Final Thoughts

      The good thing about learning is that it is continuous and once it has been identified that it is not effective, strategies can be put in place to enhance learning environments and experiences. Throughout this course I was introduced to learning in-depth: from how the brain itself works to what factors influence the adult learner specifically.

      Historically, learning theories were meant to explain how learning occurs and serve as a guide and insight on how individuals learn. However, it has continuously been proven through this course that learning theories have evolved overtime and especially in the technological age we live in, the need for revised learning theories will help educators truly understand learners today. One thing that I found surprising through this course on how people learn is this final week of learning. In Learning Theories and Instruction (Ormrod, Schunk & Gredler, 2008), the section that talks about affect (feelings, emotions and general moods) never occurred to me as being a major factor in how learners are motivated to learn. This particular chapter discusses how mood can affect our motivation to learn in that if we are in a good mood, we tend to be more interested in the subject matter and make references from long term memory. On the other hand, bad moods can cause negative effects on learning.

      While I do know that mood can have an effect on everyday life, the readings have proved that it can hamper our learning development, especially for adult learners. Personally, I have found that anxiety has had a negative effect on my learning and participation in online learning. While my desire for learning is there, as I have a strong need to advance in my career, this is my first time that I was place in a large online learning group where at time I felt lost due to inexperience and the lack of courage. Will my discussions be sufficient?, will I have enough experience to contribute to discussions among my fellow peers? were just some of the questions that came up constantly throughout the course. At this point, I think it would be beneficial to me to continue reading more scholarly articles on how anxiety has affected learning and the various strategies that can be used in order to counteract its effects.

      Learning theories, learning styles, educational technology and motivation are all inter-related as evidenced by the various readings throughout the weeks. Learning theories give an insight on how individuals learn, learning styles provide an indication on the best strategies for learning, educational technology describes the emerging trends in hardware and software applications that enhance the learning experience and motivation dictates an individuals’ desire to learn. Each of the properties mentioned has different sections that can be applied to the other in ensuring effective learning. As an educator, we need to be able to select the correct learning theory successfully pair it with the other factors that influence learning to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our students.

      Taking this course has been very beneficial as I foresee that it will not only impact how I continue learning but also how I develop any future courses that I have the opportunity to create. Attempting this degree at my current position has been met with many advantages and disadvantages.  One major disadvantage that I am facing, is not being able to put theory into practice and seeing first-hand how the applications learnt directly relates to learners. While this course has given me deeper understanding of myself as a learner, the fact that I am not able to experience any type of environment where I am the instructor is proving to be some sort of disconnect with the course. At this stage, it feels like I am absorbing information without and outlet to practice. On the other hand, I have seen the great advantage that this course brings despite my inexperience. This course has taught me that teaching is not about presenting information to a class and testing at the end of a semester. Teaching is about analyzing the environment, learners and one’s own teaching methods in order to create an effective learning experience. 

      With all the factors that are present today (the need to learn, motivation, accounting for learning styles, etc), I must be able to understand the dynamics of the learner and use the available theories about learning to my advantage. With the continuing improvements to the various technologies available, it is vitally important to be able to continue to incorporate and come up with new strategies for learning while taking into consideration the various type of learners. At the end of the day, we all learn differently, and although adult learning is supposed to be self-centered and promote independence in learning, the role of the facilitator still needs to be an individual who stimulates, encourages and reminds the learner of their final learning outcomes.