EDLD 5364 - Week 1 - Part 1 of 2

Week 1 Assignment Part 1 of 2

This week I have learned many things regarding learning theories and teaching strategies using technology. I became very interested in the examples provided about how to create more student-centered learning environments instead of teacher-focused classrooms. This is an area that I continuously try to do, but I find myself quite often doing all of the talking.  An area that I had not put much thought into was the Cyborg theory. The video this week really made me think about the direction we may be headed in when dealing with all of the new, developing technology. Linking up ourselves to computers and even other people to transmit information sounds a little scary to be honest. While reading about the other theories, I found that my teaching style relates very much to constructivism.  I believe teaching and learning must connect the unknown to what students already know in some way. If students can make a connection with some sliver of prior knowledge, they may be able to comprehend the content and retain the information better. I also learned a lot about connectivism. I really liked the idea of building internal (neural) and external (resources) networks to process information. I was taught while I was coming through school to be a life-long learner. Connectivism is all about staying current through continuous learning.