Facilitating Learner-Centered Teaching
Ma. Nelia Abarca-Valero
i
Table of Contents
Module 7: Cognitive Perspective Introduction 48
Intended Learning Outcomes 48 Lesson 1. Gagne's Conditions of Learning 49
Lesson 2. Ausubel's Meaningful Verbal Learning/ Subsumption Theory 57 Lesson 3. Bruner's Constructivist Theory 61
Assessment Task 7 69 Summary 69 References 70
Module 8: Cognitive Processes Introduction 71
Intended Learning Outcomes 72 Lesson 1. Constructivism: Knowledge Construction/ Concept Learning 72 Lesson 2. Transfer of Learning 76
Assessment Task 8 79 Summary 80
References 80
Module 9: The Revised Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives Introduction 81
Intended Learning Outcomes 81 Lesson 1. The Revised Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives 82
Lesson 2. Problem Solving and Creativity 95 Assessment Task 101
Summary 102 References 102
Module 10: Motivation
Introduction 103 Intended Learning Outcomes 104
Lesson 1. Motivation 104 Lesson 2. Theories on Factors Affecting Motivation 107 Lesson 3. Human Environmental Factors Affecting Motivation 119
Lesson 4. Assessment Strategies that can Increase Motivation 123 Assessment Task 10 126
Summary 126 References 127
48
MODULE 7 COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE
Introduction
Have you ever trained someone on a new process or skill? Perhaps you thought it would
be an easy, straightforward task. But once you actually started the session, it may have
been harder than you expected.
Everyone has different learning styles. So, how do we present information so that the
trainee, or group of trainees, is learning effectively? And when is it appropriate to offer
feedback, or ask for a demonstration of skills, to ensure that trainees understand your
message?
Gagne's Nine Levels of Learning provide a step-by-step approach that can help
teachers, trainers, and facilitators structure their training so that their students or teams get
the most from their learning opportunities.
David Ausubel suggested the use of advance organizers.
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, students will be able to:
• explain Gagne's conditions of learning and articulate the benefits of using Gagne's
principles in teaching.
• make a simple lesson outline (Teaching sequence) using Gagne's instruction events.
• explain Ausubel's subsumption theory.
• determine the uses of graphic organizers.
• describe the development or the child's ability to represent knowledge.
• explain how the spiral curriculum works and the benefits when it is used
49
Lesson 1. Gagne's Conditions of Learning
In his theory, Gagne (1965) as cited by Lucas & Corpuz (2014) specified several
different types or levels of learning. He stressed that different internal and external
conditions are needed for each type of learning, thus his theory is called conditions of
learning. He also provided nine instruction events that serve as basis for the sequencing of
instruction.
Figure 7.1 Gagne’s Conditions of Learning (Lucas Corpuz, 2014)
Gagne's theory deals with all aspects of learning. However, the focus of the theory is on
intellectual skills. The theory has been utilized to design instruction in all domains. In the
earlier version of the theory, special attention was given to military training settings. Later,
Gagne also looked into the role of instructional technology in learning.
Categories of Learning 9 Events of Instruction
Event 2 Informing the
Learner of the
Objectives
Event 1 Gaining
Attention
Event 2 Stimulating
Recall of Prior Learning
Event 4 Presenting the
Stimulus
Event 5 Providing
Learner Guidance
Event 6 Eliciting
Performance
Event 7 Giving
Feedback
Event 8 Assessing
Performance
Event 9 Enhancing
Retention and Transfer
Verbal Information
Intellectual Skills
Cognitive Strategies
Attitudes
Motor Skills
50
Gagne's Principles
1. Different instruction is required for different learning outcomes. Gagne's
theory asserts that there are several different types or levels of learning.
Furthermore, the theory implies that each different type of learning calls for
different types of instruction. Gagne named five categories of learning: verbal
information, intellectual skills cognitive strategies, motor skills and attitudes.
Distinct internal and external conditions are required for each type of learning.
For instance, for cognitive strategies to be learned there must be an
opportunity for problem solving: to learn attitudes, the learner must be
exposed to credible role model or arguments that are convincing and moving.
Below are the categories of learning with corresponding leaning outcomes
and conditions of learning:
Table 7.1 Categories of Learning With Corresponding Learning Outcomes and Conditions
of Learning (Lucas Corpuz, 2014)
Category of Learning Example of Learning
Outcome
Conditions of Learning
Verbal Information Stating previously learned
materials such as facts,
concepts, principles and
procedures, e.g., listing the
14 learner-centered
psychological principles.
1. Draw attention to
distinctive features by
variations in print or
speech.
2. Present information
so that it principles
can be made into
chunks.
3. Provide a meaningful
context for effective
encoding of
information.
51
4. Provide cues for
effective recall and
generalization of
information.
Intellectual Skills:
Discriminations, Concrete
Concepts, Defined
Concepts, Rules, Higher
Order Rules
Discriminations:
Distinguishing objects,
features or symbols, e.g
distinguishing an even and
an odd number
Concrete Concepts:
Identifying classes of
concrete objects, features or
events, e.g., picking out all
the red beads from a bowl of
beads
Defined Concepts:
classifying new examples of
events or ideas by their
definition, e.g., noting "she
sells sea shells" as
alliteration
Rules: Applying a single
relationship to solve a class
of problems, e.g., computing
1. Call attention to
distinctive features.
2. Stay within the limits
of working memory.
3. Stimulate the recall f
previously learned
component skills.
4. Present verbal cues
to the ordering or
combination of
component skills.
5. Schedule occasions
for practice and
spaced review.
6. Use a variety of
contexts to promote
transfer.
52
average monthly income of a
company
Order Rules: Applying a new
combination of rules to solve
a complex problem, e.g.,
generating a balanced
budget for a school
organization
Cognitive Strategies Employing personal ways to
guide learning, thinking,
acting and feeling, e.g.,
constructing concept maps o
topics being studied
1. Describe or
demonstrate the
strategy.
2. Provide a variety of
occasions for practice
using the strategy.
3. Provide informative
feedback as to the
creativity or originality
of the strategy or
outcome.
Attitudes Choosing personal actions
based on internal states of
understanding and feeling,
e.g., deciding to avoid soft
drinks and drinking a least 8
glasses of water everyday
1. Establish an
expectancy of
Success associated
with the desired
attitude.
2. Assure student
identification with an
admired human
model.
3. Arrange for
53
communication or
demonstration of
choice of personal
action.
4. Give feedback for
successful
performance; or allow
observation of
feedback in the
human model.
Motor Skills
Executing performances
involving the use of muscles,
e.g., doing the steps of the
singkil dance guidance
1. Present verbal or
other to cue the
executive subroutine.
2. Arrange repeated
practice.
3. Furnish immediate
feedback as to the
accuracy of
performance.
4. Encourage the use of
mental practice.
2. Learning hierarchies define what intellectual skills are to be learned and a
sequence of instruction. Gagne suggests that learning tasks for intellectual
skills can be organized in a hierarchy according to complexity: stimulus
recognition, response generation procedure following, use of terminology,
discriminations, concept formation, rule application, and problem solving. The
primary significance of the hierarchy is to identify prerequisites that should be
completed to facilitate learning at each level. Prerequisites arc identified by
doing a task analysis of a learning/training task. Learning hierarchies provide
a basis for the sequencing of instruction.
3. Events of learning operate on the learner in ways that constitute the
conditions of learning. These events should satisfy provide the necessary
54
conditions for learning and serve as the basis for designing instruction and
selecting appropriate media. The theory includes nine instructional events
and corresponding cognitive processes:
(1) gaining attention (reception)
(2) informing learners of the objective (expectancy)
(3) stimulating recall of prior learning (retrieval)
(4) presenting the stimulus (selective perception)
(5) providing learning guidance (semantic encoding)
(6) eliciting performance (responding)
(7) providing feedback (reinforcement)
(8) assessing performance (retrieval)
(9) enhancing retention and transfer (generalization)
Study the example of teaching sequences below. They reflect the events of instruction.
Lesson: Powerful Lessons with PowerPoint
Objective: Students to create presentations using Microsoft PowerPoint
Target Group: This lesson is geared for education (pre-service teachers) with basic
computer skills.
Table 7.2 Example of Teaching Sequences Reflecting Events of Instruction (Lucas
Corpuz, 2014)
Event of Instruction Lesson Example/Conditions
of Learning
1. Gaining Attention Teacher tells learners how
she has Used PowerPoint in
the classroom. Shows an
example of a powerpoint
asks learners questions
Giving background
information creates validity.
The use of multimedia grabs
55
about using powerpoint. audience's attention.
Asking questions in the
beginning creates an
interactive atmosphere.
2. Informing the Learner
of the Objective
Teacher says, "Today we are
going to work on using
multimedia presentation
software, Microsoft
PowerPoint
Make learners aware of
what to expect so that they
are aware and prepared to
receive information.
3. Stimulating Recall of
Prior Learning
For this particular group of
learners, they have learned
previously about Microsoft
Windows, particularly
Microsoft Word. Teacher
associates this knowledge
with lesson at hand.
When learning something
new, accessing prior
knowledge is a major factor
in the process of acquiring
new information.
4. Presenting the
Stimulus
Teacher gives students
hands- on, step-by-step
tutorial on using Microsoft
PowerPoint
The goal is information
acquisition, therefore, the
stimulus employed is written
content and the actual
software program.
5. Providing Learner
Guidance
Teacher demonstrates how
to create a presentation.
Teacher moves around and
shows students how to use
the tools to type in text, add
Teacher uses "discovery
learning because learners
are adults and it gives them
the freedom to explore.
Teacher facilitates the
56
links, add symbols and clip
art, insert videos and
diagrams, Use sounds, etc.
Learners are allowed to try
the tools demonstrated in
partners on their computers.
learning process by giving
hints and cues when
needed. Since the
audiences are pre-service
with Some basic level of
technology skills and the
software program is easy to
follow and understand,
guidance is minimal.
6. Eliciting Performance Teacher asks students to
demonstrate PowerPoint
tools.
Requiring the learner to
produce based on what has
been taught enables the
learner to confirm his/her
learning.
Regular feedback enhances
learning.
7. Giving Feedback Teacher gives immediate
feedback to learners after
eliciting responses.
8. Assessing
Performance
Assign a practice activity
Create an electronic story
book using Microsoft
PowerPoint. Teacher checks
work.
Independent practice forces
students to use what they
learned and apply it.
Assessing such gives
instructors a means of
testing student learning
outcomes.
57
9. . Enhancing Retention
and Transfer
Teacher asks learners to
create activities using
PowerPoint presentation for
6th grade pupils. Teacher
also assigns learner to teach
another learner how to make
power point presentations
Applying learning in real-life
situations is a step towards
Mastery Learning.
Lesson 2. Ausubel's Meaningful Verbal Learning/
Subsumption Theory
Many educational psychology theories often criticize the expository or presentational
manner of teaching. They say that teachers assume such a major role in learning as
providers of information, while students remain as passive receivers of information. David
Ausubel (1963) as cited by Lucas & Corpuz (2014), instead of criticizing this manner of
teaching, proposed ways of improving it. He suggested the use of advance organizers. His
ideas are contained in his theory of Meaningful Verbal Learning.
58
Figure 7.2. Ausubel’s Subsumption Theory (Lucas Corpuz, 2014)
Focus of Ausubel's Theory (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014)
1. The most important factor influencing learning is the quantity, clarity and organization
of the learner's knowledge. This present knowledge consists of facts, concepts,
propositions theories and raw perceptual data that the learner has available to
him/her at any point in time. This comprises his/her cognitive structure.
2. Meaningful learning takes place when an idea to be learned is related in some
sensible way to ideas that the learner already possesses. Ausubel believed that
before new material can be presented effectively, the student's cognitive structure
should be strengthened. When this is done, acquisition and retention of new
information is facilitated. The way to strengthen the student's cognitive structure is by
using advance organizers that allow students to already have a bird's eye view or to
see the "big picture" of the topic to be learned even before going to the details.
