Wikis for Collaborative Learning and Knowledge Construction

PSYC 101: Introduction to Psychology: Theories of Learning: 8 Week Wiki Activity

Target audience: The Wiki for Collaborative Learning and Knowledge Construction Activity will be implemented in a post-secondary Introduction to Psychology course.

Learning Objectives: 

1.) Students will define and describe  theories of learning and theoretical concepts.

2.) The learners will demonstrate the ability to use Web 2.0 technology (a wiki) as a method to encourage active and collaborative learning.

3.) Students will be provided with a learning situation that promotes critically thinking.

Instructions: Students will be placed in one of three groups.  Each group will be assigned a theory of learning to study and work collaboratively to complete the assignment by creating a wiki. Students will be allowed 8 weeks to complete this assignment. Working in the small groups, students will be expect to complete each aspect of the assignment, be creative, and complete all of the readings. Before students begin the construction of their wiki, they will need to complete the following tasks:

1.) Click on this link and watch the video: How To Create a Wiki

In addition this link provides information you may find beneficial: Creating a Wiki Using Wikispaces

2.) Students will be placed in a group. You may access your group's Wiki site through this link: (http://www.wikispaces.com/). If this is your first time accessing this course Wiki site, you will be prompted  to request access from me. This is a password-protected site which means only you and I can access the content on this site. Make sure you budget your time carefully as you have 8 weeks to complete this assignment.

3.) Review and familiarize yourselves with the Wiki Project Grading Rubric to gain an understanding of the expectations, requirements, and grading criteria for this assignment.

4.) Upon completion of the Wiki, students will be required to view the other two Wikis that were created by the other groups. Upon viewing the other group's wikis, students will be required to post responses on each of the wiki pages and respond to the posts on their own group's wiki page.

5.) Set up a time/day each week to meet and discuss how the tasks will be divided among the group members. I strongly suggest selecting a team leader. The team leader will be responsible for sending me an e-mail with a summary of each weekly meeting. You can meet as a team, face-to-face (if possible), or via Skype, Facetime, or any other social media that is most effective and appropriate for your team. If you need any assistance with setting up or using these technologies, please feel free to contact me.

6.) Students will be expected to add additional resources (web links, videos, and articles) to the wiki.

7.) Group information listed below:

Group 1: Classical Conditioning: Associating Stimuli

Group Members: Jerry, Susan, Todd, Becky, Juan

Learning Objectives: Upon completion of the wiki, the learners will: 1.)   Describe the background that led to Ivan Pavlov’s discovery of classical conditioning and the procedures he developed to produce a classically conditioned response. 2.)   Define and give examples of each of the following: unconditioned stimulus, unconditioned response, conditioned stimulus, and conditioned response. 3.)   Identify factors that can affect the strength of a classically conditioned response. Give examples of stimulus generalization and discrimination, higher order conditioning, extinction, and spontaneous recovery in classical conditioning. 4.)   Discuss John Watson’s views on the nature of psychology, and describe the basic principles of behaviorism. 5.)   Describe Watson and Rayner’s famous “Little Albert” study, and explain how emotional responses can be classically conditioned. 6.)   Explain how the notion of biological preparedness can be applied to taste aversions and phobias. 7.)  Share and post the results of your group activity in the wiki.

Group 2: Operant Conditioning: Associating Behaviors and Consequences

Group Members: Rob, Jessica, Ahmad, Christine, Frank

Learning Objectives: Upon completion of this wiki, the learner will: 1.)   Discuss B. F. Skinner’s views about behaviorism, including his beliefs about the proper subject matter of psychology. 2.)   Describe the principles of operant conditioning, giving examples of positive and negative reinforcement, primary and conditioned reinforcers, and discriminative stimuli. 3.)    Give examples of how shaping, behavior modification, and other operant conditioning principles can be used to develop new behaviors 4.)   Discuss how Edward Tolman’s research demonstrated the role of cognitive factors in operant conditioning. Explain cognitive maps and latent learning. 5.)   Explain the phenomenon of learned helplessness, noting how it provided evidence for the role of cognitive factors in learning, and describe how learned helplessness can be overcome. 6.)   Define instinctive drift, and discuss how it challenged the traditional behaviorist view of operant conditioning. 7.) Share and post the results of your group activity in the wiki.

