Gestalt Theory

Gestalt Theory Definition (useful to us): a concerte individual and characteristic entity, existing as something detached and having a shape or form as one of its attributes Simplified: the Gestalt psychology is how people see and understand the relation of the whole to the parts that make up that whole.

Gestalt Theory Perceptual Organization Good figure Figure-ground separation Continuity Helped form basis message design principles The part of a whole property is the basis of its importance

Gestalt Theory Visual Literacy - what can be seen and how we interpret what is seen. study the physical processes involved in visual perception use of technology to represent visual imagery develop intellectual strategies used to interpret and understand what is seen. http://www.academic.marist.edu/pennings/viswhatis.htm http://www.csuohio.edu/history/exercise/vlehome.html http://www.channel1.com/users/bobwb/vlit

Cognitive Theory and Ed Tech

Theory, Practice, and Instructional Design Design is how theory guides practice Design works through a process called satisficing Degree of success The validity of our knowledge oeffective instruction in a given subject domain The reliability of our procedures for applying that knowledge

Theory, Practice, and Instructional Design Instructional theory – (opposition) – guided by conditions, methods, and outcomes Ie. To teach how to form the past tense of regular English verbs (outcome) to advanced students of English who are familiar with all relevant grammatical terms and concepts (conditions), present them with a written description of the procedures to follow (method). Problem: designer is usually not Able to make such specific statements A subject matter specialist The prescription may not be valid – the test cannot account for every case but rather infers from a sample

Theory, Practice, and Instructional Design Task analysis Identify exactly what the student must achieve in order to attain the instructional outcome Learner analysis Determine the most critical o the conditions under which instruction is to take place Instructional designers must know instructional theory AND how to do task and learner analysis

Theory, Practice, and Instructional Design Why behaviorism is only a part of our whole Behavior is not predictable

Cognitive Theory and the Predictability of Behavior The theory shift has occurred, but the procedures of instructional design have not Cognitives challenges to behavior Instructional theory is incomplete – there is not a prescription for ever possible combination of conditions, methods, and outcomes Mediating cognitive variables differ in nature and effect from individuals Response to stimulus varies among individuals Metacognition (student) Students monitor their own progress Students adjust for poor performance Plausible thinking People make decisions and take actions on basis of incomplete information

Cognitive Theory and Ed Tech Unlike behavioral task analysis, which produces task hierarchies or sequences, cognitive analysis produces either descriptions of knowledge schemata that students are expected to construct, or descriptions of the steps information must go through as the student processes it or both Cognitive approach provides descriptions of students’ mental models, not descriptions of their levels of performance prior to instruction Instructional strategies are selected on the basis of their likely ability to modify schemata rather than to shape behavior

Instructional Design Conceptualization and doing of instruction must occur simultaneously Demand for “empty technologies” that can be filled with anything the student or teacher wishes

Scholarship 3 “Ages” Age of Instructional design Age of Message design Dominated by behavioral theories Decisions are driven by task analysis – we need all 3 Age of Message design Shift from Instructional content to instructional formats Format of content affects how it is encoded in memory structures Age of Environment design Based on cognitive theory Interaction leads to construction of understanding Virtual environments can empower educators to control this