LICOS, Jennina A.

August 27, 2019

BEEd Social Studies
EDFD 116 Assignment
Meaningful Learning
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Definition of Meaningful Learning

Meaningful learning refers to acquired facts and knowledge stored in the brain that are
related with each other. It is said that when you gain meaningful learning, you are able to recall
other memories and relate them to the fact you have first recalled (the one that triggered you
to activate different memories). This is called “spread of activation”. This phenomenon is the
highlight of meaningful learning in which learners are able to easily understand and apply the
knowledge they’ve acquired through stored memories and wide functionality of the brain.

Source: Allrich, R. (n.d.). Meaningful Learning. Retrieved from

https://web.ics.purdue.edu/~rallrich/learn/mean.html

Theories of Motivation
Motivation for learning is the focus in Educational Psychology rather than behavior. It is
essential for students to have motivation in order for them to find meaning in learning. There
are two major types of motivation for learning which are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation is essential to be promoted in students because it encourages life-
long learning. It is very difficult for students to have intrinsic motivation especially when they
don’t really have the desire to go to school so it is up to the teacher whether she/he could
make the subject interesting or relevant to his/her students. Group activities, presenting the
importance of the subject, and encouraging hobbies/interests of one’s student can help in
boosting intrinsic motivation.
Extrinsic motivation can also be used in uplifting a student’s interest in learning. But it
shouldn’t be used frequently for the learners will have a different purpose of engaging in school
activities and would easily lose interest once the activities are finished. Nevertheless, extrinsic
motivation can also help in developing intrinsic motivation.

Source: Ormrod, J.E. (2003). Educational Psychology: Developing Learners (4th ed.). Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall. Chapters 11&12.
Five points to make learning meaningful:
1. Make the content meaningful as possible
As much as possible, learning contents taught in school must be something a child could relate
to. That is linking school activities to experiences from everyday lives.
2. Adopt a student center approach
make the students feel that they’re the center of every learning experiences. Let them get more
involved in creating their own outputs, may it be in class participation, collaborating group
projects, and assignments that would help them reflect on the knowledge they have learned.
3. Promote self-knowledge
promoting a life-long learning to students in order to help them function well in the future.
Encourage them to join organizations, delve into their interests, or even express their opinions
on social media. These proves that achieving meaningful learning is a personal process and
teachers are only instruments to guide their students in acquiring it.
4. Bring the real world to your classroom
using mediums that show the reality of the world could boost the awareness of students and to
help them think in a more diverse way. Present them researches, documentaries, interactive
videos, and podcasts.
5. Share knowledge and resources
it is true that teachers have the most influence on students of whether they can make learning
interesting and meaningful or not. That is why it is necessary to look for the right teaching
strategy to use in order to encourage the students to become interactive in class.

Source: Howell, D. (2017, November 17). 5 Ways to Make Learning More Meaningful to
Students. Retrieved from http://psychlearningcurve.org/learning-more-meaningful/

Making Learning Meaningful and Lasting by Prof. Mark A. McDaniel

1. Connect content with meaning
It is best to encourage students to connect the facts they’ve learned in school with their own
experiences in life. This will also lead them to a more open-minded perspective on society and
willingly be involved in social movements and advocacies.
2. Discourage Rote Memorization
Rote learning is remembering facts without fully understanding the real content of the text. The
ineffectiveness of this is that students easily forget what they’ve learned over the summer and
some students who study hard or memorize answers still have poor assessments.
3. Encourage Self-Testing
Encourage students to regularly test themselves. It is effective to let them explain aloud to
themselves what they’ve learned to exercise long-term memory. It is also great to provide
detailed study guides for assessment exams in order to know what the students had already
understood really well or what is still needed to be improved.
4. Let Students Figure out the Problem
It is alright to point out what is wrong with the students’ answers or output but avoid giving
them detailed feedbacks. Let them figure it out themselves so they can practice solving things
on their own and become independent learners at certain points. Too much feedbacks,
especially negative ones, could also lead them to have low self-esteem and less motivation to
do their work effectively.
5. Give Frequent, Low-Stakes Assessments
Assessments are used to know how wide a student understands the lessons and not just how
much information was able to be stored in the students’ brains. It is important for students to
know that learning is not just about passing the test but as a way to cope and improve in the
society they belong. Let them care more about the reasons behind their mistakes and not just
focus on the results ahead.
6. Don’t Penalize Errors Harshly
Let students have the mentality that errors are equal to opportunities and make them avoid
viewing it as failure. This will create a positive attitude to all learners and won’t get scared in
making mistakes. It is also great to give opportunities for a full or partial retakes of quizzes or
exams on students, but not all the time.

Source: Cutler, D. (2015, September 14). Making Learning Meaningful and Lasting. Retrieved
from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/making-learning-meaningful-and-lasting-david-cutler

How to create meaningful learning in the classroom

Schools are built in order for students to be prepared for life within a society. It is
important that students know how to apply what they’ve learned to their daily lives for this is
the real basis of an effective teaching in school.
So what is considered as meaningful learning?
a. It is generalizable- associated with different contexts, situations, and tasks
b. It is functional- able to act what we’ve learned and create things effectively and creatively
c. It is durable- recorded in our long-term memory and we can access it at any time

Source: Vandekar, K. (2017, March 7). How to create meaningful learning in the classroom.
Retrieved from https://www.elesapiens.com/blog/how-to-create-meaningful-learning-in-the-
classroom/
Meaningful Learning Activities
What is meaningful learning activity?
It provides opportunity to practice new knowledge and skills which helps students learn
and grow as skillful individuals in the society.
Attributes of a meaningful learning activity:
1. Authentic- should reflect the different types of experiences, problems, or challenges students
will face in real life
2. Challenging- should provide concepts that students can grasp which can further improve
their skills and abilities
3. Rigorous- application of acquired learning to achieve successful outcomes
4. Coherent- logical and consistent relationship to guide the students in achieving learning
objectives
5. Engaging- make learners interested of the activity and become motivated to participate
6. Responsive- should have frequent feedbacks to guide students in the learning process
7. Student-centered- activities should be specifically made for particular group of students
8. Valid- there is a purpose and achieved learning at the end of the activity

Source: (2014, December 16). Meaningful Learning Activities. Retrieved from

https://youtu.be/OOfotsHDIwE