for - quote conspiracy theories - lizard people - first stage of initiation - if reality isn't as it appears, it's easy to latch onto something else - John Churchill

Elon Musk Wants You to Think This Election Is Being Stolen by [[Charlie Warzel]]

https://www.techdirt.com/2024/10/23/everything-is-a-conspiracy-theory-when-you-dont-bother-to-educate-yourself/

for - AI - progress trap - example - Facebook AI algorithm - target - increase user engagement - by spreading hateful conspiracy theories - AI did this autonomously - no morality - Yuval Noah Harari story

for - comparison of death in - material vs idealist theories

Dynasties rising to a peak, then, corrupting, losing Mandate of Heaven, which another dynasty gains.

• for: key insight - anti-vaxxers, key insight - conspiracy theories, key insight - maga, key insight - neoliberalism and failure at collective action

• key insight: neoliberalism and failure of collective action

  • neoliberalism's continuous assault on society has striped use off any support system, leaving us to fend for ourselves
  • when polycrisis events occur, it provokes a distrust of any attempt at government intervention
  • this is a sign of things to come when climate chaos will accelerate social breakdown

• annotate

• for: evolutionary biology, big history, DH, Deep Humanity, theories of consciousness, ESP project, Earth Species Project, Michael Levin, animal communication, symbiocene

• title: The Deep History of Ourselves: The Four-Billion-Year Story of How We Got Conscious Brains

• author: Joseph LeDoux
• date: Jan. 2023

• doi: 0.1080/09515089.2022.2160311

• ABSTRACT

  • The essence of who we are depends on our brains.
  • They enable us to think, to
    • feel joy and sorrow,
    • communicate through speech,
    • reflect on the moments of our lives, and to
      • anticipate,
      • plan for, and
      • worry about our imagined futures.
  • Although some of our abilities are comparatively new, key features of our behavior have deep roots that can be traced to the beginning of life.
  • By following the story of behavior, step-by-step, over its roughly four-billion-year trajectory,
    • we come to understand both
      • how similar we are to all organisms that have ever lived, and
      • how different we are from even our closest animal relatives.
  • We care about our differences because they are ours. But differences do not make us superior; they simply make us different.

• comment

  • good article to contribute to a narrative of the symbiocene and a shift of humanity to belonging to nature as one species, instead of dominating nature as the apex species
• question
  • @Gyuri, Could indranet search algorithm have made the connection between this article and the symbiocene artilces in my mindplex had I not explicitly made the associations manually through my tags? It needs to be able to do this
• Also interesting to see how this materialistic outlook of consciousness
  • which is similiar to the Earth Species Project work and Michael Levin's work on synthesizing new laboratory life forms to answer evolutionary questions about intelligence
• relates to nonmaterial ideas about consciousness

• for: conspiracy theories - truth is much worse

Will artificial intelligence create useless class of people? - Yuval Noah Harari

1:00 "bring the latest findings of science of the public", otherwise the public space "gets filled with conspiracy theories and fake news and whatever".<br /> he fails to mention that ALL his beautiful "scientists" are financially dependent on corporations, who dictate the expected results, and who sabotage "unwanted research".<br /> for example, the pharma industry will NEVER pay money for research of natural cancer cures, or "alternative" covid cures like ivermectin / zinc / vitamin C, because these cures have no patent, so there is no profit motive, and also because the "militant pacifists" want to fix overpopulation this way.<br /> a "scientist" should be someone, who has all freedom to propose hypotheses, which then are tested in experiments (peer review), and compared to real placebo control groups. because that is science, or "the scientific method". everything else is lobbying for "shekel shekel".

• comment

• good observation, that's why I have always felt strange about the simulation hypothesis. If it's a simulation, it automatically assumes, there is something which is real and not a simulation.

  • See Donald Hoffman's Information theory and contention that we live in a simulation. Does it also come with the same implicit materialist assumption?
  • The nagging thing about the simulation theories is it is also a narrative that posits an unknowable reality beyond which we can never access - a rendition of the narrative that we only ever have access to the shadows in Plato's cave.

