Teaching Strategies: Learning Theory

SOCIAL COGNITIVE

Introduction

v So far, we have examined learning theories that focused either on the environment (Behaviorism) or cognition (Information Processing and Constructivism). Social cognitive theory attempts to incorporate both the environment and cognition to explain how people learn . The most important thing to realize about the theory is that when one aspect of the triangle above changes, it affects the other parts (notice the arrows go both ways).

v So, if you change a student’s belief that she really can learn the academic content (personal factors – self-efficacy), she studies longer (behavior), and people around her tell her what a good student she is (environment), which in turn reinforces the original starting point (that she can learn the material) and the cycle continues upward. The same can happen in a negative way - the student doesn’t believe she can learn the material, so doesn’t study, and then everyone around her tells her that she is not a good student, and then the cycle continues downward until the student gives up trying to learn.

v In this assignment, you will apply social cognitive theory principals to teaching strategies in an effort to help your case study learn and evaluate the social cognitive theory in the context of your own personal learning theory.

v Student example of this assignment is located in step 6.

Instructions

Click here to watch a video on how to do this assignment

Step 1: Describe a teaching strategy in your standards-based lesson plan that you think supports your case study’s learning via social cognitive theory.

· If you find that the teaching strategy in your lesson plan is missing, not specific enough, or is lacking in details, then this is a great opportunity to create, expand, or adapt your lesson instructions and make it better!

· For example, in our student lesson plan example from the previous assignment, step number 3 in the writing assignment, the author believes that this supports students’ learning via social cognitive theory: (Note – the author needed to expand his/her instruction by including an example for modeling)

· The teacher models how this works by providing examples of how different opinions can become stronger or weaker just based on what reasons are provided to support those opinions. (10 minutes)

o Here is one possible example for the modeling:

1. A person believes that they have been doing well in school and present the following evidence to his/her parents to support his/her opinion.

1. Report card shows all A

2. Each teacher writes a testimonial stating that the student is the best they have ever had in class.

3. The student receives student of the year for the Nation.

2. Compare the same situation with another set of evidence to support his/her opinion.

1. Friends all note that student does too much homework

2. No notes from teachers stating poor performance

3. Student is convinced that he/she has turned in all his/her homework.

3. While the student could actually be doing well in school, only the first set of evidence is convincing enough to support the opinion because it is based in fact. The other one is based on other unsound testimonials or lack of facts, which renders the opinion of the student to just an opinion.

§ Teacher then tells the student that their “Best of…” opinion needs good reasons supported by facts!

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Step 2: Defend why your teaching strategy will work to support your students’ learning via social cognitive theory.

· To get you started in defending your teaching strategy, consider the following questions as a guide for your thinking, but you don’t have to address all of them. Please feel free to come up with your own approaches to help defend your teaching strategy.

o How does your teaching strategy in your lesson…

§ involve learning through the environment (social learning theory)?

§ develop students’ self-efficacy ?

§ develop students’ outcome expectations?

§ develop students’ self-regulated learning (self-directed learning)?

§ Develop students’ metacognition?

· Review the resources below to provide you with the research behind the defense of your teaching strategy. You are welcome to use your own resources via other text, internet, etc., as long as you provide valid citations of where you got your answer.

Read Woolfolk Text

12^th Edition

· Read Text: p. 396-423 – Social Cognitive Views of Learning and Motivation (same topics as those listed in 11^th edition below)

11^th Edition

· Social Cognitive Theory

o Read Text: p. 348 – 353 – Social Cognitive Theory

o Social Learning Theory

o Read Text: p. 220 –222 - Social Learning Theory

o Self-Regulated Learning

o Read Text: p. 357-366 – Self-Regulated Learning

o Self-Management

o Read Text: p. 222- 223 – Self-Management

o Complex Cognitive Processes (Ch#8 -270-278)

o Metacognition

o Learning Strategies

· Teaching Strategies:

o Read Text: p. 352 – 357- Applying Social Cognitive Theory

o Read Text: p. 483 – 485 – Teacher Expectations

o Read Text: p. 485 – Guidelines: Avoiding the Negative Effects of Teacher Expectations

o Read Text: p. 366 – 370 - Teaching Towards Self-Efficacy and Self-Regulated Learning

o Read Text: p. 224 – Guidelines: Student Self-Management

· For example, in our student lesson plan example, here is how the author defends that the writing activity supports students’ learning via social cognitive theory:

o According to the Woolfolk text, social cognitive theory helps students learn through vicarious learning, or modeling. This modeling is known as social learning theory and was an early version of social cognitive theory, which later added in the cognitive portion to its theory. This teaching strategy of modeling supports students’ learning because according to social learning theory, learning can occur by just observing the behavior of others and the outcomes of those behaviors. This is drastically different from classical and operant conditioning which claimed that all learning needs to have immediate consequences for behavior to be reinforced and permanently changed. Social learning theory claims that modeling can reinforce the behavior, without any actual behavior from the observing person as long as the model and the outcomes from the model’s behavior are valued. The observer remembers the modeling and will change his/her behavior when the same situation occurs down the road. According to the Brain Fact’s website, this ability to remember what a model does is supported by the discovery of “mirror neurons” in the brain. These mirror neurons become active whenever modeling occurs and “mirror” that modeling in our own brains. This neurons help us remember what we observed and help us act out that behavior later on.

o By having the teacher demonstrate how to support an idea with facts versus only using opinion allows students in the class to observe how to do that behavior. If students view the teacher as being a relatable model and the students value the outcome of doing the behavior, then students’ will most likely learn the behavior to be used at a later time.