Group 3: Observational Learning: Imitating the Actions of Others

Group Members: Karen, Jenny, Sam, Hideki, Tara

Learning Objectives: Upon completion of this wiki, the learner will be able to: 1.)   Describe Albert Bandura’s classic studies on observational learning, and identify factors that increase the likelihood of imitation occurring. 2.)   Define mirror neurons. Discuss research on the role of mirror neurons in imitation and on the role of observational learning in humans and other animals. 3.)   Discuss research on observational learning in nonhuman animals. 4.)   Describe ways in which the principles of observational learning have been applied in the media to promote social change and healthy behaviors through education-entertainment programs. 5.)   Discuss the prevalence of violence in the media, the association between media violence and aggressive behavior, and the effect of exposure to media violence in the real world. State what conclusions can be drawn from research in this area. 6.)   Explain how the relative value of reinforcers can change over time, and identify five strategies that can help you stay focused on long-term reinforcers. 7.) Share and post the results of your group activity in the wiki.

Materials: Students should refer to the materials listed below as references for this assignment.

Theories of Learning and Behavioral Psychology

Principles of Classical Conditioning

Introduction to Operant Conditioning

Observational Learning

** In addition, students can refer to their textbook, class notes, and the internet to add information to he wiki page in support of your responses to the questions and tasks your group has been assigned.









 Learning Activities:

Group 3 Activity: Classical Conditioning and Advertising

Explore how classical conditioning is used in advertising. Start with these questions: What is your emotional response when you see the American flag waving in the wind, especially since September 11, 2001, or when you hear a campaign ad from a politician? Can you identify the basic elements of classical conditioning? (Use almost any popular TV commercial as an example.) Why do manufacturers of athletic equipment pay sports figures a small fortune to endorse their products? How do people normally feel when they see a cute, happy little baby and an advertisement for, say, a brand of disposable diapers? If you apply the classical conditioning paradigm to the well­known song, “It’s a Small World,” the silly song is the stimulus and the feelings of fun and happy times are the response. John B. Watson knew his ads would sell more automobiles than traditional ads if he simply changed one thing: He placed a young woman in a bathing suit on the fender of the car.

Check for classical conditioning in TV ads, the Sunday newspaper, or online. Write down the details of the ads. Then, identify the elements of classical conditioning being used. Share the results of this activity in your group wiki.


Group 2: Activity: Applications of Operant Conditioning

Students will write a brief statement about a social problem that needs solutions, such as prison reform, and design programs using behavioral technology that might bring about better results. Another possible problem is the littering of highways or beaches. Students will be encouraged to consider principles such as reinforcement and punishment. In developing such a social policy program, students should consider which is more effective at achieving results: reinforcement to increase behavior or punishment to decrease behavior? Share the results of this activity in your group wiki.

Group 3 Activity: Applications of Observational Learning

Students will reflect on how young drug dealers become involved in selling drugs. To sensitize the students to this question, the instructor will point out that many newspaper articles have recently focused on children from 5 to 13 years of age selling drugs. Students will be asked what might have attracted these children to selling drugs. For some of these youths, their parents prompted them. Many begin selling drugs because of vicarious reinforcement. Bandura points out that people do not need to be directly reinforced. Their behavior will increase when they see others being reinforced for that behavior. When young children observe a drug dealer with a large roll of bills, a car, a Rolex, and other material things, they imitate his or her behavior—selling drugs—to obtain those much­desired rewards. Thus, they learn how to sell by watching the dealer operate. Often, by watching the dealer, they improve on his or her techniques. Because children usually do not arouse as much suspicion, they tend to avoid arrest, thereby escaping punishment, which might have decreased this behavior. Share and post the results of this activity in the group wiki.

 
Evaluation: Students will be evaluated and graded using the rubric posted below.

