Running Head: CUSTOMIZED LEARNING THEORY
Customized Learning Theory
Charlon Lei Gibbs
Dr. Richard Dolan
EDUC 500
Liberty University
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CUSTOMIZED LEARNING THEORY 2
Thinking about the different learning styles of modern day students, the most intriguing
learning style discovered in this course was Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences.
According to Slavin (2012), Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences suggests the learning
objectives and lessons should be in a variety of ways and he also lists nine intelligences. The
educational system has revised the curriculum so teachers are encouraged to use many different
teaching strategies within the class to include music, cooperative learning, role play (hands-on),
discussion and many other strategies. This paper seeks to focus on incorporating games into the
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modern classroom and curriculum as a strategy for student learning following the 21 Century
learner profile. The paper also examines playing games in classroom and its effects on the
students’ communication skills. My customized learning theory involves playing games during a
90 minute learning block, but also using the brain-based strategies suggested by Dr. Marcia Tate
in order to keep the class actively engaged.
Understanding learning theories are vital to the classroom teacher and also to the student
learner. The students in the modern day classrooms are very different from the 1990 to 2002
school students. The modern-day students think their lives revolve around cell-phone usage and
technology; however, previously the students were taught lecture style. Many theories have been
created to address how students learn and think; therefore, teachers have to be cognizant of the
different ways to reach learners. Not every student will learn the same, so teachers must make
the extra effort to analyze each student to make sure they are being taught in a language they will
understand. The basic learning theories surround behavioral (consequence of behavior),
cognitive (conditional mental circumstances or the chain of internal activities associated with
learners), and constructivist (real world learners) theories (Hess
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Playing games during class has become a trend in my school and all the teachers are
beginning to use games to keep the class busy during an entire class period. I am not stating that
games are not effective; however, some teachers believe that because one or two students can
give the answers in a game that the students seem to be learning. So I ask are the games helping
the students produce the information in the way it is tested and are the games only promoting
low-level recognition skills? Playing games are not helping to increase the literacy among these
generational learners, which has been an increasing problem within the last decade. The students
are able to play games in class and answer questions correctly during the game, but when they
attend college or communicate in the real world, their skills are lacking. There are ways to use
games in class but also incorporate literacy to ensure all content areas are addressed.
While playing games in class is a fun way for students to become actively engaged
during a lesson, sometimes it's difficult for students to make studying for classes that are all fun
and games a priority. Instead of making sure the goals and objectives are covered, many new
teachers seem to have a greater need for the students to like them and for their class to be fun.
The students become get confused and think your need to make things fun and entertaining
means that you don't take the bottom-line learning seriously. Marzano suggests that game
questions focus on the most important content within the unit. "The most efficient way to
maintain an academic focus is to organize games around important terms and phrases. Questions
and answers would involve information important to terms and phrases" (Marzano, 2010). The
questions and answers should be phrased so that students quickly understand what is being asked
so they may answer quickly.
Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences focuses on the hands-on approach within the
classroom. This allows the student to become involved in the learning process which directly
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ties into other areas of classroom instruction. Marzano (2010) suggests using educational games
such as Jeopardy and Family Feud where the students are required to think critically to develop a
correct answer. This strategy wants the teacher to allow students to have fun and compete with
one another while learning. The across the curriculum educational game idea would break down
the barrier between subjects and different states.
As students enter colleges and universities, many professors do not play educational
games in order to enhance student learning or keep students actively engaged, the professors are
more of the lecture style; therefore my learning theory would allow them to achieve success from
K – 12 but not during their collegiate years. Curriculum changes are necessary in order to adapt
to the evolving needs of children and their learning styles. While I was growing up, my teachers
taught lecture style and I was so used learning lecture style that I became successful in college.
My twin nieces are freshmen at East Carolina University and they are not doing well this year.
When I asked them why their grades were not as good as high school, one niece said that college
classes are boring. My other niece informed me that the teacher did not play review games or
any type of class remediation.
While the 21st Century Learner is expected to globally ready by the time they graduate
from high school, the article written by Evans (2011) is suggesting incorporating communication
courses at the collegiate level. While reading the article, the point is made about the modern
students and how much of communication is sent through electronic forms of communication,
such as Facebook, podcasts, social networks, blogs, etc., which is one of the main reasons why
students have begun speaking and writing in slang. However, writing on the social network is
not giving the proper experience or practice for the collegiate level. Because of their diverse
literacy needs, our students need us to differentiate the product, process and content of learning
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according to their learning style, interest and readiness, which is why my customized learning
theory includes the use of technology, discussions and allowing students to take charge of their
own learning. Allowing students to work on the internet and create their own assessment using
Web 2.0 tools motivates the students.
The effective teacher is described by Clark (1993) as the definition involves someone
who can increase student knowledge, but it goes beyond this in defining an effective teacher.”
