JOT2 Task 2

Justin Hadlock
000226063
Constructivism Constructivism is beneficial to students by
allowing them to use critical thinking skills and
discover concepts. Information should be
scaffolded in order for students to build upon
previous knowledge. Students are more active in
their learning so it is more student centered
instead of teacher centered. This type of
approach can be beneficial for students who are
multi-sensory learners. It is also more
productive for students who have a more
difficult time with a concept. Allowing them to
explore small scaffolded steps on their own, and
discover the concept in their own way, helps to
ensure retention and a deeper understanding of
the concept.
Behaviorism Behaviorism is the idea that
information transferred from
teacher to student is the transfer is
response stimuli, so teachers
should present appropriate
responses and reinforce them.
Behaviorism is beneficial when the
teacher knows specific cues to
prompt desired response and when
used to teach expected behavior.
Cognitivism Cognitivism is based upon mental
insights and patterns. This is
beneficial when students need
scaffolding and when they respond
to models. Connecting the topics to
relative models help students with
long term retention.
Lesson plan: The lesson plan represented in this
task is based on cognitivism
Multiplying learning theory. The lesson

exponents with activates prior knowledge by

starting with a pre-test/review and
like bases the lesson is broken down into
easy to learn parts
(cognitivism)
Adapting lesson The initial lesson plan uses cognitivism
learning theories. In order to adapt the
plan for lesson plan for constructivism the students
will be placed in cooperative groups where
constructivism they use algebra blocks to represent
multiplication situations. As the students
manipulate the blocks they will be lead to
discover the relationship between exponents
and multiplication. From there they will be
lead to see the relationship when multiplying
exponents with same bases.
 I believe the constructivism lesson plan
Constructivism would be more conducive to my learning
environment. The tables in my room pull
lesson plan apart into small tables that fit 4 students
each. It’s a perfect setting for small
cooperative groups.
The
I believe the constructivism lesson plan would
be the most beneficial for my students. Using the
algebra blocks in order to visualize why
constructivism exponents work the way they do, will give the
students a better perspective on the subject. I
plan would be believe being able to discover the concept on
their own will also help them to retain the
the most information better. The small group setting will
also give the students who struggle the chance

beneficial to learn from peers.

Effective Design theories allow teachers to effectively
adapt learning to fit their students needs.

Instruction Lessons can be adapted to change from year

to year and student to student depending on
what is best for each learner. It also allows
through Design students to discover new learning styles in
order to understand their own learning and
Theories find what is most effective for them.
Strengths of
The strength of Wiggins theory is that the end
goal is stated first, and all of the lesson plan
design is based on meeting that goal. This makes
Backwards it easy to align with appropriate standards and
make sure assessments match the learning goal.
Design This theory also allows teachers to plan which
learning theory will best align with the desired
result. Looking at the overall goal and
structuring everything to fit within that goal
keeps the big picture in mind during the entire
planning phase, which keeps everything aligned
and cohesive.
Limitations of
In Wiggins theory everything is data driven in
order to reach the overall goal. This causes much
of the instruction to be assessment driven in
Backwards order to collect the data. It also can cause small
important details of instruction to be lost
Design because the big picture is always the focus.
Strengths of Gagne’s nine events learning design is a
great way to incorporate all three learning

Gagne’s Events theories. In each of the nine steps different

theories can be engaged in order to
effectively reach the students. The learning
design is structured and disciplined creating
a consistency in the classroom.
Limitations of
Due to the rigidness of Gagne’s events,
sometimes it is difficult to fit objectives into the
structure. While easy to follow for new
Gagne’s Events educators, it does not allow for a lot of creativity
within the lesson design. The nine events are
also more primarily focused on day to day
instruction, losing sight of the bigger picture.
Strengths of
Teaching for understanding is a great way to
activate prior knowledge and use it to mix future
instruction. Students receive regular feedback,
Teaching for and are able to relate learning to real world
experiences.
Understanding
Weaknesses of
Teaching for understanding requires a non-
conventional approach to learning and can be
expensive. There is also less structure built into
Teaching for the design theory, which can be difficult for
some students.
Understanding
Most Gagne’s nine events
Appropriate The most appropriate design theory for my instructional
setting is Gagne’s nine events. The structure of the nine

Design Theory events is suited well for a mathematics classroom. I don’t

believe the backwards design theory is as effective,

for My
because by nature, the overall topics are already aligned so
focusing on the day to day is a more appropriate theory.
Teaching for understanding can be extremely effective, but
Instructional is a little more difficult to do while teaching math because
of the lack of structure.

Setting