 

Category	10-9 points			8-7points	6-5 points	4-1 points
Content/Critical Thinking	Covers topic in depth with details, examples, and knowledge of the subject matter is excellent. Demonstrates superior level of critical thinking.			Includes essential information about the topic. Knowledge of the subject is good, but below excellent. Demonstrates an excellent level of critical thinking.	Includes essential information about the topic, but there are 1-2 factual errors. Demonstrates an average level of critical thinking.	Content is minimal to very brief and there are several factual errors. Demonstrates a below average level of critical thinking.
Organization			Content is well organized, using headings, or bulleted lists related to the 7 aspects of the group activity.	Content uses headings or bulleted lists to organize, but the overall organization of topics appears slightly flawed.	Content is somewhat logically organized.	Hardly any, or no clear logical organizational structure.
Visual Quality/Interactivity	Makes excellent use of font, color, graphics, effects, and additional social media/web links to enhance the presentation.			Makes good use of font, color, graphics, and additional social media/web links to enhance the presentation.	Makes some effective use of font, color, graphics, and additional social media/web links to enhance the presentation.	The use of font, color, graphics, and additional social media/web links is visually unappealing, distracting, or lacking.
Collaboration	Contributes greatly to the development of the class wiki			Contributes adequately development of class wiki.	Contributes moderately to the development of the class wiki	Contributes minimally to the development of the class wiki.
Accuracy	No misspellings or grammatical errors, no broken web links.			Three or fewer misspellings and/or mechanical errors, no more than two broken web links.	Four misspellings and/or grammatical errors. No more than four broken links.	More than four errors in spelling and grammar. Numerous broken links. (Five or more).
Total Points Possible: 40

 

References:

(n.d.). Wiki Rubric. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson979/WikiRubric.pdf

(1995). The Three Stages of Classical Conditioning. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.abacon.com/slavin/t47.html

(n.d.). Social Learning Theory. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.departments.weber.edu/chfam/1500/behaviorism.html&ei=G8lFUsqYMubQ2AXJ0IHQCg&sa=X&oi=unauthorizedredirect&ct=targetlink&ust=1380306979825003&usg=AFQjCNECVXQ_01IMjmL7htvgPU1bRjZ6mA


Hockenbury, D.H., & Hockenbury, S.E. (2014). Discovering Psychology. 6th Edition. New York: Worth.



 

 

Using Wikis as an Instructional Strategy

Web 2.0 technologies and strategies are transforming online education in many ways. Online education is becoming significantly less passive as educators and instructional designers create courses that focus on collaborative, active, and deep learning. However, many online classes are still designed in such a way that these three learning processes are less likely to occur. "The content analysis indicates that students are involved in online discussions that are mostly for surface, individualistic knowledge construction and perform less online interactions that denote a deep learning approach - synthesizing ideas." (Ke & Xie, 2009 p. 142).


One of the emerging technologies and strategies being implemented in online courses is the use of wikis. "A wiki is an online collaborative writing tool/space that allows groups to collaborate, share, and build online content." (West & West, 2009 p. 3).  The use of wikis as an instructional tool can support the constructivist approach to teaching and learning. Constructivism focuses on instructional design that are intended to create learning opportunities that allow learners to "build" knowledge as a result of active learning and reflective thinking. "A constructivist-based  instructional approach seems promising to encourage adult learners to engage in more collaborative, authentic, and responsible learning in an online learning environment. Acquiring new concepts from studying the course materials and obtaining different thoughts from reading peers viewpoints and experiences posted online are some common gains reported by learners." (Ruey, 2009 p. 714-715). Creating wikis allows instructors the opportunity to develop a more significant social presence in an online class. Consequently, this in turn may increase the likelihood students developing cognitive and social presence in an online class. "Qualitative and quantitative data indicates that in order to create a community of inquiry for adult students, we should first generate an effective teaching presence with supportive features to reinforce the emerging of cognitive and social presence in an online learning environment." (Ke, 2010 p. 818).

