Situated Cognition

This week, I would like to share a 2002 article entitled, Situated Cognition and Problem-Based Learning by Hung. Situated Cognition (SC) states that learning is situated within a context (social, physical or cultural). The paper shares the connection between SC and foundational educational research; draws connections to Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and to instruction with technology.

SC researchers hypothesize that we primarily use a process memory as a product of interactions with the environment (sensory, gestural, and interpersonal). Representations are themselves interpreted interactively, in cycles of perceiving and acting. SC is reinforced by Vygotsky (1978) viewing learning as a social nature, which occurs in the “zone of proximal development.”

SC and PBL are related as they:

1. Take account of how students learn;

2. Provide authentic/contextual problems, which permit ability to reason and apply knowledge;

3. Encourage students to pose their own questions;

4. Engage students to work cooperatively;

5. Create a context for students to identify their own learning needs;

6. Set the instructor in a monitoring role for formative process feedback; and

7. Guide students’ critical thinking and provides limited resources to help them learn from defining and attempting to resolve the problem.

References

Hung, D. (2002). Situated Cognition and PBL: Implications for Learning and Instruction with Technology. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 13(4), 393-414.

Koran, M,, & Hargis, J. (1999). Internet situation cognition. Paper Presented at the Association of Museums InterActivity 99 Conference, New York, NY, May 1999