Mezirow's Three Domains of Learning

Instrumental: gaining of technical knowledge Communicative: gaining of practical knowledge Emancipatory: gaining of emancipatory knowledge

Instrumental learning focuses on learning through task-oriented problem solving and determination of cause and effect relationships. The problem-solving process involved in instrumental learning is thehypothetico-deductive approach. Communicative learning involves how individuals communicate their feelings, needs and desires .In communicative learning, the approach is one in which the learner attempts to understand what is meant by another through speech, writing, drama, art, or dance. Its no great shock that games and project based learning spawn learning this way Emancipatory Learning: A process of freeing ourselves from forces that limit our options and our control over our lives, forces that have been taken for granted or seen as beyond our control. This kind of learning is constructivist in nature and can be transformative. At times this learning occurs independently of the educator; at other times it is fostered deliberately. Unlike the other two kinds of learning, emancipatory learning is often a difficult and painful process Critical reflection We learn by experiences that allow us to (Wertenbroch & Nabeth, 2000):

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Absorb (read, hear, feel) Do (activity) Interact (socialize)

Reflection is a means of constructing knowledge about ones self a nd about the world. Critical reflection is the process of analyzing, reconsidering and questioning experiences within a broad context of issues (e.g., issues related to social justice, curriculum development, learning theories, politics, culture, or use of technology). We can break down the process of critical reflection into a number of dimensions which address the different activities and levels of reflection. Critical Reflection Critical Reflection the process of analyzing, reconsidering and questioning experiences within a broad context of issues (Murray, Kujundzic, 2005). Four activities are central to critical reflection (Brookfield 1988):

Assumption analysis - This is the first step in the critical reflection process. It involves thinking in such a manner that it challenges our beliefs, values, cultural practices, and social structures in order to assess their impact on our daily proceedings. Assumptions are our way of seeing reality and to aid us in describing how the order of relationships. Contextual awareness - Realizing that our assumptions are socially and personally created in a specific historical and cultural context. Imaginative speculation - Imagining alternative ways of thinking about phenomena in order to provide an opportunity to challenge our prevailing ways of knowing and acting. Reflective skepticism - Questioning of universal truth claims or unexamined patterns of interaction through the prior three activities - assumption analysis, contextual awareness, and imaginative speculation. It is the ability to think about a subject so that the available evidence from that subject's field is suspended or temporarily rejected in order to establish the truth or viability of a proposition or action.

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