Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles by: Emily Giles, Sarah Pitre and Sara Womack

Howard Gardner created the theory of multiple intelligences in which he uses the aspects of cognitive and developmental psychology, anthropology, and sociology to explain the human intellect. Based on brain research and interviews with victims of strokes, and people with autism he was able to categorize his theory into eight different criteria to identify his seven different intelligences. However, where he initially had seven separate intelligences, two more were added in 1999 to make a total of nine. The nine intelligences include Verbal/Linguistic, Logical/Mathematical, Visual/Spatial, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Musical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Naturalistic, and Existential. Verbal/ Linguistic includes those who have the ability to understand and manipulate words and languages. These learners learn best different types of verbal and written communication. Logical/Mathematical includes those who learn best through problem solving, and organizing data. Visual/Spatial is a person who can form and manipulate a mental model. They learn best through presentations, demonstrations or videos. A kinesthetic learner is one that can process information through the senses and learn best through lots of hands on activities. A musical learner is one that understands, interpret and create music, and learn best through rhythm and music. An interpersonal learner is a person who responds to moods or actions, and is often more emotional and empathetic towards others. They learn best socially, and through talking with others. An intrapersonal learner is one is much more internalized, and knows their own emotions, strengths and weaknesses. They learn best when left alone and by themselves to reflect upon their work. Finally is the Naturalistic learner which is a person who is greatly in tune with nature, and learns best through working and learning about nature. There are many benefits to Gardner’s intelligences theory, to include a student’s sense of increased self-worth as they build on their strengths and work towards becoming an expert in areas. Also, students may develop strong problem solving skills that they can use real life situations. Finally, this theory is important because it shows teachers that there are many different types of smart and not all students learn the same way.

"Bloom's Taxonomy:Original and Revised" by:Mary Forehand

Benjamin S. Bloom was a forerunner in the creation of the multi-tiered system that classified people’s thinking behaviors, and patterns of learning. He wrote his first book in 1956 entitled “Bloom’s taxonomy” where he discussed his multi-tiered model of classifying thinking according to six cognitive levels of complexity. The lowest three levels are knowledge, comprehension and application. The highest three levels are analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Because the levels are hierarchal, you can master one level of thinking and move on to the next. Often times, teacher’s use this hierarchy with their children by telling them to “move up the ladder” to a higher level of thinking. However, as time has progressed, Bloom’s original names for his thinking levels were renamed. Instead, the three lowest levels are remembering, understanding and applying and the three highest levels are analysis, evaluating and creating. Another change is that many of Bloom’s original levels have been subdivided into three or four different subcategories. For example, For example, Remember is subdivided into the three categories of Remember, Recognizing, and Recalling. Having all the different subcategories has shown to be helpful for teachers in their writing objectives and in aligning their standards with the curriculum. In today’s education, bloom’s taxonomy has proven to also help teachers to measure their students ability, and therefore help them better see where they need to focus on their students education.

"Piaget and Cognitive Development" by: Kakali Bhattacharya and Seungyeon Han and "Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development"

Piaget believes that a child can learn through two different ways. Accommodation and assimilation. When a child learns through accommodation, they must alter existing schemas about existing reality to understand the new information. However by learning through assimilation, a child merely adds the new information into existing schemata’s to try to make sense of the new information.
However, when children learn sometimes they can go into a state of internal conflict, or disequilibriation. In order to maintain equilibration, the child must try to assimilate the new information being learned into their mind. Piaget also believed the basic building blocks of thinking to be schemata’s. It is something as specific as recognizing a dog, or as elaborate as categorizing different types of dogs. Schemata’s are important in accommodation and assimilation because accommodation involves the changing of preexisting schemata to adapt to a new event while assimilation is the attempt to organize an existing schemata to better understand events in the external world.
Finally, Piaget uses four different stages to describe the stages of cognitive development in children. The first stage, sensorimotor, begins at birth and lasts until 18 months-2 years of age. This stage is mainly characterized as when infants learn about object permanence, the fact that an object remains, even after it cannot be seen.
The second of Piaget’s stages is the preoperational stage, which occurs between 18 and 24 months. In this stage, children begin to use language, memory and also can begin to understand relationships between the past and the present.
The third of Piaget’s stages is the concrete operational stage, which occurs between the ages of 7 and 11. In this stage, the child begins to understand symbols, and can manipulate them. They also begin the think less egocentrically.
Piaget’s final stage is formal operations, which occurs from 11 to adulthood. In this stage, the person begins to think more abstractly, and can make connections between abstract relationships and concepts.

