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Week 2 learning materials

Excerpt from Jonassen:

What is Meaningful Learning?

Ever hear a student say "I love taking notes, so much!" or "Homework is my favorite!"?

 Neither have I.

That's because busy work, note taking and rote learning are some of the most boring and tedious learning methods.

The Key to student engagement lies in a much different approach: Meaningful Learning.

So, what is 

Meaningful Learning?

Meaningful learning occurs when content is relatable and students are able to connect to it, adding new information to existing knowledge to create a learning experience that has meaning for them.

Meaningful learning has five main attributes:

It should be 

active, 

constructive, 

intentional, 

authentic, 

and cooperative.

     Meaningful learning is active.

Learning is a natural process through which humans interact with their environment, make observations, and adapt their thinking accordingly. 

Teaching that reflects this innate learning process is 

likely to be more engaging and lead to a higher level of comprehension. 

Meaningful 

learning 

is constructive.

Constructive learning happens when students explain what they have learned and are able to reflect upon it, incorporating this new knowledge into what they already know to construct an updated understanding that is deeper and more complex.

Meaningful 

learning 

is intentional.

Students should create specific goals that they intentionally try to achieve. 

Actively working toward a goal helps students to focus their energies on thinking more, which results in learning to a greater extent. 

Meaningful learning is authentic.

Learning that is rooted in real-world tasks 

or experiences or that is simulated through 

a problem-based learning environment is 

not only more relatable, but is more easily utilized in new or different situations. 

Meaningful learning is cooperative.

Collaborative problem-solving allows students to practice working together as a knowledge-building community, creating an interchange of information which fosters more complex thinking and improved learning outcomes.

These attributes are synergetic--learning activities and experiences that use them will produce more meaningful learning.