Week 7- What classroom structures support Making Thinking Visible for STEM learning?

Engage-

What are we trying to accomplish with STEM education and how can we apply the ideas from Daniel Pink's talk on motivation?

Contingent motivators- If you do this then you get that.

Extrinsic motivators vs intrinsic motivators

Business is built entirely around extrinsic motivators. I would argue that education is set-up similarly. The ultimate end goal is graduation. If you do this homework you get an A. If you do all of this work, then you graduate.

The speaker, Dan Pink, claimed that the reward-punishment system in business often doesn't work and is instead detrimental. Mr. Pink stated that extrinsic motivators don't work, but then he said that the incentivized group kicked the timed group's butt. He said that this is a contingent motivator. Reward narrows our focus and restricts our possibilities. He points out that problems don't have a single set of rules with a clear solution. I agree with that assessment. However, there is an exception to the rule. The higher the pay the better the performance for mechanical skills. Tasks that required even rudimentary cognitive skill demonstrated that a larger reward led to poorer performance.

People offered medium level rewards did no better than those offered small rewards but highest rewards did worst of all. Higher incentives lead to worse performance. He claims that there is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does. I have spoken to many educators who have said the same thing about education. We have the research, but we're not implementing it. Outdated, unexamined, and rooted more in folklore than in science. Reminds me of the Pedagogy of Poverty article we read in Project-Based Learning last week.

A new approach based on intrinsic motivation, to do things because they matter because they like it because it's interesting, or part of something important (citizen science) is needed.

This technique revolves around three elements:

1. Autonomy- the urge to direct our own lives

2. Mastery-the desire to get better and better at something that matters

3. Purpose- the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves

Those three methods of motivating intrinsically are the how and why of STEM education especially when we employ a project-based learning strategy. Research has shown that students feel more motivated and connected to solving real-world problems. As Dan Pink mentioned, people want to feel connected to bigger things and feel like they are making a contribution. Students are people. This is no different for them than for people outside of a classroom setting. A good project-based learning environment would provide all three elements. The students could develop the questions they feel are important. That would give autonomy. Just like in our elbow model lesson, learners could be provided chances to revise their thinking and go back to the drawing board. This provides opportunities for mastery. Finally, giving pupils real-world problems to solve and contribute to gives them purpose.

https://starecat.com/some-days-its-hard-to-find-motivation-some-days-motivation-finds-you/

How might we apply his elements of a new business operating system to STEM education?

Mr. Pink infers a need to get rid of management. Management is good for compliance. If you want engagement self-direction works better.

He offers radical notions of self-direction-

• Paying people adequately and fairly, getting the issue of money off the table, and then giving people lots of autonomy
  • Atlassian- a few times a year tells its engineers for the next 24 hours go and work on anything you want, as long as it's not part of your regular job ( I think that would spark creativity in their regular job)
  • They present the cool stuff they come up with to their teammates and other people in the company
• FedEx Days- because you have to do something overnight
• 20% time at Google. Engineers can spend 20% of their time working on anything they want. They have autonomy over their time, their task, their team, their technique. About half of their products are birthed during that 20% time.

ROWE- Results Only Work Environment

• People don't have schedules
  • They show up when they want they just need to get the work done
  • Meetings optional
• Productivity goes up
• Satisfaction goes up

20th-century motivators only work in narrow circumstances. It then destroys creativity. The science behind motivation says what works is possessing the drive to do things because they matter.

Taking this business model and applying it to STEM education seems initially like a scary prospect. No schedules? No management? Self- direction? CHAOS!?!?! Perhaps not. I know as a student I would welcome the Atlassian FedEx days, the 20% time Google affords, or the ROWE approach. There are many topics in the sciences that aren't covered or covered thorougly that I would enjoy digging deeper. There are so many choices! For example, the science of video games, black hole's impact on biological systems, do spiders sleep, and a myriad of other burning questions students may have that aren't discussed in class. Students are motivated learners when they are interested in a topic. I think that is the goal of STEM education- to create motivated learners who contribute to society.

http://memesbams.com/funny-motivational-memes/

Explore

As an application of what we know about learning, let's consider the Principles and Practices of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

How do these principles and practices relate to what you've learned from reading How People Learn?

The first point made in the video resonates with what I've learned. An average student does not exist and using curriculum geared towards teaching the average student never worked especially with marginalized students. Students who are gifted students are underserved by not being challenged. It touched on what constitutes learning and the differences in learning between individuals. UDL seeks to answer the questions "How does the learner pick up information?" "How do they express and act on the information?" and "How were they engaged by the learning situation?"

3 Broad Principles

1. How information is presented to the learner

- Provide Multiple means of representation- there's no 1 way to present information so to be successful for everyone to learn

2. Provide multiples means of action and expression- students vary greatly in how they express what they know, can skillfully,

communicate in language or drawing.

3. Provide multiple means of engagement- the most important. If they aren't engaged they aren't motivated and the other forms won't matter.

Four main components

1. Goals- how to translate standards into things that are important to do in the classroom

2. Materials available in the classroom- are they key to learning and are they universally designed for learning?

3. Methods- how does the teacher go about teaching when they are working at helping students learn. Are there collaborative

groups, lecture, real-world encounters.

4. Means of assessment- how are we sure that learning really occurs?

My major takeaway from this video was the following idea -Classrooms can be disabling in their design! Reduce the disabilities in the curriculum itself and increase learning for all. All of these ideas connected to what I've learned in Explorations Teaching Math and Science, Reading Content Literacy, Project-Based Learning, and Knowing and Learning. Every person is a unique learner and benefits from multiple approaches.