Ausubel's Subsumption Theory
Meaningful Reception of
Information
Advance Organizers Four Processes for
Meaningful Learning
Learner's Cognitive
Structure
Use of Advance
Graphic Organizer
Subsumption
Derivative
Subsumption
Correlative
Subsumption
Learning
Superordinate
Combinatorial
Learning
Expository
Narrative
Skimming
Graphic Organizers
59
Ausubel's belief of the use of advance organizers is anchored on the principle of
subsumption. He thought that the primary way of learning was subsumption: a process by
which new material is related to relevant ideas in the existing cognitive structure. Likewise,
Ausubel pointed out, that what is learned is based on what is already known. This signifies
that one's own prior knowledge and biases limit and affect what is learned.
Also, retention of new knowledge is greater because it is based on prior concrete concepts.
Meaningful learning can take place through four processes:
Derivative subsumption. This describes the situation in which the new information
you learn is example of a concept that you have already learned. Let’s say you have
acquired a basic concern Such as "bird", you learned that a bird has feathers, a beak, lays
egg. Now you learn about a kind of bird you have never seen before, let's say a blue jay,
that conforms to your previous understanding of bird. Your new knowledge of blue jays is
attached to your concept of bird, without substantially altering that concept in anyway. So,
in Ausubel's theory, you had learned about blue jays through the process of derivative
subsumption.
Correlative subsumption. Examine this example. Now let say you see a new kind of
bird that has a really big body and long strong legs. It doesn't fly but it can run fast. In order
to accommodate this new information, you have to change or expand your concept of bird to
include the possibility of big and having long legs. You now include your concept of an
ostrich to your previous concept of what a bird is. You have learned about this new kind of
bird through the process of correlative subsumption. In a sense you might say that this is
more "valuable learning than that of derivative subsumption, since it enriches the higher-
level concept.
Superordinate learning. Imagine that a child was well acquainted with banana,
mango, dalandan, guava etc., but the child did not know, until she was taught, that these
were all examples of fruits. In this case, the child already knew a lot of examples of the
concept, but did not know the concept itself until it was taught to her. This is superordinate
learning.
60
Combinatorial learning. This is when newly acquired knowledge combines with prior
knowledge to enrich the understanding of both concepts. The first three learning processes
all included new information that relates to a hierarchy at a level that is either below or
above previously acquired knowledge. Combinatorial learning is different; it describes a
process by which the new idea is derived from another idea that is neither higher nor lower
in the hierarchy, but at the same level (in a different, but related, "branch"). It is a lot like as
learning by analogy. For example, to teach someone about how plants "breathe" you might
relate it to previously acquired knowledge of human respiration where man inhales oxygen
and exhales carbon dioxide.
Advance Organizers (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014)
The advance organizer is a major instructional tool proposed by Ausubel.
The advance organizer, gives you two benefits: (1) You will find it easier to new information
with what you already know about the top certain topic and, (2) you can readily see how the
concepts in a certain topic are related to each other. As you go about learning about the
topic and go through the four learning processes, the advance organizer helps you to link
new learning to your existing scheme. As such, advance organizers facilitate learning by
helping you organize and strengthen your cognitive structure. Ausubel stressed that
advance organizers are not the same with overviews and summaries which simply
emphasize key ideas presented at the same level of abstraction and generality as the
material. Organizers act as a subsuming bridge between new material and existing related
ideas.
Types of advance organizers
1. Expository - describes the new content.
2. Narrative - presents the new information in the form of a story to students.
3. Skimming - is done by looking over the new material to basic overview.
4. Graphic organizer - visuals to set up or outline the new information This may include
pictographs, descriptive patterns, concept patterns concept maps.
61
Application of Principles as cited by Lucas & Corpuz (2014)
1. The most general ideas of a subject should be presented first and then progressively
differentiated in terms of detail and specificity, He called this progressive
differentiation. According to Ausubel, the purpose of progressive differentiation is to
increase the stability and clarity of anchoring ideas. The basic idea here is that, if
you're teaching three related topics A, B and C, rather than teaching all of topic A,
then going on to B, etc., you would take a spiral approach That is, in your first pass
through the material, you would teach the "big ideas (1.e., those highest in the
hierarchy) in all three topics then on successive passes you would begin to elaborate
the details Along the way you would point out principles that the three tops had in
common, and things that differentiated them."
2. Instructional materials should attempt to integrate new material and with previously
presented information through comparisons and cross-referencing of new and old
ideas.
Lesson 3. Bruner's Constructivist Theory
Figure 7.3 Bruner’s Constructivist
Theory (Lucas Corpuz, 2014)
Bruner' Constructivist
Theory (Main Concepts)
Spiral curriculum Discovery Learning
Categorization Representation of
Knowledge
Enactive
Iconic
Symbolic
Theory of Instruction
Predisposition to
Learn
Structure of
Knowledge
Effective
Sequencing
Reinforcement
62
In the activity you just had, you would have surely seen that a single topic can be
taught in preschool/elementary, then again in high school, and still again in college! Take for
instance, in learning about Jose Rizal, in elementary we may have his picture in a postcard,
know that he is our national hero, born on June 19, 1861 in Calamba Laguna, and maybe
even have a field trip there. In high school, we may study his two novels in more detail. In
college, we would go deeper into analyzing Rizal's works and may look into the personal
and social factors that influenced him in his life and work and write a term paper on it. This
repeated topic on Rizal is a way of applying the principles in Bruner's Theory. He gave us
important concepts in development of representations, the spiral curriculum and discovery
learning. These concepts are all in line with the constructivist approach.
Bruner's Main Concepts (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014)
Representation
Bruner suggested the ability to represent knowledge in three stages. These three
stages also become the three ways to represent knowledge.
1. Enactive representation - At the earliest ages, children learn about the world through
actions on physical objects and learn about these actions. Children represent objects
in terms sensation of them. They are represented in the muscles and involve motor
responses, or ways to manipulate the environment (i.e. riding a bicycle and tying a
knot, tasting the apple).
2. Iconic representation - This second stage is when learning can be obtained through
using models and pictures. The learner can now use mental images to stand for
certain objects or events. Iconic representation allows one to recognize objects when
they are changed in minor ways (e.g. mountains with and without snow at the top).
3. Symbolic representation - In this third stage, the learner has developed the ability to
think in abstract terms. This uses symbol system to encode knowledge. The most
common symbol systems are language and mathematical notation.
63
Bruner advised that teachers utilize and bring together concrete, pictorial then symbolic
activities to facilitate learning. Before children can comprehend abstract mathematical
operations, teachers can first have the numbers represented enactively (with blocks) and
then, iconically (in pictures). Children can later on handle number concepts without concrete
objects and only with numbers and number signs (symbolic).
Spiral curriculum (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014)
Bruner stressed that teaching should always lead to boosting cognitive development.
Students will not understand the concept if teachers plan to teach it using only the teacher's
level of understanding. Instruction needs to be anchored on the learners' cognitive
capabilities. The task of the instructor to translate information to be learned into a format
appropriate to the learner’s current state of understanding. Curriculum should be organized
in spiral manner so that the student continually builds upon what they have already learned.
In a spiral curriculum, teachers must revisit the curriculum by teaching the same content in
different ways depending on students’ developmental levels. This is why certain topics are
initially presented in grade school in a manner appropriate for grade schoolers, and then the
same topic tackled in high school, but on a much deeper level. Sometimes a topic can be
revisited within the same semester or school year. For instance, the learner-centered
principles were introduced to you in Module 2, and will again be tackled in other modules. .
Many other concepts and principles were discussed in other subjects like Child and
Adolescent Development and Principles of Teaching to name a few. This is part of spiral
learning. It helps you get a clearer understanding, thus more effective learning.
ln the K to 12 curriculum, the spiral progression is a mandate. Section 5 (g),
Curriculum Development of RA. 10533, states "The curriculum shall use the spiral
progression approach to ensure mastery of knowledge and skills after each level." As
applied in Math, this would mean that the teachers teach Algebra, Geometry, Statistics and
Trigonometry concepts from Kinder to Grade 10. In the science class, Biology, Chemistry,
and Physics concepts from Grade 3 (where Science as a subject starts) to Grade 10
considering the developmental stages of students. In the spiral progression approach, the
64
teaching of concepts increases in depth and breadth across the Grade levels. Statistics
concepts in Kindergarten are much simpler compared to the Statistics concepts in Grade 10.
Geometry concepts in Kindergarten are much simpler than those taught in Grade 10. This is
in contrast to the disciplinal approach of Math and Science teaching in the 2002 Basic
Education Curriculum (BEC). This means that in the 2002 BEC, Algebra is taught in the First
and Second Year, Geometry in the Third Year; Statistics and Probability, and Trigonometry
in the Fourth Year. In the sciences, Integrated Science is taught in the First Year; Biology in
the Second Year; Chemistry in are taught the Third Year and Physics in the Fourth Year.
In the spiral progression approach, concepts are revisited again and again as you
go up the Grades. This supports mastery of concepts.
Below are the principles of instruction stated by Bruner:
1. Instruction must be concerned with the experiences and contexts that make the
student willing and able to learn (readiness).
2. Instruction must be structured so that it can be easily grasped by the student (spiral
organization).
3. Instruction should be designed to facilitate extrapolation and or fill in the gaps (going
beyond the information given).
Figure 7.4 Spiral Progression Approach (Lucas Corpuz, 2014)
65
Discovery learning
Discovery learning refers to obtaining knowledge for oneself. The teacher plans and
arranges activities in such a way that students search, manipulate, explore and investigate.
Students learn new knowledge relevant to the domain and such general problem-solving
skills as formulating rules, testing and gathering information. Most discoveries does not
happen by chance. Students require background preparation. Once students possess
prerequisite knowledge careful structuring of material allows them to discover important
principles (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014).
Classroom Example:
Learning becomes more meaningful when students explore learning environment rather
than listen passively to teacher.
• In elementary school - Teachers might use guided discovery to explore their help
children learn animal groups (e.g. mammals, birds, reptiles). Rather than provide
students with the basic animals groups and examples for each, the teacher could ask
students to provide the names of types of animals, then the students and teacher
could classify the animals by examining their similarities and differences. Category
labels can be assigned once classifications are made. This approach is guided by
the teacher to ensure that classifications are proper, but students are active
contributors as they discover the similarities and differences among animals.
• In high school - A chemistry teacher might use "mystery" liquids and have students
discover the elements in each. The students could proceed through a series of
experiments designed to determine if certain substances are present in a sample. By
using the experimental process, students learn about the reactions of various
substances to certain chemicals and also how to determine the contents of their
mystery substance.
(Retrieved from http://www.lifecircles-inc.com/Bruner.htm)
66
Bruner (1966) as cited by Lucas & Corpuz (2014) states that a theory of instruction should
address four major aspects:
1. Predisposition to learn. He introduced the ideas of "readiness for learning". Bruner
believed that any subject could be taught at any stage of development in a way that
fits the child's cognitive abilities. This feature specifically states the experiences
which move the learner toward a love of learning in general, or of learning something
in particular. Motivational, cultural and personal factors contribute to this. Bruner
emphasized social factors and early teachers’ and parents' influence on this. He
believed that learning and problem solving emerged out of exploration. Part of the
task of a teacher is to maintain and direct a child's spontaneous explorations.
2. Structure of Knowledge. This refers to the ways in which a body of knowledge can
be structured so that it can be most readily grasped by the learner. Bruner
emphasized the role of structure in learning and how it may be made central in
teaching. Structure refers to relationships among tactual elements and techniques.
This will depend on different factors, and there will be many ways to structure a body
of knowledge and many preferences among learners. Bruner offered considerable
detail about structuring knowledge.
1. Understanding the fundamental structure of a subject makes it more
comprehensible. Bruner viewed categorization as fundamental process in the
structuring of knowledge. Details are better retained when placed within the
context of an ordered and structured pattern.
