Reflections of Learning Theories and Instruction

You Can Teach an Old Dog a New Trick
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, you are no spring chicken, and you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink; these are all clichés that came to mind at different times throughout the past eight weeks. My mind was opened to a great deal of new learning that by linking to prior knowledge I was able to make sense of the new information. By taking these steps I have been able to place the information in my long term memory so that I will be able to recall quickly as needed. While I had learned this information before, I have never been able to understand the process enough to restate it in this way. In this paper I will even further embed this new knowledge as I share my AHA moments.
It seems that in every education course the foundation is laid with a study of theories. Instructional Design is no different. I was struck by the many theories and how they seemed to all contain much the same information with a different twist. Karl Kapp’s blog “Out and About: discussion on Educational Schools of Thought” was a discussion with Bill Kerr and Stephen Downs; the information provided helped me to organize my thoughts and feelings about all the theories and –isms in education. Karl Kapp wrote, “learning is not one thing…..there are too man levels for one school of thought or model to do it” (Kapp, K., 20070). Another comment is “…concept of taking a little bit from each school of thought, I really believe that is the essence of good educational design” and “What we need to do is take the best from each philosophy and use it wisely to create solid educational experiences for our learners” (2007).
My personal thoughts on all the theories is that because as is human nature there will never be a consensus on one theory be right and therefore there were those who used bits and pieces they agreed with and could find justification for and wrote their own theory. I agree with the discussion from Karl Kapp’s post that we should take the best, at least in our eyes, from each philosophy and use that. The Learning Theory Matrix that we created was a useful tool to keep these six theories straight; I have started a project to make the information more easily accessible.
Adult Education Theory was my favorite and provided me with an understanding of myself that will help me to get more out of my learning. I did not know that there was such a wealth of information on the adult learner. The one idea that is reiterated in virtually all writings on the adult learner is the fact that learners need to connect their new learning with their prior knowledge in order to put it all together to see how it will look in the future. From this I know that my making these connections is a good thing and will help me my learning.
Theories, learning styles, educational technology, and motivation are all words that we read about and wrote about in our discussions and application assignments. Learning styles and learning strategies go together; examples of learning styles are visual and auditory learners. Dr. Jeanne Ormrod talked about learning strategies which anyone can learn to effectively use to become more independent in their learning (Laureate Education, n.d.). One individual can have more than one style of learning that they use therefore, we can say that learning styles are very fluid and a person does not often consciously think about it. Strategies on the other hand are learned and when faced with a problem a person can decide which strategy would be best to use.
Educational technology has become a vital entity in education. The Horizon Report – 2009 gave predictions of technology applications which was being developed and would be in use in one year, two to three years, and four to five years. The report written in 2009 was on target, all the applications they predicted to be in use are. I am in awe of all the technology and the potential for its use in instruction (Johnson, Levine, & Smith, 2009).
Without motivation a person has little chance to learn. This is where the cliché, you can lead a horse to water but not make him drink, comes in. I have had wonderfully planned and in my opinion a very motivating lesson planned but there was just one problem they would fail, I might have hooked them in the beginning but they soon lost interest. In any kind of instruction at any age the instructor must always be aware of the learners and keep the learners interested and motivated. The video presented by Dr. Jeanne Ormroad discussed factors affecting learner motivation and share strategies for motivating learners. The four needs that are relative to learning are; stimulation – people need mental stimulation, need for competence – people need to feel that they can do something well, need for self-determination – sense that we are in control of things, and the need for relatedness – need to interact with other people (Laureate Education, n.d.).
This class has been one of the most beneficial classes that I have ever taken. I know that I am capable of learning and doing a good job, with practice. I am making specific files to keep the information readily available. I have learned more in the last three weeks about how to do different tasks on the computer and most important where to go to get help if needed. Networking has taken on a new meaning for me and I have learned the importance of having a good strong background. I think I have never been challenged and while I rebelled a little at first the challenge has been a learning experience in itself, with some support I was able to complete my assignments and do a good job on them. I know that I need to challenge the learners and then be there to support and guide through.
The cliché, you can’t teach old dog new tricks, has been proven wrong and with well planned and executed instruction you most definitely can teach an old dog new tricks.

References
Johnson, L., Levine, A., & Smith, R. (2009). The Horizon Report (2009 ed.). Austin, Texas: The New Media consortium. Retrieved from the Walden University Library.
Kapp, K. (2007, January 4). Out and About: Discussion on Educational Schools of Thought. Retrieved from Kapp Notes: http://www.Kaplaneduneering.com/Kappnotes/index.php/2007/01/out-and-about-discussion-on-educational/
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (n.d.). Learning styles and strategies (Video). Baltimore, MD: Dr. Jeanne Ormroad.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (n.d.). Motivation in learning (Video). Baltimore, MD: Dr. Jeanne Ormroad.