online summer class

“Kindness in words creates confidence;

Kindness in thinking creates profoundness;

Kindness in giving creates love.”

-- Lao Tzu

CIMT 689

Learning Theory & Instructional

Strategies

CIMT Department Diversity Statement:

The faculty and staff of the Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Media

Technology believe in the value of recognizing the contributions of individual and group

differences in areas such as ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, culture, and

personal experience. In doing so, we recognize and affirm that promoting human

diversity in teaching, learning, and daily life enhances the effectiveness of our work and

that of our students.

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

The overarching theme of Indiana State University's educator preparation programs is

Becoming a Complete Professional. This theme encompasses three broad areas that

recognize essential areas of the work of an educator:

 Educator as Expert or Mediator of Learning,

 Educator as Person, and

 Educator as Member of Communities.

The word complete in the title acknowledges that, to be truly successful, an educator must

be effective in all three of these areas. Similarly, the word becoming is included in the

title because new graduates, alumni, and our faculty are never fully finished with their

learning in their profession as a teacher, counselor, school psychologist, speech language

pathologist, principal, or superintendent.

The component Educator as Expert or Mediator of Learning deals with an educator’s

professional skill as a mediator of students’ learning and/or of the progress individuals

make in achieving their potential. The component Educator as Person represents the

traits and dispositions that make a successful educator justifiably respected and emulated

by students while meeting the expectations of professional, state, and institutional

standards. The component Educator as Member of Communities reflects the necessity of

contributing to the various communities of which educators, as professionals, are

members. A truly successful educator must concurrently exhibit the traits of mediator of

learning, person, and member of communities while incorporating the latest knowledge

and technologies and demonstrating multicultural competence and sensitivity to diversity.

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

GENERAL INFORMATION

Course instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

Professor

Curriculum, Instruction, & Media Technology

Bayh College of Education

Instructor’s office: UH 323C

Instructor’s office hours: Online daily weekdays

Instructor’s e-mail address: [email protected]

Course hours: 3 credit hours

Class format: Online

Required Textbook: Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for

instruction. Boston, MA: Pearson Allyn and

Bacon.

Mayer, R. E. (2008). Learning and instruction. Upper

Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

Foshay, W.R., Silber, K. H., & Stelnicki, M. B.

(2003). Writing training materials that work. San

Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Pfieffer.

COURSE INFORMATION

Course Description 3 hours. This course is designed to help you learn how theories of

human learning and motivation can be applied to the instructional

process in order to make the process more effective, efficient, and

appealing. The focus of the course throughout the semester will be

on three areas: 1) the theoretical principles that have contributed to

the field of Instructional Design (ID), 2) application of those

principles within practically educational and training settings, and

3) specific instructional strategies, techniques, and approaches that

can be used to impact learning effectiveness, efficiency, and

appeal. Reading and studying the assigned chapters in the texts

will acquaint you with the key theories. The discussions, writing

assignments, and projects will help you reflect on your reading and

apply the derived principles into practice.

Instructional Goals Upon the completion of this course, you will be able to:

1. Identify and describe the basic tenets of behavioral, cognitive, and constructivist learning theories (AECT Standard 5).

2. Compare and contrast the contributions of various learning theories to the field of instructional design (AECT Standard 5).

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

3. Identify and describe the basic components within various motivational theories and their impact upon the learning process

(AECT Standard 5).

4. Select appropriate principles derived from given theories and apply those within practical learning situations (AECT Standards 1 & 5).

5. Identify, synthesize, and summarize practical, research based guidelines that facilitate the development of quality instructional

results (AECT Standards 1 & 5).

6. Identify, describe, and select relevant cognitive techniques (e.g., chunking, frames, concept maps, advance organizers, metaphors,

imagery and mnemonics) and cite relevant research to indicate

their appropriate use and effectiveness (AECT Standards 1 & 5).

7. Identify, describe, and select relevant instructional approaches (e.g., case-based instruction, cooperative learning, discussion,

simulation, peer mentoring, reciprocal teaching, and discovery)

and cite relevant research to indicate their appropriate use and

effectiveness (AECT Standards 1 & 5).

8. Given a task to design instructional materials for specific content, identify the type of learning involved, select the appropriate set of

instructional techniques, approaches and strategies, take diversity

issues into consideration, and utilize those to design and develop

an effective instructional outcome (AECT Standards 1 through 5).

Course philosophy There are several things you should keep in mind as you begin this

course. First, I don't believe you can learn everything there is to

know from this course. You could spend years studying learning

and motivation. But I want you to learn some of the major

principles from these theories and how you can use the principles

as a foundation for decisions you make as an instructional designer

(do not tell me that you are not going to be an instructional

designer. No matter in which educational or training setting you

will be, you will need to design instruction).