2. To generate knowledge which is transferable to other contexts, Fundamental
principles or patterns are best suited.
3. The discrepancy between beginning and advance knowledge in a subject area is
diminished when instruction centers on a structure and principles of orientation.
This means that a body of knowledge must be in a form simple enough for the
learner to understand and it must be in a form recognizable to the student’s
experience.
67
4. Effective sequencing. No one sequencing will fit every learner, but in general, the
lesson can be presented in increasing difficulty. Sequencing, or lack of it, can make
learning easier or more difficult. Spiral curriculum refers to the idea of revisiting basic
ideas over and over, building upon them and elaborating to the level of full
understanding and mastery.
5. Reinforcement. Rewards and punishments should be selected and paced
appropriately. He investigated motivation for learning. He felt that ideally, interest in
the subject matter is best stimulus for learning. Bruner did not like external
competitive goals such as grades or class ranking.
Categorization (Lucas & Corpuz, 2014)
Bruner gave much attention to categorization of information in the construction of
internal cognitive maps. He believed that perception, conceptualization, learning, decision
making and making inferences all involved categorization. Categories are "rules" that specify
four thing about objects. The four things are given below:
1. Criterial attributes required characteristics for inclusion of an object in a category.
(Example, for an object to be included in the category "car" it must have an engine, 4
wheels, and be a possible means of transportation,
2. The second rule prescribes how the criterial attributes are combined
3. The third rule assigns weight to various properties. (Example, it could be a car even
if a tire was missing, and if it was used for hauling cargo it would be shifted to a
different category of "truck" or perhaps "van'")
4. The fourth rule sets acceptance limits on attributes. Some attributes can vary widely,
such as color. Others are fixed. For example a vehicle without an engine is not a car.
Likewise, a vehicle with only two wheels would not be included in "car".
There are several kinds of categories:
68
1. Identity categories - categories include objects based on their attributes or
features.
2. Equivalent categories (provide rules for combining categories Equivalence can
be determined by affective criteria, which render objects equivalent by emotional
reactions, functional criteria, based on related functions (for example, "car",
"truck", "van" could all be combined in an inclusive category called "motor
vehicle"), or by formal o criteria for example by science, law or cultural
agreement. For example, apple is still an apple whether it is green, ripe, dried,
etc. (identity). It is food (functional), and it is a member of a botanical
classification group(formal).
3. Coding systems are categories that serve to recognize sensory input. They are
major organizational variables in higher cognitive functioning. Going beyond
immediate sensory data involves making inferences on the basis of related
categories. Related categories form a "coding system." These are hierarchical
arrangements of related categories. The principles of Bruner launched the notion
that people interpret the world mostly in terms of similarities and differences.
This is a valuable contribution to how individuals construct their own models or
view of the world.
69
Assessment Task 7
II Describe the 4 types of advance organizers.
III. Give 2 advantages and 1 disadvantage of spiral progression method
Summary
Gagne’s theory focused on intellectual skills. He looked into the role of instructional
technology in learning. The 9 Events of Instruction according to him are:
I Gagne’s Conditions of Learning Equilateral Triangles
Objective: For students to create equilateral triangles
Target group: Grade 4 pupils
Match A with B.
A B
1. Gain attention A. provide scores and remediation
2. Identify objective B. check all examples as correct or incorrect
3. Recall prior learning C. Ask students to create 5 different examples
4. Present stimulus D. show example of how to create an equilateral triangle
5. Guide learning E. give definition of equilateral triangle
6. Elicit performance F. review definition of triangle
7. Provide feedback G. pose question “What is an equilateral triangle”
8. Assess performance H. show variety of computer-generated triangles
9. Enhance retention/transfer I. show pictures of objects and ask students to
identify equilateral triangles
70
1. Gaining attention, 2. Informing the learner of the objectives 3. Stimulating Recall of
prior learning, 4. Presenting the stimulus, 5. Providing learner Guidance. Eliciting
performance, 7, Giving Feedback, 8. Assessing Performance and 9. Enhancing retention
and Transfer.
Ausubel proposed ways of improving the way teachers provide information in teaching.
He included all his ideas in his theory of Meaningful Verbal Learning. It is also known as
Subsumption Theory. He believed in meaningful reception of information, four processes
for meaningful learning and advance organizers.
Brunner explained in detail the advantages of spiral progression method.
The topics are revisited again and again in each year level as the learner goes up from
Kindergarten to Grade 10. This supports mastery of concepts.
References
Instructional Design. (n.d.). www.instructional design.org
Lucas, M.R., & Corpuz, B. (2014). Facilitating Learning: A Metacognitive Process, Lorimar
Publishing Inc. 2014.
Pappas, C (2015 November 18) Applying Ausubel’s Subsumption Theory In eLearning.
talentims.com/applying the subsumption theory in eLearning/
Peak Performance center. (n.d.) the peakperformancecenter.com
71
MODULE 8
COGNITIVE PROCESSES
Introduction
“Teaching is not about filling up the pail;
It is about lighting a fire.”
Williams Butler Yeats Treats
You have studied about both the behavioristic and cognitive views of learning.
Behaviorism focused on the external, observable behavior. Learning is explained as a
connection between the stimulus and the response. Reinforcement is the key to learning.
Behaviorists saw learning as a change in behavior brought about by experience with little
acknowledgement of the mental or internal aspects of learning. On the other hand, the
cognitive view focuses on the internal processes. Learning is an active process. Learner
initiate experiences, search for information to solve problems, and reorganize what they
already know to come up with new insights.
In the quotation above, "filling up the pail" is more linked to rote learning and
behaviorism. It connotes that teaching is dominated by the teacher and the learners are
passive receivers of knowledge. "Lighting, the fire" is related to the cognitive perspective
and constructivism. It signifies that teaching involves giving opportunities for learners to
explore and discover. Learners construct their own meaning. Learners generate insights and
are "enlightened".
More associated with cognitive psychology than behaviorism constructivism focuses
on knowledge construction. You were introduced to constructivism in Bruner's theory. Just
as there are different views within cognitive psychology, constructivism also has different
“versions".
72
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, the student will be able to:
• explain the role of constructivism in facilitating learning.
• describe strategies to promote knowledge construction.
• describe strategies to facilitate concept learning.
• explain how transfer of learning occurs.
• identify the factors that affect transfer of learning.
• apply principles of transfer in facilitating transfer of learning
Lesson 1. Constructivism: Knowledge Construction/ Concept
Learning (Borabo, Lucas & Lucido, 2015)
Figure 8.1. Constructivism: Knowledge Construction/ Concept Learning (Borabo et al., 2015)
Constructivism
Views of
Constructivism
Characteristics of
Constructivism
Organizing
Knowledge
Individual
Constructivism
Social
Constructivism
73
Two Views of Constructivism
Individual Constructivism. This is also called cognitive individual, internal construction of
constructivism. It emphasizes knowledge. It is largely based on Piaget's theory. Proponents
of this type choose child-centered and discovery learning. They believe the learners should
be allowed to discover principles through their own exploration rather than direct instruction
by the teacher.
Social Constructivism. This view emphasizes that "knowledge exists in a social context and
is initially shared with others instead of being represented solely in the mind of an
individual." It is based on Vygotsky's theory. Here, construction of knowledge is shared by
two or more people. According to social constructivists, the opportunity to interact and share
among learners helps to shape and refine their ideas. Knowledge construction becomes
social, not individual.
Characteristics of Constructivism
Whether one takes the individual or social view of constructivism, there are four
characteristics that these two views have in common. According to Eggen and Kauchak,
these are:
1. Learners construct understanding. As discussed earlier, constructivists do not view
learners as just empty vessels waiting to be filled up. They see learners as active
thinkers who interpret new information based on what they already know. They
construct knowledge in a way that makes sense to them.
2. New learning depends on current understanding. Background information is very
important. It is through the present views or Scheme that the learner has that new
information will be interpreted.
3. Learning is facilitated by social interaction. Constructivists believe in creating a
"community of learners" within classrooms. Learning communities help learners take
responsibility for their own learning. Learners have a lot of opportunities to cooperate
and collaborate to solve problems and discover things. Teachers play the role of a
facilitator rather than an expert who has all the knowledge.
74
4. Meaningful learning occurs within authentic learning tasks. An authentic task is one
that involves a learning activity that involves constructing knowledge and
understanding that is so akin to the knowledge and understanding needed when
applied in the real world. Example, a writing activity where six-year olds prepare a
checklist activity of things they need to do in school is a more an authentic activity
than for them to be working only on tracing worksheets with dotted lines.
Organizing Knowledge
Concepts. A concept is a way grouping or categorizing events in our mind. A concept
of "teach” includes a group of task such as model, discuss, illustrate, explain, assist, etc. In
your life as a student you would learn thousands of concepts, some simple ones, others
more complicated that may take you to learn them more gradually. The concepts you learn
are also revised as you learn more and experience more.
Concepts as Feature Lists. Learning a concept involves defining specific features
that characterize positive instance of the concept. Included here are defining features and
correlational feature. A defining feature is a characteristic present in ALL instances.
Example a triangle has three sides. Having three sides is a defining feature of a triangle
because ALL triangles should have three sides. If one doesn’t then it is not a triangle. A
correlational feature is one that is present in many positive instances but not essential for
concept membership, example, a mother is loving. Being loving is a feature commonly
present in the concept mother. But a mother may not be loving. So “being loving" is only a
correlational feature, not a defining one.
Concept as Prototype. A prototype is an idea or visual image of a "typical" example.
It is usually formed based on the positive instances that learners encounter most often.
Example, close your eyes now and for a moment think of a cat. Picture in mind what it looks
like. You probably thought of the an image of the common cat we see. Once learners have
their own concept prototypes, the new examples that they see are checked against this
existing prototype.
75
Concepts as Exemplars. Exemplars represent a variety of examples. It allows
learners to know that an example under a concept may have variability. Example, a learner's
concept of vegetable may include a wide variety of different examples like cauliflower,
kangkong, cabbage, string beans, squash, corn, potatoes. When he encounters a new type
of vegetable like "bitsuelas", he would search from the exempla he knows and looks for one
that is most similar, like string beans.
Making Concept-learning Effective. As a future teacher, you can help students learn
concepts by doing the following:
• Provide a clear definition of the concept
• Make the defining features very concrete and prominent
• Give a variety of positive instances
• Give negative instances
• Cite a "best example" or a prototype
• Provide opportunity for learners to identify positive and negative instances
• Ask learners to think of their own example of the concept
• Point out how concepts can be related to each other
Schemas and scripts. A schema is an organized body of knowledge about something. It
is like a file of information you hold in your mind about something. Like a schema of what a
teacher is. A script is a schema that includes a series of predictable events about a specific
activity. Examples would include knowing the series of steps done when we visit a doctor, or
what transpires at the beginning of the class when the teacher arrives.
Your role as a teacher is to bring learners to construct their own knowledge such
that they have a well-organized set of concepts. Aim to make clear those concepts that are
still vague for them, and to pave the way for them to overcome misconceptions. It is
important that you acquire skills on how to facilitate concept formation and development.
Constructivism can be an excellent guide for you.
76
Applying Constructivism in Facilitating Learning
• Aim to make learners understand a few key ideas in an in-depth manner, rather than
taking up so many topics superficially.
• Give varied examples. Provide opportunities for experimentation.
• Provide lots of opportunities for quality interaction.
• Have lots of hands-on activities.
• Relate your topic to real life situations.
• Do not depend on the explanation method all the time
Lesson 2. Transfer of Learning (Borabo et al., 2015)
Figure 8.2 Transfer of Learning (Borabo et al., 2015)
Transfer of learning happens when learning in one context or with one set of
materials affects performance in another context or with other related materials. Simply put,
it is applying to another situation what was previously learned. For example, learning to use
roller skates later helps a person to learn more quickly to ice skate. Learning to get along
with classmates preschool helps the child adjust and relate well with classmates in the "big”
school, or even playing highly competitive on-line computer games might even make one a
better strategic thinker in politics or business. Transfer a very significant concept in
education and learning theory because most those concerned in education aim to achieve
transfer.
