Cognitive Themes for Education:
- Learning is a Constructive, NOT a Repetitive, Process o “You get out of it only what you put into it”
- Mental Frameworks Organize Memory and Guide Thought o i.e., Schemata o Understanding the learners role in creating new knowledge
- Extended Practice Is Needed to Develop Cognitive Skills o “Practice makes perfect” o i.e., Automated Processes o Allows us to perform complex tasks smoothly and quickly
- Development of Self-Awareness and Self-Regulation is Critical to Cognitive Growth o Metacognition:
 What students know about their own thinking
• More aware
 Ability to use this awareness to regulate their own cognitive processes
• More strategic
 Acquisition of knowledge and skill is only part of cognitive growth
• Learning strategies and the ability to reflect on what was learned (to think critically) may be even more important!
- Motivation and Beliefs Are Integral to Cognition o Early Cognitive Research Stressed Processes of:
 Memory
 Thinking
 Problem-Solving
 And their applications to instruction o Newer Conceptions of Cognitive Research:
 Learner’s motivation
 Belief systems o Humans constantly judge their own performance and compare it to desired outcomes
 These judgments help decide whether the learner will:
• Attempt
• Complete
• Repeat activities
 How individuals explain their own success and failures (attributions) o Need to consider both cognitive and motivational variables when studying student learning o Cognitive Activity occurs within a framework of:
 Learners’ goals
 Expectancies
 Beliefs
- Social Interaction Is Fundamental to Cognitive Psychology o “ways of thinking” and “ways of knowing” need to be nurtured in a supportive social context o Interacting with peers gives students the opportunity to encounter ideas and perceptions