EDT 630 Blog #3

It seems to me that the cognitivist approach is a more applicable approach to education because it works on a more significant plane than the other approaches. It is important for students to see meaning in what they are learning. Cognitivists are proponents of this as well. Students who see that the topics they study are relevant will be more likely to gain and retain the knowledge we want them to gain and retain. To that end, teachers should strive to build on students’ prior knowledge and life experience in every lesson while bringing the topic full circle and making the information relevant to the student. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways. The most meaningful to me as a student is through the integration of technology and in having an interest-piquing video or song at the beginning of a lesson. The video gets my attention without teaching anything and I enjoy the small break from instruction. I think that is part of what gets me motivated to learn the content. The end, coming full circle with the lesson and making me apply the knowledge I have gained is also crucial to me. I will be experiencing that this fall as I begin to teach. All of the suggestions and hints I have had will be so strongly reinforced as I teach. I will recognize the parts of theory that seem effective to me and distinguish them from the ones that do not work for me. I am excited and ready to learn everything that I can learn and put my learning to use as I will expect my students to.