Transfer of Learning
Types of Transfer Conditions and Principles of Transfer
77
Frequently, the circumstance of learning (classrooms, workbooks, tests, drills)
differs significantly from the situations when what is learned is to be applied (in the home, on
the job, within complex tasks). As a result educational goals are not met until transfer
occurs. This makes transfer very important aspect of instruction. It may be true that in most
cases the goal of transfer of learning from classroom to real life situations is not achieved.
So it is vital that as a future teacher you have a clear understanding of how best to teach
your learners so that transfer of learning is facilitated. After all, what good is there in
providing your learners with tons of knowledge multitude of skills if they cannot apply them
when they need to.
Types of Transfer
Positive transfer . Positive transfer occurs when learning in one context improves
performance in some other context. For instance, a speaker of Spanish would find it easier
to learn Mexican language than Japanese.
Negative transfer. Negative transfer occurs when learning in one context impacts
negatively on performance in another. For example, learners commonly assimilate a new
language phonetics to crude approximations in native tongue and use word orders carried
over from their native tongue. Example, there may be a tendency for a Visayan-speaking
child to frequently interchange the /e/ and /i/ sound when speaking in English. With
experience context and however learners correct the effects of negative transfer.
Near transfer. Near transfer refers to transfer between very similar contexts. This is
also referred to as specific transfer; for example, when students answer types of algebra
word problems in an exam which are similar to what they had in their seatworks. Or when a
student is learning to use a new cell phone that is somehow similar to the one she had
before.
Far transfer. Far transfer refers to transfer between contexts that, on appearance,
seem remote and alien to one another. This is also called general transfer. For example
Stephen Covey applied the lesson of the Aesop's fable of “The Goose That Lays the Golden
78
Eggs" to managing corporations. He said we should take care of the goose rather than kill it.
To be successful in business we should take care of our workers not burden them.
Conditions and Principles of Transfer
These principles are based on the factors that affect transfer of learning. These
factors are similar to what Perkins termed as "conditions of transfer". Below you will find the
factors with the consequent principles and educational implications.
Table 8.1 Conditions /Affecting Transfer of Learning with Principles of Transfer and
Implications (Borabo et al., 2015)
Conditions/Factors affecting
transfer of learning
Principle of transfer Implication
Similarity between two
learning situations
The more similar the two
situation are, the greater the
chances that learning from
one situation will be
transferred to the other
situation.
Involve students in learning
situations and tasks that are
similar as situations possible
to the situations where they
would apply the tasks.
Degree of meaningfulness/
relevance of learning
Meaningful learning leads to
greater transfer than rote
learning
Remember to provide
opportunities for learners to
link new material to what
they learned in the past.
Length of instructional time
The longer the time spent in
instruction, the greater the
probability of transfer
To ensure transfer, teach a
few topics in depth rather
than many topics tackled in a
shallow manner.
Variety of learning
experiences
Exposure to many and
varied examples and
opportunities for practice
Illustrate new concepts and
principles with a variety of
examples. Plan activities that
allow your learners to
79
encourages transfer practice their newly learned
skills
Context for learner's
experiences
Transfer of learning is most
likely to happen when
learners discover that what
they learned is applicable to
various contexts
Relate a topic in one subject
to topics in other subjects or
disciplines. Relate it also to
real life situations
Focus on principles rather
than tasks
Principles transfer easier
than facts
Zero in on principles related
to each topic together with
strategies based on those
principles
Emphasis on metacognition
Student reflection improves
transfer of learning
Encourage students to take
responsibility for their own
learning, and to reflect on
what they learned
Assessment Task 8
1.Describe strategies to promote knowledge construction.
a.
b.
2.Describe strategies to facilitate concept learning.
a.
b.
80
3.Identify the factors that affect transfer of learning.
Summary
This module talks about the two views of constructivism. Individual constructivism also
known as cognitive constructivism emphasizes individual, internal construction of
knowledge. Social constructivism on the other hand emphasizes that knowledge exists in a
social context and is initially shared with others instead of being represented solely in the
mid of an individual.
There are different ways of organizing concepts. They may be treated as feature lists,
prototypes or exemplars. A teacher may help students learn concepts by making concept
learning effective.
Transfer of learning occurs when the knowledge and skills that a student learns in school
are applied to situations encountered in a new environment.
References
Borabo, H., Corpuz, B., Lucas, M., & Lucido, P. (2015). Child and Adolescent
Development. Quezon City, Philippines: Lorimar Publishing.
"Eggen, P. Kauchak, D. (2010) Educational Psychology: Windows on Classrooms (8 th
Ed.) New Jersey: Pearson."
Perkins, D. and Salomon G. A Model for Transfer of Learning-Metacognitive Strategies,
International Encyclopedia of Education 2nd edition (1992)
81
MODULE 9
THE REVISED BLOOMS TAXONOMY OF
EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES
Introduction
Try imagining that you are already a teacher. You passed the LET and you were
included in the RQA(Registry of Qualified Applicants). You were given an advice and you
reported to your assignment. Your principal accepted you and introduced you to your class.
How would you feel if you enter your classroom without specific learning outcomes?
How would you proceed without clear and specific targets? Being sure about your learning
outcomes will help you to facilitate learning effectively. With appropriate, clear and specific
learning outcomes, you do not need to guess nor grope in the dark on what to accomplish.
This module will present the original and the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational
Objectives. Although the revised taxonomy came out years ago, it is important to still
present both the old and the revised to have a complete understanding and better
appreciation of the taxonomy’s use in education.
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, the learner will be able to:
• formulate learning outcomes reflecting the different levels of the revised taxonomy
• explore the use of technology apps in applying the revised taxonomy
• explain the four criteria of creativity by Torrance.
• practice creative thinking and apply problem-solving skills.
82
Lesson 1. The Revised Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational
Objectives (Borabo et al., 2015)
Figure 9.1. Original and Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (Borabo et al., 2015)
Old Taxonomy
In 1956, the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals
Handbook 1: Cognitive Domain was published. Initially, the purpose was simply to have a
framework to classify test questions that faculty members shared. Eventually, it became so
relevant and useful in education. Since then, it has been used in planning the curriculum,
planning learning activities and assessment. Bloom and his colleagues published Handbook
II, The Affective Domain in 1964. Eventually, other experts published a taxonomy for the
psychomotor domain in 1966, 1970 and 1972.
This Module will focus more on the cognitive domain.
Bloom's taxonomy was a model that described the different levels of outcomes that target
what skills and competencies the teachers aim to develop in the learners. The taxonomy in
the cognitive domain contains the levels from knowledge to evaluation. The six levels
progress from simple more complex levels of thinking, the last three being referred to as
• Six Levels of Bloom's Taxonomy
The Original Bloom's Taxonomy
• Two Dimensions of the Revised Taxonomy
The Revised Taxonomy
Practical Guide to the Revised Taxonomy
Apps and the Revised Taxonomy (Synapse Strengthener)
83
"higher-or thinking skills" or HOTS! So you've got to have the "hots" to teach well. We
always hear seasoned teachers reminding us to focus on the HOTS and not to stop at the
usual memorizing and enumerating.
To facilitate learning, we begin teaching with facts, stating memorized rules,
principles or definitions (knowledge), which must lead to understanding concepts, rules and
principles (comprehension). But we should not end here.
A proof of the comprehension of the concepts and principles is using them in real-life
situations (application). For an in-depth understanding and mastery of these applied
concepts, rules and principles, these are broken down into parts (analysis). Students may
compare, contrast, classify, further investigate, etc . These actions now reflect a higher level
of thinking.
A still higher level of thinking is when students put together elements of what has
been learned in a new way (synthesis). They come up with a wholistic, complete, more
integrated, or even a new view or perspective of what was learned.
With a full grasp of what was learned, the students can now assess or judge, based
on a set of standards, on what they have learned (evaluation).
Table 9.1. The Original Bloom's Taxonomy: Cognitive Domain Levels and their
Subcategories (Borabo et al., 2015)
The cognitive domain levels or
thinking levels also have subcategories
except for that of application. The next Table
shows the original taxonomy with its levels,
subcategories and sample verbs.
Sample Verbs
1. Knowledge define, describe, draw, identify, label, locate,
memorize, name, recite, recognize, select,
state, write 1.1 Knowledge of specifics
1.1.1 terminology
84
1.1.2 specific facts
1.2 Knowledge of ways and means of
dealing with the specifics
1.2.1 conventions
1.2.2 trends and sequences
1.2.3 classifications and categories
1.2.4 criteria
1.2.5 methodology
1.3 Knowledge of universals and
abstractions in the field
1.3.1 principles and generalizations
1.3.2 theories and structures
2.Comprehension
2.1 translation
2.2 interpretation
2.3 theories and inspection
3. Application apply, change, prepare, produce,
4. Analysis analyze, subdivide, take apart, investigate,
compare, contrast, infer 4.1 elements
4.2relationships
4.3 organizational principles
85
5. Synthesis combine, organize, design, formulate
5.1 production of unique communication
5.2 production of a plan, or proposed set
of operations
5.3 derivation of a set of abstract relations
6. Evaluation asses, appraise, critique, judge, recommend
6.1 in terms of internal evidence
6.2 in terms of external evidence
At the end of the unit, the students will be able to:
- enumerate the characters in The World is an Apple" (knowledge)
- summarize the story (comprehension)
- apply the rules of subject-verb agreement when writing a summary of the story
(application)
- compare and contrast the qualities of the characters in the story (analysis)
- write a song expressing the message or lesson of the story (synthesis)
- write a critique of the author's writing style (evaluation)
86
Revised Taxonomy
After 45 years since the publication of Bloom's taxonomy, Lorin Anderson (Bloom's former
student) and David Krathwohl led a new group of experts to work together. The result was
what is now called the revised taxonomy.
Below are the salient differences between the old and the revised taxonomies
1. Levels or categories of thinking in the old taxonomy were nouns, while in the revised
taxonomy they are verbs. The use of action words instead of nouns was done to
highlight that thinking is an active process. For example, evaluate instead of
evaluation, or analyze instead or analysis.
2. While the revised taxonomy remains to be in hierarchical levels or increasing
complexity, it is intended to be more flexible, in that it allows the categories to
overlap. For example some action words in understand level, like explain, may
appear to be more complex than the action word, show in the apply level. However,
when we look into the six levels from remember to create, we will still find that, over-
all, the taxonomy proceeds in a hierarchical order.
3. The knowledge level was changed to remember. The change was made because
knowledge does not refer to a cognitive or thinking level. Knowledge is the object of
the thinking. Remember is more appropriate word for the first thinking level which
involves recalling and retrieving knowledge.
4. The comprehension level was changed to understand. Teacher are likely to use the
word understand when referring to their work rather than comprehension.
5. Synthesis was changed to create and was placed as the highest level.
6. The cognitive domain now includes two dimensions: the cognitive dimension and the
knowledge dimension. The knowledge dimension of the revised taxonomy was
based on the subcategories of knowledge in the old taxonomy.
87
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Cognitive Domain
Old Taxonomy
(one dimension)
Revised Taxonomy
(two dimension)
Cognitive
Dimension
Knowledge
Dimension 1. Knowledge
2. Comprehension
1. Remember Factual
Conceptual
Procedural
Metacognitive
2. Understand
3. Apply
4. Analyze
5. Evaluate
6. Create
3. Application
4. Analysis
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation
Figure 9.1. The Old and Revised Taxonomy with Two Dimensions of the Cognitive
Domain (Krathwohl, 2002)
88
Table 9.2 Examples of learning outcomes using the taxonomy:The Original Bloom's
Taxonomy: Cognitive Domain Levels and their Subcategories (Borabo et al., 2015)
The Cognitive Dimension The Knowledge Dimension
1. Remember
Retrieving relevant knowledge from long-
term memory
1.1recognizing
1.2 recalling
A. Factual
The basic elements that students must know.
