J. Ouellette | UBC-MET | ePortfolio
Analytical Reflection Paper
ETEC 533Â | ARTIFACT THREE
I chose this artifact as it is a holistic reflection of my learning within ETEC 533.
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Even if the courses do not require post-learning reflection, I can't recommend this enough as a MET student. If you are an educator, I also encourage you to get your students to reflect on learning often.
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This time for metacognition and reflection gives the learner time to summarize lasting impressions, provide opportunities to make connections to their learning, talk about strengths and also set goals in areas that could be developed further.
(Ouellette, J., 2016c)
Looking back at this reflection, it looks at how I further deepened my understanding of problem-based learning by integrating it into one of my classroom inquiries.
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More importantly, this reflection brings me back to how much the course text, How People Learn (Bransford et al., 2000) has added to my depth of understanding in relation to consideration of prior knowledge of the learner.
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Specifically, Bransford et al. (2000) point to the importance of effective transfer of learning in their section on conceptual change. It is crucial for educators to not be guilty teaching by telling; something I wasn't completely cognizant of before this course. We must work with student misconceptions, rather then simply trying to destroy them with new learning (p. 70-1). For long-lasting neural pathways to be steered in the right direction, educators should be redirecting "glaciers of knowledge". That way, we can "pluck" the misconceptions of "sediment" whilst maintaining the beauty within.
(Muller, 2011, March 17).
What really consolidated Bransford et al.'s (2000) notions of conceptual change was when it was compared to Khan Academy vs. Veritasium videos within the course discussions. Derek Muller, the man behind these videos, really aims to differentiate himself from Khan Academy videos. In the video to your left, Muller (2011) posits that they are guilty of "teaching by telling". Muller, instead, tries to look at common misconceptions first, then use them to steer his audience to the clearer pathway of conceptual understanding.
Brilliant sales pitch, however, Muller has some serious video production to live up to if Veritasium is to compete with Khan Academy over the longer-term. Especially since Khan Academy is now teaming up with companies like Pixar.