Cognitive & Perceptual Characteristics ED 226 Fall 2010

Cognitive Theory & Approaches to Mild Disabilities Learning is an active process that results in lasting changes with in the learners knowledge base and leads to stable changes in behavior Coming to understand The child is the novice thinker and the teacher is the expert thinker

Assumptions about cognitive processes Learns must be active participants in and responsible for their own learning Learning results when a student effectively relates a new learning to previous learning The way individuals organize and integrate information is critical to their success in learning Although it is possible and useful to study the individual components of successful learning, any interventions must consider and address the whole learning act

Behaviorist Approach Learning occurs when the individual forms an association between a particular environmental stimuli and a pleasant or punishing event. Pleasant outcomes result in new learning Unpleasant events are ignored or avoided While popular in reg ed, in sped this approach has failed to yield results as they don’t focus on the whole child, focus on active learning, or develop independent cognitive processing

Constructivists Perspectives How students construct knowledge from experience provided by the environment Learning is more complicated than a series of sensory responses

Constructivists Perspectives Piaget – Learning occurs in a set of stages related to maturation – Learning is self-regulated – Piaget called this “biological constructivism” – Begins when we recognize differences in our environment – Schema – Assimilation – Accommodation

Equilibrium ExperienceDisequilibrium Adaptation

StageAge Range (Approximate)Characteristics SensorimotorBirth to 2Builds knowledge/concepts through sensory experience and motor activity PreoperationalAges 2-7Begins to think in symbols but is still dependent on direct experience for learning Concrete operation Ages 7-14Begins to use logic to create new concepts, but only those related to the here and now Formal operations Ages 14 to adult Develops ability to think abstractly and logically

Implications for students w/ mild disabilities Process of cognitive development may be slower Plateaus Progress for those with ADHD, E/BD, and LD maybe be disrupted for less efficient Disequilibrium may not be recognized or processed Reliance on assimilation or accomodations

Characteristics of most effective instruction Well designed Developmentally appropriate Significant exposure to manipulates/hands on Focused on key concepts Great for remediation!!!

Vygotsky Learning occurs through participation in social or culturally embedded experiences. Not a solitary learner, learns through social interactions in meaningful contexts Social constructivism: learning occurs when teachers and others guide the learner in developing new understandings

Zone of proximal development The range of learning that students can achieve when they are engaged in meaningful activities with competent others. The distance between what children can do by themselves and the next learning that they can be helped to achieve with competent assistance Vygotsky believed this zone is where learning occurs and that this was a better means to gauge ability than tests of acquired knowledge

Application for those in Sp.Ed. What does the learner already know? Nature and quality of support needed for them to learn the next thing.

Scaffolding Instruction The role of the teachers and others in supporting the learners’ development and providing support structures to get to the next stage or level. The teacher helps the students connect the “know” with the “new.” As this moves forward the learner accepts more responsibility in learning

Implications for students w/ mild disabilities Smaller zones of proximal development More scaffolding Those with difficulty in social interactions need this more Behavioral expectations are only appropriate when the behaviors is within the child’s ability UDL provide an excellent framework

Cognitive Style Research Field Dependence and Field Independence – The degree to which an individual’s perceptual and cognitive judgments are influenced by the surrounding environment Higher rates of field dependence among low socioeconomic groups Higher rate of field independence among girls

Cognitive Style Research Impulsivity and Reflectivity – The speed with which the individual reaches decisions and whether the individual things about the action before acting. The critical issue is not the actual speed of taking action but rather the presence or absence of an effective and deliberated process prior to acting.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 1: Equitable Use – Teach the use of a variety of cognitive scaffolds for students’ use in learning how to perform cognitive tasks; students can then use them as needed – Posting cue cards/posters for common strategies can assist field dependent students complete learning task more confidently

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 1: Flexibility in Use – Allowing some students to choose to use computers or calculators to reduce cognitive load of some learning tasks. – Provide a list of tasks to be completed by the students and then allow them to choose the order of completion.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 3: Simple and Intuitive – Using clear examples and nonexamples helps all students build strong cognitive structures in long- term memory. – Teaching the use of graphic organizers helps scaffold tasks for learners, extablishign strategies for doing common cognitive tasks.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 4: Perceptible Information – Providing instruction in a variety of modalities allows students to depend on their stronger sensory register channel while supplementing it with a weaker channel.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 5: Tolerance of Error – Monitoring students engaged in learning tasks, and providing additional coaching/scaffolding for those who do not develop learning strategies on their own – Modeling the completion of the cognitive task allows the teacher to correct misconceptions students may not have even realized they had.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 6: Low Physical Effort – Having computers available for drill and practice reduces the effort needed to learn basic skills information. – Using note sheets to go along with the PowerPoint or lectures allows students to follow along with the lesson without losing focus on the key points by reducing the need to write less meaningful sentences and words

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 7: Size and Space for Approach Use – Because learning begins with the student taking in sensory stimuli through the sensory register, ensure that all students can see and hear instructional presentations. Principle 8: A Community of Learners – Group students heterogeneously in cooperative learning groups to accomplish cognitive tasks allows students with ineffective learning strategies to model strategies uses by more effective learners.

UDL In Action: Supporting Cognitive Learning Principle 9: Instructional Climate – Clearly identifying the objective for learning assists all students in focusing and sustaining attention.