Knowledge of:
a. terminology
b. specific details and elements
2. Understand
Determining the meaning of instructional
messages, including oral, written and
graphic communication
2.1 interpreting
2.2 exemplifying
2.3 classifying
2.4 summarizing
2.5 inferring
2.6 comparing
2.7 explaining
B. Conceptual
The interrelationships among the basic
elements within a larger structure that enable
them to function together.
Knowledge of:
a. classifications and categories
b. principles and generalizations
c. theories, models and structures
3. Apply
Carrying out or using a procedure in a
given situation
3.1 executing
3.2 implementing
C. Procedural Knowledge
How to do something; methods of inquiry,
and criteria for using skills, algorithms,
techniques and methods
Knowledge of:
a. subject-specific skills and algorithms
89
b. subject-specific techniques and
methods
c. criteria for determining when to use
appropriate procedures
4. Analyze
Breaking material into its constituents parts
and detecting how the parts relate to one
another and to an overall structure or
purpose
4.1 differentiating
4.2 organizing
4.3 attributing
D. Metacognitive Knowledge
Knowledge of cognition in general as well as
awareness and knowledge of one's own
cognition
a. strategic- knowledge
b. knowledge about cognitive tasks,
including contextual and conditional
knowledge
c. self-knowledge
5. Evaluate
Making judgments based on criteria and
standards
5.1 checking
5.2 critiquing
6. Create
Putting elements together to form a novel,
coherent whole or make an original product
6.1 generating
6.2 planning
6.3 producing
The revised taxonomy highlights two dimensions: the cognitive and. knowledge
dimensions. The cognitive dimension includes the hierarchical ordered levels of thinking.
90
The thinking levels move from the simplest to most complex. The levels are remember,
understand, apply, analyze, evaluate and create.
The knowledge dimension includes four knowledge categories: factual, conceptual,
procedural, metacognitive. The knowledge that teachers aim to teach and students aim to
learn can be about facts, concepts, procedures and metacognitive knowledge.
When you formulate learning objectives, you consider what level se thinking (cognitive)
you want your students to achieve, and also what type of knowledge it is you want to teach.
When we write a learning objective, the level of thinking represented by the verb, while
the knowledge dimensions is represented by the noun. In the example, "at the end of the
lesson, the learner will be able to explain the photosynthesis process," explain is the action
word which will fall under the second cognitive dimension level, understand, and
photosynthesis is the noun that will fall under procedural knowledge.
Knowledge Dimension
Cognitive Dimension Factual Conceptual Procedural Metacognitive
Terminology,
specific
details,
elements
Classifications,
categories,
principles and
generalızations,
theories,
models,
structures
Subject
specific skills,
algorithms
techniques
and methods,
criteria for
determining
when to use
the
procedures
Strategic
knowledge,
specific de
cognitive
tasks-
contextual and
conditional
knowledge,
self-knowledge
1. Remember
recognize
recall
Remember-
Facts
Remember
Concepts
Remember
Procedures
Remember
Metacognitive
Knowledge
91
Ex. List the
ingredients of
kare-kare
Ex. Describe
kare-kare as
Filipino dish
Ex. Recall the
steps in
cooking kare-
kare
Ex. Review
tasks
accomplished
in cooking
kare-kare
2. Understand
interpret,
exemplify, classify,
summarize, infer
compare, explain
Understand –
Facts
Ex.
Summarize
the features of
the latest
smart phone
model
Understand -
Concepts
Ex. Classify
smartphones
according to
operating
system
Understand –
Procedures
Ex. Describe
the procedure
sending
group
messages
using cell
phones
Understand -
Metacognitive
Knowledge
Ex. Choose
best strategies
to adjust
quickly in using
a different
smartphone
3. Apply
execute,
implement
Apply – Facts
Ex. Use facts
in answering
questions.
Apply –
Concepts
Ex.
Demonstrate
coherence in
answering
questions
Apply –
Procedures
Ex. Follow
the PQ4R
steps best
study in
reading a
chapter
Apply -
Metacognitive
Knowledge
Ex. Use the
best strategy
to overcome
one's
weakness
4. Analyze
differentiate,
Analyze –
Facts
Analyze -
Concepts
Analyze –
Procedures
Analyze -
Metacognitive
92
organize, attribute Ex. Identify
the key words
in the
definition of
anger
Ex. Identify
triggers of anger
among
teenagers
Ex. Examine
the different
steps family
members
take to
manage
anger
Knowledge
Ex. Reflect on
one's ability to
manage anger
5. Evaluate
check, critique
Evaluate –
Facts
Ex. Select the
most complete
list of
investment
banks
Evaluate –
Concepts
Ex. Critique the
different views
about financial
literacy
Evaluate –
Procedures
Ex. Choose
the best ways
to invest
money
Evaluate –
Metacognitive
Knowledge
Ex. Assess
one's financial
literacy
6. Create
generate, plan,
produce
Create – Facts
Ex. Produce a
presentation
showing
award-
winning adobo
recipes
Create –
Concepts
Ex. Write an
informal essay
about what
authentic adobo
is
Create –
Procedures
Ex. Create a
new recipe
for cooking
adobo
Create –
Metacognitive
Knowledge
Ex. Make a
project about
adobo as a
Filipino dish
based on one’s
talents
93
Practical Guide in Using the Revised Taxonomy (Borabo et al., 2015)
When you are ready to plan your units, lessons or activities, Bloom's taxonomy will
be very useful in helping you formulate your learning objectives. Below is a collection of
action words and possible activities or work which you can use for your plan.
Table 9.4 Cognitive and knowledge dimensions pair to form various kinds of learning
objectives and activities (Borabo et al., 2015)
Cognitive Dimension Levels Sample Action Words Suggested Activities,
Outputs or Outcomes
Remember
(recalling information)
Recall Describe
Name Locate
List Write
State Find
Tell Underline
Reproduce Define
Recitations, worksheets,
definitions, fact charts, lists
Understand
(explaining information and
concepts)
Explain Describe
Translate Define
Interpret Report
Discuss Predict
Story problems, drawing
show and tell, summary,
paraphrasing
Apply
(using information in a new
way)
Use Practice
Solve Execute
Implement Demonstrate
Construct Dramatize
Presentation, role-playing,
simulation, collection, model,
scrapbook, product
Analyze
(distinguishing different parts
Compare Contrast Chart, plan, questionnaire,
spreadsheet, summary,
94
of a whole) Distinguish Separate
Investigate Differentiate
Infer Sequence
survey
Evaluate (defending a
concept or idea)
Assess Appraise
Check Debate
Defend Decide
Dispute Justify
Judge Rate
Opinion, judgment,
recommendation, report, self-
evaluation, position paper,
critique
Create (creating something
new)
Change Invent
Design Devise
Formulate Generate
Improve Compose
Plan Combine
Propose
Framework, model, story,
multimedia presentation,
poem, haiku, song, essay
Uses of the Revised Taxonomy
The revised taxonomy provides a framework that helps educators in the following ways:
1. It provides educators with a common set of terms and levels about learning
outcomes that help in planning across subject matter and grade levels.
2. It helps in the drafting of learning standards across levels.
3. It serves as a guide in evaluating the school's curriculum objectives, activities and
assessment.
4. It guides the teacher in formulating learning outcomes that tap higher-order thinking
skills.
5.
95
Lesson 2. Problem Solving and Creativity (Borabo et al., 2015)
Figure 9.2 Problem Solving/ (Borabo et al., 2015)
What you went through is an exercise on creative thinking and problem solving. What are
the aspects of creative thinking and problem solving?
Torrance Framework for Creative Thinking
A common framework for creative thinking processes is described by Torrance (1979).
Each aspect is defined below, along with ways to facilitate the respective aspect by using
key words and application activities.
Fluency
Definition
Fluency refers v refers to the production of a great number of ideas or alternate solutions to
a problem. Fluency implies understanding, not just remembering information that is learned.
Key words
Problem Solving/Creativity
Creative Problem
Solving (CPS)
Torrance's Creativity
Framework
Fluency
Flexibility
Elaboration
Originality
Six Stages of CPS
96
Compare, convert, count, define, describe, explain, identify, label, list, match, name, outline,
paraphrase, predict, summarize.
Application activities
Trace a picture and label the parts.
Outline an article you find on your topic.
How many uses can you think of for a clothes hanger?
List 15 things that are commonly red or contain red.
Example: Apple, blood, brick, caboose, cherry, Christmas stocking, exit sign, fire alarm, flag,
heart, red nose reindeer, rose, tomato, wagon.
Flexibility
Definition
Flexibility refers to the production of ideas that show a variety of possibilities or realms of
thought. It involves the ability to see things from different points of view, to use many
different approaches or strategies.
Key words
Change, demonstrate, distinguish, employ, extrapolate, interpolate, interpret, predict.
Application ideas
What would happen if ... there were no automobiles?
How would a … dog look to a flea?
How is ______ like _ _____?
How would you feel if ... you were invisible for a day?
How would you group the ideas about "red" into categories?
Example: Fruit, safety features, vehicles
97
Once categories are identified, fluency may be further demonstrated by rating more ideas
about the idea red within categories. Even a modest attempt could result in the following
lists, recognizing that the creative thinking process may shift the mind in a spiral way
between all four aspects of creativity.
Table 9.5 Ideas about “red” grouped into categories (Borabo et al., 2015)
Red fruit Red safety features Red vehicles
apple exit sign caboose
cherry fire alarm fire truck
raspberry stop sign tricycle
tomato tail lights wagon
Elaboration
Definition
Elaboration is the process of enhancing ideas by providing more details. Additional detail
and clarity improves interest in, and understanding of, the topic.
Key words
Appraise, critique, determine, evaluate, grade, Judge, measure, select, test.
Application ideas
Tell your neighbor about your last family trip using as many details as possible.
What can you add to_______ improve its quality or performance?
Describe all the possible characteristics of the red quality in a wagon.
Example: Shade, finish, texture, uniformity.
98
Originality
Definition
Originality involves the production of ideas that are unique or unusual. It involves synthesis
or putting information about a topic back together in a new way.
Key words
Compose, create, design, generate, integrate, modify, rearrange, reconstruct. reorganize,
revise.
Application ideas
Find an original use for_______.
What would be the strangest way to get out of bed?
Design a new________ that is better than the one you have.
Write an unusual title for the ideas about red.
Example: Revolutionary "Red" Representation.
An overview of the four aspects of creativity appears in activity presentation that may be
downloaded from the following link: Creative.ppt
An adaptation of the creativity aspects to the construct "jumping" appears in a word
document that may be downloaded from the following link: Jumping.doc
Creative Problem Solving - CPS
Creative Problem Solving (CPS) is an intentional process for solving problems and
discovering opportunities. It espouses the use of creativity in coming up with solutions which
are not only novel but practical as well. In the 1950's Alex Osborn described this process in
his book, Applied Imagination. Osborn opened the process in the public domain which
meant various fields which meant anyone can use it. Over the years countless people have
utilized the CPS in various field and endeavors.
99
Osborn’s Checklist, the origin of Classical Brainstorming is the root of creative
problem solving (CPS). There are a variety of general structures: define problem, generate
possible solutions, select and implement the best which can be found extensively, in several
different academic traditions.
Its most extended and formalized form it has the six stages shown below, each with
a divergent and a convergent phase. However, more recent publications seem more
interested in focusing on procedure and technique which issues, with less weight on the full
elaboration of this structure.
The following, based on Van Gundy (1988's) description, is a very brief skeleton of a
very rich process, showing it in its full '6 x 2 stages' form:
1. Stage 1: Mess finding: Sensitize yourself (scan, search) for issues (concerns,
challenges, opportunities, etc.) that need to be tackled.
• Divergent techniques include “Wouldn't It Be Nice If…” (WIBNI) and Wouldn't It
Be Awful If... (WIBAI) - brainstorming to identify desirable outcomes and
obstacles to be overcome.