• reference

  • Donald Hoffman
    • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQefdkl8PfY

The data of the past is congruent with the current psychological trends that face the education system of today. Developmentalists have charted how children construct and revise intuitive theories. In turn, a variety of theories have developed because of the greater use of statistical information that supports probabilistic contingencies that help to better inform us of causal models and their distinctive cognitive functions. These studies investigate the physical, psychological, and social domains. In the case of intuitive psychology, or "theory of mind," developmentalism has traced a progression from an early understanding of emotion and action to an understanding of intentions and simple aspects of perception, to an understanding of knowledge vs. ignorance, and finally to a representational and then an interpretive theory of mind.

The mechanisms by which life evolved—from chemical beginnings to cognizing human beings—are central to understanding the psychological basis of learning. We are the product of an evolutionary process and it is the mechanisms inherent in this process that offer the most probable explanations to how we think and learn.

Bada, & Olusegun, S. (2015). Constructivism Learning Theory : A Paradigm for Teaching and Learning.

• for: doppleganger, conflict resolution, deep humanity, common denominators, CHD, Douglas Rushkoff, Naomi Klein, Into the Mirror World, conspiracy theory, conspiracy theories, conspiracy culture, nonduality, self-other, human interbeing, polycrisis, othering, storytelling, myth-making, social media amplifier -summary
  • This conversation was insightful on so many dimensions salient to the polycrisis humanity is moving through.
  • It makes me think of the old cliches:
    • "The more things change, the more they remain the same"
    • "What's old is new" ' "History repeats"
  • the conversation explores Naomi's latest book (as of this podcast), Into the Mirror World, in which Naomi adopts a different style of writing to explicate, articulate and give voice to
    • implicit and tacit discomforting ideas and feelings she experienced during covid and earlier, and
    • became a focal point through a personal comparative analysis with another female author and thought leader, Naomi Wolf,
      • a feminist writer who ended up being rejected by mainstream media and turned to right wing media.
  • The conversation explores the process of:
    • othering,
    • coopting and
    • abandoning
  • of ideas important for personal and social wellbeing.
  • and speaks to the need to identify what is going on and to reclaim those ideas for the sake of humanity
  • In this context, the doppleganger is the people who are mirror-like imiages of ourselves, but on the other side of polarized issues.
  • Charismatic leaders who are bad actors often are good at identifying the suffering of the masses, and coopt the ideas of good actors to serve their own ends of self-enrichment.
  • There are real world conspiracies that have caused significant societal harm, and still do,
  • however, when there ithere are phenomena which we have no direct sense experience of, the mixture of
    • a sense of helplessness,
    • anger emerging from injustice
  • a charismatic leader proposing a concrete, possible but explanatory theory
  • is a powerful story whose mythology can be reified by many people believing it
  • Another cliche springs to mind
    • A lie told a hundred times becomes a truth
    • hence the amplifying role of social media
  • When we think about where this phenomena manifests, we find it everywhere:

Adams and Nik

Gonzalez-Lloret

Something similar! Here it is: https://t.co/x1DPx9dm0P

— Renee DiResta (@noUpside) November 26, 2022

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1406325523991564293.html

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheIndexIsWatchingYou

Active reading to the extreme!

What a clever innovation building on the ideas of the art of memory and Raymond Llull's combinatoric arts!

Does this hit all of the areas of Bloom's Taxonomy? I suspect that it does.

How could it be tied more directly into an active reading, annotating, and note taking practice?

Bago, Bence, David Rand, and Gordon Pennycook. ‘Does Deliberation Decrease Belief in Conspiracies?’ PsyArXiv, 8 March 2022. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/86jhw.

Michaud, M., & Center, U. of R. M. (n.d.). Trust in science at root of vaccine acceptance. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-01-science-root-vaccine.html

Alberta court grants mother right to vaccinate immunocompromised son against COVID-19. (n.d.). Edmontonjournal. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/alberta-court-covid-19-vaccination-rights-mother-immunocompromised-son-despite-father-objection

Should bad science be censored on social media? (2022, January 19). BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-60036861

Revealed: How a web of Canadian doctors are undermining the fight against COVID-19 | Globalnews.ca. (n.d.). Global News. Retrieved January 19, 2022, from https://globalnews.ca/news/8517353/canada-doctors-covid-vaccine-disinformation/

Surely you're already up on the work of @AnneGanzert? https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-3-030-35272-1

