The "Freeola Customer Forum" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
In the past it was considered that the most effective way that children could learn was by listening to a teacher, stood at the front of the class dictating the facts to the children who would take down and learn this information both during the lesson and through revision. Thankfully this form of teaching is now rarely used in education, but that does not mean that it does not still have its place. Taking down information that can be revised at a later date means that children have a constant source to refer back to which they can independently expand and challenge in their own time, as well as learning the original information given to them by the teacher. In a lot of cases the textbook has replaced long sessions of dictation allowing children to learn at their own pace taking the time to understand the information at a rate they can handle. Textbooks provide another advantage with the use of accompanying diagrams or pictures for text, I personally found this a good way of learning as a child, information can be easier to learn if it is accompanied by a visual reference. The main danger with this type of learning is the tendency for it to become boring and uninspiring to the children, and as a result they may learn nothing from the exercise. Also if many children are finding something hard to understand it is difficult for the teacher to help everyone during the space of one lesson, and as a result the above problems could occur lesson after lesson.
‘Learning by doing’ is a major way in which children learn. This is something that we as humans do naturally as babies as we investigate the environment around us, but ‘Learning by doing’ is also an effective way in which children learn at school. Design and Technology and also Science and Art make good use of this form of learning, as pupils are encouraged to investigate, analyse, observe and evaluate for themselves through practical activities. These practical activities more often than not are teacher-guided and so children can also be encouraged to break away from what they already know, expanding knowledge and learning on an individual basis through experimentation, and also make a
move from simple, structured tasks to more complex, open-ended ones. These tasks are again devised by the teacher, but with more focus on the child working more independently and thinking more for themselves and as a result building upon their existing knowledge with new learning. Looking at this form of learning from another perspective there are drawbacks for children. Children have skills in different areas of schooling, and there is a risk with this sort of learning that the children with lower ability or less confidence in practical activities become unmotivated and disinterested in the learning that is taking place and thus do not benefit from the activity.
Moving away now from practical activities to ‘learning by doing’ in a different sense, more suited to Mathematics, Languages and other subjects of the curriculum. This sort of learning may better be described as practice as a form of learning, where a particular skill or piece of knowledge is taught to the children and then they work on an individual basis to practice and perfect it. This form of learning is effective when combined with teacher assessment of the work, but if this does not occur the child cannot see if the work is leading to them learning the aim. Another problem that could occur is with the children who maybe have not fully grasped the work being taught and then cannot proceed with the practice and are embarrassed by the thought of asking for extra help and try and struggle their way through, possibly seeking help from their friends, but never really understanding the concepts involved and not learning the aim.
Questioning or testing is important in how children learn. When a child is asked to answer questions about a subject it acts both as a gauge for how successful their learning has been prior to the testing and it also acts as a means of generating learning, as the child can learn form the areas where they answered incorrectly, areas of weakness can be identified and targeted in future learning.
Testing in the form of coursework, where there is no set answer in mind is perhaps the best example of generating learning, as coursework tends to involve the child having to carry out a certain degree of independent learning through research or background reading in order to succeed in the work. It is this form of independent learning that can be most effective for some children as they can focus on the relevant information to them and the information that they find personally stimulating or interesting, leading them to want to learn more about the subject. It is my view that children are more inclined to learn if they have enthusiasm for the work taking place, and this should be applied to every classroom situation where ever possible. If children are not interested they ‘shut down’ and do not listen to the information that the teacher is trying to help them learn. It is through testing that these uninteresting areas of teaching can also be identified and altered to increase child learning in these areas.
There are certain drawbacks with testing however. Children tend to find the thought of doing a test a scary prospect and can under perform as a result; this can dishearten the child making them embarrassed at their failings and unable to learn from their mistakes. Also there is a risk of a child’s area of expertise being missed out during the test and so the child cannot demonstrate how much they have learned in reality. With testing in the form of coursework a child’s inability to find information comes into question. It is not that they cannot learn the information when it is in front of them; it is that their abilities to carry out research or background reading are not as strong as they could be. These are things that should be considered when deciding how much of a role testing should take in how children learn.