• Convergent techniques include the identification of hotspots (u), expressed as a
list of IWWMs ('In What Ways Might... "), and selection in terms of ownership
criteria (e.g. problem- owner's motivation and ability to influence it) and outlook
criteria (e.g. urgency, familiarity, stability).
2. Stage 2: Data finding: Gather information about the problem.
• Divergent techniques include Five W’s and H (Who, Why, What, When, Where
and How) and listing of wants, sources and data: List all your information 'wants'
as a series of question; for each, list possible sources of answers; then follow
these up and for each source, list what you found.
• Convergent techniques again include: identifying hotspots (Highlighting); Mind-
mapping to sort and classify the information gathered; and also restating the
problem in the light of your richer understanding of it.
3. Stage 3: Problem finding: convert a fuzzy statement of the problem into a broad
statement more suitable for idea finding.
100
• Divergent techniques include asking 'Why?' etc. - the repeatable questions and
Five W’s and H.
• Convergent techniques include highlighting again, reformulation of problem-
statements to meet the criteria that they contain only one problem and no criteria,
and selection of the most promising statement (but NB that the mental 'stretching'
that the activity gives to the participants can be as important as the actual
statement chosen)
4. Stage 4: Idea Finding: generate as many ideas as possible
• Divergence using any of a very wide range of idea-generating techniques. The
general rules of Classic Brainstorming (such as deferring judgment) are likely to
underpin all of these.
• Convergence can again involve hotspots or mind-mapping, the combining of
different ideas, and the shortlisting of the most promising handful, perhaps with
some thought for the more obvious evaluation criteria, but not over-restrictively.
5. Stage 5: Solution finding: Generate and select obvious evaluation criteria (using an
expansion/contraction cycle) and develop (which may include combining) the short-
listed ideas from Idea Finding as much as you can in the light of these criteria. Then
opt for the best of these improved ideas (e.g. using Comparison tables).
6. Stage 6: Acceptance finding: How can the suggestion you have just selected be
made up to standard and put into practice? Shun negativity, and continue to apply
deferred judgment - problems are exposed to be solved, not to dishearten progress.
Action plans are better developed in small groups of 2 - 3 rather than in a large group
(unless you particularly want commitment by the whole group). Particularly for
people' problems it is often worth developing several alternative action plans.
Possible techniques include - Five W's and H, Implementation Checklists,
Consensus Mapping, Potential-Problem Analysis (PPA)
101
Assessment Task 9
1. Think of a topic you are really interested to teach. Formulate at least 10 learning outcomes for a unit on this topic.
2. Analyze the learning outcomes you formulated. Write the numeral corresponding to your
learning outcomes in the appropriate blank space in the matrix below.
KNOWLEDGE DIMENSION
Cognitive Dimension
Factual Conceptual Procedural Metacognitive
1. Remember
2. Understand
3. Apply
4. Analyze
5.Evaluate
6.Create
3. Practice creative thinking.
In two minutes, think of as many uses as possible for a spoon. The test measures divergent thinking across four sub-categories.
-Fluency
-originality
-Flexibility
-elaboration
4. Complete the image below
/ /
/ /
102
Summary
This module presents the original and the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational
Objectives. It aims to give the students a complete understanding and better appreciation of
the taxonomy’s use in education. It gives a model that target what skills and competencies
the teachers aim to develop in the learners. If the original taxonomy starts from knowledge
and ends in evaluation, the revised taxonomy begins from remember to create. The noun
domain in one dimension in the old taxonomy was changed to verb in two dimension in the
revised taxonomy.
This module also challenged the students to practice creative thinking and apply
problem-solving skills. If one is creative he can easily find ways to solve a problem.
References
Borabo, H., Corpuz, B., Lucas, M., & Lucido, P. (2015). Child and Adolescent
Development. Quezon City, Philippines: Lorimar Publishing.
Testing Mom. (n.d.). Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT).
https://www.testingmom.com/tests/torrance-
test/#:~:text=The%20Torrance%20Tests%20of%20Creative%20Thinking%20(TTCT)%2
0is%20designed%20to,Unusual%20Questions%2C%20and%20Just%20Suppose.
103
MODULE 10
MOTIVATION
Introduction
“The best way to predict your future is to create it.”
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal,
It is the courage to continue that counts.”
“ The struggle you are in today is developing the
Strength you need for tomorrow.”
Motivational quotes are so many. They are recited in rhymes before speeches. They are
prepared and uttered to convince people about an idea. They try to push people to action or
to change their mindset. So many good speakers emerge as motivational speakers.
Chinkee Tan and Francis Kong will convince you to save. IMG will motivate you handle your
finances wisely. Brother Bo Sanchez will enlighten you to spiritual things that you will pick up
a Bible and start reading it.
So teachers also must learn to motivate. We must understand the reason why we use
quotations, songs, games, puzzles and other activities at the start of a session.
We try to entice them to listen. We set the mood of the children so they will participate
and get involved. But there is more than just having fun. If they listen and participate, they
better understand the lesson. So this module will make us think deeper.
104
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, the learner will be able to:
• justify the role of extrinsic motivation in view of the development of intrinsic
motivation.
• explain to a learning partner the following theories on the sources of intrinsic
motivation: attribution theory, self-efficacy theory, self-determination and self-
regulation theory, goal theory, choice theory and Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
• together with a learning partner, cite the implications of these theories to the
facilitation of learning.
• Cite ways to make assessment more motivating for students
• demonstrate appreciation of assessment as a process to evaluate and facilitate
learning
Lesson 1. Motivation
MOTIVATION
Theories on Motivation Types of Motivation Student Diversity in
Motivation
Extrinsic
Intrinsic
Attribution Theory
Self-Efficacy Theory
Choice Theory
Maslow's Hierarchy
of Needs
Goal Theory
Figure 10.1 Motivation (Borabo et al., 2015)
105
Motivation is "a process whereby a goal-directed activity i instigated and sustained."
(Schunk, Pintrich & Meece, 2008 as cited by Borabo et al., 2015)
Meaning of Motivation
Motivation is an inner drive that causes you to do something and persevere at
something. It energizes you to do something. It is the strength and of the drive toward an
action. While ability refers to what children motivation refers to what these children will do.
Motivation refers to the initiation, direction, intensity and persistence of behavior. When we
get motivated to do something, it is not enough that we start working at that but that we get
attracted to it. Our attraction towards it becomes so intense that we persist working on it
through thick and thin until its completion. Learner’s motivation is the primary factor
influencing both performance and success in school (Ryan et al., 2007 as cited by Borabo e
et al., 2015).
Indicators of a High Level of Motivation (Borabo et al., 2015)
Your student's level of motivation is shown in his/her choice of action, intensity and
persistence of effort. If you have a highly motivated student, you have a student who is
excited about learning and accomplishing things. S/he takes the initiative to undertake
learning tasks, assignments and projects without being pushed by his/her teachers and
parents. S/he has goals to accomplish and dreams to realize. S/he is convinced that
accomplishing the things s/he is asked to accomplish in class helps her/him realize the
goals s/he has set for herself/himself and his/her dream in life. S/he is willing to give up the
satisfaction of immediate goals for the sake of more important remote goals. An example is
her willingness to give up joining his/her barkada to watch a movie in order to prepare
thoroughly to final examinations.
A student who is highly motivated to learn enjoys learning and learns much more
than the one who is not as motivated. S/he persists and perseveres in her/his studies even
when things turn out to be difficult. S/he does no give up easily. As a result, his/her
performance is satisfactory. In contrast, a student who is not motivated to learn does not
106
enjoy learning, does not study unless "pushed". When s/he feels the difficulty of study, s/he
readily gives up. S/he lacks perseverance.
In summary, motivated students have the following characteristic traits:
• have positive attitudes toward school and describe school as satisfying
• persist on difficult tasks and cause few management problem.
• process information in depth and excel in classroom learning expertise.
Types of Motivation
Motivation is classified as either intrinsic or extrinsic. It is intrinsic the source of
motivation is from within the person himself/herself or the activity itself. It is motivation to
engage in an activity for its own sake (Schunk et al., 2008 as cited by Borabo et al., 2015).
An example is when a student reads pocketbooks because s/he herself/himself wants to
read them or because reading them is in itself worthwhile and enjoyable. Motivation is
extrinsic when that which or in motivates a person is someone or something outside
him/her. When a student studies because s/he was told by her/his teacher or because s/he
is afraid to fail and his/her parents will make her /him stop schooling or because it will lead
to a good grade, we can say that s/he is extrinsically motivated. Extrinsic motivation is
motivation to engage in an activity as a means to an end. In our examples, the student
studies to please her/his teacher, parents or to get a good grade. He does not study for the
joy of studying.
Obviously, intrinsic motivation is more beneficial than extrinsic motivation because
intrinsic motivation comes from within the person himself herself. If that which motivates a
person is something or someone outside, the moment that person or that something is
gone, the person's motivation is also gone. Intrinsic motivation is evident when people
engage in an activity for its own sake, without some obvious external incentive present.
Reading for no reason other than the joy of reading illustrates intrinsic motivation.
Research indicates that intrinsic motivation is preferable because of its focus on
learning and understanding (Brophy, 2004 as cited by Borabo et al., 2015).
107
The Role of Extrinsic Motivation
Initially, extrinsic motivation is necessary to develop the love for learning among
poorly motivated students. If good grades, rewards, praises or words of encouragement or
fear of failing grade can motivate unmotivated students to study, why not? For as long as
students are hardly motivated, external motivation in the form of rewards, incentives or
punishment play significant role in the development of motivated students. It is expected,
however, that these extrinsic motivational factors be gradually replaced by internal
motivation. In the concrete, this means that after motivating the students to study by way of
reward, praise, encouragement, punishment, hopefully the students develop the genuine
love for learning and becomes intrinsically motivated in the process. In short, we may begin
employing intrinsically motivation at the start but this should fade away as the students get
intrinsically motivated themselves (Borabo et al., 2015).
Lesson 2. Theories on Factors Affecting Motivation
In the previous lesson, you learned that intrinsic motivation is far better than extrinsic
motivation. By all means then, let us help develop intrinsic motivation in our students.
What are the sources of intrinsic motivation?
There is currently no unified theory to explain the origin or elements of intrinsic
motivation. Most explanations combine elements of Bernard Weiner's attribution theory,
Bandura's work on self-efficacy, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, William Glasser's choice
theory, and other studies relating to goal attribution theory, orientation (Borabo et al., 2015).
Attribution theory
What is the attribution theory? This theory explains that we attribute our successes
or failures or other events to several factors. For instance, you attribute your popularity to
your popular parents or to your own sterling academic performance. Or you attribute the
poor economic condition you are in to the Land Reform of the Philippine government (your
lands were subjected to land reform) or to the vices of your father. These attributions differ
108
from one another in three ways-locus, stability and controllability (Ormrod, 2004 as cited by
Borabo et al., 2015)
1. Locus (place): Internal versus external. If your student traces his good grade to his
ability and to his hard work, he attributes his good grade to internal factors. If your
student, however, claims that his good grade is due to, the effective teaching of his
teacher or to the adequate library facilities, he attributes his good grades to factors
external to himself.
2. Stability: Stable versus unstable. If you attribute your poor performance to what you
have inherited from your parents, then you are attributing the cause of your
performance to something stable, something that cannot change because it is in your
genes. If you attribute it to excessive watching of TV, then you are claiming that your
poor eyesight is caused by an unstable factor, something that can change. (You can
prolong or shorten your period of watching TV.)
3. Controllability: Controllable versus uncontrollable. If your student claims his poor
academic performance is due to his teacher's ineffective teaching strategy, he
attributes his poor performance to a factor beyond his control. If, however, your
student admits that his poor class performance is due to his poor study habits and
low motivation, he attributes the event to factors which are very much within his
control.
How does attribution affect motivation?
If your student attributes his/her success or failure to something within him/her and
therefore is within his/her control or to something unstable and, therefore, can be
changed s/he is more likely to be motivated. If, however, your student traces his/her
success to something outside him/her and therefore beyond his/her control, s/he is likely
to be less motivated.
