Rationale
By looking at paintings by Salvador Dali, TV ads and gaming, the learners will get a feel for surrealism through cognitive learning. Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, incorporating elements such as surprise, unexpected juxtapositions, metamorphosis and imagery (Haslam, 1978).To help learners understand the abstract concepts of surrealism, several cognitive learning principles will drawn from Malone & Lepper’s four intrinsic motivating factors: motivation and inquisitiveness will be engaged through the surrealist visuals (popular online game characters, comic strips, etc.) provided that will tap into learners’ previous knowledge base, motivating them with something they like and challenging their previous knowledge base with a visual definition of surrealism. Fantasy and control will be instilled by helping learners to combine new information with their previous knowledge of surrealism and by demonstrating the learners’ understanding through the construction of their own comic incorporating surrealist traits.
For a challenge to be intrinsically motivating, it must first provide examples that have some elements that are familiar to the learner and the challenge must have goals that a learner can or cannot achieve and, of course, feedback (from the instructor or learning references, such as visuals) that will help them reach the goals (Malone & Lepper, 1987).
To engage a learner’s cognitive inquisitiveness, a learner must realise that his or her cognitive structures may not be complete or entirely relevant and they would, therefore, need to fix their cognitive structures (Malone & Lepper, 1987).
For my instruction of surrealism, I created two interactive multimedia presentation files, presention_surreal.swf and comic_prston.swf, for cognitive learning and the motivation of learners. The two interactive multimedia presentation files are organised in a meaningful way and they are sequenced by relating materials together to support the concept of surrealism, surrealist processes, and the use of metamorphosis, according to Bruner’s constructivist theory, which is based on cognition. Learners will be motivated to learn by relying on their relevant memories and previous exposure to surrealism because screen motion and animated movement are so entertaining and relevant. To engage a learner’s inquisitiveness, the visuals will help show them what surrealism is and this will challenge their previous cognitive structures of surrealism (1989, as cited in Fahy 1999, 60).
One of the other factors needed for intrinsic motivation is control. Learners need to be in control and control depends on contingency, choice and power (Malone & Lepper, 1987). This needs to be addressed by the instructor in the form of visuals and in the activity or assignment. This fulfils two of the factors (motivation and curiosity) needed for intrinsic motivation.
The last factor in intrinsic motivation is fantasy. Fantasies can help the learner understand new problems or information by relating the new information to their previous experience or knowledge of the subject (Malone & Lepper, 1987).
By drawing their own surrealist comic strip, learners will use their imagination (fantasy) to draw parallels between the definition of surrealism and their previous knowledge of it. Lastly, they will feel in control of their interpretation of surrealism by designing their very own comic strip with surrealist traits learned from their exposure to the visuals and through their own experience of surrealism. Apart from these factors for motivation, Malone & Lepper (1987) note: interpersonal factors can also influence intrinsic motivation in the form of co-operation, competition and recognition. More importantly, they also note that not every learner will be intrinsically motivated by the same things and the learning environment should be flexible.