Respond to each question in about 150 words.
1) Provide an example of the conceptual knowledge that could underpin procedural knowledge. Identify three benefits to learning this conceptual knowledge.
4) What is a teaching method that is congruent with Vygotsky’s theory of cognition? Explain your answer. Then build a case for the following: (1) how this method could improve memory (i.e., help children retain information); (2) how this method could promote children’s problem solving, critical thinking, and/or transfer; and (3) how this method could foster children’s motivation.
6) Why do older children remember better than younger children? Provide two reasons.
9) The power of metacognition is a major theme of this course. Explain its role in: (1) memory; (2) problem solving, critical thinking, and/or transfer; and (3) motivation. For your answer on memory, you could refer to the processing apparatus known as the central executive. For your second answer, you could consider the steps involved in problem solving or the thought processes that render existing knowledge applicable to new contexts. For your answer on motivation, some examples of metacognitive phenomena may be appraisals of actions and appraisals of outcomes.
10) Why is distributed practice effective according to decay theory? And why is the best study strategy often a combination of distributed practice and intensive review in the day or so prior to an exam?
12)Mr. Hendricks’ preschool students have to do three things this morning: put the blocks away, get their show-and-tell from their cubbies, and sit in their spots for circle time. He wants the students to learn to remember directions like these without his having to repeat them over and over again. Describe three strategies that Mr. Hendricks can teach his students so that they remember this list of directions.
14) How can teachers make best use of manipulatives?
16) Provide two reasons why higher-level thinking may improve recall.
17) Why is it important for students to have decontextualized knowledge of a topic for transfer? How can teachers support the learning of decontextualized knowledge?
18) One of your students, Nadia, once again doesn’t have her lab manual and has to share with another student. Later she pretends to be working, but she spends most of her time making fun of the assignment or trying to get answers from other students when your back is turned. She is afraid to try because if she makes an effort and fails, she fears that everyone will know she is “dumb.” What type of goals does Nadia set? Does she have a fixed mindset or growth mindset of ability? What could you do to help Nadia develop healthier motivation?
19) Why might children who subscribe to a growth mindset be able to learn more effectively? Identify three actions that explain the relationship between these children’s motivation and learning.
20) Use the expectancy-value-cost framework to diagnose (i.e., specify the causes of) a child’s poor attendance record at school. Explain how expectancy, value, and cost could each factor into the child’s low motivation to attend school.
22) As a teacher, how can you encourage students to approach you for help? Propose two concrete strategies derived from our unit on motivation (e.g., regarding needs, goal structures, goals, self-concepts, etc.).