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Running head: LEARN WHOLES MENTAL REP.1

Learning by Wholes with Mental Representations

Bradley Opatz

EDU510.90 The Cognitive Science of Teaching & Learning

Dr. Foster

LEARN WHOLES MENTAL REP.2

Learning by Wholes with Mental Representations

Part One: Analysis & Application

Introduction

David Perkins’ work, Making Learning Whole: How seven principles of teaching

can transform education (2009), looks at the education system in the United States as

being un-holistic and offers seven principles that focus on looking at the big picture when

educating. As opposed to only offering on the specifics of a subject (for example, writing

a topic sentence for a paragraph), Perkins claims that offering the big picture early on

helps learners get excited to learn because it gives much-needed context. Instead of

focusing on forming a topic sentence, an educator encouraging a holistic education

approach will give students a choice of what to write about and focus on the content they

provide; the topic sentence will come from contextualized information the learner cares

about, thus making stronger connections with learner’s prior knowledge. Perkins terms

this broad perspective “learning by wholes” (Perkins, 2009 p. 8). This paper will focus on

principles presented by Perkins: play the whole game, work on the hard parts, play out of

town, uncover the hidden game and learn from the team (and other teams), in how they

can be shown to complement the mental representations of logic, rules, concepts,

analogies and images.

Logic

Logic is the process in which a question is answered, using rules, that makes

sense in terms of past knowledge and occurrences, the particular situation and stored

information. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2010) describes formal logic as

either deductive (using generalizations) or inductive (based on occurrences) which


produce inferences, or conclusions. An example of logic within the writer’s educational

context is the application of grammar rules, such as the use of the present continuous and

present simple tenses. In Listening and Speaking courses, learners gain knowledge of

grammar rules and are given examples of when to use the appropriate tense because, in

order to use the proper grammar rules, one must be able to logically recognize the proper

context under which they are used. To teach present continuous vs. present simple tenses

as an instructional event, the educator would first elicit any knowledge and examples

about the tenses from the class. Next, the grammar would be further explained and

illuminated with examples of what to look for within the sentence structure that signals

use of a particular verb tense. Finally, the learner has the resources in order to complete

homework to show understanding of the two verb tenses and when to use each,

underlining logic as a mental representation.

Play the Whole Game

Playing the whole game involves finding the junior version of the real game to

give learners the big picture instead of only focusing on certain parts of the game or

specific skills. Perkins (2009) calls this attention to specific skills in lieu of whole game

learning “aboutitis” and “elementitis” because educators will either focus on teaching

about how to do something instead of actually letting the learners participate in doing it

or teach small elements that never get translated to the big picture (pp. 3-4). In a science

class, this would translate into focusing on the scientific process of examining,

questioning and testing hypotheses instead of learning facts in order to score well on an

exam; the level of the junior version game depends on the ability of the learners.


The introduction and practice of grammar rules fits the concept of playing the

whole game because students are effectively playing a junior game of grammar. By only

focusing on a few grammar rules at a time, it is not too overwhelming for students to

differentiate the usages and, over time, the junior version of the game can mature with

increases of grammar rules. Taking Perkins’ approach of playing the whole game, the

educator should first give context to the importance of mastering basic grammar rules to

improve English fluency. Next, the educator would then introduce a junior version of the

grammar game by giving the students practice, first in identifying grammar mistakes,

analyzing which grammar rule would is needed, and later increasing in complexity with

practice until the form reflects the proper game of grammar. This would give students the

big picture early on, foster practice by doing and provide rationale for the form.

Rules

A rule is a systematic way of thinking/problem-solving which draws on past

knowledge; the resulting belief can reinforce set rules if found correct, or become altered

if found incorrect. Rules are described in terms of an ‘If..., then….’ structure, which is

used to solve a problem or to generate new rules (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,

2010). An example of the use of rules would be in learning a particular type of poem

structure within a Poetry course. Given the poetic formula, poem constructions are shown

through examples. This is rule-based because it shows how to construct a particular type

of poem given real-time examples. To teach haikus, one must first explain and give

examples of the 5-7-5 syllable pattern; learners can then practice forming haikus given a

particular topic and the 5-7-5 syllable rule through repetition. Learners will then be able

to form haikus using the 5-7-5 syllable rule.


Work on the Hard Parts

Working on the hard parts involves providing ongoing feedback that focuses on

what the student is having trouble with and, by anticipating the problem areas, creating a

theory of difficulty that can guide a student when trouble is reached. Instead of giving

feedback after assessments and immediately moving onto the next topic, the educator

needs to provide meaningful, constructive feedback and more practice. By having a

theory of difficulty already formed, the educator has ready examples and explanations

that aid the learner in potential problems.

