Learning theories for artificial intelligence promoting learning processes

This paper discusses a three-level model that synthesizes and unifies existing learning theories to model the roles of artificial intelligence (AI) in promoting learning processes. The model, drawn from developmental psychology, computational biology, instructional design, cognitive science, complexity and sociocultural theory, includes a causal learning mechanism that explains how learning occurs and works across micro, meso and macro levels. The model also explains how information gained through learning is aggregated, or brought together, as well as dissipated, or released and used within and across the levels. Fourteen roles for AI in education are proposed, aligned with the model's features: four roles at the individual or micro level, four roles at the meso level of teams and knowledge communities and six roles at the macro level of cultural historical activity. Implications for research and practice, evaluation criteria and a discussion of limitations are included. Armed with the proposed model, AI developers can focus their work with learning designers, researchers and practitioners to leverage the proposed roles to improve individual learning, team performance and building knowledge communities.

Practitioner notes

What is already known about this topic

• Numerous learning theories exist with significant cross-over of concepts, duplication and redundancy in terms and structure that offer partial explanations of learning.
• Frameworks concerning learning have been offered from several disciplines such as psychology, biology and computer science but have rarely been integrated or unified.
• Rethinking learning theory for the age of artificial intelligence (AI) is needed to incorporate computational resources and capabilities into both theory and educational practices.

What this paper adds

• A three-level theory (ie, micro, meso and macro) of learning that synthesizes and unifies existing theories is proposed to enhance computational modelling and further develop the roles of AI in education.
• A causal model of learning is defined, drawing from developmental psychology, computational biology, instructional design, cognitive science and sociocultural theory, which explains how learning occurs and works across the levels.
• The model explains how information gained through learning is aggregated, or brought together, as well as dissipated, or released and used within and across the levels.
• Fourteen roles for AI in education are aligned with the model's features: four roles at the individual or micro level, four roles at the meso level of teams and knowledge communities and six roles at the macro level of cultural historical activity.

Implications for practice and policy

• Researchers may benefit from referring to the new theory to situate their work as part of a larger context of the evolution and complexity of individual and organizational learning and learning systems.
• Mechanisms newly discovered and explained by future researchers may be better understood as contributions to a common framework unifying the scientific understanding of learning theory.

     

Science Teachers Without Classrooms of Their Own: A Study of the Phenomenon of Floating

“Floating” teachers, or teachers without their own classroom, experience unique affordances and constraints as they develop professionally. To increase the knowledge in this area, this study looks at how traveling to different classrooms affects beginning secondary science teachers’ development and instruction. The participants in this study were three first-year floating secondary science teachers whose experiences were analyzed through a cultural historical activity theory framework. The data revealed how floating can either support or constrain the development of beginning science teachers, and limit the implementation of standards-based instruction. Finally, this study shows that high levels of human, physical, and social resources are necessary for progress towards standards-based science teaching. It suggests that if science teachers must move to different classrooms, we need to create ways in which to support their instruction and development. Furthermore, this study recommends that all teachers and supervisors work toward a deeper understanding of the school community’s role in the experience of the floating science teacher.     

Shaping the boys' agenda: the backlash blockbusters

This article contends that the third generation of cultural–historical activity theory as forwarded in Yrjo Engeström’s version of expansive learning offers the people of South Africa a framework within which to practically realise the objective of a more culturally inclusive and relevant education. By recognising and harnessing the divergent and even opposing principles and values within indigenous and modern western knowledge traditions, the expansive learning framework provides a vehicle for implementing the kind of education which has been conceived of by such policies as the country’s Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) Policy and the Science-IKS curriculum. It is argued that this approach has the potential to take the indigenous knowledge initiatives beyond their current impasse in policies and bureaucratic institutions by generating new forms of cultural activity from the very conflicts inherent in the project. The principles of object orientation, multi-voicedness, historicity, contradictions as a driving force and expansive transformation are outlined at the level of interacting western and IKS, but shown to be operationalised through learning and research activity at a local level in classrooms and communities so that they generate new practices and policies from people’s daily activity.     

