What I Learned About the Learning Process

What I Learned Last Week in Class

The Learning Process

During the past week in class, I have discovered different aspects of learning and how students can learn in various ways. I have realized that students can learn through thinking, social interactions, emotional, plus physical activities. I have also discovered that although a teacher can teach a lesson it does not necessarily mean that the students have learned it. The students may need more time or practice to fully understand the concept. Therefore, it is the teacher's responsibility to ensure that students learn effectively.

Many things that I have discovered about learning is that a student comes to class with their own background knowledge and experience. If a learner manages to relate something new to their existing experience or knowledge, it can help them to understand what they are learning better. I can relate this to being a first-year education student since I prefer to relate things that I learn to previous experiences or knowledge. For instance, if a professor relates a concept to something that we already know in the class, I find it much more understandable and memorable. Therefore, I would hope to give my future students a chance to relate what they are learning to their existing knowledge or experience.

I have discovered that although there is the teacher who teaches and the students who learn, a student can learn actively through questioning, sharing ideas, collaborating with peers, and discussion. I find that I learn better when I am being actively engaged rather than sitting in a class and listening to someone talk. As a future teacher, I want my students to have the chance to participate during our class discussions.

We were required to do a group presentation which I found exciting. I learned something useful with their presentation, and I found their ideas intriguing. Moreover, their presentation helped me when it came to my presentation since I used their ideas. I found that it made my experience much more exciting.

What I also learned is that constructivism  requires a learner to construct their own knowledge. They achieve this by relating new concepts to their previous knowledge and experience. I believe that this is significant since students like learning in different ways. As a teacher, I can facilitate this by engaging students in discussions and questioning. Another constructivism theory that I found exciting is the scaffolding concept. I discovered that scaffolding works when a teacher provides the right amount of assistance and then later removes it as the student becomes better at the task. I believe that this is essential in my future teaching career since some students need different levels of support from their teachers in order to learn better.

I discovered behaviorism and learned that a student can be motivated intrinsically or extrinsically. I have found that sometimes students need rewards, appreciation, or punishment to get them to behave or work. Nevertheless, other students may be naturally inclined to do something good or become successful. Therefore, as a teacher, I will strive not to rely on rewards to get my students to perform. I want my students to learn to enjoy learning as much as they love to achieve their goals.

Another behaviorist theory that I discovered was that learning is something that takes time. Some students take longer than others to grasp a certain topic or concept. Therefore, students need various levels of practice, repetition, and remediation. I believe that some students can even learn better from their mistakes since it teaches them to work harder or change their learning styles. I want my future students to be able to develop a classroom community where they feel comfortable making mistakes and learning from them.

Being a first-year education student, this week's learning experience has created in me a better meaning of being a teacher in the future. I have learned that teaching is not only about understanding a topic and teaching it to someone else but also knowing my audience and finding different ways to help them learn the concept. Students like being engaged in class. Therefore, I want to be a teacher who asks questions and encourages my students to become independent learners.

I have learned that a student can learn from each other. My experience with working in groups of students has taught me that students can teach each other different concepts and engage into divergent viewpoints when it comes to problem-solving. I like to learn through discussions since I find that I can understand something when another person explains it to me. Therefore, I want my future students to engage in group work where they can share and learn new ideas from each other.

With regard to everything that I have discovered about learning this week, I am excited to become a teacher and help my students to learn. I hope to create a classroom community where my students feel understood and supported throughout the year. I want my students to understand that learning is individualized in which everyone has different ways of learning. I want my students to be able to be comfortable expressing their thoughts, questions, and ideas without being afraid of making mistakes. Although I am new to the education program, I hope to always remember what I have discovered about learning and apply it in my teaching career.

Leila Rezaei Somaeh