If an instructor chooses to use wikis as an pedagogical tool, there are a few recommendations and aspects to consider. "Start small, find one or two activities within a course where student collaboration is a major element of the learning experience  and use this as a test pilot. Students enter a class with a wide disparity of computer skills and it may be a good idea to ensure support by creating a student introduction page on the course wiki and develop a "we'll learn together" mantra so that students can see this as a collaborative tool." (Weyant & Gardner, 2011 p. 139-140). Due to the fact that a wiki is essentially "open access to the masses", faculty may want to consider how secure of an environment they would like to create for their student wiki pages. "The following questions will help you set priorities: (West & West, 2009 p. 9)

• How many people will be using the wiki?
• Do I need to have separate groups?
• Will these groups need to have access to one another's pages?
• How secure do the pages need to be?
• Should the pages be public or private?
• What amount of administrative control will I need?
• How skilled are my learners at using a computer and navigating the Web?
• Do my learners need to know how to use HTML?
• How concerned am I about formatting and page layout?
• Fee based service vs. free service?
• Do I (instructor) have the technical skills required to incorporate this teaching technique?
• Is technical  and instructional design support available?

Additional Resources: Feel free to view the links below for more information about using wikis and pedagogical theories/practices:

10 Best Practices for Using Wikis in Education

7 Things You Should Know About Wikis

Wikis as a Collaborative Tool (Video)

Constructivism (Video)

Deep Learning

References:

Ke, F. (2010). Examining Online Teaching, Cognitive, and Social Presence for Adult Students. Science Direct: Computers & Science, 55, 808-820.

Ke, F., & Xie, K. (2009). Toward Deep Learning for Adult Students in Online Courses. Science Direct: Internet & Higher Education, 12, 136-145.

Ruey, S. (2009). A Case Study of Constructivist Instructional Strategies for Adult Online Learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 41(5), 706-720.

West, J.A., & West, M.L. (2009). Using Wikis for Online Collaboration. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Weyant, L.E., & Gardner, C.(2011). Wikis and Podcasts: An Application in Undergraduate Management Education. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 15, (3), 131-142.

"Blogging: Pros and Cons for Adult Learners"

The creation and use of Web blogs, or put simply, "Blogging" has been increasing in popularity as a mode of instruction in higher education. However, as with any other pedagogical strategy, there are pros and cons associated with this teaching technique. A central tenet of adult learning theory focuses on the premise that adults typically are self-directed learners. "Knowles asserted that adults have a deeply embedded need to be self-directing through learning that addresses real-life problems or situations encountered at home or on the job. Today, these motivations can become the subject matter for bloggers as they reach out to others as resources, situating their learning in the context of life experiences." (King & Cox, 2011 p. 91). Blogs can serve as a more robust, self-reflective form of the standard discussion forums utilized by many instructors. "Educators can use weblogs in discussion forums as examples of the evolution of a new mode of communication. Today's weblogs are comparable to journals in their styles, providing matter-of-fact personal reflections along with related hyperlinks." (Oravec, 2002 p. 619). Blogs can also allow instructors to deviate from traditional methods of instruction that may allow the educator to serve more as a facilitator of learning or "guide on the side". "This technique allows the educator to teach outside the box and give a refreshing new image to the role of instructor. Knowledge is not spoon-fed to students but rather it is now students and instructors collaborating." (Santos, 2011 p. 15-16).

If an educator chooses to use this method of instruction, he/she should take into consideration the fact that this method is likely to be new for many learners. "When attempting to introduce blogging into the classroom experience, and educator needs to consider how to make this transition as seamless as possible for learners. " (King & Cox, 2011 p. 91). Due to the technical requirements associated with this teaching strategy, educators will need to ensure that all learners understand how to use and access the technology associated with this technique. "In reality, many adult learners of all ages have scant exposure to the use of technology for educational purposes; teaching the use of these tools is necessary." (King & Cox, 2011 p. 95-96)

References:

King, K.P. & Cox,T.D. (2011). The Professor’s Guide to Taming Technology. Charlotte: Information Age Publishing

Oravec, J.A. (2002). Bookmarking the world: Weblog applications in education. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 45(7), 616-621

Santos, A.. (2011). Blogs As A Learning Space: Creating Text Of Talks. Contemporary Issues in Education Research, 4(6), 15-19

Additional Resources:

Using Blogs and Wikis in Higher Education Video