Epistemology
is the branch of philosophy that studies knowledge. It focusing on the question
of what is adequate knowledge and what is inadequate knowledge and deals with
the origin, structure and validity of knowledge. This differs from theories,
methods and models of learning as they are the schools of thought of how
knowledge is acquired. Epistemology is the top of that food chain, so to speak.
It is the core of learning theories and the approaches to teaching. One’s epistemological
stance determines their view of the learning process, how learning is fostered,
student and teacher roles, and the learning environment.
Epistemology is the area of philosophy that
is concerned with knowledge. It looks at the definition of knowledge, the
sources of knowledge, knowledge acquisition and the limits of knowledge.
Epistemology considers that knowledge can be obtained through experience and/or
reason. Contextualist epistemology is
an approach to knowledge that offers an explanation to the query of how we come
to “know.” This view claims that knowing is context sensitive – that ‘knowing’
means different things in different contexts or that it has a different
semantic value in different situations. One’s view of what they know is
dependent on their perspective. For example, in modern times what society views
as a fat and unsightly woman was considered beautiful during the renaissance.
I read a book Drive by Daniel Pink, and the entire book focused on what motivates people. The book specifically concentrated on education, but it could be applied elsewhere. He uses examples of Apple allowing for a day of employees only working on things they wanted to do. The company discovered that there was more productivity that day than any other day. The employees were excited and invented many new apps and ideas for the iPhone and iPad. The if/then approach does not work. People are intrinsically motivated and when we try to use outside things to motivate it does not work on most people. Autonomy is one of the many things that motivate anyone. Get personally involved and invested and you will see a person who is truly motivated.
ReplyDeleteI like the statement: One’s view of what they know is dependent on their perspective
ReplyDeleteI find this to be especially true in my classroom. Students often think they know the material, but on the test, the knowledge doesn't transfer. Its one of the hardest parts of teaching. Helping students understand when they really 'know' something.