Category: Post 1

Prompt: Share a story about your best learning experience (could be a formal course or something more personal). Why did you enjoy it?

I have been asked multiple times the same question, and my answer would always be the course I took in grade 11, entrepreneurship. I never could explain in short why I kept it as my favourite for such a long time, but acknowledging the theory of teaching clarified the why for my liking in that course. It was a course that challenged students to open up a fast-food restaurant within the school system. Students were tasked with learning the market of students, stocking up on inventory, keeping a good flow in the kitchen, and accounting for profit. All the planning and learning happen in the classroom; while students operate the restaurant outside of the classroom, it will be the real world they are facing. Without the assistance of an instructor, students’ learning is solely based on two things, one being experience, which includes, mistakes, achievements, progress, and numbers; two being inflexible knowledge, which is the learning within the homeroom. If that is not enough to make it a good course, students will get paid based on working hours, which could also contribute to the required working hours to graduate from high school.

Now for the second question, I liked the course for what it had to offer, and for how much I’ve learned and achieved. I felt like I learned a bit of everything, from cooking to business, from business to duty, and from duty to character. What made the course interesting was the utilization of the unique combination of all three learning theories, behaviorism, cognitivism and constructivism, while organizing it to each designated learning property. For instance, behaviorism is seen in the workplace, where the quality of work, customer/peer reviews, and mistakes during operation would be rewarded or punished through payment and ratings. The idea of a healthy working environment is reinforced in learners’ brains. Cognitivism is seen through activities when learners are required to solve immediate problems, such as popular items out of stock, spillage of drinks, customer satisfaction, and interrupted restaurant flow. These surprises aren’t taught to learners, the learning process only happens when they occur. Lastly, constructivism is seen through teamwork, where the continuous friction between members will create the needed spark of success. Group work efficiency could never be mastered through anything but the experience. It is the unique combination of these three theories that made the course enjoyable and effective.

References

Ertmer, P. A. & Newby, T. (2018). Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism: Comparing Critical Features From an Instructional Design Perspective. In R. E. West (Ed.), Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology. EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/lidtfoundations/behaviorism_cognitivism_constructivism