How do these principles and practices resonate with the perspectives on STEM learning (e.g., conceptual change, models & modeling, social cognitive, situated learning)? How are the guidelines for UDL related to being a STEM learner? How about to being a STEM teacher?

Principles of UDL

- Multiple means of representation

- Multiples means of action and expression especially in terms of assessments

- Multiple means of engagement

Perspectives on STEM learning

- Conceptual change-

"Teachers help their students build understanding of complex scientific concepts by disassembling the concept into

component parts according to the level of intellectual development of their students. This process, however, is only

half of what needs to be done to facilitate students' correct understanding. Students come to school with their own

explanations of natural phenomena. The teacher must ascertain students' prior knowledge and naïve or inaccurate

conceptual understanding must be addressed at the same time as new concepts are being taught in the science

classroom. For purposes of brevity and at the risk of oversimplification, we use the term "misconception" to mean a

student's belief that is incorrect from the perspective of the scientific community. The process of replacing a

misconception with a scientifically acceptable concept is called "conceptual change" (The University of Akron, 2018).

- Models and modeling-

All system modeling processes start with a rough, simple, unsophisticated, and perhaps, inaccurate problem

representation that is based on the modeler’s prior mental model about the knowledge domain. The problem

representation is further refined through the conceptualization of elements and properties, the interrelationships

among them, and then model testing and modification processes. The refinement of the problem

representation resulting from the cognitive processes involved in the system modeling process is reflected in the

individual’s mental model for later use (Blumschein, Hung, Jonassen, & Strobel, 2008)

- Social cognitive-

Bandura’s Social Learning Theory posits that people learn from one another, via observation, imitation, and modeling.

"The theory has often been called a bridge between behaviorist and cognitive learning theories because it

encompasses attention, memory, and motivation. People learn through observing others’ behavior, attitudes, and

outcomes of those behaviors. “Most human behavior is learned observationally through modeling: from observing

others, one forms an idea of how new behaviors are performed, and on later occasions this coded information serves

as a guide for action. Social learning theory explains human behavior in terms of continuous reciprocal interaction

between cognitive, behavioral, and environmental influences. Attention — various factors increase or decrease the

amount of attention paid. Includes distinctiveness, affective valence, prevalence, complexity, functional value"

(David, 2016).

- Situated learning-

Rooted in Vygotsky’s idea of learning through social development.

"Situated Learning Theory posits that learning is unintentional and situated within authentic activity, context, and culture.

Knowledge needs to be presented in authentic contexts — settings and situations that would normally involve that

knowledge. Social interaction and collaboration are essential components of situated learning — learners become

involved in a “community of practice” which embodies certain beliefs and behaviors to be acquired. As the beginner or

novice moves from the periphery of a community to its center, he or she becomes more active and engaged within the

culture and eventually assumes the role of an expert" (David, 2016).

Looking at the principles of UDL and the perspectives on STEM learning it is easy to reconcile the two paradigms. STEM learning benefits from utilizing the tools of UDL. Multiple means of representation, multiples means of action and expression, and multiple means of engagement are best practices in all learning environments. As mentioned previously, a cookie cutter average student does not exist. Each student is a unique individual with very personal experiences that they bring to the classroom. STEM educators need to appreciate those differences and approach each pupil in diverse ways. If we are to effectively engage our students, we need to interact with them on a myriad of levels. We also need to stay cognizant of the fact that each student will effectively demonstrate their learning in idiosyncratic ways. This understanding means that educators should learn who are their students, what are their strengths, how do they communicate and design their lessons in a way that will allow multiple representations, engagements, and assessments of concepts.

Extend

Let's talk about multi-tasking...Prof. Willingham, what does the data say?

Attention isn't shared between two tasks when we multi-task. We switch back and forth between them thus dividing our attention. Because the rules for completing two distinctly different tasks aren't the same, the cost of trying to do so is high. It always takes something away from completing the first task. It is easier to multi-task if one can redirect their attention quickly. The video states that young people are better at doing this than older people than younger people, but it doesn't provide further details as to cut-off ages. The video stated that even though young people are better at multi-tasking than older people, they aren't that way just from doing more of it.

Studies have shown that even young people who feel they don't multitask as well as their peers actually do when tested. It also showed that homework quality decreases when students multi-task. For example, watching television hinders one's ability to do their best work. As a parent, I've seen that first hand with my own children who claimed to be able to do their work better while listening to music. Although they were able to complete the work, it was always clear that it wasn't their best work. The studies aren't conclusive in regards to music. It must be a personal ability.

The conclusions from the data indicate that younger people are better at multi-tasking but it is probably not a generational acquisition of this ability. In addition, age is irrelevant when one considers the fact that there is always a cost when multi-tasking. The video ends with the advice that if you want to do something well to do one task at a time.

References

Blumschein, P., Hung, W., Jonassen, D., & Strobel, J. (2008, February 11). Model-based approaches to learning: Using systems models and

simulations to improve understanding and problem-solving in complex domains. Retrieved from https://www.sensepublishers.com/media/659

model-based-approaches-to-learning.pdf

David, L. (2016, October 23). Situated Learning Theory (Lave). Retrieved from https://www.learning-theories.com/situated-learning-theory-lave.html

The University of Akron. (2018). teaching for conceptual change: The University of Akron. Retrieved from http://uakron.edu/cpspe/agpa

k12outreach/best-teaching-practices/teaching-for-conceptual-change