Students needs a concrete or abstract application to devellop their thinking, skills in the area they have to succeed
Ages of brain development.
The concrete and abstract models significantly simplify the reasoning behind how culinary students learn techniques. The concrete would be the how to do, and the abstract would seek out ways to employ the technique.
Because students retain information at different levels as an instructor you need to add concrete, hands on activities that student to relate information to easier recall. It seems that relatable information seems to stick more in the students memory bank.
Teaching adult learners will require a variation in learning tools. All students retain information at different levels and as a facilitator you need to add concrete, hands on activities that student to relate information too for future recall.
I was a great reminder that in a 24hr period they retain, 25% of what they hear, 40% of what they see, and 70% of what they are physically involved in.
Understanding how the adult brain works and how to give different approaches.
I find it interesting the different types and ways we learn. I always try and go back to teachers in my past that did things in the class that made learning so fun and memorable.
Comment on Nancy Parra's post: But what about students at the cusp between teenage and adulthood.
This lesson has greatly increased my knowledge of how information is encoded into useful long-term working memory that can be applied. I have also learned about the differences in how certain age groups learn and retain information.
I learned that with physical maturity can help with brain development. In addition, it is important to understand which types of memory is used for which situation.
Helping students to recall long-term memories is a better option that re-teaching the same material again.
Differences in abstract and concrete ideas as well as differences in how memory (both long term and short term) is shaped will greatly help my endeavors to teach. By allocating time and resources to not just one learning preference, but to multiple, I will surely be able to provide adult learners with the education they are hoping to receive. A final benefit of this course was a refresher as to how logic shapes in our consciousness and what should be avoided in that development.
Comment on Nancy Parra's post: This class provides great insight into the adult learners brain and how information is absorbed.
One thing I thought was interesting is that on average, adults learn approximately 400 new things per year.
Teaching adult learners requires varying learning tools. Facilitators must add hands-on activities to aid information retention.
Understanding that stages of brain development is important for an instructor because our students are of varying ages and don't learn the same way.
I find it helpful to discuss the mind of the adult learner. I especially appreciated the reflection that I had on the example of the gridlock traffic patterning and the use of lights/sirens on emergency vehicles to clear a path and what some applications of that could look like in the curriculum.
Very interesting learning about all the factors related to an individual's capacity to learn, different learning experiences & memory.
By using concrete information, we can come up with abstract solutions to problems. Math and Engineering are two fields where being versed in these concepts is very useful.
