"The _isms"

I could not have asked for two better articles to read this week! I have discussed these "_isms" since high school Psychology class, however, this week's articles were very engaging and interesting!

The quote by Kerr, "It seems to me that each _ism is offering something useful without any of them being complete or stand alone in their own right," not only resonated with Kapp, but me also. There are portions of Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism, and Connectivism that I agree with. As Kerr stated, “What we need to is take the best from each philosophy and use it wisely to create solid educational experiences for our learners.” Great teachers already know to do this. They reflect on the "isms" and make them adaptable in their classroom to ensure meaningful learning experiences. Every classroom has a different set of learners, with different needs, so it'd be impossible for one learning theory to work for all students. Also, since it is impossible for all people to agree to one learning theory, and everyone has their own ideas, theories are constantly evolving. Which makes learning about how people learn so interesting. As Kapp stated, "There are too many levels for one school of thought or one model to do it all." Therefore, teachers (or educational technologists) need to just take what WE think is best from each philosophy, implement it, and respect that others different views.

References:

Kapp, K. (2007, January 2). Out and about: Discussion on educational schools of thought [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.kaplaneduneering.com/kappnotes/index.php/2007/01/out-and-about-discussion-on-educational/

Kerr, B. (2007, January 1). _isms as filter, not blinker [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2007/01/isms-as-filter-not-blinker.html