Motivation tends to increase when students attribute failure to lack of effort because
effort can be controlled. It tends to decrease when students failure to uncontrollable causes
(e.g. luck, or ability if viewed as stable (Weinstock, 2007 as cited by Borabo et al., 2015).
109
This is something interesting "People tend to attribute their successes to internal
causes (e.g. high ability, hard work) and their failures to external causes (e.g. luck,
behaviors of others. March, 1990). When students do poorly, for example, they commonly
attribute their failure to poor teaching, boring topics, and poor tests.
Table 10.1 Relationships Among the Dimensions of Attributions (Paul Kauchak, 2008)
Attributions Locus (location of
cause)
Stability (of cause) Control (of learning
situation)
Ability Inside the learner Stable (cannot
change)
Learner out of
control
Effort Inside the learner Unstable (can
change).
Learner in control
Luck Outside the learner Unstable (can
change)
Learner out of
control
Task difficulty Outside the learner Stable (cannot
change)
Learner out of
control
A sense of high self-efficacy means a high sense of competence. Self- efficacy is the
belief that one has the necessary capabilities to perform a task, fulfill role expectations, or
meet a challenging situation successfully. When your students believe that they have the
ability to perform learning activities successfully, they are more likely to be intrinsically
motivated to do such learning activities. The secret, therefore, to enhancing intrinsic
motivation is enhancing our students' sense of self-efficacy. Social cognitive theorists
identified several self-efficacy-enhancing strategies(Paul & Kauchak, 2008) :
• Make sure students master the basic skills. Mastery of the basic skills Iike reading,
writing, 'rithmetic will enable the child to tackle higher level activities. Imagine how
miserable it is for a student who has not mastered the basic skills! Unable to perform
110
higher-level learning tasks that require display and use of basic skills, your student
will feel he is a failure in his school life.
• Help them make noticeable progress on difficult tasks. You like to give up climbing a
mountain when you feel that you are not making progress at all. When you have
spent hours and hours on a difficult task you seem not to be progressing, you are
made to think that your efforts are leading you nowhere and you want to give up.
That’s why, it is good that you are helped to see progress while you are working on
your difficult task. The knowledge that you are progressing inspires you to keep on.
• Communicate confidence in students’ abilities through words and actions. Express
confidence that your students, with all their abilities, can easily tackle the learning
task. Words like, "if you were able to do a more difficult task yesterday, what you are
asked to do today is much easier than that of yesterday." Needless to say that your
body language and your words expressing your belief in their abilities must match.
• Expose them to successful peers. Being with successful peers, your students will
inhale success and get energized to 'succeed as well. Success is infectious in the
same way that failure is also contagious. (Ormrod, 2004 as cited by Paul & Kauchak,
2008).
Other recommendations from motivation theorists are :
• Provide competence-promoting feedback. Communicate to your students that they
can do the job. They have the ability to succeed.
• Promote mastery on challenging tasks. Don't give your students extremely difficult
nor extremely easy task. If the task you give is extremely easy, they do not get
challenged and you do not draw the best from them; if it is extremely difficult, they
get frustrated. Then it is best to strike the golden mean between the two extremes. A
challenging task is one that encourages your students to stretch themselves to their
limits.
111
• Promote self-comparison rather than comparison with others. Desiderata say: If you
compare yourself with others, you will become vain and bitter. For always there will
be greater and lesser persons than yourself."
After encouraging your students to set their personal goals, ask them to evaluate
their progress against their own goals.
• Be sure errors occur within an overall context of success. (Ormrod, 2004 as cited by
Paul & Kauchak, 2008).
• There will always be errors or mistakes as we learn, as we go through life. But they
cease to be mistakes once we learn from them. But if it is all errors that come one
after another without a taste of success, chances are your students will feel so down
that they are robbed of the courage to proceed. "The learning process requires the
challenge of new and different experiences, the trying of the unknown, and therefore,
necessarily must involve the making of mistakes. In order for people to learn, they
need the opportunity to explore new situations and ideas without being penalized or
punished for mistakes which are integral to the activity of learning." (Ortigas,
19902004 as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008)
Table 10.2 The Influence of Self-Efficacy on Motivation ( Paul Kauchak. 2008 )
High Self-Efficacy Learners Low Self-Efficacy Learners
Task orientation Accept challenging tasks Avoid challenging tasks
Effort Expend high effort when faced
with challenging tasks
Expand low effort when faced with
challenging tasks
Persistence Persist when goals aren’t initially
reached
Give up when goals aren't initially
reached
Beliefs Believe they will succeed
Control stress and anxiety when
goals aren't met
Believe they're in control of their
Focus on feelings of
incompetence
Experience anxiety and
depression when goals aren't met
112
environment Believe they're not in control of
their environment
Strategy use Discard unproductive strategies Persist with unproductive
strategies
Performance Perform higher than low-efficacy
students of equal ability.
Perform lower than high-efficacy
students of equal ability.
Self-determination and self-regulation theories
Students are intrinsically motivated when they have a sense of self-determination -
when they believe that they have some choice and control regarding the things they do and
the directions their lives take. A student's sense of self-determination is demonstrated in his
capacity for self- regulation. Self-regulation refers to a person's ability to master himself. He
is the "I am the captain of my soul" type of person. He is not a victim of circumstances. He is
capable of directing himself (Ormrod, 2004 2004 as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008).
What are indicators of self-regulation? They are the abilities to:
• set standards for oneself
• monitor and evaluate one's own behavior against such standards and
• impose consequences on oneself for one's successes or failures
How does self-regulation relate to motivation?
A Student who is capable of self-regulation is more likely to be more intrinsically
motivated because he sets his goals and standards, he monitors his progress, and
evaluates his own performance.
A student, who is capable of self-regulation, is not only capable of regulating his
behavior but he is also capable of regulating his own learning. The following processes
involved in self-regulated learning (Ormrod, 2004 as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008):
• Goal-setting. Self-regulated learners know what they want to accomplish when they
read or study.
113
• Planning. Self-regulated learners determine ahead of time how best to use the time
they have available for learning.
• Attention control. Self-regulated learners try to focus their attention on the subject
matter at hand and clear their minds of distracting thoughts and emotions.
• Application of learning strategies. Self-regulated learners choose different learning
strategies depending on the specific goal they want to accomplish
• Self-monitoring. Self-regulated learners continually monitor their progress toward
their goals and they change their learning strategies or modify their goals, if
necessary.
• Self-evaluation. Self-regulated learners determine whether what they have learned is
sufficient for the goals they have set.
A student who has self-determination and self-regulation is more likely to be intrinsically
motivated and so is more capable of self-regulated learning.
Here are some suggestions from motivation theorists to enhance students’ sense of self-
determination about school activities and assignments.
• Present rules and instructions in an informational manner rather than controlling
manner. Here are examples on how to present rules in an informational manner:
“We can make sure everyone has an equal chance to speak and be heard if we
listen without interrupting and if we raise our hands when we want to contribute
to the discussion."
“I’m giving you a particular format to follow when you do your Math homework. If
you use this format, it will be easier for me to find your answers and to figure out
how I can help you improve."
• Provide opportunities for students to make choices. A particular lesson objective
can be reached by the use of varied strategies. Students will be more likely to be
intrinsically motivated to attain the objective when they are given the freedom to
choose how to attain it, of course, within the set parameters. An example is when
114
we allow our students to choose their manner of group work presentation to the
class after the group activity.
• Evaluate student performance in a non-controlling fashion. Communicate
evaluation results to inform your students of their progress without passing
judgment of some sort but to make them see that they are strong in some points
but not so in other items. The practice of self-evaluation especially with the use of
scoring rubrics will be of great help. Says renowned author, consultant and
speaker Alfie Kohn, "rewards for learning undermines intrinsic motivation." Kohn
Alfie (1993) as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008.
Choice theory (Paul & Kauchak, 2008)
Bob Sullo (2007) , as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008 , writes:
The choice theory is a biological theory that suggests that we are born with specific
needs that we are genetically instructed to satisfy. All of our behaviors represent our best
attempt at any moment to satisfy our basic needs or genetic instructions. In addition to the
physical need for survival, we have four basic psychological needs that must be satisfied to
be emotionally healthy:
• Belonging or connecting
• Power or competence
• Freedom
• Fun
The need for belonging or connecting motivates us to develop relationships and
cooperate with others. Without the need for belonging and cooperating, we would only strive
to be independent.
The need for power is more than just a drive to dominate. Power is gained through
competence, achievement and mastery. Our genetic instruction is to achieve, master new
skills and to be recognized for our accomplishments…
115
As humans, we are also motivated to be free, to choose. Having choices is part of what
it means to be human and is one reason our species has been able to evolve, adapt and
thrive…
Each time we learn something new, we are having fun, another universal human
motivator It is our playfulness and our sense of discovery that allow us to learn as much as
we do.
What do these imply to our task to facilitate learning? We have to come up with a need-
satisfying environment. To motivate our students for learning, we should satisfy their need to
belong, their need to have power by being competent, the need to have a free choice, and
the need to enjoy learning and have fun.
How can these be done? If we create a sense of community in the classroom and make
every student feel s/he belongs to that classroom community, s/he will more likely love to go
to school. If we make use of cooperative learning structures, we strengthen the spirit of
cooperation and collaboration and reduce, if not eliminate, the spirit of cut-throat
competition. (To satisfy our students' need for power, let us help them quire it by very
making them achieve, by making them master their lessons and end up competent. As a
result of their competence and excellent achievement, they get recognized and experience
genuine power.
Let us teach our students that the source of authentic power is competence, not
bullying and other irresponsible behaviors. This way, they will learn the true road to real
power.
To motivate our students for learning, let us give them ample freedom to choose
within parameters that are safe and responsible, developmentally, appropriate and
supportive of learning for that is the ultimate purpose of freedom: to help our students learn
and grow into the responsible persons are called to be. When our students are made to feel
that they have a lot of free choices, they are driven to satisfy this need for freedom. On the
other hand, when our students perceive themselves to be so suffocated by other our
impositions and limits, they are most likely to behave in ways, even irresponsible ways, to
get them the freedom they believe is not satisfied.
116
Fun is a universal human motivator. If our students' need for fun is satisfied, they are
most likely to learn much. Glasser (1990) claims "fun is the genetic payoff for learning." A
joyless classroom does not motivate students to perform. Let's have fun while we teach.
Without our knowing, our students are learning and mastering what we are teaching while
we are having fun
"What happens outside of us has a lot to do with what we choose to do but the
outside event does not cause our behavior. What we get, and all we ever get from the
outside is information; how we choose to act on that information is up to us. (William
Glasser, 1990 as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008)
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
A student's lower-order needs must first be met before s/he works for the satisfaction
of his/her higher-order needs. The lower-order needs include first-level needs and second-
level needs. The first-level needs are basic survival and physiological needs for food, air,
water and sleep. The second- level needs are bodily safety and economic security.
There are three (3) levels in the higher-order needs. The first (which is now the third
level in Maslow's need hierarchy) is the need for love and belonging. The needs at the fourth
level include those for esteem and status, including one's feelings of self-worth and of
competence. The fifth level need is self-actualization, which means becoming all that one is
capable becoming, using one's skills to the fullest, and stretching talents to the maximum.
Based on Maslow's theory, a satisfied need is not a strong motivator but an
unsatisfied need is. Research proves that "unless the two lower-order needs (physiological
and security) are basically satisfied, employees (in our teaching-learning context) or our
students will not be greatly concerned with higher-order needs (Newstrom, 1991 as cited by
Paul & Kauchak, 2008)
For us teachers, this means that we cannot teach students with hungry stomach. We
cannot teach students when they feel afraid and insecure. While our obligation to feed them,
working with parents, the school nurse of and all others who can help can address the
problem of students' hunger, lack of sleep and the like.
