1. No category

POD —IDEA Center
Learning Notes
S e p t e m b e r
2 0 0 6
Michael Theall, Youngstown State University, Series Editor
IDEA Learning Objective # 3:
“Learning to Apply Course Material (to improve
thinking, problem solving, and decisions)”
Todd Zakrajsek, Central Michigan University, [email protected]
Tamara Rosier, Cornerstone University, [email protected]
Background
Instruction in the absence of application is
incomplete because it occurs in a kind of artificial
learning environment. Often, there is no direct
connection between the material and the learner’s
experience and as a result, learning can be
extremely difficult. Dewey (1) and many others over
the past 100 years have stated emphatically that
learning is greatly facilitated when students are
shown how new information applies to their lives.
This application not only increases motivation (2),
but also increases critical thinking (3), and later
recall of the material (4).
In fact, the entire constructivist view of learning is
predicated on the concept of building upon
experiences across one’s lifetime. That is, we “use”
the information we obtain to construct meaning in
our lives, and we use previously learned material
and experiences to build a framework for effectively
incorporating new information.
IDEA research has found that several of the IDEA
method items are related to Objective 3. The
following six are of particularly important:
•
Method 2. Helping students answer their own
questions
•
Method 4. Demonstrating importance of subject
•
Method 6. Make it clear how topic fits in course
•
Method 8. Stimulated intellectual effort
•
Method 13. Introduced stimulating ideas
•
Method 15. Inspired students to set challenging
goals.
They primarily suggest the importance of
stimulating interest in the topic, demonstrating the
importance of the topic, inspiring students to set
high goals, and helping students to answer their
own questions. In “learning to apply course
material,” it is important to actively involve students
in the learning process and to help them see both
the relevance and importance of the information
involved. These six items all pertain to helping
students to build a foundation of specific course
knowledge and to take responsibility for their own
learning.
Objective 3 is also strongly related to several other
learning objectives pertaining primarily to
developing solid foundational knowledge and skills,
and an interest of the topic. Specifically,
•
Objective 1 (item 21). Gaining factual
knowledge,
•
Objective 2 (item 22). Learning principles and
theories,
•
Objective 4 (item 24). Professional skills/views,
and
•
Objective 12 (item 32). Interest in learning more.
Interestingly, “learning to apply course material” is
not strongly related to items pertaining to amount of
work and difficultly of the course, nor participating in
teams and discussion groups. While these are very
important aspects of the learning process, the mere
presence of difficult material and working in groups
themselves does not necessarily relate to Objective
3. Application must involve an individual effort.
Helpful Hints
It appears that learning relevant foundational
information and skills and seeing how these are
used in class is more critical to applying course
material for improved thinking and decision making
than is simply the amount of course material
assigned. Understanding a concept, even at an
expert level, does not by itself ensure the material
can be applied in an appropriate manner. It is
important to help students to learn by helping them
to practice recalling and using the information and
skills as often as possible.
Helping students to learn to apply course material is
closely related to Chickering and Gamson’s (5)
principle of using active learning in the classroom.
Active involvement through applying new
information is crucial to real-life problem solving,
and connecting learning to something directly
relevant to the student as a person is a basic
concept in creating an active environment.
As teachers, we need to consider approaches to
instruction that allow students to involve themselves
in their own learning processes. They must be given
opportunities to construct, question, transfer,
critique and apply their new learning. Students’
understanding improves when they actively
construct meaning and try to make sense of the
material. There are many ways to assist students to
learn application of course material. This Note will
focus on four methods – teaching for transfer,
improving critical thinking, problem-based learning,
and service-learning.
Improving critical thinking. A first step in critical
thinking is to apply relevant information and
experiences to the solution of the issue or problem
at hand. Thus, using questions to prompt the
application of existing or new information is one
strategy you can use to improve critical thinking.
Probing questions encourage students to think
more productively and to evaluate the evidence
more efficiently. Model critical thinking and
application thinking in your classes by asking
questions that encourage students to evaluate
alternatives and make educated choices (3).
The questions asked should stimulate critical and
creative responses. Don’t ask for lists of items or
what happened, but rather “Why” and “How” they
happened. As instructors and facilitators of learning,
we must not rely too heavily on textbooks or work
books, or simply seek simple, “correct answers” to
validate student learning. This only reinforces
student belief that there is a “correct response” and
that our job as teachers is to uncover that answer
and then move to new material. Instead, we need to
ask questions and speculate beyond what is known
to create new ideas and information. As we
facilitate conversations, we show our students that
we value their questions, consider them as thinkers,
and invite them to share their points of view.
To promote critical thinking with our classes,
provide opportunities for students to relate the
material to their life experiences and to evaluate
and question what is said, rather than immediately
accepting it as truth. When we promote critical
thinking skills, we teach our students to argue both
sides of an issue, compare answers and judge the
“best” answer based on evidence and encourage
students to create arguments in a reasoned way
rather than through emotions. Critical thinking
strategies also encourage students to use new
information and apply it to that which was previously
learned.