Syndicated: https://twitter.com/ChrisAldrich/status/1424235840088133635

Bonus points to the first one who can publish with a serious reference to "Lines of Thought" by Ayelet Even-Ezra. https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/L/bo63098990.html

Syndicated: https://twitter.com/ChrisAldrich/status/1424236570471636993

And finally, just for fun https://condenaststore.com/featured/the-conspiracy-board-brendan-loper.html

Syndicated: https://twitter.com/ChrisAldrich/status/1424236850902753281

Yang, M. (2022, January 14). ‘Menace to public health’: 270 doctors criticize Spotify over Joe Rogan’s podcast. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jan/14/spotify-joe-rogan-podcast-open-letter

Far-right lures recruits using COVID-19 conspiracy theories, alongside misogyny, anti-Semitism, and Islamophobia, says study. (n.d.). Retrieved December 21, 2021, from https://ca.movies.yahoo.com/far-lures-recruits-using-covid-134548878.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/09/technology/birds-arent-real-gen-z-misinformation.html

Linking to a New York Times tag archive would not be considered evidence by any self-respecting conspiracy theorist.

Johnston, M. (2021). What Lies Beneath: Tackling Vaccine Hesitancy. Emergency Medicine News, 43(10), 7. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.EEM.0000795760.41732.33

How online misinformation spreads. (n.d.). Retrieved October 19, 2021, from https://knowablemagazine.org/article/society/2021/how-online-misinformation-spreads

O’Brien, T. C., Palmer, R., & Albarracin, D. (2021). Misplaced trust: When trust in science fosters belief in pseudoscience and the benefits of critical evaluation. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 96, 104184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2021.104184

YouTube is banning Joseph Mercola and a handful of other anti-vaccine activists—The Washington Post. (n.d.). Retrieved October 1, 2021, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/09/29/youtube-ban-joseph-mercola/

Mixing science and art to make the truth more interesting than lies. (n.d.). Retrieved September 28, 2021, from https://theconversation.com/mixing-science-and-art-to-make-the-truth-more-interesting-than-lies-100221?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=bylinetwitterbutton

“Vigilante treatments”: Anti-vaccine groups push people to leave ICUs. (n.d.). Retrieved September 26, 2021, from https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/vigilante-treatments-anti-vaccine-groups-push-people-leave-icus-rcna2233

Ben Collins on Twitter: “A quick thread: It’s hard to explain just how radicalized ivermectin and antivax Facebook groups have become in the last few weeks. They’re now telling people who get COVID to avoid the ICU and treat themselves, often by nebulizing hydrogen peroxide. So, how did we get here?” / Twitter. (n.d.). Retrieved September 26, 2021, from https://twitter.com/oneunderscore__/status/1441395300002848769?s=20

Rutjens, B. T., van der Linden, S., van der Lee, R., & Zarzeczna, N. (2021). A group processes approach to antiscience beliefs and endorsement of “alternative facts.” Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 24(4), 513–517. https://doi.org/10.1177/13684302211009708

COVID-19 misleading information policy. (n.d.). Retrieved 29 July 2021, from https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/medical-misinformation-policy

Leah Keating on Twitter: “This work with @DavidJPOS and @gleesonj is now on arXiv (https://t.co/hxjZnCmKcM): ‘A multi-type branching process method for modelling complex contagion on clustered networks’ Here is a quick overview of our paper: (1/6) https://t.co/3jQ2flhk71” / Twitter. (n.d.). Retrieved July 23, 2021, from https://twitter.com/leahakeating/status/1418150117106978816

Majority of Covid misinformation came from 12 people, report finds | Coronavirus | The Guardian. (n.d.). Retrieved July 19, 2021, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/17/covid-misinformation-conspiracy-theories-ccdh-report?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Lack of literacy definitely does not mean lack of culture.

Reminder to self: I've got a strong suspicion that the Hebrew bible was transmitted orally for generations prior to being written down in a similar manner. I need to collect some additional evidence to build this case. The arc of the covenant is a first potential piece of evidence.

Alper, S. (2021). When Conspiracy Theories Make Sense: The Role of Social Inclusiveness. PsyArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/2umfe

Lakens, D., Tunç, D. U., & Tunç, M. N. (2021). There is no generalizability crisis. PsyArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/tm8jy

Rees, April, and Catherine Thornton. ‘COVID-19 Vaccines Do Not Make Women Infertile’. The Conversation. Accessed 7 February 2021. http://theconversation.com/covid-19-vaccines-do-not-make-women-infertile-153550.

