the desired target of standing on two legs.
Resources:
http://psychology.jrank.org/pages/581/Shaping.html
Situated Cognition Theory: this suggests that knowing is inseparable from doing and argues that all knowledge is situated in activity. Knowledge is thus inherently linked to social, cultural and physical properties.
Example: I might know how to operate a school bus without having actually driven one, but that knowledge comes from people who have indeed driven school buses. Additionally, the most accurate way for me to learn how to drive a bus is to actually perform the activity.
Resources:
http://elearningindustry.com/situated-cognition-theory-and-cognitive-apprenticeship-model
http://www.angelachristopher.net/situated-cognition.html
Social learning theory: sometimes viewed as a link between behaviorist and cognitivist learning theories, Albert Bandura proposed that learning occurs in community driven environments where learners learn from each other by imitating, modeling, an observing.
Example: When Dr. Bonk puts his students into groups to perform activities, they learn from each other through socialization.
Resources:
http://www.learning-theories.com/social-learning-theory-bandura.html
https://explorable.com/social-learning-theory
State-dependent learning: also known as state-dependent memory, this describes how recalling information is sometimes dependent on the state in which it was learned.
Example: Jeremiah always studies while drinking copious amounts of caffeinated beverages. When he takes his tests, he has to also consume a lot of caffeine in order to perform well.
Resources:
http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/state-dependent+learning
http://www.intropsych.com/ch06_memory/state-dependent_memory.html
Stroop effect: Named after John Stroop who first observed this phenomenon in 1935, the Stroop effect occurs when a reader has difficulty verbally saying a word of a color if the word’s color does not match its semantic meaning. The Stroop effect can be used to measure a person’s cognitive processing speed ability and selective attention capacity.
Example: I can test and try to improve the speed of my processing speed ability by making flashcards with the names of colors on them but using colored markers that do not match the semantic meaning of the words. By timing myself to see how long it takes to go through the set of cards I can try to beat that time in subsequent attempts.
Resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAKAlP1B5WY
https://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/words.html
Superordinate learning: One of four of Ausubel’s processes of learning in his meaningful learning model, this describes the acquisition of higher forms of knowledge after learning lower ones first.
Example: Joy knows about the Yaris, the Fiesta, and the Mini Cooper. She learns that all three are considered “subcompact” cars. This new knowledge is considered superordinate learning because it resides on a higher level of understanding of what she already knew.
Resources:
http://www.mhxml.com/SC/Learning.htm
http://cmap.upb.edu.co/rid=1158847653531_1362525697_19853/Ausubel's%20theory.cmap
Synaptic pruning: the normal elimination of weak cognitive functions during early childhood so that stronger ones can be created and expanded.
Example:
Resources:
http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Pruning%20Process
