Although just slightly on the more difficult side to read, I really enjoyed this chapter, and found it for the most part easy to relate to my profession. It was somewhat interesting for me to learn more about how the human brain actually learns.
Simulations Can Add Value to an Instructional Program:
This one is pretty much a no brainer for Aviation, in fact I’ve already mentioned it in some of my previous posts with aircraft simulators which aid in training. The example that I wanted to bring out of this chapter is more of a classroom/group simulation. One of our professors in the college just returned from sabbatical last semester. Upon his return, he introduced to several of his class, an airline simulation program. This is where a group gets together, and builds a simulated airline, by setting up an initial structure (type of airplanes, leased or purchased, route structure, passenger costs, and many other items). After these items are set up in the computer simulation, the simulated airline goes live. Throughout the semester, the groups are able to change many things, including purchase, or sale of airplanes, change their cost structures, etc. While there are many things that they can change, there are also things that will frequently change that they cannot control. Several examples are fuel costs, passenger loads, maintenance costs, etc. All of this takes place in a simulated “real world environment”. I do believe that it isn’t quite real-time, but a bit faster.
I think that this type of simulation is an excellent example of a learning tool that is almost a real-world experiment. Kind of like being a simulated CEO of an airline.
Transfer of Learning:
This is an area that we too in aviation try to keep everything on the positive side. What I mean by this is that there are many occasions that may occur in flight training that can end up as a negative transfer of learining. I'll try to give an example. Typically after landing the airplane, we frown upon students reaching over to toggle the flaps lever, retracting the flaps prior to turning off the runway onto a taxiway. Many times a student will just reach over and flip the swich without thinking about it. We do not want them to get into this habbit pattern, because once the student advances in their flght training into a more comlex aircraft (one that has retractable landing gear); their can be a negative transfer of learning from the student reaching over to retract the flaps, and accidentally retract the landing gear instead. This is typically a bad thing if you are still on the ground, hence we would rather the students not do any actions with levers/buttons/switched/ etc, until after taxiing off the runway. (I hope this made some sense to everone).
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Your example of transfer of learning with the airplane "flaps" was very interesting. It makes me think of my students who think they can cut corners or do things their own way after given specific directions, thinking it will have no affect on their future habits or learning.
I feel it is important for teachers of any level or subject to teach students the correct methods and strategies for doing things, but also teaching them to be aware of how the learning they are experiencing now will affect what they will be doing in the future. Kind of like with math - my middle schoolers think they can cut corners without thinking about the future (which is really in part to their current developmental stages right now...) but then get to a more advance topic down the road and realize they limited themselves early on without even knowing it. As a teacher, I need to make them learn for the present and for the future.
Thanks for sharing your examples in relation to the aviation field - they are always interesting.
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