Second, active participation is a must. This doesn't mean that you

need to dominate every discussion. But it does mean that you

should take an active part in the discussions. Think of the course as

an ongoing discussion about learning and motivation that will take

different directions each session. Try to synthesize the collected

wisdom from the class in a way that makes sense to you.

Contribute those ideas and the rest of us will add our thoughts.

Third, take time to think reflectively about the readings and

discussions. You all have a lot of experience as learners (and

maybe as teachers or trainers) that you can use to help you make

sense of what you read in the texts. In fact, I will often specifically

ask you to think back over your experiences as a learner as you

consider some ideas from the text. So, take time to go beyond just

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

reading the texts. Explore, discover, and look for connections that

are important to you.

Finally, attend this class with an open mind. Don't come in with a

preset notion for or against a specific theory. Instructional

designers don't have the luxury of ignoring potentially helpful

principles that may come from a wide variety of sources. For

example, even though you may believe that behaviorism is an

obsolete theory with little to offer current practitioners, keep an

open mind. You may just be surprised.

Logistics Online Interaction Expectations

This is a 100% online class and you will have all discussions

online. Online interaction is a fundamental component of this

class, both in terms of the professor interacting with students, and

students interacting with one another. You are required to spend at

least 3 hours on each discussion topic. I will monitor closely all of

the comments that are being made. I will record the quantity and

quality of your responses.

Our online discussion will rely on the assigned readings to provide

the course content. The online discussion is a place to challenge,

synthesize, apply, and evaluate the material in the texts and course

readings as well as the experiences, positions, and conceptions of

each other. Mutual respect and supportive dialogue are essential to

this process. How will we do it? Please read the following section.

Peer Critique and Discussion

Feedback is critical to the learning process (both giving and

receiving it), so we are asking you to post your assignments online

during the designated date in order that your classmates will be

able to read and respond to them. These should be considered your

final version when posted. You do not need to send a separate

submission for me to grade. You should review and comment on

the assignments of two or three classmates’ during this time, as

well as respond to questions about your work. The rules for whose

work to review will be specified online. The following table

provides you with a general procedure for each assignment of

reading and discussion as an overall picture:

Timeline Task For what?

During the week* Completing the assignment

and Q & A

Course content learning and

collaboration

Reading reflection

posting Tuesday

Post your reading

reflection Turning in your assignment

Critique Thursday* Thoroughly critique two

(or three) peers’ postings

Thorough understanding of the

readings

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

Debate Friday* Respond to all peer

critiques and debate

Thorough understanding of the

readings

* Note: While discussing on the previous assignment, read the chapters for the

following assignment and discussion.

Assignments Guidelines The assignments are designed to meet our instructional goals.

There are ten reflection assignments on readings, one term paper,

and one major project: designing a training manual. Reflections

and the term paper are designed to meet instructional goals 1

through 7. The final project is a comprehensive project that

provides you with an opportunity to enhance and transfer your

knowledge to meet instructional goal 8 of this course.

Reflection on reading (100 points)

There are 10 reflections on readings, focusing on Driscoll (2005)

and Mayer (2008). The purpose of this assignment is to ensure

your maximal understanding of the texts. You are required to read

the assigned chapters thoroughly and think deeply. Your reflection

paper has to be a thorough discussion to demonstrate your

understanding of the reading. All students’ reflections will be

posted online and you are encouraged and welcome to read

everyone’s reflection although you are only required to do two (or

three accordingly) peer critiques. Do not think it is wasting your

time to read others’ reflections. Believe it or not, on the contrary, it

will help you save your time because others’ reflections will help

you improve your thinking skills and/or your reflection quality.

Please note: For each discussion, you are assigned to read two

chapters, one from each book. Driscoll’s is very theoretical and

Mayer’s is theory with/into practice. The sequence of the reading

follows the content outline of the books, so the Driscoll’s chapter

is not necessary parallel with the Mayer’s chapter in the same

assignment. Write your reflection using two separate sections, one

for Dristcoll and the other for Mayer.

Term Paper (50 points)

Looking at the points assigned, you should realize how much this

paper is weighed and how much you are required for this paper.