Computer Mediated Instruction by: Tim Daniels and Melinda Pethel

There are many different forms of technology now available for educators to use in the classroom. However, three main types have emerged for educators to use in the classroom. To begin with is computer mediated communication. This is any form of communication between two or more individual people who interact and influence one another via separate computers. This can be in the form of email, instant messaging, or video games. This allows for students to learn in more convenient locations and also allows for distance education to be possible. (ex: online classes) Also, by having this type of communication, opportunities to experience other types of cultures are increased. One way you can implement this type of communication in the classroom is through a blog where students can journal and reflect upon their work.
Second is asynchronous communication, which allows for participants to post whenever they want to and save the postings so that the individual participants can view them later. This can include things such as blogs, surveys and assessments. Asynchronous communication is helpful because it is flexible, and much more accessible, and also allows for the student to have time to think about the given subject, and create a thought. One way you can implement this type of communication is through bulletin boards where students can post messages for other class or group members to respond, and also where they can share information with one another.
Third is Synchronous Communication where the learner and instructor is online at the same time and communicating in real time. This can include real-time chat, instant messaging, video conferencing and web casting. This type of communication is helpful because it allows for students to collaborate with their classmates in small group discussion rooms. Two ways you can incorporate this in your classroom is through chats where teams and groups can share ideas and brainstorm, and also through email and instant messaging where students can email information about class assignments, and share programs with one another.
These types of technology used for communication can affect the classroom because they have proven to be a valuable educational tool. They have allowed for the classroom to become much more virtual and accessible for students outside of class, and created greater access to professors and teachers. It has also allowed for students to see their learning as much more group learning instead of individual learning, and helped them to learn how to collaborate much more effectively with their peers.

“Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants: Some thoughts from the Generation Gap” Written by: Timothy VanSlyke

Author Marc Prensky’s article “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” is critiqued by author Timothy VanSlyke. In this article, VanSlyke looks at reasons why Prensky dubs the elder generation “digital immigrants” because of their lack of experience in the new technology that runs the current generation, and the “digital natives”, young children who have grown up with all the technology at their fingertips. Prensky goes as far as to explain how even the brain development of the two generations has begun to differ. VanSlyke counterargues Prensky’s premise by stating that he sees no possible way that the brain development of two generations can differ so greatly, and that there is not as much of a communication disability between the two generations as Prensky leads the readers to believe. VanSlyke also disagrees with Prensky’s stereotype of the typical child “glued” to the computer screen. Not all children of this generation stay entertained with technology. This to me is a very valid point by VanSlyke because of the fact that throughout Prensky’s article, he stereotypes children into being computer and game obsessed, when in reality many children still enjoy reading, writing, and doing other activities that do not involve technology. In the end, I agree with VanSlyke with his statements regarding how computers need to be facilitators in learning, not replacing teachers and the traditional methods we all have used.

"Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part II" Written by: Marc Prensky

Marc Prensky believes that students of today have a mind that processes information differently than people from generations before them. Because of the high paced world, and emergence of video games and computers, children are learning how to learn in a different way. This way, although different, does not “fit in” with the old way of teaching, and therefore children often appear to be bored, or lost in interest simply because their attention span is used to something that is more stimulating. With this change in learning, the emergence of video games has been a helpful tool for educators, and has also proven to increase the scores of children who had previously been having difficulties in various academic areas. I do think that Prensky makes very valid points in how the use of computer games is much more interactive and hands on for children who are used to the more interactive lifestyle, and are proven to help them learn things much more effectively than before. In the end, the emergence of learning games has been proven to be much more affective to the new generation of students, named by Prensky as the “digital natives”. He believes that as each year passes, more educators will be turning from the traditional route teaching styles, and instead turning to the more interactive and entertaining technological styles to help their students to learn in the best way possible

"Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants" written by Marc Prensky

Marc Prensky shows that there is a large difference between the students of the past, and the students of today. He refers to all people that were born or raised before the digital age began as “digital immigrants” and those who were born and raised in the digital age “digital natives”. By this, he means that “digital natives” are those that understand the language of communication and technology and thrive on the high, fast paced world full of TV shows, video games, and other forms of technological entertainment. However, “digital immigrants” are those that have had to adapt to the new technology, and learn to incorporate it as a useful asset in their daily lives. Prensky goes on to explain that our “digital immigrant” instructors are struggling to teach a generation who speaks an entirely different language, and are therefore less effective in their teaching practices. However, I somewhat disagree with Prensky for the fact that he believes the only way to successfully teach is to completely use technology and abandon the practices of the past. He also seems to imply that he hardly sees a way for a “digital immigrant” to possibly ever really make the transition into being a “digital native” and successfully use technology in an everyday format.