Chapter 6 and 7 - How People Learn

1. In chapter 6 we learn that there are four learning environments: learner centered, knowledge centered, assessment centered and community centered. Learner centered is where students' metacognition comes into play. We learned earlier that metacognition is thinking about your thought processes. The knowledge centered environment is where teachers would guide and help students develop an understanding of what they are learning. It would be important for teachers to keep in mind that students learn best when presented with information in a positive manner (the Pollyanna Principle). Assessment Centered environments would allow teachers to know if their students understand what they've learned. It would also let the individuals know if they understand or don't understand something (metacomprehension). Finally, community centered environments would be where students work together to continually improve and learn from each other. The more students are allowed to collaborate with one another and discuss different ideas and viewpoints, the better their memory will be through buidling their schemas.

2. I understand the difference between the four different learning environments, but I'm not sure what the reading wanted us to do with it. Should we be using all learning environments, which is the best, and how should we be using them? Maybe that is for us to figure out.

3. I would apply this to my own teaching by trying to apply all the different learning environments at different times. (Some might be able to be used at the the same time, but otherwise, I think it would be a good idea to apply different ways of teaching at different points in time).