Invented Science: A Framework for Discussing a Persistent Problem of Practice

A central goal of science education reform is for students to participate in scientific sense making rather than to merely acquire science facts. However, even in classrooms utilizing reform-based pedagogies, students are typically allowed to construct knowledge only insofar as they construct expected knowledge. In this report and reflection, we use activity theory to demonstrate how this pervasive tension between learning correct ideas and constructing one’s own ideas often results in unacknowledged slippage between competing activity systems within reform efforts. We use an analogy to the domain of spelling to introduce invented science—a framework for describing the activity of science learning that reduces this slippage by giving knowledge construction true priority over the canon. We describe the origins and purposes of invented spelling to theorize the nature of learning in invented science. We conclude by articulating the theoretical and practical implications of this analogy for science teaching and learning.     

亚里士多德和墨家学派的逻辑系统比较

古代希腊亚里士多德逻辑系统与古代中国的墨家学派的逻辑系统,是在基本相同的时期内所产生的两个各具不同文明特点的逻辑系统。它们之间有一些共同点,但是两个系统的区别更明显。分析两个系统的区别,有助于我们认识不同的逻辑系统与各自文化的关系,尤其与科学的关系;有助于我们认识不同的推理思维方式,以及这种思维方式下的逻辑精神是什么。     

Making to measure? Reconsidering assessment in professional continuing education

Drawing on studies of teachers, accountants and pharmacists conducted in Canada, this essay examines models for assessing professional learning that currently enjoy widespread use in continuing education. These models include professional growth plans, self-administered tests and learning logs, and they are often used for regulatory as well as developmental purposes by professional associations. The essay argues what others have critiqued about such self-assessment models: that their assumptions about learning are problematic and limiting in a number of respects, privileging human consciousness and intention, and literally ‘making’ a particular professional subject that is atomised and conservative. The essay goes on to suggest alternative perspectives that are receiving increasing attention in theorising work-related learning and that may offer fruitful questions for re-considering the nature of professional learning and its assessment. Three perspectives in particular are outlined, all of which shift the focus from the learning subject to practice as material, emergent and systemic: complexity theory, actor–network theory and cultural–historical activity theory. The discussion concludes with possible approaches to assessment of professional practice suggested by these perspectives.     

Professional Learning of K-6 Teachers in Science Through Collaborative Action Research: An Activity Theory Analysis

Primary/elementary teachers are uniquely positioned in terms of their need for ongoing, science-focused professional development. They are usually generalists, having limited preparation for teaching science, and often do not feel prepared or comfortable in teaching science. In this case study, CHAT or cultural–historical activity theory is used as a lens to examine primary/elementary teachers’ activity system as they engaged in a teacher-driven professional development initiative. Teachers engaged in collaborative action research to change their practice, with the objective of making their science teaching more engaging and hands-on for students. A range of qualitative methods and sources such as teacher interviews and reflections, teacher-created artifacts, and researcher observational notes were adopted to gain insight into teacher learning. Outcomes report on how the teachers’ activity system changed as they participated in two cycles of collaborative action research and how the contradictions that arose in their activity system became sources of professional growth. Furthermore, this research shows how the framework of activity theory may be used to garner insight into the activity and learning of teachers as both their professional activities and the context change over time.     

High school biology evolution learning experiences in a rural context: a case of and for cultural border crossing

