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One benefit of flow theory is that it presumes that motivation, cognition, and affect are situational

have the skills to accomplish them

Flow Theory Print Collect It! var shared = false; if(!window['loadedCollectionJS']) { window['loadedCollectionJS'] = true; Asset.javascript('/js/moo/collections/collections.js'); } var scripts = $$('script'), thisScriptTag = scripts[scripts.length - 1], el = thisScriptTag.getPrevious('.collect-button-wrap'); if(el) { el.store('collectPath', "http://www.education.com/reference/article/flow-theory/") } var switchTo5x=true;stLight.options({publisher:'d0d0d8a8-d1f8-49ff-9318-fed5383cff80',doNotHash:true,NotCopy:true,hashAddressBar:false});Email var sharedemail = false; (function() { stLight.options({ onhover: false, clickCallBack: function(){ if(typeof window.sharedemail != 'undefined') { new Request({ method: 'post', url: '/service/service.'+'php?sn=sharelog&f=ase&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.education.com%2Freference%2Farticle%2Fflow-theory%2F&ceid=41882&click=email'}).send(); sharedemail=true; } } }); stWidget.addEntry({ 'service':'email', title:"Flow Theory", summary: "", url: "http://www.ed"+"ucation.com/reference/article/flow-theory/", element: document.getElementById("sharethis-7167") }); })(); if(!window['plusoneloaded']) { new Asset.javascript('https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'); window['plusoneloaded'] = true; } function plusone_vote( obj ) { //track in Google Analytics _gaq.push(['_trackEvent','plusone',obj.state]); //track in Omniture if((typeof(window.Omniture) != 'undefined')) { var params = {evars:{5:obj.state}}; if(obj.state == 'on') params.events = [6]; Omniture.fireEvent(params,'Google Plus One Click'); } } By Amy Schweinle | Andrea Bjornestad Updated on Dec 23, 2009 MAJOR RESEARCH METHODS FACTORS INFLUENCING FLOW AND MOTIVATIONAL CONSEQUENCES IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHERS Flo

not only do activities with high challenge matched with high skill offer the best opportunities for learning, but they also provide an optimal environment for positive affect and intrinsic motivation.

eachers must provide optimal challenge and support for competence (or skill)

(a) provided immediate, constructive feedback, (b) encouraged students to persist, (c) encouraged cooperation rather than competition, (d) supported student autonomy, (e) ensured that new challenges were tempered with support to match students' skill, (f) emphasized the importance of the material, and (g) pressed students to understand the principles rather than memorize algorithms.

I feel as though students must be subscribed to forums, but be forewarned that they need to develop a system for themselves to allow for tracking of the dialogue and how they want to participate in that dialogue.

my presence could be demonstrated in other ways than just logging in daily or talking to students.

I came to realize that

This is were the “earth-shattering” part comes in.  I am learning that I am not letting the students go.  I am going to be there.

I can fully see the difference between f2f and online teaching and WHY those differences exist.

In the beginning of this course my intention was to translate my f2f assignments and activities to an online format.  This made me feel comfortable as I knew that these activities worked for me and for most of my students.  Yet, as I began to learn about presence and community it became apparent that these f2f activities did not embody presence or community building.  They represented ease for me, and that cannot be the focus in online learning.

Yet, I know I will always want to be tweaking my activities!

My two issues with online education before the start of this class dealt with the actual education being offered as well as the connections being formed.

But the theory in this course has allowed me to see that in practice, online education can allow for a sound education and a classroom community that can match that of most f2f classrooms.

Online learning allows an instructor the opportunity to put everything into place before the course starts so that students come in being able to see all that they need to be successful.  This may not always be the case with f2f courses.  Additionally, to make sure that such theories as presence and community are present in online courses online instructors often have to do more to ensure success in their classes.  For these reasons I am starting to believe that online education, when combined with effective theories can eventually surpass f2f learning.

