I have taken so many courses on educational psychology and learning theories that my view has not really changed much. One thing that I did learn is that I am a social learner. The theory of social learning is definitely a great one because up until now, I did not realize that I am a social learner. However, one must not get confused with the idea of social learning because you do not have to be physically beside someone to learn socially. In my opinion, you can learn through emails and text messages. You can even learn over the phone and through social networking sites. Some people may wonder what they learn over a social networking site? Well the fact is that we are constantly learning so by reading status updates on a social networking site can help the learner form more of an opinion about someone or something. Those opinions can influence educational facets of learning both positively and negatively.
2. What have you learned that can further explain your own personal learning preferences?
Well, I definitely have learned that I am a social learner and with the recent advances in technology, I am able to stay connected with everyone with whom I come into contact. I am not sure if I have benefited educationally from staying connected because even though I am connected to them, most of them seem reluctant to be connected with me. But I keep them on my list because I might need them in the future.
I have also learned that I am a tactile learner as well a visual learner. Someone can sit and talk all day learn but I do not actually fully grasp the concept unless they actually demonstrate the concept through visuals and give me a little time to practice the concept on my own. That way I can clear up any questions that may arise...especially on slippery concepts. An example of this is when I learned about the mol numerical representation in Chemistry in high school. This is a slippery concept but my teacher was very visual and I was able to practice and my teacher answered all of my questions while providing positive feedback.
3.What role does technology play in your learning?
Technology plays a very large part in my learning. First of all, I have not been to a library to do research in over 10 years. This feat has been made possible through the Internet and the cooperation of schools to place books and journals online. Also, as I am typing this blog post I am using a high-tech laptop computer that is able to webconference. I use the internet to load search engines to find information. I also use the internet to connect to my online classroom and stay connected with my classmates and my professors. Theoretically, I would take my laptop with me wherever I go, but with the innovation of smartphones, I am able to leave my laptop at home and use my smartphone to keep me connected while I am on the go.
Lastly, I am so thankful for technology because for a short time when I was younger, we used typewriters and it is a pain to save and edit documents with a typewriter. Computers make life so much easier.