Although the concept of “rural” is difficult to define, rural science education provides the possibility for learning centered upon a strong connection to the local community. Rural American adolescents tend to be more religious than their urban counterparts and less accepting of evolution than their non-rural peers. Because the status and perception of evolutionary theory may be very different within the students’ lifeworlds and the subcultures of the science classroom and science itself, a cultural border crossing metaphor can be applied to evolution teaching and learning. This study examines how a teacher may serve as a cultural border crossing tour guide for students at a rural high school as they explore the concept of biological evolution in their high school biology class. Data collection entailed two formal teacher interviews, field note observations of two biology class periods each day for 16 days during the Evolution unit, individual interviews with 14 students, student evolution acceptance surveys, student evolution content tests, and classroom artifacts. The major findings center upon three themes regarding how this teacher and these students had largely positive evolution learning experiences even as some students continued to reject evolution. First, the teacher strategically positioned himself in two ways: using his unique “local” trusted position in the community and school and taking a position in which he did not personally represent science by instead consistently teaching evolution “according to scientists.” Second, his instruction honored local “rural” funds of knowledge with respect to local knowledge of nature and by treating students’ religious knowledge as a form of local expertise about one set of answers to questions also addressed by evolution. Third, the teacher served as a border crossing “tour guide” by helping students identify how the culture of science and the culture of their lifeworlds may differ with respect to evolutionary theory. Students negotiated the cultural borders for learning evolution in several ways, and different types of border crossings are described. The students respected the teacher’s apparent neutrality, sensitivity toward multiple positions, explicit attention to religion/evolution, and transparency of purposes for teaching evolution. These findings add to the current literature on rural science education by highlighting local funds of knowledge for evolution learning and how rural teachers may help students navigate seemingly hazardous scientific topics. The study’s findings also add to the current evolution education literature by examining how students’ religious perspectives may be respected as a form of expertise about questions of origins by allowing students to examine similarities and differences between scientific and religious approaches to questions of biological origins and change.     

Teaching primary science: emotions, identity and the use of practical activities

This paper uses cultural historical activity theory to examine the interactions between the choices primary teachers make in the use of practical activities in their teaching of science and the purposes they attribute to these; their emotions, background and beliefs; and the construction of their identities as teachers of science. It draws on four case studies of science lessons taught over a term by four exemplary teachers of primary science. The data collected includes video recordings of science lessons, interviews with each teacher and some of their students, student work, teachers?? planning documents and observation notes. In this paper, we examine the reflexive relationship between emotion and identity, and the teachers?? objectives for their students?? learning; the purposes (scientific and social) the teachers attributed to practical activities; and the ways in which the teachers incorporated practical activities into their lessons. The findings suggest that it is not enough to address content knowledge, pedagogy and pedagogical content knowledge in teacher education, but that efforts also need to be made to influence prospective primary teachers?? identities as scientific thinkers and their emotional commitment to their students?? learning of science.     

Implementing a parental involvement policy to enhance Physical Sciences learner’s academic achievement in rural secondary schools

In many countries, including South Africa, the underperformance of Physical Sciences learner’s is a great concern. The purpose of this study was to find out how the academic achievement of science learners can be addressed through implementing a parental involvement policy. The policy on parental involvement can only be successful if there is an effort to ensure effective participation of parents in school activities, which includes helping learners with homework, discussing learners’ behaviour with teachers, motivating learners and communicating about and participating in science activities. This was a qualitative research study and the cultural–historical activity theory (CHAT) acted as a lens and offered a broad approach to analysing a parental involvement policy and the contexts of science learning. The research was conducted in rural public secondary schools and data were collected by means of face-to-face interviews. The study recommends that parents need training and development to perform their functions optimally in science activities. Effective communication between parents and the school and providing assistance to child-headed families are imperative.

     

Durkheim and Vygotsky's theories of knowledge and their implications for a critical educational theory

This paper is part of the ongoing work of the author and others in developing a social realist theory of knowledge for educational studies. It contrasts Durkheim and Vygotsky's theories and why both are important for educational theory. It begins by emphasizing the similarities between them; that knowledge has to be understood in terms of its historical development in human societies and that the acquisition of knowledge is the primary goal of formal education. In contrasting the ideas of the two writers the paper develops the distinction between ‘structure’ for Durkheim and ‘activity’ for Vygotsky and explores some of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. It then examines how the ideas of the two writers have been developed by their leading followers in sociology and psychology‐ giving particular consideration to the work of Basil Bernstein and Yrjo Engestrom. It concludes with some broader issues concerning theories of knowledge in educational studies.     