Working on the hard parts complements poetry education in terms of practicing a

specific form of poetry creation until mastery is achieved. What students may find

difficult to grasp, such as in counting syllables while forming a haiku poem, becomes

easier with ongoing, constructive guidance from the educator. Having a variety of

examples of haiku poems and their formation will give learners more specified help to

work on the problem processes of writing poetry with the correct form.

Concepts

Concepts are units of information storage, grouped together because of synonymy

of salient features. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2010) describes concepts

as “sets of typical features” (sec. 4.3). Yao (n.d.) sees concepts as “basic units of thought

that underlie human intelligence and communication” (p. 1), while Pavel (2009) shows

that the variety of definitions of a concept can rest in social terms (homogeneity within

society), be based on structure (features and structure) or the theory of cognitivism

(concepts as bridges, without isolation, etc.). An example of concept formation would be

in the writer’s Culture in the English-speaking World course, where students learn


Western ideals of universal concepts. By using concepts, the learner can make

distinctions between Thai and Western cultures by drawing on past knowledge while

integrating new ideas. As a result, learners will be able to compare and contrast Thai and

Western concepts of the same name (obedience, social order, etc.) which reflects the

intrinsic culture. An instructional event highlighting concept formation would be in

teaching the concept of ‘personal space’. Students would be called to demonstrate

appropriate distance between persons in Thailand, drawing on their own knowledge of

acceptable personal space, in formal and informal settings. The educator can then make

the connection between Continental personal space as opposed to North American

personal space, showing the similarity between Thai and Continental concepts. By

illustrating the larger degree of personal space required in North America, the learners

now have a two different concepts of personal space in the English-speaking world as

well as a reinforced concept in terms of Thai culture. This not only underscores

cognitivism and the overall structure of concepts, but overwhelmingly focuses on

concepts as homogenous within a culture.

Learn from the Team (and Other Teams)

Learning from the team (and other teams) rests on the value of learning in a social

context; because humans are by nature social creatures, social learning pushes one toward

entertaining multiple perspectives in a bid that fosters deep understanding. Perkins (2009)

gives the example of pair problem-solving in mathematics through Jack Lochhead’s

Thinkback; one learner will solve a problem while stating the rationale aloud while the

other learner questions why they performed a specific step without giving help, this helps

make the underlying game more apparent. Social learning strengthens each of Perkins’


principles as it helps the learner to see the big picture, is more fun to learn in a team than

individually, focuses on the hard parts not readily understood, engenders playing out of

town because of the differing perspectives articulated and helps the hidden game come to

the surface.

Learning from the team (and other teams) works well with the above teaching

activity in the culture course because it is a social process to learn a social concept.

Educators need to allow enough time for social interactions to underscore the concepts

presented in class. One would achieve this by giving learners the information and

examples of Western culture and then giving a chance to assimilate this knowledge in a

communal fashion; as a result the students will have a social grounding experience with

real practice in acting out a concept. For example, while covering Western eating

practices the educator would host a faux meal during the class where students could

practice having a meal with others, exhibiting their table manners while also drawing on

previous expectations of personal space within the context of the meal. This would give a

social factor to learning that would hopefully lead to better connections, memory and

understanding. With Thais being so socially sensitive, drawing on this cultural factor

would easily strengthen Perkins’ other principles of learning by wholes.

Analogies

An analogy involves making analogous two distinct thought structures with like

aspects in order to inform about, and make sense out of, the unknown. Analogies are used

in solving problems, making decisions, explanations and verbal language (Stanford

Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2010). Dawson and Medler (2009) define an analogy as a

problem-solver which uses knowledge from one problem to solve another problem, of


which little or nothing is known. Furthermore, Holyoak, Gentner and Kokinov (n.d.)

discuss symbolic ability as “the ability to pick out patterns, to identify recurrences of

these patterns despite variation in the elements that compose them”, basically the basis of

cognition; analogy is the “ability to think about relational patterns” (p. 2). Analogies are

used within the writer’s Buddhism classes through the introduction and explanation of

Buddhist proverbs. The proverbs draw from common life experiences that illuminate

understanding; analogies made within the classroom shift the proverbs in easily-relatable

language and terms. This works to give insight to the deeper Truths of the Buddha

through intelligible means. An instructional event showing analogy formation would be

in teaching Buddhist proverbs, for example, “Just as rain leaks through an ill-thatched

house, so lust leaks through an un-trained mind” (Buddhism Standards, 2011). First, the

educator introduces the proverb in Thai and English to assure grammatical understanding.

