(Note: This blog was inadvertently posted last Feb. 7 to a different blog page when I switched to the new blog account as per instruction of blogger.com. I just copied this blog into this page which is linked to Bloglines.com.)

CHAPTER 4 BLOG: HOW CHILDREN LEARN

INSPIRATIONS:

Source: “How People Learn”, Bransford, et. al, 2000, pp. 79 – 113

“Children have strong predispositions to learn rapidly and readily…they can possibly have early learning and can pave the way for competence in early schooling.”

“To develop strategic competence in learning, children need to understand what it means to learn, who they are as learners, and how to go about planning, monitoring, revising, and reflecting upon their learning and that of others.”

“Children may lack knowledge and experience but not reasoning ability.”

“They attempt to solve problems and to seek novel challenges. They refine and improve their problem-solving strategies not only in the face of failure, but also by building on prior success. Success and understanding are motivating for them – reasons for their persistence.”

“Adults help make connections between new situations and familiar ones for children. Children’s curiosity and persistence are supported by adults who direct their attention, structure their experiences, support their learning attempts, and regulate the complexity and difficulty levels of information for them.”

In order for children to understand information, children need STUCTURE.

THINKING OUT LOUD

“I believe that children are our future.

Teach them well and let them lead the way…”

Children are our future. It is an absolute understanding that children are the future leaders, the future stakeholders of a community, a country, or the world. They are without doubt looked upon with firm hope and positive expectation that they will use their vast potentials to the betterment of others and of the world they live in. The desire to give them the optimum learning condition is so sincere and touching.

However, relative to all these, focus, commitment and concrete action often run short. Some parents provide their children with things that gravely distract them (PSP, GameBoy, Xbox 360, unlimited internet access, etc.). Some teachers underestimate the capability of the youthful mind that they patronize them when they complain with schoolwork and that they (worse) avoid to give them works that will challenge them to think beyond complacency. Government policies laced with political interests create an unstable public educational system that does not support its teachers and that displaces the underprivileged.

If children are our future, if each one of them has great potential and if children have the ability to acquire meaningful and purposeful learning, then they should be taken seriously. Everybody must consider in depth how children learn.

Parents need to know the limits of giving. It is ridiculous to let their children own 2 or more game systems. It is unhealthy to give their children unfettered access to the internet. It is unfruitful to allow their kids to watch TV, and DVDs beyond necessity. All these contribute to the lost of STRUCTURE and FOCUS to learning. They waste their child’s learning opportunities through reading, creative activities, and critical thinking. It is proven that effective study habits results to academic success. Parents need to create a learning atmosphere – consistent study schedule and complete study area.

Teach them well and let them lead the way. Children will learn when teachers teach meaningfully and purposefully. Lesson plans should be design as to consider the pre-existing knowledge of the students and relate this to their life experience. Teaching should present information into organized and meaningful units – clustering. Teachers should guide students to orchestrate their own learning (plan and monitor their success, correct their errors), and should encourage them to reflect and evaluate their own performance. Teachers should employ various strategies that make the students become more involved in classroom activities – a participant not a spectator.

In teaching Math and Science, I incorporate competitive group games that make learning more fun and engaging. My students are into games. They become focused and involved when they are given the same environment. I have small white boards and markers provided for each group into which they write their group answers. They find this freedom very appealing and engaging. Moreover, I used Connect 4, Dart, Mini Basketball, and Battleship in enhancing their learning.

So far, I see interesting and encouraging improvement.