<small><cite class='h-cite via'>ᔥ <span class='p-author h-card'>Leo Laporte </span> in It's Right Against Wrong, Not Smart Against Dumb - leo.fm (<time class='dt-published'>02/25/2021 13:33:19</time>)</cite></small>

Ullrich Ecker {@UlliEcker} (2020) Conspiracy theories - The link to COVID-19. Twitter. Retrieved from: https://twitter.com/UlliEcker/status/1298797816702107648

Underlying emotional drivers of Trump supporters, conspiracy theorists, and Republican psychology

ReconfigBehSci {@SciBeh} (2020) sadly squares with my own impression of social media 'debate' - as someone who works on both argumentation and belief formation across social networks, this strikes me as every bit as big a problem as the spread of conspiracy. Twitter. Retrieved from: https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1308341816333340672

competing visions for the typewriter

Symptoms of this chaotic, gossip run world are: conspiracy theories, information bubbles, cancel culture, Trump's tweets and decay of institutions as well as dysfunction.

The repressive Hypothesis. Based on suppositions: Historically sex is repressed through a 17th century regime?Mechanism of repression is through the exercise of power through prohibition censorship, denial. *Critical discourse is lacking to question the power.

He seeks to refute this.

References a Marxian critical of using capitalistic means for achieving radical ends.

Here, authors refer to Hume framework to contrast opposing idea of Capitalist Mass Media System with Ideal Alternative Media System, highlighted with 1 and 2, below. 1--- structure of the media products (differ from mainstream in that their products aren't commodities to be marketed and sold and that they content is critical of the mainstream ideology) 2---actors (alt media has no division btwn consumer and producer, they can be one in the same. )

the above are discussed in terms of ideal-typical alternative media.

--- idea types again

• Producer
• Recipient
• Economic product
• Media content
• Media technologies
• Media institutions

It doesn't have to be alternative media to present points of view that criticize capitalism and the mainstream. Sites examples (observation) of professionally produced media

Here the author introduces the perspective that alt media can be used by conservative groups. and supports this by citing other others. as evidence.

Alt media can be used for other things than freeing people from oppression. It can be used for repressing people, too. .... follows assertion with evidence from other thinkers.

Provides another point of view that the internet will transform alt media. and presents evidence by citing theorists that hold this opinion.

Participatory media provides a democratic venue accessible to people who want to work at changing and developing society from present constructs.

the goals of alternative media aren't about making a large impact for the masses.

Theory that central to alternative media is the way it is collectively produced

Here sites Nick Couldry - ... alternatives power is about its accessibility to anyone who wants to participate.

Jackson, Joshua Conrad, Katarzyna Jasko, Samantha Abrams, Tyler Atkinson, Evan Balkcom, Arie Kruglanski, Kurt Gray, and Jamin Halberstadt. ‘Believers Use Science and Religion, Non-Believers Use Science Religiously’. Preprint. PsyArXiv, 19 August 2020. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/536w7.

Bierwiaczonek, K., Kunst, J. R., & Pich, O. (2020, July 29). Belief in COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories Reduces Social Distancing over Time. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/tqfrw

Diseases, The Lancet Infectious. ‘The COVID-19 Infodemic’. The Lancet Infectious Diseases 0, no. 0 (17 July 2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30565-X.

Association for Psychological Science - APS. ‘APS Backgrounder Series: Psychological Science and COVID-19: Conspiracy Theories’. Accessed 29 May 2020. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/backgrounders/covid-19-conspiracy-theories.html.

This website is part of Angelo State University's online teaching training course for faculty members. This section outlines three prominent theories of education-Behaviorism, Social Cognitive Theory, and Constructivism-and applies them to online learning. Instructional Designers and course instructors can use this guide for the construction of meaningful and active learning environment for students. Rating: 10/10

This website outlines key principles of the E-Learning Theory developed by Mayer, Sweller, and Moreno. E-Learning Theory describes how the implementation of educational technology can be combined with key principles of how we learn for better outcomes. This site describes those principles as a guide of more effective instructional design. Users can also find other learning theories under the "Categories" link at the top of the page. Examples include Constructivist theories, Media & Technology theories, and Social Learning theories. Rating: 8/10

This website provides several examples of domains adults may learn in or engage with. By clicking on each type, you are redirected to a detailed description of the domain. Descriptions include, but are not limited to, definitions, theories and research behind the topic, and real-world examples. You can also find references used in the description, which can be helpful for further exploration. This InstructionalDesign.org website also provides extensive lists of learning concepts (i.e. motivation, personalized learning, storyboard, etc.) and theories (i.e. Adult Learning Theory, Social Learning, Constructivism, etc.). Each learning theory link provides a theoretical definition, applications, examples, key principles, references, and related websites. Rating 10/10.