117
Our students' need for love and belonging is satisfied in a class where they feel they
belong and are accepted regardless of their academic standing in class, economic status or
ethnic background. Their need for self-esteem is satisfied when we help them succeed,
recognize their effort and no matter how insignificant and praise their achievement. Doing so
actually propels them to self-actualization.
Goal theory (Paul & Kauchak, 2008)
Learning goals versus performance goals.The goals we set for ourselves affect our
level of motivation. There are several types of goals. In relation to learning we can speak of
learning goals and performance or how do they differ?
A learning goal is a "desire to acquire additional knowledge or master new skills"
while a performance goal is a "desire to look good and receive favorable judgments from
others or else look bad and receive unfavorable judgments." (Ormrod, 2004 as cited by Paul
& Kauchak, 2008) Between these two goals, with which type of goal is the intrinsically-
motivated student occupied? Obviously, the ideal student is the student with a learning goal.
The student with a learning goal is mastery-focused while the student with a performance
goal is performance aster focused.
Table 10.3 Comparison of Mastery-Focused and Performance-Focused Classroom (Paul
Kauchak. 2008 )
Mastery-Focused Performance-Focused
Success defined as… Mastery, improvement High grades, doing better than
others
Value placed on.. Effort, improvement High grades, demonstration of
high ability
Reasons for Meeting challenges, hard work Doing better than others,
118
satisfaction... success with minimum effort
Teacher oriented
towards…
Student learning Student performance
View of errors... A normal part of learning A basis for concern and
anxiety
Reasons for effort... Increased understanding High grades, doing better than
others
Ability viewed as… Incremental, alterable An entity, fixed
Reasons for
assessment...
Measure progress toward
preset criteria, provide feedback
Determine grades, compare
students to one another
Self-determine goals. Personally-relevant and self-determined goals enhance student’s
motivation. When lesson objectives are relevant to the life of students, then they turn out to
be more motivated to learn. When the lesson objectives are owned by the students because
they find them relevant to their life, most likely they become highly motivated for learning.
This departs from de -contextualized teaching that happens when all we do is deposit
information into the minds of our students, students memorize, and we withdraw what we
taught every periodic examination (Paul & Kauchak, 2008).
Goal setting. As a motivational tool, goal setting is effective when the following major
elements are present: 1) goal acceptance, 2) specificity, 3) challenge, 4) performance
monitoring, and 5)) performance feedback. Thus it is necessary that our students accept
and own our lesson objectives (see self-determined goals in the foregoing paragraph) and
that our lesson objectives must be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, result-oriented
and time-bound) and challenging. It is equally important that we monitor our students'
leaning. However, simply monitoring results is not enough. We have to give our students
feedback about their performance (Paul & Kauchak, 2008).
119
Lesson 3. Human Environmental Factors Affecting
Motivation
Figure 10.2 Motivation In The Classroom (Borabo et al., 2015)
Teacher's Affective Traits
Studies suggest that management and instructional processes are key to facilitating
learning but many interview responses, like the letter at the beginning of this module,
emphasize the teacher's affective characteristics or social and emotional behaviors, more
than pedagogical practice. Some of your teachers were motivating and inspiring. Others
were not.
You are grateful to those who motivated and inspired you. You must also be grateful
to those who were not as motivating and inspiring. In a way, they also helped you become
better persons in the sense that you strived to become better than them.
Researches cite the following affective characteristics of effective teachers (Stronge,
2002 as cited by Paul & Kauchak, 2008):
Motivation in the Classroom
The Classroom
Climate
Human Environmental
Factors Affecting
Motivation
Assessment
Strategies that can
Increase Motivation
Teacher's Affective
Traits
Classmates
Bullying
Parents
The Physical
Learning
Environment
120
• Caring - Specific attributes that show caring are:
- sympathetic listening to students not only about life inside the classroom but
more about students’ lives in general
- understanding of students' questions and concerns
- knowing students individually, their likes and dislikes, and personal situations
affecting behavior and performance
• Fairness and respect - These are shown in specific behaviors like:
- treating students as people
- avoiding the use of ridicule and preventing situations in students lose respect
in front of their peers
- practicing gender, racial and ethnic fairness
- providing students with opportunities for them to participate and to succeed
• Social interactions with students -The specific behaviors of a facilitative social
interaction are:
- consistently behaving in a friendly, personal manner maintaining professional
distance with students
- working with students not for the students
- interacting productively by giving students responsibility and while respect
- allowing students to participate in decision making
- willing to participate in class activities and demonstrating a sense of fun
- having a sense of humor and is Willing to share jokes
• Enthusiasm and motivation for learning shown in:
- encouraging students to be responsible for their own learning
- maintaining an organized classroom environment
- setting high standards
- assigning appropriate challenges
- providing reinforcement and encouragement during tasks
• Attitude toward the teaching profession
121
- having dual commitment to personal learning and to students' learning
anchored on the belief that all students can learn
- helping students succeed by using differentiated instruction
- working collaboratively with colleagues and other staff
- serving as an example of a lifelong learner to his/her students and colleagues
• Positive expectations of students manifested in:
- striving to make all students feel competent
- communicating positive expectations to students, i.e., they will be successful
- having high personal teaching efficacy shown in their belief that they can
cause all students to learn.
• Reflective Practice
- reviewing and thinking on his/her teaching process
- eliciting feedback from others in the interest of teaching and learning
Classmates - Bullying and the Need to Belong (Borabo et al., 2015)
Students form part of the human environment of the learner. In fact, they far
outnumber the teachers in the learning environment.
The need to belong is a basic human need. Students who are accepted by teachers
and classmates feel they belong to the class. Students who feel that they are part of the
class look forward to attending and participating in class. The sense of belongingness
enhances their learning and performance. The prevalence of bullying, however, obstructs
the creation of a learning the community where everyone feel that they belong. With
bullying in schools, the learning environment cannot be safe. Then by all means, bullying
should be eliminated in schools. Bullying takes on several forms. It can be mild, it can be
intense or deeply-seated and highly violent. Today, safety in schools is being raised all over
the world.
Parents as Part of the Learners' Human Learning Environment (Borabo et al., 2015)
122
The learner spends at least six hours in school. The rest, s/he spends at home.
Parents, therefore, are supposed to have more opportunity to be with their children than
teachers. How many of our parents use this opportunity to support their children in their
studies?
What parents' behavioral traits are supportive of their children's learning? Parents
who are supportive of their children's learning are observed to do the following:
• Follow up status of their children's performance
• Supervise their children in their homework/project
• Check their children's notebooks
• Review their children's corrected seat works and test papers
• Attend conferences for Parents, Teachers and Community Association(PTCA)
• Are willing to spend on children's projects and to get involved in school activities
• Participate actively in school-community projects
• Confer with their children's teachers when necessary
• Are aware of their children's activities in school
• Meet the friends of their children
• Invite their children's friends at home
Unsupportive parent behaviors are the opposite of all those listed above.The
interaction between the learner and the teacher, among the learners, and among the
learner, teacher and parents affect the learner's motivation. Whether the climate that comes
as a by-product of the interactions nurtures or obstructs learning depends on the quality of
these interactions.
123
Lesson 4. Assessment Strategies that can Increase
Motivation (Borabo et al., 2015)
Figure 10.3 Assessment Strategies that can Increase Motivation (Borabo et al., 2015)
Assessment Strategies that can Increase Motivation (Borabo et al., 2015)
How can we make assessment a palatable menu for our students? Experiences in
classroom assessment and principles of assessment tell us the following:
1. Make clear your learner's objectives every time. It is good if students are clarified on
the objectives they are working on and the criteria that will be used in evaluating their
learning.
2. Make your students own the lesson objective. Allow them to set their own personal
learning targets based on the lesson objective. Initially their personal target may be
lower than the learning target set for the class but with the expectation that they will
gradually bring them up according to their pace until their personal targets coincide
with the class target. This will make them feel unthreatened and comfortable.
" growth
mindset "
Assessment Strategies
that can Increase
Motivation
Focus on progress
rather than on failure
Clear objectives as
basis of assessment
Self-
assessment
Criterion-
referenced
True purpose
of assessment
Sensitive and
constructive
assessment
Tests challenging; not
too easy, not too
difficult
124
3. Engage your students in self-assessment. They have established their own target
against clearly set lesson objectives. They are in the best position to determine if
they have met their own targets and the class target or objective.
When learners are given the opportunity to evaluate their own performance,
they bring to mind the personal task and strategy variables applicable to them. They
reflect on their personal characteristics that affect their learning, the tasks they need
to work on and the strategies that can help them. In this way, assessment empowers
the students to take a more active role in their own learning process.
1. Practice criterion-referenced assessment rather than norm-referenced
assessment. Make your students compare their performance against established
criterion, i.e., the learning objective or target and not against other students'
performance. Comparing a student's performance with the latter makes
assessment threatening.
2. If you are indeed criterion-referenced, then your assessment is certainly based
on established criterion, your learning target or objective. It has been observed,
however, that a number of teachers set learning objectives but assess another.
This leads to students' confusion and discouragement.
3. Inspire your students to have mastery-focus rather than performance-focus. Set
their hearts on lesson mastery for the love learning rather than on scores, grades
and performance. If they fail to get an item or items in a test, tell them not to
worry and assure them that they will be taught again until mastery.
4. Have a "growth mindset". Believe that your students can improve. Failure or
wrong answer is welcome. Assure your students that they are not made less of
themselves by a wrong answer or a mistake. What is most important is that they
learn from their mistakes and continuously grow and improve.
5. Your assessment practice must be sensitive and constructive because
assessment has an emotional impact. Bear in mind that your comments, marks
and grades, as well as the manner you communicate them to students, can affect
their self-confidence. Assessment should be constructive as much as possible.
125
Judging students harshly to the point that they feel belittled or insulted will kill
their spirit and may lead them to have a negative view both of themselves and
the subject.
6. Have a "great mindset". Believe that your students can improve. Failure or wrong
answer is welcome. Assure your students that they are not made less of
themselves by a wrong answer or a mistake. What is most important is that they
learn from their mistakes and continuously grow and improve.
7. Your assessment practice must be sensitive and constructive because
assessment has an emotional impact. Bear in mind that your comments, marks
and grades, as well as the manner you communicate them to students, can affect
their self-confidence. Assessment should be constructive as much as possible.
Judging students harshly to the point that they feel belittled or insulted will kill
their spirit and may lead them to have a negative view both of themselves and
the subject.
8. Don't make the test too difficult to discourage students nor make them
complacent. An extremely easy test is too easy to not challenging while an
extremely difficult test is discouraging.
9. Communicate results/feedback. A teacher facilitates learning by providing
students with important feedback on their learning areas.. (Bloom, Madaus and
Hastings, Stiggins as cited in Borabo et al., 2015)
126
Assessment Task 10
Summary
This module explains the meaning of Motivation. It says, motivation is an inner drive that
causes one to do something and persevere at something. It points at the indicators of high
level of motivation. It differentiates extrinsic from intrinsic motivation. Several theories are
mentioned which leave impacts to facilitate learning.
The motivation theorists gave suggestions to enhance students’ sense of self
determination about school activities and assignments. Based on Maslow’s theory, a
satisfied need is not a strong motivator but an unsatisfied need is. You cannot teach
students with hungry stomach.
The ideal student is the student with a goal. The student with a learning goal is mastery
focused while a student with performance goal is performance focused.
1. Reflect on your learning experiences. Recall some examples of extrinsic and
intrinsic motivation in your life as a student. State at least 2 for each.
2. Between learning goal and performance goal, which type do you identify
yourself? Explain
3. Parents are part of the learners’ human learning environment. Compare
parents’ support to their childrens’ studies before and NOW during the
pandemic.
127
References
Borabo, H., Corpuz, B., Lucas, M., & Lucido, P. (2015). Child and Adolescent
Development. Quezon City, Philippines: Lorimar Publishing.
Paul , E. ,& Kauchak. D. (2008_ Educational Psychology. Windows on Classrooms.
8thed.