I am not decisive as I would like to be.

While it probably should not be surprising that I feel prepared to teach online at the end of a course in online teaching, for me, I feel as though it is quite a surprising development and one I hope to pursue.

The article  written by Mark Edmundson, a professor at UVA, questions the validity of online learning. 

I have discovered that my thoughts are completely different on online education as a result of this class.  While this is probably not a huge development it has been interesting to watch my opinions change so much.  So, for the moment that is where I am.

I discovered that just inserting technology does not suddenly make things better. 

I leave this course knowing that presence is more than just responding to students. 

Being truly present requires that the students feel your presence as they are completing assignments and learning – knowing what is expected of them and what they expect of the instructor.

if a student knows what to do and how to do it (presence) he/she might feel more comfortable branching out in discussions and discussing points with a majority of students instead of just discussing with the same people at the same time.  But community depends heavily on presence and the two really work in tandem.

Yet, the blame lies solely with me for just assuming that my students know how to do something.

Instead, instructors, both f2f and online, need to assume that their students do not know how to do something.  Taking the time to explain something may seem tedious but it will provide for greater clarification, greater learning, and more meaningful assessments.  Taking the time to just let students know what to do and how to do it has the potential of increasing the enjoyment of learning for all involved!

  I truly struggled with this course and I walk away feeling fantastic about it.

Coming into this course I figured we would read a few articles about online education and create a course shell for an online course.  Additionally, I came into this course assuming online education failed to meet the standards of f2f education. Now, my thoughts are completely changed. 

Leaving this course I feel as though I could write an effective rebuttal of that argument and I believe that illustrates a great amount of growth for a person who entered this class questioning the merits of online education.

Yet, I feel as this is one of the first courses that will let me leave with having a profound change in thinking. 

Online education is the way of the future and more important, it needs to be done correctly.

o in my new “educated” role, I would like to try and be an advocate for online education.  I will try to discuss the field more often and when I hear someone mention online education I will ask them what they know about it and what they think about it.  Striking up conversations allow for the spread of ideas and maybe eventually online education will gain the same prominence that many f2f courses currently possess. (4)

In integrating these major theories of knowledge, we moved through three steps. First, we attempted to describe, for each of Gardner's intelligences, a set of four learning processes or abilities, one for each of the four learning styles. For linguistic intelligence, for example, the Mastery style represents the ability to use language to describe events and sequence activities; the Interpersonal style, the ability to use language to build trust and rapport; the Understanding style, the ability to develop logical arguments and use rhetoric; and the Self-expressive style, the ability to use metaphoric and expressive language.

In MI theory, I begin with a human organism that responds (or fails to respond) to different kinds of contents in the world. . . . Those who speak of learning styles are searching for approaches that ought to characterize all contents (p. 45).

Learning styles are not fixed throughout life, but develop as a person learns and grows.

The following are some strengths of learning-style models

They tend to focus on how different individuals process information across many content areas.

They recognize the role of cognitive and affective processes in learning and, therefore, can significantly deepen our insights into issues related to motivation.

They tend to emphasize thought as a vital component of learning, thereby avoiding reliance on basic and lower-level learning activities.

Learning-styles models have a couple of limitations. First, they may fail to recognize how styles vary in different content areas and disciplines.

Second, these models are sometimes less sensitive than they should be to the effects of context on learning.

Emerging from a tradition that viewed style as relatively permanent, many learning-style advocates advised altering learning environments to match or challenge a learner's style. Either way, learning-style models have largely left unanswered the question of how context and purpose affect learning.

But learning styles emphasize the different ways people think and feel as they solve problems, create products, and interact.

The theory of multiple intelligences is an effort to understand how cultures and disciplines shape human potential

Though both theories claim that dominant ideologies of intelligence inhibit our understanding of human differences, learning styles are concerned with differences in the process of learning, whereas multiple intelligences center on the content and products of learning. Until now, neither theory has had much to do with the other