Methods of Teaching in the Classroom
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methods-teaching-classroom
Mental Modeling
Mental Modeling (Culyer, 1987) and a variation of it, the “I wonder . . .” model (Bentley, Ebert, & Ebert, 2000), are techniques specifically intended to enhance students’ ability to direct their own learning by modeling the use of cognitive processes in the solving of some problem. This might sound “elementary” at first, and it is quite effective when working with young children, but it is a process that you may well have been exposed to in your secondary and now higher education experiences. For example, during an elementary school lesson about using maps a teacher might say, I’d like to find my way to Sarah’s house. I know the address, but I don’t know how to get there from the school. I think I’ll use the map of our city to find the way there. First I’ll check the street index to find out where to look on the map. Then I’ll use the numbers from the index to find the street. In this way a teacher demonstrates how to sequence steps and put information to work in solving a problem. Students are then able to practice the same procedure. The “I wonder . . .” model uses the same approach, though in the context of science education. Bentley, Ebert, and Ebert (2000) consider this to be one of the best ways of initiating the information-seeking process. An otherwise unobservable process, this technique attempts to verbalize the thinking that goes on. Here’s an example from The Natural Investigator that a teacher might use with elementary level children: This morning I looked outside and noticed that it wasn’t very sunny. I observed lots of gray clouds. I wondered if it was going to rain today. I could have just carried an umbrella in case it did rain and not thought about it anymore. However, I was planning to wear my new shoes, and I really didn’t want to get them wet and dirty the first time I wore them. So I checked the newspaper and the weather channel. The paper predicted . . . (p. 127) In this scenario, the children are exposed to the steps of listing observations, formulating a question, and identifying possible sources of information. These steps are not confined to elementary instruction. For instance, in college-level science courses you are encouraged to go through the same three steps. Your chemistry professor probably will talk you through conducting an experiment to prepare you for what might occur.
Mental modeling is a powerful technique that is on a high cognitive level. Precisely for that reason, it is something that you should try to use with your students at every opportunity. But practice first! The keys to using this technique are modeling thinking that your students can understand and then providing them with immediate opportunities to apply what they have learned. Having your students explain their own mental models or “I wonder . . .” models aloud will help clarify the process for them and allow you to assess their understanding.
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