ICT in Education

Heuristic 2 – Placing knowledge in context adds meaning to learning

May 3, 2007

Presenting information to learners in a way that reflects the situations and cultures in which they will use it makes the information more relevant to them and easier to recall.

Brown, Collins and Duguid (1989) strongly emphasise the idea that concepts exist in a particular context which helps to shape the concept into useful knowledge. Presenting this information in a form related to its use in the real world, ideally in a form which requires the learner to act as though they are also in that context (i.e. As a mathematician or historian) adds important layers of additional cultural meaning to the information being shared.

This allows the learner to form associations between the new information and their existing knowledge which according to cognitive theory makes it easier to store in and retrieve from long-term memory (Robyler, Edwards & Havriluk 2007).

I recently worked on a project with a teacher at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) focusing on a competency called Practice within legal and ethical parameters. This teaches nurses about legal and ethical issues within nursing practice, the law and their responsibilities. In the past, it had been taught essentially as a list of laws and policies that nurses needed to be aware of.

We created a detailed case study simulation in which nurses make decisions based on developments in a particular patient’s case, consultation with colleagues and other available information.

This added hospital and nursing culture issues to the learning and allowed nurses to connect more personally with the course content.

As someone working in a Vocational Education and Training institution, the richness and relevance of information is of the highest importance as knowledge developed by learners is designed almost exclusively for practical use in specific settings. Finding new ways to contextualise even the simplest foundation skills and to make teachers aware of the importance of this therefore is crucial.

Practitioners wishing to enhance meaning with context might consider:

• Using more collaborative problem based projects (Ertmer & Newby 1993)

• Build skills through sequential exercises (Driscoll 2002)

• Look for a balance between experiential learning, guided mentoring and collective reflection (Dede 2005)

References:

Brown, J., Collins, A., & Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning. Educational Researcher, Jan/Feb, 32-42.

Colvin, Clark, R. & Mayer, R. E. (2007). Using rich media wisely. In R. A. Reiser & J. V. Dempsey (Eds.). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (pp. 311-322). Upper Saddle Creek, NJ: Pearson Education.

Dede, C. (2005). Planning for neomillennial learning styles. Educause Quarterly, 28(1).

Driscoll, M.P. (2002). How People Learn (and What Technology Might Have To Do with It). ERIC Digest. ED470032

Ertmer, P.A. & Newby, T.J. (1993). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 6(4), 50-72.

Robyler, M. D., Edwards, J., & Havriluk, M. A. (1997). Integrating Educational Technology into Teaching (pp. 54-79). New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

Entry Filed under: 911, cognitivism, constructivism, context, pedagogy, scenarios, strategies. .