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Learning Theory

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s taxonomy represents a form of learning that measures many different levels of understanding through what is taught.  Through Bloom’s Taxonomy the learner does not just learn basic facts but instead they take what is learned and apply it to many things such as their own lives.  The learner can recall the information, understand the information, take abstract concepts and make them concrete, relate concepts to personal experiences, and organize thoughts and ideas.  Through Bloom’s Taxonomy, learners are not just memorizing material but instead applying it in many different ways.

Bloom’s TaxonomyExplanation of TermHow it relates to the Sonoran Desert Project
KnowledgeThe learner must recall information.Through activities and assessments the student will be able to demonstrate their knowledge on a particular species.  
ComprehensionThe learner understands what is being communicated so that they could explain it to someone.The activities ask the students to explain what they have learned to either their whole class or individual classmates.
ApplicationThe learner finds a practical use for in in particular and concrete situations.The student will be able to recall a time in their life where they have experienced a certain species that resides in the Sonoran Desert.
AnalysisThe learner can break down parts and see how they work together.Students will see how species eat, where they live, what they look like, and much more.  This shows the students how each of these parts work together to ensure survival of a species.
SynthesisThe learner puts together elements or parts to form a whole.Students will be able to see how crawlers, vegetation, and wildlife work together to form the Sonoran Desert.
EvaluationThe learner makes judgments about the value of the material or methods for a given purpose.After the students experience the information and complete the activities, they will be asked to take an assessment located on each individual species’ page.



Constructivist Theory
Constructivist Theory is based on the idea that we learn by taking new experiences and relating them to past knowledge.  To effectively use the constructivist theory teachers must use key characteristics of effective teaching that are consistent with constructivist theory.  Some of these characteristics include teaching that is interesting, supportive, active, social, and applied to real life.  Constructivist theory is based off of scaffolding.  An easy way to learn something knew is to take something that was already learned and build on top of it. Hopefully many of the students who access the Sonoran Desert Project have lived in the desert before or experienced it.  If they have the students may be able to learn about a species that they have seen before.  They can take that experience and look back on it to learn more about a certain species.  Also, if a student sees a species from the Sonoran Desert in the future they will be able to look back on the Sonoran Desert Project and remember information about that species.

Multiple Intelligence Theory
The multiple intelligence theory is based on the idea that students learn through many different realms of teaching.  Each student is different and they may retain information easier if a teacher presents the information in a certain way that suits the student.  Some students learn more through visual applications such as powerpoint presentations while others may learn more through physical activity and acting out what is learned.  There are nine multiple intelligences and often times one student can learn through many of these intelligences.  For this theory to work the teacher needs to find the strength of each student and try and tailor their lesson plans to what will best serve the class.  The Sonoran Desert project presents information in a multitude of ways.  Students are able to read, watch, and perform all of the different information.  The project will help students who are visual learners, naturalistic learners, and linguistic learners.

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