This spring will be my first time teaching an online course at the post-secondary level. I have yet to be assigned the exact course; however, I know it will be within the purview of the Educational Assistant Certificate. After reviewing Emma’s thoughts on learning theories, I am especially interested in how I can purposefully integrate the use of a poll and cognitivism into my class. I had always considered polls to be a way for students to show their likes or dislikes, understanding levels, or interest levels, but I had not considered the use for enhancing cognition and how it can “form relationships; that is, in networks” (Ally, 2008, p. 22) to encourage learning and memory recall. Polls require students to participate actively by responding to questions or expressing their opinions, promoting engagement and involvement in the learning material, thus encouraging active learning. However, polls can be a tool to “present the materials and use strategies that enable students to process the materials efficiently (Ally, 2008, p. 22), help activate prior knowledge, bridge new information with existing schemas, and facilitate the integration of new concepts into students’ cognitive frameworks. I feel the use of the poll would be an excellent way to gain insight into students’ background knowledge and activate schema moving forward in my course.

References

Ally, M. (2008). Foundations of educational theory for online learning. The theory and practice of online learning (pp.15-44). Athabasca, AB: Athabasca University Press. http://www.aupress.ca/books/120146/ebook/01_Anderson_2008-Theory_and_Practice_of_Online_Learning.pdf