The American Journal of Physiology. org is an website dedicated to published journals and books of functions of life or living organisms.

Rating: 9/10

This web page can be used in many ways because it has theories from the old to new in education and technology, and from institutions to working environments, and military. You will find George Bush, Steve Jobs, and Seymour Papert from MIT, just to name a few.

It is really nice to see new and not so new perspectives of people that do not provide learning theories, but combine learning theories with technology, which to me is relevant for today's educators and learners. 5/10

This article emphasizes on the topic of how adult learning is hindered by technology and how to teach an adult learner. Using five theories; 1) Shared experience 2) Problem-solving scenarios 3) Reflection on experience 4) Own their learning 5) Have an ah-ha moment. Adults all differently and all want that opportunity to have a new learning moment. Rating 5/5

This literature is a resource to assist in adult teaching. The first section of the reading defines who your audience (background, does your selected audience need more training, learning objectives). Then explains the learning objectives in more detail and how to develop effective learning objectives (Specify, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) and if needed the ABCD model (Audience, Behavior, Condition, Degree) can be utilized. Secondly, developing training content. Lastly, deliver your training. The article is very good. Rating: 5/5

The author of this article articulates the instrumental learning theories in the healthcare industry. The information provided is more like a speedy way for students and healthcare providers to understand the learning theories. Rating: 4/5

This article helps the reader understand the major theories that are related to technology using the leaning theories, theoretical frameworks, and models. Rate: 4/5

• Constructivism - roots in the philosophical and psychological viewpoints of this century, specially Piaget, Bruner and Goodman. Learning occurs when the mind filters inputs from the world to produce its unique reality. The mind is believed to be the source of all meaning, direct experiences with the environment are considered critical. It crosses both categories by emphasizing the interaction between learner and the real world.

• Social constructivism would emphasize critical experiences between the learner and other learners and mentors.

• Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, complexity and self-organization theory. A lot of the content is now offloaded to the machine that was previously residing within the learner.

In this peer-reviewed study, two tenth-grade classes were analyzed as they used either a virtual or a real laboratory to accomplish learning tasks. The question raised was whether a real or a virtual laboratory was more conducive to constructivist learning. The study concluded that a real lab is better than a virtual one to trigger constructivist learning. This is of importance to me because I teach adults about software in both virtual and real laboratories, and when I develop content, I try to use the constructivist theory as much as possible as I find it works best for my audience, in addition to making novel content more relatable. Please note: I could not put the annotation on the text because the paper opened in a popup page that does not work with Hypothes.is. 7/10

This paper, a project o the PACER Center, discusses learning styles specifically as they pertain to adult learners. From the nitty-gritty podagogy vs. andragogy to the best ways to train for adults, this is a good tool for those who don't know much or need a refresher on adult learning theory and training adults. I love that it is set up in a textbook style, so it's friendly but has a considerable amount of information in a variety of formats. The section, "Tips for Teaching Adults" is helpful to me as it's a series of quick reminders about how to present my information best. 8/10

This wonderful how-to by Southern New Hampshire University provided several well explained tips about what adults need in their learning environments, including their own learning theory, goals, relevant instruction, treatment by the teacher, and participation. These are important things to keep in mind when training working adults because it may have an impact on what information is offered and how it is presented. I will use the information in this article later to help me present content in a meaningful way for my working adult learners. I want the content to be as relevant and inviting to them as possible. 9/10

