Foundational to the information processing approach to learning is the "human as computer" metaphor. That is, the human mind is like a computer or information processor. Information is gathered from the external world through the senses (input), it is stored, processed, and combined with previously stored information in the mind, and then there is a resulting behavioral response (output). Describe an example from your experiences as an Educator where this learning theory applies. What insights does this approach offer? What are some limits of this approach?
Having never studied education before becoming a teacher, I am very pleased to read that many of the concepts that we use (seemingly intuitive to the teaching profession) have been studied & labeled. It's like hearing a song or reading a passage in a novel & saying, "Yep - I know exactly how that feels," or "I knew I wasn't the only one who thought that was a good idea."
Perhaps it was my prior experience in the military that prompted me to use selective attention concepts to muster the rapt attention of students, recently in Saudi Arabia. I'd always group my classes of 20-30 students into 4-5 student teams at the beginning of a semester. I'd have each team select a name (soccer favorites, Marvel characters or, unfailingly, something plus “Ninja”) & create a motto for them to shout out when their team was victorious with a gamified & competitive class exercise. They would often add hand-clapping & song-like intonation to their respective team mottos. Motivated rehearsal is remarkable for creating a conducive learning environment. If I needed to get a certain group's attention (or perhaps the whole class), I could simply begin one of their team chants. Four men barking out the rest of the motto would usually bring the class to order, ironically creating a behaviorist-like response in the classroom & preparing them for the next order - bringing them to attention (they were soldiers, after all).
Teacher’s expectations & the projection of them onto students has always been sort of a secret weapon of mine. I am incredibly enthusiastic &, perhaps, overly-optimistic - starry-eyed, rose-colored glasses, even. As an instructor in Saudi, I heard many complaints by fellow teachers that these were the very worst students they had ever encountered. Perhaps these young men were very relaxed & less engaged (lazy & unmotivated in the words of my poopy-pants colleagues). I felt that motivation was my job, as the high-paid foreign consultant - get these Saudi boys fired-up. After some experimenting & tweaking & massaging this particular technique, I would remind each class I was assigned - at that point in time - that THEY were the best group I ever had - even if I was assigned three different classes that semester. You’d think it would get old for them to hear it so often. Flattery never gets old to young Arab men. Yet, eventually, they each became it.
We also used self-questioning in order to give greater meaning to concepts & better encode the information realized from the questions. We did this using the “OK Google” feature of the Google’s search app. Yes, they would be asking the question to “Google” but I believe that when Google is asked aloud, we are also asking ourselves. The female voice of the response from Google, or Apple’s Siri, was particular helpful & enabled encoding of information for these grown boys in the Saudi desert. It is my belief, that because they rarely hear the female voice, anything heard in a that lovely tone would become particularly more relevant to their mind.
The combination of selective attention, team “roars,” fun-focused exercises, student-centered lessons & high expectations gave me very motivated students. I consistently had higher-scoring classes because, I believe, I primed their mental computers for smooth functioning by continually rebooting their operating systems.
As a fascinating aside, I was considering my extreme desire to teach like my hair is on fire. This required, sometimes, near superhuman efforts with young Saudi males who had very little motivation for learning English (which they most likely never use) & higher education at all. Because of my desire to capture their attention & see sincere engagement, I found my lesson directed, from the lesson plan lead-in, toward entertaining these young men & to sneak in education where I could.
Now, there are certainly limits to my approach. I am always keen to admit that what I did in Saudi Arabia & China would not necessarily work here in the States - or be allowed. I was given so much liberty in the classroom - as a US “expert” consultant (hey, that’s what my visa said!) - that I could experiment with different tactics. What’s more, I had each group of Saudi men for only three-four months. I’m not sure if the maintenance of motivation would be possible within in a longer term & less flexible state-mandated framework.
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