ID Meets IT Part 11: Cognitive Flexibility Theory

Cognitive Flexibility Theory seems like a natural fit for learning given how we casually pick up new concepts, knowledge and skills in our everyday environment. For example, my knowledge and gradual acquisition of cooking skills --my wife would probably insist on quotes around that last word-- came from various attempts at cooking, comparison of recipes and techniques over time, reflection on success and failures, and experiences with televisions, books and observation of others. Fortunately, I've had the luxury of learning over a long period of time, with little at stake other than an occasionally burned meal or some very runny cookies (true story). Unfortunately, teachers in the classroom have neither of these luxuries. The several inches thick curriculum guide partitions standards and objectives into months, weeks and even days, and the penalties for failure in teaching and learning of these standards and objectives is growing increasingly harsh. In L.A. you run the risk of having you name published online and being publicly shamed if your students do not meet these standards. In Florida, 50% of your teacher evaluation will be tied to test scores. And in Indiana, your pay may soon depend on it!. Hence, one problem that I see with this method from a classroom and educational institution standpoint is a problem of efficiency. 

It's no secret that our curriculum is a mile wide and and inch deep. From what I understand of CFT, students are asked to explore content in depth, to soak in it, and to get to know the waters. When a 4th grade teacher has roughly 30 broad math objectives to cover in roughly 40 weeks, minus several weeks for testing and test prep, every hour and everyday is required to be as productive as possible and exploration of a wide range of materials in multiple formats will seem like a luxury to most teachers. Each day must be accounted for and each lesson must directly linked to a given standard with an explicit objective that can be measured at the end. On a side note,  I'm reminded of an excellent This American Life Podcast on the closing of an experimental GM/Toyota plant collaboration that tried to buck the traditional assembly methods by focusing on the quality of individual cars over the productivity of the line as measured by the sheer number that passed through and made it to the lot. While production moved more slowly due to the empowerment of workers to stop line when problems were sighted, the vehicles were of much higher quality and resulted in few problems with the cars over the life of the vehicle. In some of the traditional plants, production was moving as such a breakneck speed that employees were repairing new vehicles exiting production on the plant's parking lot, and the number of repairs needed after production by dealers was appallingly high. I think this is a fitting analogy for our for the problem described above and I will allow you to make the connections.

I know I've constantly referred to the application of these models in math and science in previous posts, but I've had the fortunate opportunity to be exposed to excellent programs and training in the math a sciences and I think some of the leaps and bounds made in experiential and contextual-based learning due in large part to the advocacy of great organizations like NCTM and the NSTA. In science, I've used curricular materials from the BCAMSC with units such as Magnetism and Electricity that allow students to explore related concepts through a diversity of investigations, readings, and literature. Although these lessons differ from CFT in structure and the degree of cases involved, I've witnessed first hand the academic and motivational benefits of allowing students to explore a topic in depth, approach it from different angles, and tie together a multitude of experiences to make sense of a problem of phenomenon. I've seen students who enjoyed learning for its own sake, who felt empowered to pursue their own line of reasoning, and who were curious about the material to be learned.


While technology can do little to solve the time/testing dilemma, I do think the Internet has brought he possibility of incorporating CFT within greater reach for the digitally literate teacher. The sheer number of primary source material and instructional videos now accessible online, not to mention quality online educational databases, personal blogs, and powerful search engines, have made gathering and collecting material for CFT possible. The way that software like garage band, movie maker and photoshop brought professional media production within reach of the average person, the resources mentioned above brought the material and tools needed for creating content and resources rich lessons within reach of teachers.