Next, the learners give their own interpretations of what the proverb means, either

individually or as a group. Within the proverb, the analogy between rain and lust is made

apparent, as is the analogy between an ill-thatched house and an un-trained mind.

Questioning helps illuminate the analogies: ‘How is rain and lust similar? How are the

house and the mind similar? What is lust? What else could we substitute for ‘lust’? What

is the Buddha trying to say? How is the Buddha saying we should act?’. Finally, learners

can fashion an analogy of their own that describes the basic concept of the proverb to

illustrate a mastery of understanding.

Uncover the Hidden Game

Uncovering the hidden game involves strategic thinking, causal thinking and

inquiry in order to discover the underlying, non-explicit ways that a subject works.


Perkins (2009) gives five examples of the way hidden games are kept secret: in simplistic

thinking; masked by common sense; reaching an understanding that is “good enough” but

not deep enough; in unstated, tacit knowledge and in introducing concepts beyond the

reach of the learner (pp. 156-166). Strategic thinking looks at the patterns of why the

student performs a specific function, eventually exposing unstated reasoning that aids in

future understanding. Causal thinking also helps in a systematic view that underlines the

complex nature of causality, thereby also uncovering the real hidden causes. All of the

above rests on the simple concept of inquiry, looking for underlying patterns that gives

real, deep understanding about a subject.

Uncovering the hidden game enriches learning by analogies within the writers

Buddhism courses because it gives subjective references in order to relate a more

complicated concepts/ideas. The educator should start with the fundamental Truths the

Buddha taught: to question everything and to rely on yourself; these are the unifying

themes that can be found in any Buddhist teaching. This knowledge will help students see

the unifying principles throughout the class material during the semester and,

interestingly, the principles in and of themselves echoes strategic thinking, causal

thinking and learning through inquiry. Uncovering the hidden game of Buddhism is

thereby enhanced through the mental representation of analogies.

Images

Images are visual representations of knowledge which are arranged in order to

better process information. Images help cast information in a more usable form than

verbal descriptions and are closely linked with reasoning (Stanford Encyclopedia of

Philosophy, 2010). Borst, Ganis, Thompson and Kosslyn (2011) studied whether visual


mental imagery and visual working memory use the same neurological format,

illustrating the close relationship between images, memory and data-processing. Thomas

(2003) argues that “all conscious experiences are imagistic, either perceptual or quasi-

perceptual” (sec. 3.3). Introducing theory in the writer’s Buddhism classes gives an

opportunity to visually-arrange information into images. Making a flow chart out of

lecture material by drawing, boxing, bracketing, circling and drawing lines, achieves a

more visual stimulus. This structures and codes the information into a more visually-

appealing way, making it easier to understand. Teaching the ‘Six Directions’ is an

instructional event that uses images. Each set of directions describes a relationship: north,

south, east, west, up and down corresponds to friends, teachers, parents, spouses,

religious teachers and employees, respectively; therefore, the east-west relationship

represents between parents and children. Students can then create a three-dimensional

object by drawing images that represent each relationship. This allows a specific mental

image to represent a concept with an improved recall of the meaning.

Play Out of Town

Playing out of town deals with transferring knowledge in a way that connects with

the real world and/or different disciplines, by preparing for future learning and through

the educator working as a facilitator. The use of metaphors and analogies can help

students become aware of the idea that knowledge is transferrable in that it can illuminate

and elucidate other disciplines and can have real consequences in the outside world. John

Bransford and Daniel Schwartz’s concept of ‘preparing for future learning’ manifests

deeper understanding by first free-form exploring a problem and creating solutions

(Perkins, 2009 pp. 121-123). This approach allows for a ready transfer of previous


conceptual thinking as well as putting the educator in the role of facilitator, giving clues

when needed as well as space to create.

Playing out of town incorporates working with visual images intuitively through

the Buddhism project of the ‘Six Directions’ because it fuses creative and analytical parts

of the human psyche, showing connections among disciplines. Having students work on a

project that presupposes the use of skills from other disciplines is playing out of town in

that it gives a new venue and perspective to take advantage learning new information

through creating.

Part Two: Connections & Reflections

Overall, I had been somewhat familiar with mental representations prior to this

course, although not within the realm of cognitive science. I was introduced to formal

logic as the basis of philosophy as well as a natural process I am aware of everyday.