Your term paper will consist of an explorative literature review and

theoretical framework that examines a topic of interest paired with

at least one of the learning theories in this course. For example,

you might choose a broad topic, such as “Application of Learning

Theories in Museum Education.” Alternatively, you might choose

a narrow topic, such as “Learning Theories Supporting

Asynchronous Computer-Mediated Discussion.” You may also

choose one learning theory, such as “Student Motivation in

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

Problem-Based Learning.” Having completed reading of Driscoll

and Mayer, definitely, you will be able to write this paper of a high

quality. Do not wait until the last minute for the topic for your

paper. Wise students always plan ahead. You should have

already had a marvelous idea about your paper topic during the

chapter reading and discussion. Feel free to talk with me about

your topic via e-mail. I am available to discuss potential paper

topics with you.

Details: Papers should be written in the APA format and be kept

within 10-15 pages (references excluded). You may collaborate

with a peer or write the paper individually. A variety of references

is expected and the vast majority should come from peer-reviewed

journals.

Note 1: Your paper will be graded based on what you have

decided to discuss and the contribution you are attempting to make

through your discussion. In other words, seek to move beyond

summarization toward a synthesis of ideas that leads to

something new.

Note 2: Something that is always important to remember is that

instructional designers are a practical bunch – we will always look

for applications. How can the concepts and ideas that you are

presenting be used by the instructional designer? Make sure to

include a section that involves applications.

Training manual project (100 points)

Over the last two weeks, the focus of the course will be on the

implementation and use of the cognitive training model to create

an instructional package. This package will consist of a training

manual for instructional designers on how to identify, select, use,

and design instructional strategies (e.g., analogies). Please make

sure that you understand: The target learners of your

instructional package are instructional designers and the

content area is on instructional strategies not phases of

instructional design. If your project does not meet the

requirements highlighted, no matter how good your writing is, the

grade you get will be a zero. The requirement for this project is

very specific. If you have a problem understanding the

requirement, please talk to me as early as possible.

Obviously, this is an even bigger thing!! Combining Driscoll

(2005) and Mayer (2008) with Foshay, et al. (2003) will help you

complete this project. Please note: we do not discuss Foshay as we

do Driscoll and Mayer. It does not mean that Foshay is not of the

same importance. As a matter of fact, Foshay will help you more

directly with your training manual project. However, without

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

Driscoll and/or Mayer, you will hardly be able to design

instruction that is truly effective, efficient, and appealing.

Again, start your “thinking” early. A top student in my previous

class said: “This is a lot harder than I thought it would be, and

I wish I would have started it mid-semester, so I could have

flexed it and shaped it much better than time allows me now.

Foshay offers great tips and structural ideas.” I hope this

quotation can be used as a “warning” for you to start this project as

early as you can.

Requirements: Develop chapters within the manual that describe:

 What it is (description of the strategy/approach),

 When to select and use it (conditions of use),

 Why it should be selected (research on effectiveness of the strategy),

 How it is best utilized,

 How to design the strategy, and

 Related research and references

Make sure that you understand you do need to include learning

objectives and assessment items in each chapter. Your learning

objectives need to reach the highest level of design and your

assessment need to test all the learning objectives appropriately.

You also need to design instructional strategies for your

instruction. Make sure that you “study” the rubric that will be used

to grade your training manual so you will not miss anything that

should be reflected in your writing in order to receive points for all

the required criteria.

In order to help you better, there are four stages for the project:

1. Plan and report 2. Outline 3. Project due 4. Possible revision

Please refer to the tentative schedule for the deadline for each

stage. Please note: Stage Three is your project due and you will get

a grade at this stage. Do make sure that you will do a “perfect” job

when you submit your project at Stage Three. I may or may not

provide you with an opportunity of revision, so Stage Four may or

may not apply to everyone accordingly.

The paper and the project will be submitted through

SafeAssignment on the Blackboard course site. SafeAssignment is

a program that checks originality of the project/paper. All

submissions through SafeAssignment are saved on the ISU

database. A project that is found not original will automatically get

an F (please also refer to Code of Student Conduct

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

http://www.indstate.edu/sci/docs/2012-StudentGuide-

AcademicIntegrity.pdf for details). I open a Self Check window for

you to check originality of your work before submitting it to me.

Make sure that you submit your original work written or designed

for this class.

Good luck with your project!!!

Online participation including on-time reading of reflection

postings, posting peer critique, and debate (130 points)

Active participation and regular attendance is a must in this course.

Your active participation in the activities means you have to be

present, prompt, and you must complete all readings and

assignments on time. No excuses will be accepted for late

participation considering all of us having an equally busy schedule.

You critique two peers’ reflections for each reading assignment,

thoroughly, as a minimal requirement. I want to repeat the word

THOROUGHLY. If you only say great and agree, you will not

receive any points. Nothing in the world is perfect. There must be

something in the reflection that needs improving. That is the

part where you need to discuss and debate with your peers. The

purpose of doing this is to enhance both your peers’ and your own

knowledge on the reading. You have to respond to your peers’

critique and their responses to your critique, so the discussion will

last. Please refer to the grading sheet section for the distribution of

the points for each activity.

