CONCEPT TEACHINGBy: Junior, Ryan, and Stacie

WHAT IS CONCEPT LEARNING?

The process of constructing knowledge and organizing information into comprehensive and complex cognitive structures

MORE than just classifying objects and forming Categories

MORE than just learning new labels or vocabulary to apply

CONCEPT LEARNING

Helps the learner: Understand specific concepts Understand the nature of concepts Utilize logical reasoning and higher level thinking Improve Communication

Concept Teaching

Specific Concepts

Nature of Concepts

Communication

Logical Reasoning and Higher Level Thinking

NATURE OF CONCEPTS What is a concept?

Mental abstractions/categories for things in the physical world

Involves putting something into a class, then recognizing other members of that class Ex: A student has a pet dog named Max. The concept

would be “Dog”, and the student would use existing knowledge of Max to recognize and categorize other “Dogs”

TYPES OF CONCEPTS:CONJUNCTIVE CONCEPT

A conjunctive concept is a concept with a constant rule structure. Triangle – A plane figure with three straight sides

and three angles. Bird – Warm-blooded animal with wings and

feathers.

TYPES OF CONCEPTS:DISJUNCTIVE CONCEPT

A disjunctive concept is a concept that contains an alternate set of attributes. Noun – A person, place, or thing; however cannot

be all three at once. Strike (Baseball) – Occurs when a batter swings and

misses, hits the ball into foul territory, or the batter does not swing and the Umpire decides that it passed through a designated zone; cannot be all three at once.

TYPES OF CONCEPTS:RELATIONAL CONCEPT

A relational concept is a concept whose rule structure depends upon relationships.

To understand relational concepts, one must understand the “other” and the relationship between them. Time and Distance – Relative to beginning and end

points Aunt- describes a relationship between siblings

and offspring

NATURE OF CONCEPTS:EXAMPLES/NON -EXAMPLES

Concepts are learned through use of Examples and Non-Examples.

Examples: Non-Examples

Dog Snake

Cat Ant

Squirrel Jellyfish

Cow Tree

MAMMALS

NATURE OF CONCEPTS:CRITICAL/NON-CRITICAL ATTRIBUTES

Critical Attributes are features of a concept that distinguish it from all other objects.

Non-Critical Attributes are features found on some, but not all, members of a category.

Critical Non-Critical

Feathers Feather Color

Warm-Blooded Ability to Fly

Feet Webbed Feet

Attributes of Birds

THEORISTS:JEAN PIAGET

Stages of Cognitive Development Sensorimotor (0-2 yrs.): Begin to recognize

objects Preoperational (2-7 yrs.): Develop language; able

to think symbolically; see others’ Point of View Concrete Operational (7-11 yrs.): Able to solve

concrete problems logically; able to classify Formal Operational (11-15+): Able to solve

abstract problems logically

THEORISTS:JEAN PIAGET

Believed people adapt to their environment through assimilation and accommodation. Assimilation- Trying to understand new

information by adapting it to what is already known (pre-existing schemata).

Accommodation- If new data does not fit into pre-existing schemata, development of new schemata for the new data.

THEORISTS:JEROME BRUNER

Three distinct modes of learning: Enactive Mode – Learning by doing Iconic Mode – Learning by forming mental

images Symbolic Mode – Learning through a series of

abstract symbols or representations As children develop, less emphasis is placed

on doing and more is placed on the abstract

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

SELECTING CONCEPTS

Curriculum is the primary source for new concepts

Concept lessons should be taught if materials contain: Unfamiliar terms Unknown steps New “Rules”

INCLUDE NEW VOCABULARY WORDS

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

TWO DIFFERENT APPROACHES

Direct Presentation Rule-to-Example – Concept is named, defined,

then examples/non-examples given Focus is on labeling and defining the concept

Concept Attainment Example-to-Rule – Begin with examples/non-

examples, students discover concept through inductive reasoning

Labeling and defining come at the end Higher level thinking; more useful with older

students

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

DEFINE THE CONCEPT

Identify the concept’s name List critical and non-critical attributes Write a concise definition

Ex: Concept = Dinosaur. Critical Attributes: Reptile, lived 65+ million

years ago, extinct Non-Critical Attributes: Carnivore, Bi-pedal, Huge Dinosaurs are reptiles that lived over 65 million

years ago and have gone extinct.

