The article entitled “The Impact of Cognitive Organizers and Technology-Based Practices on Student Success in Secondary Social Studies Classrooms” provided tremendous support for utilizing cognitive organizers to help students integrate content material with “various graphics, pictures, and templates.” Students used Inspiration 6 software on desktop computers within a school computer lab to create the cognitive organizers.
An experiment was designed and executed where the control group used traditional textbook teaching methods, which included teacher presentation, cooperative learning, and a guided reading worksheet. The treatment group used a pen-and-paper cognitive organizer, which was later converted onto the computer using the Inspiration 6 software. Both groups met for four 90-minute class periods. Both groups were inclusive classrooms containing general education students and 20 with mild disabilities. Both groups were assessed using a 35 question pre/post test. The results showed that the treatment group performed better at the post-test to a statistically significant level.
In my own classroom, I would like to use cognitive organizers to help students make their own connections with the material presented. The experiment focused on the Cold War, taught over four 90-minute class periods. Both the unit topic and unit length seemed to fit this method well. The unit being taught should be significant enough for students to make their own connections with the knowledge without being so broad as to become muddled. The Cold War is a good example of a unit topic, as would be the Civil War, World War II, the Great Depression.
I was curious how the experiment would’ve proceeded were the students given just the pen-and-paper cognitive organizers. Was the success mainly a result of cognitive organizers or the technology used to best create them? I personally suspect that this technology was the main factor that made the cognitive organizers useful enough for students to organize information.
My thoughtful question is an extension of one asked by the experiment’s authors in the article’s discussion section. The authors ponder “If students were provided access to the software, would they attempt to apply it, voluntarily, in other classes or would they independently generalize and maintain the strategy without the software?” I also wonder how students would utilize the technology if given it independently. I suspect that a heavy amount of guidance is necessary to make the technology accessible and useful to students.
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I definitely agree with you that the technological component had problem the greatest impact on the students' success. Anyway, you bring up a good point in your question about whether or not the student would use the technology if given it independently. Based on personal experience, I would assume probably not. Without proper instruction a student would probably view it as another task, another thing to learn and figure out. Even if things can benefit you and actually make things simpler...without a complete grasp of the concept, it can actually do the exact opposite. I mean personally, its taking me a good amount of time to appreciate the networking sites and etc. I learned in this class...and actually putting them to use and utilizing them for my own benefit.
ReplyDeleteAs we discussed in our reading class yesterday, graphic organizers can be a really he;pful tool for students. I like the idea of using computer software to create graphic organizers because they can be easily manipulated to suit your various needs. Also, each student could create an organizer that best fits their learning style. Now, would they transfer this method to their other classes? Probably not without being pushed in that direction. If the teacher were to say, "Hey, what we are learning here would work for many of your other classes," then maybe. But as I have found from experience, most students are not going to do extra work if it is not required. EVEN IF it would be beneficial for their comprehension.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Angie and Patricia in stating that students are more than likely not going to use the technology independently. I think there would have be several variables in place for this to ever occur. Most students, not all because there are some students that will realize the benefits of this technology and implement it with their other studies, but the majority of students at the secondary level are not intrinsically motivated to such an extent. They will only use the technology when prompted by the teacher that this is part of their assignment. Even if these strategies prove to be beneficial, most students will not take the extra step unless it is a significant difference and one that actually makes everything easier. In secondary school I would only use strategies presented by teachers in my other classes if they made my life easier and a lot of times if it involved less work to get to the same conclusion.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the girls as well. I do not believe that students would take the initiative to learn and use the software without guidance or in their other classes. Most students will do what they need to get by in their classes, with decent or good grades. They typically do not go above and beyond as to research different technologies to help their learning. I know in my classes, I would use the tools my teachers gave me. I didn't seek out other things to use in my classes. Even if it were said to be helpful in their other classes, I feel like there is not a lot of overlap with technology like that. Students really only use the technology in the classes they are introduced in.
ReplyDeleteLike everyone above has said, we've all experienced the difficulty of applying and effectively incorporating a new piece of information into our lives. I feel that if students are comfortable with technology, they will take the skills they've learned with this cognitive organization, and incorporate into their own current study habits. As a student, I have and still struggle with adapting my learning style to include new strategies. I think it would be interesting to see how these cognitive organizers work in other content areas. I wonder how the results may turn out and if this type of organizer can only be used effectively in social studies.
ReplyDeleteI feel like students would use the new technology, but not after just one application of it in the classroom. For students to be comfortable enough to use such an intense strategy on their own accord, you have to show them the vesatility of the strategy. They have to know that it can be more beneficial to them than other, less complex strategies. They have to want to go above and beyond because they want to have that above and beyond grasp on the concept. Also, as teachers, we need to give them the tools not only to use these strategies, but to take them outside of the classroom and use them in their lives. After all, that's what teaching is all about.
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