The cognitive relevance of Indigenous and rural: Why is it critical to survival?

Using two case studies of children’s knowledge, this paper sheds light on the value, diversity, and necessity of Indigenous and place-based knowledge to science and engineering curricula in rural areas. Rural contexts are rich environments for cultivating contextual knowledge, hence framing a critical pedagogy of teaching and learning. Indigenous and rural place-based knowledge are nuanced and pragmatic in character, and offer solutions to both local and global challenges. Two case studies, drawn from the experience of Lakota and Dakota communities and rural New York State, demonstrate the need to conserve, transmit, and contribute to Indigenous and rural knowledge through experiential and place-based education that bridges the gap between children’s knowledge and global STEM. This knowledge is inherently diverse in its complexity and connectivity to habitat, and when viewed in this light, has the capacity to transform our perspectives on educational practices and policies as well as our overall outlook on conserving both ecological as well as cultural diversity worldwide. Because diversity and knowledge are necessary for the survival of life on this planet, an enriched concept of pedagogical pluralism, in terms of multiple ways of knowing, is a necessity.     

Personal Universes: revealing community college students’ competences though their organization of the cosmos

In this article I present a study on learners’ conceptions in cosmology by situating the results in the context of broader historical and sociocultural themes. Participants were community college students in California from non-dominant cultural and linguistic backgrounds finishing their first semester of astronomy. Data were collected through a drawing activity and card sort given during clinical-style interviews. This type of work is typically done from the perspective of conceptual change theory, using drawings to reveal student “misconceptions.” I argue that in analyzing this kind of data, we need to come from the perspective that students are competent, and put their conceptions in context. I begin by presenting traditional frameworks for evaluating and describing learning, all of which rely on an outdated “banking” or “transmission” model of learning that puts an over-emphasis on the performance and attributes of individuals. Not only do these theories provide an incomplete picture of what learning looks like, they create and reify unnecessary divides between “scientific” and “unscientific” that can contribute to student alienation from the world of science. To illustrate this, I present my own results as a window into the logic of learners’ assumptions within a sociocultural context, and suggest ways to support their learning trajectories, rather than figuring out how to unlearn their misconceptions. Through this analysis, I hope to show how taking student conceptions out of sociocultural context can potentially exclude students from non-dominant cultural and linguistic backgrounds from science.     

Complexity science and educational action research: toward a pragmatics of transformation

In this article, the authors extend Phelps & Hase's (2002) explorations of the theoretical and methodological connections of complexity theory and action research by emphasizing complexity science as the study of learning systems. By emphasizing the importance of ‘complexity thinking’, an argument is made for conceptualizing action research as a ‘pragmatics of transformation’ that explicitly aims to bring together the self-interests of autonomous agents into grander collective possibilities. In addition, the authors offer pragmatic advice that is relevant for the ‘educational’ and ‘learning’ aspects of educational action research by describing a number of conditions that need to be in place in order for complex learning systems to develop and thrive.     

论柳诒徵的史学思想

柳诒徵的史学思想是以传统的史学精华为主兼以吸收西方史学观点的产物。柳诒徵认为,历史学既是关于知识的学问,又是政治学,是民族文化的载体,其功用是彰功显绩、生成知识和彰往察来。柳先生把传统的变易观与西方的进化论糅合在一起,认为历史是迭次发展的,＂有退化者,有进化者＂,其因则有赖于人们自身的创造、社会制度的组织鼓励和文化传统的积淀。历史发展的规律性、历史的主体——人本身的本质性和历史文献使得历史是可以认识的;形式上的纵贯和横通,目的上的规律性和特殊性,构成了历史认识的基本类型;＂观事实之始末＂与＂察风气之变迁＂乃是历史认识的两个阶段,而客观的事实与政治的＂礼＂则是历史认识检验的标准。柳先生论著中所体现的史学方法主要是＂明吾民族独造之真迹＂的文化学方法,以及历史主义和经济分析法等。在史料方面,柳先生打破四部分类法,增加志、丛、图三部,成为七部分类法;主张全面地阅读材料、考证史料的来源,充分利用新的史料、遵守学术规范;史料的编纂应当参照政府的组织机构来安排史书的体系,＂治史学若理国事＂。柳先生重视史德,强调史家研究历史,必须去除成见,从历史事实中得出结论;要求史学家在历史研究中不断修养自己的品德。柳先生把礼看做是史学的核心灵魂,批评有损于民族文化发展的一切史学行为和对历史事实的错误理解。柳诒徵史学思想的个性特点是新人文主义,其旨趣是守护传统道德、注重精神完善。     