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

ANALYZE THE CONCEPT

Formulate Examples and Non-Examples Examples serve as connectors between the

concept’s abstraction and the learner’s prior knowledge

Examples should be as concrete and meaningful as possible

The isolation of attributes is critical Use Charts, Diagrams, Webs, Visuals, etc. Sequence Examples/Non-Examples

Display typical examples before atypical ones Critical examples are the most immediate

neighbors, non-critical examples are as different as possible.

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

SOCIAL CONTEXT

Critical attributes of conjunctive concepts are fixed across social contexts.

Some disjunctive or relational concepts change among social contexts Poverty – Different cultural definition or

delineation Aunt – Strict blood relative vs. any adult involved

in raising a child North/South – Different attributes per location

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

SOCIAL CONTEXT

Labeling of concepts is also influenced by context Concept remains the same, but labeling is

different American vs. British Labeling:

Trunk vs. Boot Flashlight vs. Torch Elevator vs. Lift Sorcerer’s Stone vs. Philosopher’s Stone

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

CREATE A GRAPHIC ORGANIZER

Graphic Organizers highlight critical attributes and make concepts more concrete

4 steps for creating a web:1. Create core (focus) of web: Name of the Concept2. Strands branch out from the core: Critical Attributes3. Strand Supports: connect Critical Attributes to

Concept4. Identify strand ties: show relationship among

attributes Analogies are also VERY helpful, as they help to

incorporate prior knowledge.

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

GRAPHIC ORGANIZER (PAGE 336)

Equilateral Triangle

Three Equal Angles

Three Equal Sides

Closed, Simple, Plane Figure

Encloses the Figure

If equal sides, then equal angles

Shapes the Figure

PLANNING FOR CONCEPT TEACHING:

PLAN TIME AND SPACE

Most Concept Teaching lessons use Row and Column seating during instruction

The time required for student understanding may vary depending upon the age of the learners

Typically, the biggest problem with this step is that the teacher does not afford enough time for understanding to occur.

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

CLARIFY AIMS AND ESTABLISH SET

Clearly communicate the aims of the lesson and how it will proceed

You may go over the steps of the lesson and why the concept is important to learn

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

INPUT EXAMPLES AND NON-EXAMPLES

Two types of presentation: Direct Presentation

1. Name the concept and provide definition2. Identify critical attributes and give examples/non-

examples3. Test for understanding by having students provide

examples/non-examples that fit

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

INPUT EXAMPLES AND NON-EXAMPLES

Two types of presentation: Concept Attainment (students must have some prior

knowledge of concept)1. Give examples labeled “Yes” & non-examples labeled “No”2. Have students hypothesize about attributes and record

ideas3. Have students name the concept and describe process

used in identification4. Check for understanding by having students identify

examples as “Yes” or “No” and have them explain why5. Teacher only gives concept definition AFTER students have

engaged in the discovery of critical attributes. Teacher’s Roles:

1. Record Student hypotheses and critical attributes identified

2. Cue students3. Provide additional data if needed

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

TEST FOR ATTAINMENT

Provide additional examples/non-examples to test students’ understanding of the concept

Students are asked to provide their own examples/non-examples

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

ANALYZE STUDENT THINKING/LEARNING

Get the students to think about their own thinking process

Ask students to examine their decisions and the consequences of their choices

Help students integrate new learning by relating the concept to other concepts in the unit of study

IMPLEMENTING CONCEPT LESSONS:

ASSESSMENT

Ideas and strategies used in defining/analyzing concepts can be used to evaluate understanding

Have student do more than define concept with words Ask the student to use the concept in new situations

Can use traditional selected-response items to test knowledge and concept development

Test items should include examples to measure ability to discriminate between examples/non-examples

Employ different test formats, such as True/False, Multiple Choice, Matching, Short Answer, or Short Essay