1. One of the most significant themes in this unit is the importance of helping students encode new
information in a meaningful way, rather than simply by rote memorization. The texts discuss a number
of ways to do this. Identify at least two specific
techniques that you have used, or could imagine using, to encourage meaningful encoding or deep
processing. For each technique, describe the educational setting, the content or skill to be learned,
and a little about how you would implement the technique in the classroom. Post your response on
the class bulletin board for Session Three.
2. One of the main themes of these chapters is that students often have, or develop, erroneous
understandings about how to solve certain kinds of problems, how the world works, etc.
These bugs, naïve misconceptions, and faulty schemata can greatly interfere with learning of
more appropriate problem-solving strategies. From your experience, identify at least two instances where
such problems interfered with learning. These can be from your experience as a teacher or a student.
Your examples can come from any subject in which students1 prior beliefs or misconceptions can
interfere with learning. For each of the two examples, suggest how the instructor might have
overcome this learning interference. Post your response on
the class bulletin board for Session Three.
Reflections on both questions can be made in the same bulletin board response; in other words, you
do not have to make two separate postings. Simply use the labels
1 and 2 to demarcate your response.
