Thesis (MEd)--University of Stellenbosch, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Post-apartheid South Africa has seen a shift to process-centred, outcomesbased
(OBE) education. Within this paradigm much has been written and
recommended as regards assessment, specifically authentic assessment,
which needs to be continuous. Within this transformatory model of teaching
and assessment, it is vital for the educator to understand how the learner
learns in order to assess him/her authentically.
Because cognition has to do with how learners acquire, store and utilize
information, the best way to assess cognitive ability is to assess those thought
processes that are involved in arriving at the products of cognition directly.
Being process-based and judging the learners' responsiveness to instruction,
it becomes important for the educator to examine how a learner learns, before
educators can hope to categorise and analyse the learners' ability to learn.
The paucity of the data base search revealed that the design of such a
cognitive checklist was imperative. The checklist had to be easily understood,
practical and easily impiementabie.
The researcher based the checklist on Feuerstein's (1980) model, which is
underpinned by the concepts of structural cognitive modifiability (SCM) and
the mediated learning experience (MLE).
SCM is based on the assumption that human beings have the capacity to
modify their cognitive functions and adapt to life's changing demands. They
are thus open systems which are amenable to cognitive changes. Structural
changes are pervasive and determine cognitive function in a broad series of
mental activities. Feuerstein has suggested a list of deficient cognitive
functions at the input, elaboration and output phases of the mental act. These
serve as guidelines for observational and mediational efforts. The
identification of the deficient cognitive function, the level of modifiability and
the mediation required to change them are considered to be of vital
importance to predicting future learning. This basic assumption shifts the responsibility for a person's modifiability from that individual to the mediator or
educator.
The basic parameters of the cognitive process are subsumed into the
cognitive map. These include: content; operation; modality; phase (input,
elaboration, output); level of complexity; level of abstraction and level of
efficiency.
The present researcher reframed all the basic components of the learning
phases into easily accessible English and provided examples of sub-skills
(150) necessary for the successful acquisition of learning at that phase of the
learning process.
The literature study was followed by a pilot-study. This was carried out in
order to refine the checklist and make sure that it was, indeed, user-friendly,
easily understood, impiementabie without training and that it yielded
information which the educators found to be professionally beneficial and
enriching. The results of the pilot-study were incorporated into The Checklist
To Assess Cognitive Skills' (Chapter 4).
The result of the research was unanimous as regards the above-mentioned
goals. The educators all realised the necessity of linking assessment to
instruction and understood how crucial it is that educators understand and
appreciate how a learner learns and hence, develops. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Na apartheid het Suid-Afrika 'n verskuiwing na prosesgesentreerde,
uitkomsgebaseerde onderwys (UGO) beleef. Binne hierdie paradigma is baie
geskryf en aanbevelings gemaak oor assessering, veraloor outentieke
assessering wat deurlopend toegepas moet word. Binne hierdie
transformatiewe model van onderrig en assessering is dit van besondere
belang dat opvoedkundiges moet verstaan hoe die leerder leer ten einde hom
of haar op 'n outentieke wyse te kan assesseer.
Omdat kognisie te doen het met die verwerwing, prosessering, storing en
aanwending van inligting, is die geskikste wyse om kognitiewe verweë te
assesseer, om daardie denkprosesse te assesseer wat direk betrek word ten
einde by die produkte van kognisie uit te kom. Aangesien dit proses
gebaseerd is, en gaan om die beoordeling van leerders se responsiwiteit op
onderrig, word dit belangrik vir die opvoedkundige om te ondersoek hoe 'n
leerder leer, voordat die opvoedkundige met enige mate van sukses leerders
se leervermoëns sal kan kategoriseer en analiseer.
Die beperkte omvang van die databasis-soektog beklemtoon dat die ontwerp
van 'n kognitiewe kontrolelys vir opvoedkundiges imperatief is. Die kontrole
lys moet verstaanbaar, prakties en maklik implementeerbaar wees. Die
navorser het die kontrolelys gebaseer op Feuerstein (1980) se model wat
onderlê word deur die konsepte van strukturele kognitiewe modifieerbaarheid
(SCM) en die gemedieerde leerervaring (MLE).
Struktuele kognitiewe modifieerbaarheid (SCM) is baseer op die aanname dat
mense oor die vermoë besit om hulle eie kognitiewe funksies te modifieer en
om aan te pas by die veranderende eise van die lewe. Hulle is dus
oopsisteme wat vatbaar vir kognitiewe veranderinge is. Struktuele
veranderinge is deurdringend van aard en bepaal kognitiewe funksionering in
'n breë reeks van denkaktiwiteite. Feuerstein het 'n lys van ontoereikende
kognitiewe funksies by die invoer-, uitbreidings- en uitvoerfases van die
denkhandeling voorsien. Hierdie lys dien as riglyne by beide waargenome en gemedieerde pogings. Die identifikasie van ontoereikende kognitiewe
funksies, die vlak van modifieerbaarheid en die mediëring om dit te wysig,
word as van kardinale belang beskou in toekomstige leer.
Die basiese parameters van die kognitiewe proses word gesubsumeer in die
kognitiewe kaart. Dit sluit in: inhoud; operasie; modaliteit; fase (invoer,
uitbreiding, uitvoer); vlak van kompleksiteit; vlak van abstraksie en vlak van
effektiwiteit.
Die navorser het al die basiese komponente van die leerfases in toeganklike
Engels herskrywe en het voorbeelde van 150 subvaardighede, nodig vir
suksesvolle verwerwing van leer in daardie spesifieke fase van die leerproses,
voorsien.
Die literatuuroorsig is deur 'n loodsstudie opgevolg. Die loodsstudie is
uitgevoer ten einde die kontrolelys te verfyn en om te vergewis dat dit werklik
gebruikersvriendelik, maklik verstaanbaar, en toepasbaar is sonder opleiding,
en dat dit inligting voorsien wat 'n voordelige en verrykende professionele
bydrae sal maak. Die bevindings van die loodsstudie is in die Kognitiewe
Kontrolelys geïnkorporeer (Hoofstuk 4).
Die navorsingsbevindings het op eenstemmige wyse die realisering van
bostaande doelwitte onderskryf. Die opvoedkundiges het almal die
noodsaaklikheid van die verbinding tussen assessering en onderrig verstaan
en ook van die belangrikheid dat die opvoedkundige begrip en waardering
toon van hoe 'n leerder leer en dus ontwikkel.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/52505 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Coosner, Carroll Diane |
| Contributors | Cilliers, C. D., Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | Unknown |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 86 p. |
| Rights | Stellenbosch University |
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