Brain Facts website: http://www.brainfacts.org/brain-basics/neuroanatomy/articles/2008/mirror-neurons/

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Step 3: Choose a social cognitive teaching strategy below that you think helps students learn best and explain why you think it is the best strategy. This strategy should be different from the social cognitive teaching strategy already identified and described previously in step 1 and 2.

· All of these social cognitive teaching strategies can be found in the Woolfolk text in Chapter 11 (12^th edition) and Chapter 10 (11^th edition)

o Modeling and observational learning

o Developing self-efficacy

o Developing self-regulated learning (learning strategies)

· For example, here is how the author in the student example might answer:

o A teaching strategy that I plan to use with my students to help them reach the benchmark is through developing students’ sense of self-efficacy. According to the Woolfolk text, self-efficacy develops whenever students believe that they can do an academic task. The best way to get students to believe that they can do something is to provide them with real success on previous classroom tasks before they do the task. So, if I want to get my students to believe that they can write an opinion paper with good factual supporting evidence, then I have to provide them with opportunities to show that they can do it. These opportunities have to be within the students’ ability and have to include specific feedback that will let the students know how they are doing.

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Step 4: Based on the teaching strategy chosen above, incorporate that strategy into your standards-based lesson plan instruction.

· For example, here is how the author in the student example might answer:

· Lesson #5: Students write their opinion paper with supporting facts and receive feedback from teacher, peers in homogeneous groups, and do a self-assessment on their paper using the assessment rubric developed for this assignment. Students then rewrite their paper.

o Teacher should provide specific feedback and solutions that addresses the paper and should not be directed towards the students’ ability.

1. For example teachers should try to state, “In paragraph 2, the supporting evidence represents an opinion and needs a fact to back it up. Consider reviewing the brainstorming activity notes and listing all the possible reasons that can be used to support the opinion. Then please go through the list separating fact from opinion. Use the teacher or a peer to help, if needed. Then once a fact is identified, research the fact, and include it in the second paragraph.

2. The teacher should avoid stating, “In paragraph 2, you backed up your thesis using only your opinion and that is wrong. You need to find some facts to back it up.

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Step 5: Choose a social cognitive theory teaching strategy above that you think doesn’t help students learn and explain why you think that this strategy is ineffective.

· For example, here is how the author in the student example might answer:

o I think that self-regulated learning strategies of making the students organize their materials are often not very effective. Although it is very important for students to be organized, it is very difficult to motivate students to do so. According to social cognitive theory, students change their behavior when they feel they can do the task, the outcomes for doing the task are valuable, and that the learning environment encourages doing the task. The problem lies in the fact that students see very little value for organizing their work for the effort put in. Even if the teacher gives a grade for their organization, students then will put in the effort just before the grade, and then go back to their old behavior. It is much like when parents want their child to clean up their room. The only way for students to be self-regulated in their organizational skills (by the way, this is GLO #1 for self-directed learning in the dept. of education in Hawai`i), the teacher would have to find something that makes it valuable enough for students to constantly try and organize their work. This is very difficult to find and that is why it is not a very effective teaching strategy. Good in theory, difficult in practice.

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Step 6: Present and communicate your answers electronically and place in your standards-based lesson plan at the end of Part II (after your lesson instructions).

· Although a majority of you will defend your teaching strategy by writing a paragraph, there may be a few of you that may want to use other alternative media, and I want to support that and give you options to be creative. You may also use a combination of media to make your point. For example, you may combine some writing, with images, podcast, YouTube Video, PowerPoint, etc., to defend your teaching strategy.

· Keep in mind that any presentation method is valid as long as it clearly communicates and supports your answer. My only criteria for the type of media used is that the media is electronic and can be placed or linked successfully from your lesson plan.

· After you have completed your answers, then place it at the end of your standards-based lesson plan at the end of Part 2: Guiding the Learning (after your lesson instructions). Place a heading above your answer – Teaching Strategies: Learning Theory - Social Cognitive Theory

· See student example #1 as a model (go to the end of the lesson in Part 2: Guiding the Learning to view).

· When finished, upload the entire lesson plan (with all four sections) to Laulima Assignments by the due date.