Blog Post 1 – My Current Instructional Style Through a Learning Theory Lens
My current instructional style is best described as constructivist, but I also include cognitivist, behaviourist and connecitivist theories when needed. I see that one theory has a bigger influence on the way I instruct, but understand how these four theories work together and support each other to help people learn and comprehend different tasks and contexts.
In settings where I am coaching or teaching youth, I tend to prioritize learning through experience and social interaction. I create opportunities for learners to try new things and work with their peers to complete tasks. For example, when I am coaching swimming, I allow the swimmers to try different techniques and drills in order to achieve a proper stroke. When running children’s programs at the library, the children are encouraged to work with each other to complete cognitively challenging tasks, such as puzzles. This aligns with a constructivist view of learning, where knowledge is constructed through experience, connections and interaction with others, and where the learning is not fixed. These learners are more motivated when encouraged to focus less on mistakes and understanding that there is not a single “correct” answer.
Explanations, examples and feedback are also important and helpful to certain learners, which is where I include cognitivist learning techniques. For example, I start with the basics and then add more difficult steps when teaching a new swimming stroke, giving swimmers feedback as they progress. During children’s programs, I integrate creative tasks with real-world problems to support children in making deeper cognitive connections. As well, I encourage metacognitive strategies, such as thinking about why something worked or didn’t work, after completing a challenge.
Clear expectations and reinforcement when doing a task is important when learning certain things, and this is when I would adopt some of the behaviourist theory into my instruction. For example, in swimming, expectations, repetition and positive reinforcement can help learners develop skills and confidence in the water.
Finally, I integrate elements of connectivism in my instruction, mainly in how I view learning through sharing with peers or connecting activities to the real world. I see the importance of learning as an evolving process.
Overall, I think my instructional mindset reflects the idea that there is no single best theory. Positive, motivational learning depends on using different theories and techniques, and being flexible when it comes to my approach.
References:
Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (2018). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. In Foundations of learning and instructional design technology (1st ed., pp. 133–151). EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/lidtfoundations/behaviorism_cognitivism_constructivism
Weller, M. (2020). 25 years of ed tech. Athabasca University Press. https://aupress.ca
Hey Avery! Great work on this post. I like that through your instructional style, you try to incorporate many different styles, even though you lean more towards constructivism. I like the idea of using all the theories because, as you said, there isn’t one right way for every learner. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to seeing your other posts in the future.
This is so cool! I really like the way you are able to incorperate each of the approaches in your teaching. Your examples really helped me understand each of the concepts more as they gave a real life example to a concept. This is also a very important concept that teachers and instructors should be able to switch their instructing approcahes based on what kind of activites and learns you have. It can be very hard to learn in one particular approach when you thrive using another approach or a mix of them. Overall, great job!