Week 5 Discussion Forum - Case Studies

Response 1

How the brain processes information to reach the behavior in question.

Instructional Designers' Guide to Information Processing: The Basics

What a wonderful thing the human brain is! Every element of our existence is governed by it since it turns letters, figures, and pictures into meaningful data. There is a burst of creativity as fresh ideas collide with old ones to generate intricate schematics. One of the most remarkable things it does is the ability to learn new things. Effective eLearning requires an understanding of how information is processed, which we must have as eLearning practitioners (Brechwald et al., 2011).

Biology of the Brain

The cortex encompasses all of the brain's many structures. The cortex is the brain's outermost layer, and it's responsible for its more sophisticated thinking skills. Memory, language, spatial awareness, and even personality characteristics are all examples of cognitive functions. Primitive human characteristics such as instincts, fears, and emotions are governed by the brain's deepest areas. The subcortex of the brain is intimately connected to the cortex and may be found inside the brain as well. The ability to transport and analyses data is one such benefit.

The Human Memory.

Now that we've had a quick look at the physical structure of the brain let's take a closer look at memory. eLearning relies heavily on memory, after all. It's pointless if students can't recall what they learned online. Memory is often overlooked since it is an automated process. Even the tiniest of events might pass unnoticed into our long-term memory. However, the majority of the events are only passing by and never settle in. Instructional Designers should be aware of three forms of memory:

1. The Memory of Senses

Our brains temporarily retain sensory information when it is elicited by external stimulation. Our memories of a particular fragrance fade quickly, such as the aroma of freshly made bread. However, our minds retain an impression of the bread even after it is no longer there in front of us. After that, the brain has the choice of storing data in the brain's memory or ignoring it. Any element that makes use of one or more of the senses is capable of eliciting a response from students' sensory memory when used in eLearning courses (Goodenough et al., 2004).

Short-Term Memory Capability

Working memory is responsible for this process, which triggers the temporary storage of information. A total of seven objects may be stored in short-term memory at any one moment. You're also limited to a certain amount of time, which is often 10 seconds to a minute.

When it comes to long-term memory, it's important to keep in mind

Short-term memory information is transferred to long-term storage after passing through. The brain is less prone to lose essential information at this time. However, even our long-term memory might fade if we don't re-learn new information on an ongoing basis.

The several stages of data processing

There are several models and hypotheses about how information is processed. However, a number of experts believe that the three phases of learning are:

Obtaining data is the first step.

As soon as it is exposed to a stimulus, the brain processes the information. When an online student reads a piece, he or she decides whether or not it's worth memorizing.

Storage is the second phase.

The knowledge is stored in our brains for future reference. It also incorporates and encodes it into our mental model. The brain may forget the knowledge if it is not reinforced.

3rd stage: final product

The brain determines what it will do with the information and how it will respond to the stimuli that it receives. Individuals may apply what they've learnt from the chapter to overcome obstacles after reading it (Gibson 2017).

Three Ways to Boost eLearning Assimilation and Absorption

Make It Eye-Catching

It's impossible for us to recall everything that happened in our lives. If that were the case, we'd be drowning in data and unable to do anything. Because of this, you must make the brain pay attention. Images, data, and graphs that catch the reader's attention are potent triggers. To the brain, they're a message that this specific thing is important enough to keep in mind. However, there is a catch. Your eLearning course should provide just the most crucial aspects. As an example, use a bright red bolded typeface to emphasize a key point. If you don't, you'll be in danger of cognitive exhaustion.

1. Reiterate the Essentials

Every now and again, the brain needs a little push to keep things fresh in its mind. With spaced eLearning, you may re-energize your memory over time. On the first day of the eLearning course, for example, workers view a video lesson on how to do an online job. This is followed by a summarizing exercise and then a branching scenario that covers the same procedure. In order to avoid becoming bored while still reinforcing previously learned knowledge, the brain may explore the same activity in a variety of ways (Niv 2021).

Active Recall may be used in conjunction with this strategy.

Retrieval and application of knowledge are both components of active recall. Online students, for example, are required to put the material into their own words or apply it to complete a simulation in order to get credit for their efforts. There are times when data manipulation and context-defying are necessary. For example, in order to deal with real-world problems, people must be able to use a talent in several contexts. Reflect on what you've learned and how you plan to use it outside of the classroom. These active recall strategies include summaries, interactive activities, and student-generated material.

