Chapter 2 (How does my brain know its a "2"!)

1) I would say that scientists are working hard at the cellular level to unravel the complexities of the brain. Many theories exist on how we interpret, analyze, recognize, and eventually understand stimuli. I have concluded that as time goes on, scientists are getting closer and closer to understanding, not only how the brain functions at the onset of a stimulus, but also the journey to deeper meaning.
2) I struggled to relate to Chapter 1 from the book! I felt it was too busy and over my head. I feel as if Chapter 2 relates well to the Foundational learning theories from the PDF reading. I believe some of the studies found in Chapter 2 could easily serve as supporting evidence for the 3 main evolving studies revealed in the Foundational Learning section.
3) Did anyone else feel like the last kid picked in a Dodgeball game when viewing the picture on page 51. I stared at that stupid picture for half an hour and still had to cheat on page 66. Then after cheating, I still can't see the difference!!!! I guess there is an extra branch by the side of the picture but I don't think Columbo would have got that right. Come on Man! Anyone else struggle with this?????
4) The strongest evidence I take into my classroom after reading the chapter is the power and sensitivity of visual stimuli. Visuals are undoubtedly a key to higher and more effective learning, but I feel I need to make sure that I use them timely and effectively.
5 and 6) The most convincing and interesting evidence comes from the inattentional blindness section coming out of the top-down processing theory. I took the websites with the basketball and gorilla, and the basketball and the umbrella lady and practiced it on my classes. The results were astounding. I suggest you try it with your classes. The umbrella lady is more difficult than that of the gorilla. You can find both of these on youtube by searching these names. This tells me the ability of the mind to focus is a very delicate balance of concentration, and when teaching concepts that one should very carefully plan the lesson to maximize learning.
7) Generally speaking, I feel I should teach concepts with numerous modes of instruction in mind. A lesson should encompass many different styles of learning and perception. Whether it be Visuals and Speech Perception, Visuals and Text, Visuals and Narration, all are effective and unique, just like our classroom of students. It is important that we use different strategies throughout the course of conceptual understanding. If we introduce the material with one mode, then maybe we should practice and review with different modes.
8) This is a tough question. I would say YES, there are definitely faster, cheaper, and possibly even better ways, but I think overall effectiveness might suffer. I think time becomes a key factor in many cases as well. For example, one could teach the water cycle in one day with an overload of information and visuals. However, to really grasp what is taking place between the stages takes time. There are many labs and hands-on activities that students could grasp concepts from, but educators might look at a big chart as an easy way to accomplish this goal. Ultimately, I think the students suffer and would lack a deeper understanding.

JJ's Round-up (For Kicks)
1) Do the Gorilla thing, it's fun!!
2) I would like to be a psychologist for about a month and test people!
3) This chapter felt long!
4) I feel stupid when I look at page 51, it must be the branch
5) Why can't they put all the theories together and come up with 1
6) Inattenional shows up on spellcheck, A.I. is wrong! Humans rule!
Happy Blogging!