Colorado College Education and Learning Paper

Part 1

• Which side of the      “nature versus nurture” debate has the weight of evidence on its      side?
• What implications do      your findings have regarding the education of ethnic minorities and other      special populations?
• What steps could be      taken to address these implications? Explain your rationale.

Part 2

• Using the ARCS model,      analyze the situation for its probable motivational characteristics.
• Create a set of      motivational objectives and suggest strategies that would be effective for      stimulating motivation.
• Generate an      instructional plan that would help learners become more efficacious.

Part 3

• How could you employ      Gagne’s taxonomy to improve the quality of your current or      future instructional design work?
• What difficulties might      you expect in applying this taxonomy?
• What steps could you      take to address these difficulties?

Part 4

• How do constructivist      notions about learning, memory, learning goals and conditions for learning      differ from the other schools of thought we have covered so far?
• Do you see      constructivist principles at play in this course? Why or why not? Give      specific examples.
• How might the      application of constructivist principles (or the amplification of      constructivist principles) improve this course? Explain your rationale.

Part 5

• Describe five ideas      learned in this class that you feel are most relevant to the widest      variety of instructional situations.
  • Why did you pick these       five?
• Are these five ideas      particularly applicable to your current or future career?
  • If so, explain how.
• Which idea or ideas do      you consider least applicable?
• Why did you choose this       idea or ideas?

Part 6

Post your research topic and research question. Explain how you will collect either qualitative or quantitative data for your study. Provide a thorough explanation of how you will collect either qualitative or quantitative data for your study using examples from your readings.

Part 7

Identify and obtain a copy of a published research article, or another research report, on a topic of interest to you. Based on the various guidelines and suggestions presented in Chapter 14 of Introduction to Educational Research, (i.e., conventions of style, conventions of format, and guidelines for presenting the results of analyses), write a brief critique of the research report, highlighting those aspects of the written report that the author(s) did well and those aspects that you believe could be improved.

Part 8

Provide an outline of your literature review and identify the themes that you analyzed. Critique your literature review and explain how it did or did not align with your research topic and question. Is there anything you could improve upon in a future draft of your literature review?

Part 9

• How has learning about      educational research contributed to your own personal or professional      goals?
• What skills have you      learned in this class, and how will you use these lessons beyond this      class?
• What can you apply from      this class in your current or future work environment?