Teaching for transfer. Applying recently learned
course material to new situations is a complex and
critical cognitive goal. Transfer is the cognitive
process of applying previous experiences and
knowledge to learning or problem solving in a new
situation (6). It is one of the most important skills we
can teach our students.
Cognitive transfers can be described using three
sets of concepts: near or far (7); high-road or lowroad; and forward or backward (8). Near and far
transfer refers to the relative ease with which new
material is applied. Near transfer occurs when the
learning context is very similar to the context where
the information is used. An example of near transfer
is a student who learns to type on a typewriter
applies that knowledge to a computer keyboard. Far
transfer of learning applies when the learning
context and the application context are very
different. For example, if a student works in an
office setting and applies what she has learned
about leadership styles to her situation, a far
transfer has occurred.
High-road and low-road transfer refers to the
“cognitive energy” required to make the connection.
A low-road transfer is unconscious or intuitive and
takes little effort (for example driving a new car
similar to one’s old vehicle), whereas high-road
transfer takes a conscious, explicit effort to apply
learning from one situation to another (for example,
selecting and using a statistical test with a new and
different kind of data). Backward-reaching and
forward-reaching transfers are concerned with the
timing of the application. Backward-reaching
transfer occurs when a student examines a past
experiences and applies the new learning to it. A
forward-reaching transfer occurs when a student
thinks to a time in the future when the new
information can be applied.
When teaching for transfer, it is important to ground
the concept you are teaching in some applied
context. Introduce your topic, briefly discuss, and
then ask students to generate examples of the
concept. As you do this, notice the type of transfers
they are using. Challenge them to apply the concept
to their personal and professional lives as well as to
other contexts. As you teach concepts for
application, you will also want to remember that
teaching for depth of meaning and understanding
increases a student’s ability to transfer information.
Students will need time to construct meaning and
consider the implications of the new knowledge.
They will also need assistance to first see how
information can be transferred to a variety of
settings. By encouraging students to make a variety
of transfers, you will be increasing the likelihood of
deeper learning.
Problem-based learning. Too much of “traditional”
teaching involves giving students isolated bits of
information to be memorized and then demanding
that it be retrieved for examinations. Problem-based
learning is an alternative approach whereby
students are given a real-world scenario that is
often structured to be complex and ill-defined.
Students are required to use specific course
material and concepts to solve the problem at hand,
thereby setting up a situation in which students are
directly applying course material to a real-world
problem. Working in groups, students strive to solve
the problems while the instructor serves as a
facilitator and guide. Instructors who use problembased learning report that this approach helps
students to develop critical thinking sills, improves
retention of material, demonstrates the values of
working with others, and provides a framework for
solving problems that persists after the course has
ended (9). This approach also facilitates transfer of
learning as described above. The University of
Delaware maintains one of the most informative
websites for information on problem-based learning
(http://www.udel.edu/pbl/).
Service-Learning. Service-learning is an
experiential teaching/learning method that connects
meaningful community service with academic
learning. It gives students opportunities to directly
apply course material to meet a community need,
and is based heavily on the suggestions for good
instruction and learning by Dewey, Piaget, and
Kolb. One example may be a marketing class
assisting a local school district in getting the word
out about school millage for an upcoming election.
Students in the course might do audience research,
develop a marketing strategy, create a theme or
message, and collect data to determine the
effectiveness of the campaign. Service-learning has
many of the same benefits of an apprenticeship,
with students learning directly applicable skills from
course content, and the community receiving
assistance at very little cost. With respect to
academic development in the area of the course
content, reflection on the project is vital to learning.
Evidence of student learning and future civic
engagement by those participating in well-organized
service-learning activities is overwhelming (10).
Extensive information regarding service-learning
can be found at the national service-learning
clearinghouse (http://www.servicelearning.org/).
Assessment Issues
In order to apply course material, it is important that
students have a strong foundation of basic
information. As the course instructor, you should
first assess for critical aspects of foundational
knowledge in the course. This can be done through
examinations, quizzes, and class discussions. The
important issue here is that students have
appropriate and accurate material as the basis for
reasoned applications to new problems.
It is important that students understand the
importance of application in your course. Explain to
the students that they will be expected to apply
course material to “real world” problems and that
they will be tested on their ability to solve problems
in the course. It is important that students realize
there are critical steps to logical problem solving
and application of course material. Students must
understand responses will not be given full credit
just because they have opinions and attempted to
answer. To assess the extent to which students
have learned to apply course material to improve
thinking, problem solving, and decision making, ask
students periodically to express their perception of
the value of applying course material to new
problems. Students who are in class with the
expectation that there is one correct answer and
simply desire for you as the instructor to give them
the answer will be frustrated by a course in which
they are asked to do “extra” work, such as applying
information to seemingly extraneous situations. It
helps to be aware of this possible resistance. Do
not be discouraged if at first, students object to your
assignments.
With respect to transfer, start with applications that
are very close to the learned material and then
increase the distance from the learned material to
that which they are applying their new knowledge.
This shift from near to far transfer will assist the
students in understanding not only how to apply the
current information, but the process of learning to
apply information in an increasingly wide range of
situations. For example, students in an
environmental biology course may first be asked
how a certain chemical will impact the frog
population of a stagnant pond. Later, they may be
asked how introduction of a given chemical will
impact the ecosystem of an entire stream and
surrounding area.