“But at school … I became a bit shy”: Korean immigrant adolescents’ discursive participation in science classrooms

In reform-based science curricula, students’ discursive participation is highly encouraged as a means of science learning as well as a goal of science education. However, Asian immigrant students are perceived to be quiet and passive in classroom discursive situations, and this reticence implies that they may face challenges in discourse-rich science classroom learning environments. Given this potentially conflicting situation, the present study aims to understand how and why Asian immigrant students participate in science classroom discourse. Findings from interviews with seven Korean immigrant adolescents illustrate that they are indeed hesitant to speak up in classrooms. Drawing upon cultural historical perspectives on identity and agency, this study shows how immigrant experiences shaped the participants’ othered identity and influenced their science classroom participation, as well as how they negotiated their identities and situations to participate in science classroom and peer communities. I will discuss implications of this study for science education research and science teacher education to support classroom participation of immigrant students.     

An Analysis on Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory in Communicative Language Teaching Mode

Communicative Language Teaching(CLT)plays a vital role in foreign language teaching.Learners may improve their communicative language profi ciency under CLT mode.Many researches on Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory show that learning as a social and cultural rather than individual phenomenon takes place through meaningful interaction with people,and thus the people in the environment are essential to the development of new knowledge.This paper mainly analyses Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory in CLT mode.The conclusions in this paper may help the readers gain an insight into the relations between the Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and CLT as well as awaken the awareness of designing the activities for teaching.     

Parents’ Metacognitive Knowledge: Influences on Parent–Child Interactions in a Science Museum Setting

Despite science learning in settings such as science museums being recognized as important and given increasing attention in science education circles, the investigation of parents’ and their children’s metacognition in such settings is still in its infancy. This is despite an individual’s metacognition being acknowledged as an important influence on their learning within and across contexts. This research investigated parents’ metacognitive procedural and conditional knowledge, a key element of their metacognition, related to (a) what they knew about how they and their children thought and learned, and (b) whether this metacognitive knowledge influenced their interactions with their children during their interaction with a moderately complex simulation in a science museum. Parents reported metacognitive procedural and conditional knowledge regarding their own and their children’s thinking and learning processes. Further, parents were aware that this metacognitive knowledge influenced their interactions with their children, seeing this as appropriate pedagogical action for them within the context of the particular exhibit and its task requirements at the science museum, and for the child involved. These findings have implications for exhibit and activity development within science museum settings.     

What Do Refugee Mothers Want in Urban US School Science: Learning from the Perceptions of Science of Three Somali Mothers

This paper examines the perceptions of three Somali mothers on science, science topics taught in urban US schools and the challenges that they encountered in dealing with science and their own social and cultural practices. The article focuses on Somali mothers, who were highly interested in articulating how science and science professions could be a path to both the personal and community successes and how science could positively affect Somali girls in the areas of women’s health. As an exploratory case study research, we used grounded theory approach to understand Somali mothers’ perceptions of science. We interviewed the mothers over a year and analyzed data as an iterative and systematic process. The findings of the study show that the Somali mothers perceived science from everyday usefulness points of view rather than science knowledge alone, thus home-science connections were critical to them as Somali mothers. They perceived science as an empowering tool for girls so they could make important decisions about women’s reproductive health issues. A broader implication of this study could be for urban science teachers and educators to modify their science instructional and curricular decisions so science learning is connected to Somali students’ culture and empowers girls.