Group work or discussions is another area that contributes to how children learn. By working in groups or teams children benefit because they can feed off the ideas of other children and think of things that they may not have thought of otherwise. Working with others also challenges a child to learn in order for his or her group or team to be successful. Children can also learn from each other as they are more inclined to talk openly and state their views in front of their friends than in front of their teachers. Collaborating with other children allows individuals to be more ambitious and take on tasks that they might not if on their own. Group work can also provide an opportunity for children to ask the help of someone other than the teacher if they are struggling, having something explained by another child can often lead to a child learning something that they previously did not understand. This is also beneficial to the child doing the teaching as explaining something to someone else can sometimes help him or her to learn the information also. Working in a group also eases the workload on individuals allowing them to learn more because they can give their full attention to one aspect rather than trying to learn many things at once. The danger with using group work is that there may be one member of the group who takes the lead and pushes out the other members of the group and takes on the majority of the work leaving little for the others to do and learn from.
These dangers can be somewhat overcome in class discussions, lead by the teacher. Here children work in a relaxed atmosphere learning from both the teacher and their peers, with the added benefit of the teacher controlling the discussion and therefore the learning that is taking place. Teachers must be careful not to let the headstrong children take over the answer giving in these discussions as although the others may learn from their contributions, their own thoughts are not communicated and learned from.
These types of group work and discussions also help children to learn the valuable communication skills that give them more confidence to ask the questions to find the answers, which is after all a major factor in how children as well as we as adults learn.
The final point I would like to make is with regards Information and Communications Technology (ICT). It has in no doubt been a beneficial factor in how children learn. Computers, and in particular the Internet, now provide a link to the outside world which is accessible to nearly every child. A lot of children now have Internet access at home that allows them to learn about the issues that both interest and affect them personally, in the comfort and relaxation of their own homes. The Internet in general provides information that is easily accessible, in many cases targeted at children in a form that they find easy to understand, and which is accessible in a fashionable format. It provides a way of working that children can enjoy and learn from at the same time, as well as providing them with basics in what is now considered a key skill for an ever-changing technological world. Computers can be especially helpful for those pupils who are perhaps not so confident or capable in other forms of learning previously talked about.
So what are the drawbacks of computer learning? With the Internet being readily available away from school, children are susceptible to learning information that is incorrect and having their views and learning limited by what they see on the screen. I also see a danger of children and possibly in the future teachers as well losing sight of the benefits of the other ways of how children learn, which provide areas of learning that a computer cannot fulfil.
Thanks for Reading.
Figo.
In the past it was considered that the most effective way that children could learn was by listening to a teacher, stood at the front of the class dictating the facts to the children who would take down and learn this information both during the lesson and through revision. Thankfully this form of teaching is now rarely used in education, but that does not mean that it does not still have its place. Taking down information that can be revised at a later date means that children have a constant source to refer back to which they can independently expand and challenge in their own time, as well as learning the original information given to them by the teacher. In a lot of cases the textbook has replaced long sessions of dictation allowing children to learn at their own pace taking the time to understand the information at a rate they can handle. Textbooks provide another advantage with the use of accompanying diagrams or pictures for text, I personally found this a good way of learning as a child, information can be easier to learn if it is accompanied by a visual reference. The main danger with this type of learning is the tendency for it to become boring and uninspiring to the children, and as a result they may learn nothing from the exercise. Also if many children are finding something hard to understand it is difficult for the teacher to help everyone during the space of one lesson, and as a result the above problems could occur lesson after lesson.
‘Learning by doing’ is a major way in which children learn. This is something that we as humans do naturally as babies as we investigate the environment around us, but ‘Learning by doing’ is also an effective way in which children learn at school. Design and Technology and also Science and Art make good use of this form of learning, as pupils are encouraged to investigate, analyse, observe and evaluate for themselves through practical activities. These practical activities more often than not are teacher-guided and so children can also be encouraged to break away from what they already know, expanding knowledge and learning on an individual basis through experimentation, and also make a
move from simple, structured tasks to more complex, open-ended ones. These tasks are again devised by the teacher, but with more focus on the child working more independently and thinking more for themselves and as a result building upon their existing knowledge with new learning. Looking at this form of learning from another perspective there are drawbacks for children. Children have skills in different areas of schooling, and there is a risk with this sort of learning that the children with lower ability or less confidence in practical activities become unmotivated and disinterested in the learning that is taking place and thus do not benefit from the activity.