The brain is capable of processing information at a dizzying rate. The machine, however, isn't an indestructible one that can absorb any new information that comes it's the way. Since the human mind has its limitations, instructional designers must take this into account when creating their materials. That generally consists of bite-sized text, visuals, and online tasks (Rigoni et al., 2011).

 

 

 

References

Brechwald, W. A., & Prinstein, M. J. (2011). Beyond homophily: A decade of advances in understanding peer influence processes. Journal of research on adolescence, 21(1), 166-179. Zeki, S.,

Gibson, K. R. (2017). Myelination and Behavioral Development: A Comparative Perspective on Questions of Neoteny, Altnciality and Intelligence. In Brain Maturation & Cognitive Development (pp. 29-63). Routledge.

Goodenough, O. R., & Jones, O. D. (2004). Law, evolution and the brain: applications and open questions. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences, 359(1451), 1697-1707.

Niv, Y. (2021). The primacy of behavioral research for understanding the brain. Behavioral Neuroscience.

Rigoni, D., Kühn, S., Sartori, G., & Brass, M. (2011). Inducing disbelief in free will alters brain correlates of preconscious motor preparation: The brain minds whether we believe in free will or not. Psychological science, 22(5), 613-618.

Response 2

Identify the patient’s symptoms and the available demographic and historical data.

When I look at case #1 with the 80-year-old male with dementia vs delirium I can see that he falls in the age bracket of Alzheimer's and does show some of the symptoms involved with this disorder like confusion and not knowing why he is in the hospital. But with dementia the occasional hallucinations are not linked to dementia, those can occur from suicidal thoughts or different kinds of phobias (McLeod, 2018) and the patient showed no symptoms of dementia before experiencing the fall. To diagnose someone with dementia there have to be clinical interviews, careful observation of behavior, medical records, and psychometric test (McLeod, 2018), and none of this has been documented. On the other hand, delirium is a serious disturbance of mental abilities that causes the person to be confused, unaware of their surroundings, and starts rapidly within hours or days (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022).

Discuss your differential diagnosis and provide a thorough basis for any diagnoses you have included.

Dementia has a pattern of different behaviors that begin over time that leads up to this disorder, but delirium can occur in a matter of hours or days and this is why I believe that the patient is suffering from delirium. None of the symptoms began until he slipped and fell on the ice and fractured his hip resulting in his need for surgery which can also trigger delirium (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2022). When dementia occurs there is documented damage to the hippocampus area of the temporal lobe (Carlson & Birkett, 2017). The patient is struggling with confusion and not understanding why he is in the hospital causing him to yell and swear at the staff with no previous documented patterns before the fall shows that this is an instant case of delirium.

Determine what (if any) additional testing you would order and how this would be helpful in clarifying the diagnosis.

I first would like to look into the patient's previous medical records around the time he retired from teaching, he had to have a high level of intelligence to be a college professor. I would like to understand his medical condition when he retired to see if there are any patterns linking to signs of dementia during that time. I understand that he was living alone but if he had any family or friends that he communicated with on a regular an interview them to find out if there were any noticeable changes to his behavior before his fall, and last I would like to conduct an MRI of his brain with a focus around the temporal lobe and hippocampus area to see if there are any changes or damage.

Finally, explain recommendations for the patient/family for ongoing functioning (social, occupational, and academic, if applicable).

I would recommend that he be surrounded by the things and people that are familiar to him to try to determine if he can still recognize them, I would also like to keep him involved in as many social activities as possible to be able to observe his behavior more, offer him books to read, or see if he can still develop a lesson plan as he did during his professor years. If he can no longer conduct his normal life routine, then there is a chance there could be signs of dementia there but, as of now, I would diagnose this as a severe case of delirium recommending rest, surrounding him with things that are familiar to him, and having someone with him or checking on him daily.

 

Carlson, N. R., & Birkett, M. A. (2017).  Physiology of behavior  (12th ed.) [Custom edition]. Retrieved from https://content.uagc.eduLinks to an external site. .

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2022). Delirium. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/delirium/symptoms-causes/syc-20371386Links to an external site. .

McLeod, S. (2018). The medical model. Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/medical-model.html.