However, the best explanation or sentence found on an effective teacher was by Papanastasiou
(1999) who stated “that no single teacher attribute or characteristic is adequate to define an
effective teacher.” It is my opinion that an effective teacher can sometimes be measured and
sometimes cannot be measured. If the teacher does not have the best test scores, but the
behavior, ethics, and values of the student have changed to be more positive, then this teacher is
effective. However, effective teachers incorporate technology in everyday lessons because
students are digital thinkers and learners. One interesting article I read insinuated that the most
important differences between what learners of the digital generation prefer compared to
educators is the speed at which the information is delivered, being able to access the computer or
other forms of technology quickly, and students want to see the pictures, videos, or other items
before actually learning the information/text (NYLA, 2010).
As an effective teacher, one characteristic which has to be mastered is classroom
management. A teacher needs to be able to maintain a safe and orderly classroom so each
student will have the opportunity to learn. Classroom management does not have to be excessive
amounts of rules, but a foundation for classroom routines and structure must be addressed daily.
Students need to see the teacher excited about teaching, so they will be excited about learning.
There shouldn’t be any negativity in the classroom because without a positive classroom
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environment the learning process is disturbed. In my problem prevention plan, Slavin (2012)
suggests a teaching action called withitness, where the teacher has eyes in the back of her head.
This technique is really great because in my class, the students understand I am aware of their
behaviors at all times and I will correct any misbehavior immediately. Effective classroom
management is a top priority when teaching students at any level. One of the most effective
ways to manage your classroom is to ensure they are always actively engaged, whether the
teacher is walking around the classroom, asking questions to students in the classroom, and
allowing students minimal time to focus on anything but the teacher.
My personal customized learning theory focuses on allowing students to move around the
classroom, interact with one another and have music. Playing games within the classroom does
not mean playing board games or jeopardy all the time. There are several ways to make guided
or independent practice work fun by changing them into games; however, the classroom must
not shy away from literacy. My theory involves touching all areas of learning because while
attending a professional development instructed by Dr. Marcia Tate, she stated people pay her a
great deal of money just to explain and give examples of Gardner’s theory of multiple
intelligences. Her workshop titled Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites (Tate, 2008), is very
popular within the United States and she travels from state to state teaching the classroom
educators how to incorporate many strategies in the learning environment to reach all learners.
My personal learning style leaned toward kinesthetic because I like to participate or
actually have a physical activity involved in the learning process. While teaching in my class, I
use hands-on approaches during all of my lessons, but I also incorporate other brain-based
strategies in order to reach all of my learners. My lessons are always chunked into three
segments or more so students can focus on the main objectives to learn the content; between the
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lessons, students work with a partner or individual while listening to music. The Parkers’
Learning Skills had very valuable information and insight into which I am as a teacher and
person. The study skills showed many areas of strength but the main categories were
technology, listening, career-oriented and life skills. Understanding my learning profile made re-
evaluate my teaching style and the way my classroom was organized. My profile showed a
weakness in reading at the beginning of the class and after looking at my classroom routine, the
students were not reading like they should at the high school level. Now, my students have
writing assignment and reading assignment portion each week. Understanding your learning
profile helps to strengthen your teaching and also strengthen areas within your students.
In conclusion, understanding what learning theory is and how to analyze the student
learning process is essential to classroom environment. Understanding how each student learns
will decrease negative classroom behaviors because students will be learning in a way they
understand, less likely to act out or get bored. Mastering effective classroom management will
help make the teaching experience better and the learning experience better for students.
Effective classroom management could mean the difference between a student passing and
failing a subject, grade, state or national exam.
CUSTOMIZED LEARNING THEORY
Reference:
Clark, D. (1993). Teacher evaluation: A review of the literature with implications for educators.
Unpublished Seminar Paper, California State University at Long Beach.
Evans, D. (2011). Promoting knowledge and understanding in society: Training our students for
effective communication. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, Vol. 3
Issue: 1 pp. 35 – 46. doi:10.1108/17581181111150892
Hess, K.M. (2012). Learning Theory and Its Role in Instructional Technology. East Stroudsburg
University.
Marzano, Robert J. (2010). Using Games to Enhance Student Achievement. Association for
Supervision and Curriculum Development, Vol 67. 71-72. Retrieved from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb10/vol67/num05/Using-
Games-to-Enhance-Student-Achievement.aspx
st
New York Library Association. (2010). 21 Information Literacy Standards for the Digital
Learners of New York. The Voice of the Library Community. Retrieved from
http://thenewmiddleschool.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/digital-learner-standards.pdf
Papanastasiou, E. (1999). Teacher evaluation. Unpublished manuscript, Michigan State
University, East Lansing.
Slavin, R.E. (10th ed.). (2012). Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice. Pearson
Education, Inc.: Boston, MA
nd
Tate, M. (Ph.D). (2 ed.). (2008). Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites. Corwin Press, Inc.:
Thousand Oaks, CA.
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