Moving away now from practical activities to ‘learning by doing’ in a different sense, more suited to Mathematics, Languages and other subjects of the curriculum. This sort of learning may better be described as practice as a form of learning, where a particular skill or piece of knowledge is taught to the children and then they work on an individual basis to practice and perfect it. This form of learning is effective when combined with teacher assessment of the work, but if this does not occur the child cannot see if the work is leading to them learning the aim. Another problem that could occur is with the children who maybe have not fully grasped the work being taught and then cannot proceed with the practice and are embarrassed by the thought of asking for extra help and try and struggle their way through, possibly seeking help from their friends, but never really understanding the concepts involved and not learning the aim.
Questioning or testing is important in how children learn. When a child is asked to answer questions about a subject it acts both as a gauge for how successful their learning has been prior to the testing and it also acts as a means of generating learning, as the child can learn form the areas where they answered incorrectly, areas of weakness can be identified and targeted in future learning.
Testing in the form of coursework, where there is no set answer in mind is perhaps the best example of generating learning, as coursework tends to involve the child having to carry out a certain degree of independent learning through research or background reading in order to succeed in the work. It is this form of independent learning that can be most effective for some children as they can focus on the relevant information to them and the information that they find personally stimulating or interesting, leading them to want to learn more about the subject. It is my view that children are more inclined to learn if they have enthusiasm for the work taking place, and this should be applied to every classroom situation where ever possible. If children are not interested they ‘shut down’ and do not listen to the information that the teacher is trying to help them learn. It is through testing that these uninteresting areas of teaching can also be identified and altered to increase child learning in these areas.
There are certain drawbacks with testing however. Children tend to find the thought of doing a test a scary prospect and can under perform as a result; this can dishearten the child making them embarrassed at their failings and unable to learn from their mistakes. Also there is a risk of a child’s area of expertise being missed out during the test and so the child cannot demonstrate how much they have learned in reality. With testing in the form of coursework a child’s inability to find information comes into question. It is not that they cannot learn the information when it is in front of them; it is that their abilities to carry out research or background reading are not as strong as they could be. These are things that should be considered when deciding how much of a role testing should take in how children learn.
Group work or discussions is another area that contributes to how children learn. By working in groups or teams children benefit because they can feed off the ideas of other children and think of things that they may not have thought of otherwise. Working with others also challenges a child to learn in order for his or her group or team to be successful. Children can also learn from each other as they are more inclined to talk openly and state their views in front of their friends than in front of their teachers. Collaborating with other children allows individuals to be more ambitious and take on tasks that they might not if on their own. Group work can also provide an opportunity for children to ask the help of someone other than the teacher if they are struggling, having something explained by another child can often lead to a child learning something that they previously did not understand. This is also beneficial to the child doing the teaching as explaining something to someone else can sometimes help him or her to learn the information also. Working in a group also eases the workload on individuals allowing them to learn more because they can give their full attention to one aspect rather than trying to learn many things at once. The danger with using group work is that there may be one member of the group who takes the lead and pushes out the other members of the group and takes on the majority of the work leaving little for the others to do and learn from.
These dangers can be somewhat overcome in class discussions, lead by the teacher. Here children work in a relaxed atmosphere learning from both the teacher and their peers, with the added benefit of the teacher controlling the discussion and therefore the learning that is taking place. Teachers must be careful not to let the headstrong children take over the answer giving in these discussions as although the others may learn from their contributions, their own thoughts are not communicated and learned from.
These types of group work and discussions also help children to learn the valuable communication skills that give them more confidence to ask the questions to find the answers, which is after all a major factor in how children as well as we as adults learn.
The final point I would like to make is with regards Information and Communications Technology (ICT). It has in no doubt been a beneficial factor in how children learn. Computers, and in particular the Internet, now provide a link to the outside world which is accessible to nearly every child. A lot of children now have Internet access at home that allows them to learn about the issues that both interest and affect them personally, in the comfort and relaxation of their own homes. The Internet in general provides information that is easily accessible, in many cases targeted at children in a form that they find easy to understand, and which is accessible in a fashionable format. It provides a way of working that children can enjoy and learn from at the same time, as well as providing them with basics in what is now considered a key skill for an ever-changing technological world. Computers can be especially helpful for those pupils who are perhaps not so confident or capable in other forms of learning previously talked about.
So what are the drawbacks of computer learning? With the Internet being readily available away from school, children are susceptible to learning information that is incorrect and having their views and learning limited by what they see on the screen. I also see a danger of children and possibly in the future teachers as well losing sight of the benefits of the other ways of how children learn, which provide areas of learning that a computer cannot fulfil.
Thanks for Reading.
Figo.