GRADING SHEET

Assignment Title Your score Total possible

Posting

1 ~ 10 Reflection on reading 10 * 10

11 Term paper 50

12 Training manual project 100

Sub Total 250

Discussion Peer Critique & Debate Your score Total possible

1 ~ 10 Reflection on reading (3*2+2*2)*10

11 Term paper 3*2+2*2

12 Training manual project 3*2+2*2

Participation: You need to be very active (do

more that the minimal requirements) with

discussion and attend all the class meetings in

order to get the 10 points.

10

Sub Total 130

Grand Total: 380

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

Course Grade A+ A A- B+ B

Criteria 99-100% 94-99% 90-94% 88-90% 84-88%

Course Grade B- C+ C C- F

Criteria 80-84% 77-80% 74-77% 70-74% < 70%

TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE

Please note: Due time is 11:59 PM EST (see the dates specified in the following table).

No late submissions will be accepted. No revisions are provided. Do a “perfect” job

before your submission of assignments.

Week Assignments Assignments Due

Day

One

May 12

 Read all the information on the course site and do Quiz 1

 Post your Home page introducing yourself online

 Thoroughly understand course requirements

Week 1

May 12

- 16

 Reflection on Reading 1: Introduction to Learning & Instruction

o Driscoll, Chapter 1 o Mayer, Chapter 1

 Reflection on Reading 2: o Driscoll, Chapter 2 Radical Behaviorism o Mayer, Chapters 2 through 6 (choose one

that is your area/interest)

Report and Plan due:

May 14

Week 2

May 19

- 23

 Reflection on Reading 3: o Driscoll, Chapter 3 Cognitive Information

Processing

o Mayer, Chapter 7 Teaching by giving productive feedback

 Reflection on Reading 4: o Driscoll, Chapter 4 Meaningful Learning &

Schema Theory

o Mayer, Chapter 8 teaching by providing concreteness, activity, and familiarity

Reflections 1 & 2

 Posting: May 20

 Peer critique: May 22

 Debate: May 23

Term paper topic due:

May 23

Week 3

May 27

- 30

 Reflection on Reading 5: o Driscoll, Chapter 5 Situated Cognition o Mayer, Chapter 9 teaching by explaining

examples

 Reflection on Reading 6: o Driscoll, Chapter 6 Cognitive &

Knowledge Development

o Mayer, Chapter 10 Teaching by guiding cognitive

Reflections 3 & 4

 Posting: May 27

 Peer critique: May 29

 Debate: May 30 May 26: Memorial Day

Training Manual

outline due: May 30

CIMT 689: Learning Theory & Instructional Strategies Instructor: Feng-Qi Lai, Ph.D.

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Summer, 2014

Week Assignments Assignments Due

Week 4

Jun 2-6  Reflection on Reading 7:

o Driscoll, Chapter 7 Interactional Theories of Cognitive Development

o Mayer, Chapter 11 Teaching by fostering learning strategies

 Reflection on Reading 8: o Driscoll, Chapter 8 Biological Bases of

Learning & Memory

o Mayer, Chapter 12 Teaching by fostering problem-solving strategies

Reflections 5 & 6

 Posting: Jun 3

 Peer critique: Jun 5

 Debate: Jun 6

Week 5

Jun 9-

13

 Reflection on Reading 9: o Driscoll, Chapter 9 Motivation & Self-

Regulation in Learning

o Mayer, Chapter 14 Teaching by priming students’ motivation to learn

 Reflection on Reading 10: o Driscoll, Chapter 11 Constructivism o Mayer, Chapter 13 Teaching by creating

cognitive apprenticeship in classrooms

Reflections 7 & 8

 Posting: Jun 10

 Peer critique: Jun 12

 Debate: Jun 13

Week 6

Jun 16-

20

 Term Paper Reflections 9 & 10

 Posting: Jun 17

 Peer critique: Jun 19

 Debate: Jun 20 Training Manual due:

Jun 20

Week 7

Jun 23-

27

 Training Manual Project: Use o Foshay et al., and o Knowledge that you have learned from this

class so far to help with the project

Term Paper

 Posting: Jun 24

 Peer critique: Jun 26

 Debate: Jun 27

 Submission through the Assignment box

Due: Jun 24

Week 8

June

30- July

3

 Training Manual Project Training Manual Project

 Posting: Jul 1

 Peer critique: Jul 2

 Debate: Jul 3 Revision Due: July 1

Jul 4: Independent Day