Problem-based learning focuses on applying
learning. Having students solve problems (alone or
together) either in class or through at-home
assignments, better prepares them for
examinations. For critical thinking assessment, the
instructor should be certain to ask questions at a
higher cognitive level – analysis, synthesis, and
evaluation (11). These questions are good for
testing students on both forward and backward
transfer. Present well-known problems in societal
issues and ask student how the information in the
course could have been used to solve those
problems. At times, students will note that
technology and knowledge present today were not
even available at the time, so it is not an issue that
the people at that time made a mistake and “should
have done things differently,” but rather a
demonstration that as a society we are able to solve
increasingly complex problems. For example, an
automotive design class may be asked to look at
the design of the Ford Pinto of the 1970s and asked
how the design might have been changed to avoid
the exploding gas tank problem, or to look ahead to
increasing traffic and pollution problems and
suggest how new designs might avoid these
problems.
There are several methods to test understanding of
application of course material with respect to
service-learning. On examinations, students can be
asked to recount what took place and how the
material from the class was used to solve specific
problems. For example, in a marketing class in
which a service-learning project helped bring
needed donations to a food kitchen, students might
be asked what principles of marketing made the
advertising campaign successful. For servicelearning, reflection is also an important part of the
class and a way to gage understanding of
application of course material to meet community
need. Students in that same marketing class may
be asked what they felt was their most important
individual contribution and how their knowledge of
course material benefited the soup kitchen.
There are also a number of classroom assessment
techniques that can be used to document the extent
to which students are learning to apply course
material (12). As an example, “Application Cards”
may be used whereby students write down one
unique real-world application of the material
covered. This is a quick and easy method to
determine whether the student understands the
material and how it can be applied. This technique
may be broadened to include aspects of problem
solving and critical thinking.
If the goal in a course is to teach students to apply
course material for improved thinking, problem
solving, and decision making, it is imperative to give
the students multiple opportunities to practice that
behavior. Additionally, if these forms of thinking and
problem solving are important aspects of the
course, they should be demanded of the students
as part of the course. Students quickly determine
that issues of importance to the instructors are
related to the grading process, and that attention to
these issues is important for better learning and
better grades.
References and Resources
(1) Dewey, J. (1913). Interest and effort in
education. Boston: Riverside Press.
(2) Svinicki, M. D. (2004). Learning and motivation
in the postsecondary classroom. Bolton, MA:
Anker Publishing Company, Inc.
(3) Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2001). Critical thinking:
Tools for taking charge of your learning and
your life. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.
(4) Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels
of processing: A framework for memory
research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal
Behavior, 11, 671-684.
(5) Chickering, A. W., & Gamson, Z. F. (1991).
Applying the seven principles for good practice
in undergraduate education. New Directions for
Teaching and Learning #47. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
(6) Gentile, J. M. (2000). Then and now: A brief
view of Hope College today. In M.P. Doyle
(Eds.) Academic Excellence. Chapter 6.
Tuscon, AZ: Research Corporation.
(7) Shunk, D. H. (2000). Learning theories: An
educational perspective (3rd ed). Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
(8) Salomon, G., & Perkins, D. (1989). Rocky roads
to transfer: Rethinking mechanisms of a
neglected phenomenon. Educational
Psychologist, 24(2), 113-142.
(9) Major,C. (2002). Problem-based learning in
general education at Samford University: A case
study of changing faculty culture through
targeted improvement efforts. The Journal of
General Education 51(4), 235-256.
(10) Eyler, J., & Giles, D. E. Jr. (1999). Where's the
learning in service-learning San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
(11) Huitt, W. (2004). Bloom et al.'s taxonomy of the
cognitive domain. Educational Psychology
Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State
University. Retrieved September 20,2006, from
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/cogsys/bloom.html
(12) Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993).
Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook
for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey
Bass.
Related POD-IDEA Center Notes
IDEA Item #2 "Found ways to help students answer
their own questions," Nancy McClure
IDEA Item #4 "Demonstrated the importance and
significance of the subject matter," Nancy McClure
IDEA Item #6 "Made it clear how each topic fit into
the course," Michael Theall
IDEA Item #8 "Stimulated students to intellectual
effort beyond that required by most courses," Nancy
McClure
IDEA Item #13 "Introduced stimulating ideas about
the subject," Michael Theall
IDEA Item #15 "Inspired students to set and
achieve goals which really challenged them," Todd
Zakrajsek
Additional Resources
IDEA Paper No. 1: Motivating Students, Cashin
IDEA Paper No. 34: Focusing On Active,
Meaningful Learning, Stalheim-Smith
IDEA Paper No. 37: Helping Your Students Develop
Critical Thinking Skills, Lynch and Wolcott
IDEA Paper No. 41: Student Goal Orientation,
Motivation, and Learning, Svinicki
©2006 The IDEA Center
This document may be reproduced for educational/training activities.
Reproduction for publication or sale may be done only with prior
written permission of The IDEA Center.