Rules were used in science classes through the hypothesis-structure (If…,Then…), in

grammar as well as in learning Spanish and Thai grammars. I would say that a greater

portion of my leisure time is used to think about concepts; of particular interest are

spiritual and religious concepts that change over time and the mechanisms that cause

change. I usually use analogies to illustrate and explain answers to questions my younger

cousins ask, explaining it in terms that they would likely understand. Finally, I have been

aware, from a young age, the use of mental images in thinking and problem-solving, such

as where something will fit or how to arrange objects during a move between houses.

Grouping together logic, rules, concepts, analogies and images in terms of mental

representations gives a more holistic approach to cognitive processes.


In my educational context, concepts are the most important mental representation.

Forming a concept, or building off of a pre-existing concept, is important in language

learning because it gives a context off of which the learner can associate prior and future

knowledge in terms of vocabulary and phrases between Thai and English. Rules can be

directly applied and defined as English grammar because they give premises (grammar

rules) to work off of, as well as exceptions, resulting in the testing of hypotheses. Logic

can be defined as the framework under which rules work, which could be deductive

(given grammar rules) or inductive (realizing patterns in grammar first).

Understanding mental representations is important for educators because it takes

advantage of the knowledge of how a person thinks. Teaching in a way that fosters and

highlights mental representations is beneficial for learners, not only to learn the

information, but to become cognizant of how we think and, by implication, learn.

Personally, I rely on analogy very often to explain an English word or concept to an

English Language Learner (ELL). Having knowledge of mental representations will

hopefully enhance my explanations while teaching, first by becoming more aware of

what mental representation I am using, and also by choosing an appropriate

representation to use.

What really caught my eye when reading Perkins (2009) was a passage where he

connected social learning in pair problem-solving to the formation of mental

representations, namely though images (p. 176). I think that all of the mental

representations previously studied could potentially be created through social learning:

logic, rules, concepts and analogies could all be explicitly shown and enhanced through


expounding with specificity the processes and rationale behind each approach to

problem-solving.

Perkins’ focus on communities of practice (CoP) is a great example of how

people can informally work toward a common goal with information and practices that

can be immediately applied in one’s own context. This brings to mind my experience as

an active member of the International Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta and how I learned

from my brothers in both informal and formal ways. Formally, I had to learn the history,

rules and traditions of the fraternity before I was initiated, as a pledge. After becoming an

active member, I had to informally learn how to perform a variety of jobs such as

philanthropy chair, scholarship chair and fundraising chair, drawing not only on

experiences of those who had come before me, but also from other members who have

had similar experiences in positions within other organizations as well as members from

other fraternities and sororities. I did not know it at the time, but I had formed a loose

community of practice without regular meeting times where I could exchange ideas and,

communally, come up with what was thought to be the best approach to a situation.

Overall, the social context of my fraternity helped me to grow academically,

socially, politically, spiritually and economically. Academically, I had to maintain a high

GPA, accrue ‘study hours’ weekly and was involved in tutoring other members in

subjects that I had mastered. Socially, I learned how to become comfortable in

conversing, and working, with adults in authority positions and was required to be

involved in other university clubs; this led to the eventual formation of my own

university club and development as the head of an organization. Politically speaking, I

had to develop my own strategy in voting for, and running for, positions of power within


the fraternity which included alliance-making and subtle nudges during discussions that

would carry a resolution in my favor. Spiritually, the ritual of the fraternity (and all

fraternities for that matter) lies in the progress of humanity and the emphasis on making

contributions that affect others positively; a ready example is truly treating other

members as brothers, hence the term ‘brothers’ for other members. Finally, economically

speaking, I had to learn how to balance my budget to afford for fraternity insurance,

membership dues, special event expenses, housing costs as well as taking time off of

work for events; on the larger level, the fraternity as a whole had to be financially viable

every semester in order to keep our house, highlighting the aspect of the fraternity as a

business. It was not until reading about Perkins’ principle of learning from the team that I

thought about how, specifically, the social context of the fraternity aided in my own

development; it is astonishing just how much alike the people we surround ourselves with

we can become.

The two principles that will have the biggest implications in my educational

context are: learn from the team (and other teams) and learn the game of learning. I think

learning the game of learning is the most important principle because it puts all of the

other principles in perspective; it is the framework under which “learning by wholes” can

be effective and realized. If I teach a subject and students understand it, that’s good; if I

teach a subject and students understand it and use it in daily life, that’s great; but if I

teach a subject and students become aware of the most effective process for their own

learning, that’s the best. They can use that realization not only to learn in other formal

settings, but also in informal settings, and may even make others aware of how to learn

the game of learning as well.


