Essay Sample on Exploring Social Influences & Self-Awareness: A Reflection on My Learning

Introduction

Through a reflection on my personal growth in the course, it became glaring the distinction between how various people learn and how teaching could be adjusted to have an impact on learning by various people. The main ORGL 3050 learning outcomes for this paper include identifying the social influences and community relationships that shape the reactions to past experiences and evaluating self-awareness using theoretical frameworks (Sokolowski, 2010). As such, the paper adopts the two learning outcomes to present a personal reflection and discussion of experiences.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

The Main Framework

The main framework of my theory focuses on the social nature of learning. Through the social nature of the learning framework, it is essential to note that learning does not necessarily occur within the classroom setting (Bolhuis & Voeten, 2004). However, from the course, I learned that many friendships could be formed within the classroom settings where the students are expected to work in teams to solve certain tasks.

From this course, I acknowledged learning as a social phenomenon. As such, positive relational aspects between the learners and the tutors facilitate the process of learning. I also appreciated that various learners tend to be more comfortable while taking certain risks, especially when they are in a positive relationship. Therefore, the risk is necessary for personal growth. I also noted that social influences greatly affected the behaviors and thought of learners in any social setting. For instance, it is essential to note that learners often conform to a group's behaviors so that they can obtain the acceptance of the members of such groups.

Social Interaction

Learning through social interaction is also essential since it permits learners to build cognitive structures based on the cognition of fellow learners (Illeris, 2018). Through the reflection of the course outcomes, I can provide various portfolio items such as group photos, documents, and certificates that have been earned through interaction with others. For instance, through interaction with others, I was able to have some photos. Some of the team presentations at workshops and conferences enable me to obtain some certificates.

Conclusion

Though the course, I also discovered that once there is an establishment of a relationship within a learning environment, the learning experience of an individual is facilitated. Through social interaction, learners can construct meanings out of various experiences (Blakemore & Frith, 2005). Therefore, learning is a social phenomenon where contents are scaffolded appropriately. During the course, I had developed friendships with fellow learners, which later became instrumental in the acquisition of relevant experiences concerning the learning outcomes for ORGL 3050.

References

Blakemore, S. J., & Frith, U. (2005). The learning brain: Lessons for education. Blackwell publishing.

Bolhuis*, S., & Voeten, M. J. (2004). Teachers' conceptions of student learning and own learning. Teachers and teaching, 10(1), 77-98. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13540600320000170936

Illeris, K. (Ed.). (2018). Contemporary theories of learning: learning theorists... in their own words. Routledge.

Sokolowski, M. B. (2010). Social interactions in “simple” model systems. Neuron, 65(6), 780-794. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0896627310001789