This article from Point Park University provides several methods one can use to help educate adults. Ideas presented include ensuring content is relevant, knowing the audience, igniting emotion in the audience, ensuring assignments are attainable, and providing constructive feedback. I find these especially helpful because of my work, which often involves teaching adults who are busy and sometimes uninterested in my content. The section that will help me most is "Encourage Exploration." Because I'm training on a software tool, I want learners to go into the software and make mistakes and learn from them. I want them to poke around! It can be difficult to convince a class of disgruntled 60-year-old men who are mad that things are changing to go play with a complex software tool like children. 7/10

The Digital Marketing Institute published this article to help those who provide training for professional adults. It echoes a lot of what I've read in other articles about teaching adults: The goals are different, and they have different needs from the instructor than children do. I liked that this article mentioned that many professional adults find technology to be a barrier, but I wish there were more information about it. The article discussed several of the biggest challenges for adult learners, which was a nice change from the quintessential adult learner article that focuses on what learners need. I also want to know what they don't need. Some of the barriers to learning include a lack of time, responsibilities, financial stressors, fear of technology, and trouble identifying the ideal learning path. 8/10

This article, published in the Journals of Gerontology, discusses a study that focused on teaching older adults to use technology. This is often discussed in a practical sense, with many how-to's. This article, however, discusses the theory behind gerontological learning. Older adults don't generally learn the same way younger adults do. Therefore, it is important to provide them with practice that shows tasks have continuity, to ensure the important task components are focused on strongly, and to consider whether the learning goals are appropriate for the learner. Representative design is addressed here. This is the first time I've heard of representative design. I teach many people over the age of 60 to use technology, so it is important for me to know the theory that will help them learn best. Interestingly,this article mentioned that performance should be assessed based on a comparison of the older adult's environment. I wish I could use that more in my work, but it's a young person's world now. 9/10

This article discusses some attributes that are unique to adult learners, such as that their learning is selective, self-directed, and often focused on solving problems. Therefore, it is important that instructors enable students to be autonomous and show them why it is important. Often in my instructional design, I start with the WIIFM (What's In It For Me?). This article supports my idea that my adult learners will choose to learn when it can solve a problem for them. This article also discusses active learning from an adult perspective, such as Socratic teaching. 9/10

Colorado Community Colleges published this article to discuss research about teaching adults, focusing strongly on Knowles's six principles of andragogy. The main idea behind Knowles's principles is that adults learn because they decided to--because the information is relevant to them and they can benefit from attaining that knowledge. Therefore, the article states, activities that ask adult learners to discuss problems with each other will help them learn. This can be useful as I design instruction. 7/10

Learning-Theories.com published a very handy few pages that describe various learning theories. This is a quick, straightforward, simple way to access information on the different theories. This article, Behaviorism, explains that the theory assumes learners learn by responding to external stimuli in their environment. Learning under behaviorism is characterized by a change in the learner's behavior. I use this in my horse training as I use both positive reinforcement (clicker training) and negative reinforcement (pressure-release) to structure my horse's behaviors. Behaviorism can be translated to human work, too. I've used TAG teaching (clicker training for humans) to teach people to get on and off horses with ease and also to trim horses' hooves. I also use it to clicker train my cats! 6/10

Cognitivism challenge behaviorism by positing that humans are more complex than simple lumps that respond to external stimuli. Cognitivism claims that people must involve themselves in their learning and take an active role. In short, when information enters the mind, it must be processed before it becomes a change in behavior. 6/10

Constructivism is my favorite learning theory. It states that in order to learn, learners must experience something, then reconcile that experience with their previous experiences. The learner will create and test hypotheses based on all experiences, and prove those hypotheses right or wrong based on future experiences. They will then use what they learned from those hypotheses to create new ones. I frequently use this in my instructional design. 6/10

Design-based research (DBR) tries to connect learning theory and practice. It puts theories to the test and is an important part of siting through which parts of theories work well, contradict each other, or contradict themselves. This page provides several of the characteristics of design-based studies, as well as the needs and issues important to studying learning. 7/10

This article by the University of Utah discusses Lindeman's and Knowles's theories on adult learning. Andragogy uses the teacher differently from pedagogy: the teacher in an adult learning environment becomes a facilitator instead of the knower. I think this is an important distinction to make for people who go from teaching children to teaching adults. There are two of these people on my team at work. One taught third grade and one taught sixth grade, and both of them tend to try to put the instructor in the knower's position instead of the facilitator's position. They have to catch themselves often and rework some instruction to be more student-focused instead of content-focused. 8/10