Learning from the team (and other teams) is undoubtedly an approach that I will

focus on in the semester to come. To use an analogy, situated cognition is to “how

effective thought and action depend on adopting and capitalizing on particular

sociocultural setting” as situated learning is to “how meaningful learning requires an

quthentic context of social endeavor” (Perkins, 2009 p. 173). He gives a few examples of

soical learning: pair problem-solving, studio learning, Communities of Practice (CoP)

and cross-age tutoring. Instead of setting up group work for particular assignments, I

want to set up students into permanet groups where I evaluate their ongoing contributions

to projects. I want to make the projects more meaningful and based on the “learning by

wholes” approach and give the students more autonmony on their own educational

journey. Overall, I want to take advantage of the extremely social culture of Thailand and

have it work, not only to “learn by wholes”, but to hopefully learn the game of learning in

a more efficient manner. Thai students are grouped into class sections during their entire

school career, from grades K-20, making it an effective environment to focus on the

social aspect of learning.

Personally, learning the game of learning is an ongoing pursuit, one which is

continually enhanced by this degree program generally, and through cognitive science

and “learning by wholes” specifically. I have focused on my own best practices of

learning over the last six months so that I can enhance my students’ best practices; this

also gives a stronger impetus, as I can readily apply what I learn to my educational

context. Looking back at the last year, I realized that my colleagues and I had formed an

informal Professional Learning Community (PLC). About PLCs (n.d.) describes a PLC as


a community with a “focus on learning”, “a collaborative culture”, “collective inquiry

into best practice and current reality”, includes “learning by doing”, “a commitment to

continuous learning” which is “results oriented”. Two or three of us talk about effective

teaching strategies over lunch or coffee at the university, focusing on problem students or

subjects that we could all learn to teach better with more of an exchange of ideas.

Questions that remain focus on implementing the principles given by Perkins and

how to give examples/explain concepts using mental representations in the most effective

way. I studied Religious Studies for my undergraduate degree, not education, so most of

the difficulties of the profession come in giving relevant examples and pushing students

individually based on their abilities. Through focusing on the seven principles outlined by

Perkins, more questions will be resolved by more experience doing/active learning on my

part.


References

About PLCs. (n.d.). All Things PLC: All information, no commerce. Retrieved from

http://www.allthingsplc.info/about/aboutPLC.php

Borst, G., Ganis, G., Thompson, W.L. & Kosslyn, S.M. (2011). Representations in

mental imagery and working memory: Evidence from different types of visual

masks. Psychonomic Society, Inc. doi: 10.3758/s13421-011-0143-7

Buddhism Standards. (2011). Social studies strands. Bangkok: Thai Ministry of

Education.

Dawson, M.R.W., Medler, D.A. (2009). Dictionary of cognitive science: Analogy.

Retrieved from http://www.bcp.psych.ualberta.ca/~mike/Pearl_Street/Dictionary/

contents/A/analogy.html

Holyoak, K.J., Gentner, D. & Kokinov, B.N. (n.d.) Introduction: The place of analogy in

Cognition. Retrieved from http://groups.psych.northwestern.edu/gentner/papers/

HolyoakGentnerKokinov01.pdf

Pavel, G. (2009). Concept learning-investigating the possibilities for a human-machine

dialogue. Intelligent Support for Leaning Concepts from Examples. Retrieved

from http://kmi.open.ac.uk/publications/pdf/kmi-09-01.pdf

Perkins, D. N. (2009). Making learning whole: How seven principles of teaching can

transform education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (2010). Cognitive Science. Retrieved from

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cognitive-science/

Thomas, J.T. (2003). An introduction to the science and philosophy of mental imagery.

Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science, 2, 1147-1153.

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cognitive-science/

http://kmi.open.ac.uk/publications/pdf/kmi-09-01.pdf

http://www.bcp.psych.ualberta.ca/~mike/Pearl_Street/Dictionary/contents/A/analogy.html

http://www.bcp.psych.ualberta.ca/~mike/Pearl_Street/Dictionary/contents/A/analogy.html

http://www.allthingsplc.info/about/aboutPLC.php


Yao, Y.Y. (n.d.) Concept formation and learning: A cognitive informatics perspective.

Regina: University of Regina, Department of Computer Science.

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History of Muban Chombueng Rajabhat Universitypassport2education.com/welcome/wp-content/uploads/2013/... · Web viewBradley Opatz EDU510.90 The Cognitive Science of Teaching & Learning