Running Head: EDU 510 PROJECT 1

Project 1
Jessica Turpin
Post University

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Edu 510: Project 1

Cognitive science is the study of the mind and intelligence (Thagard, 2014, p.1). It
incorporates the sciences of philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, anthropology, and
artificial intelligence in an attempt to explain how and why the human brain thinks. This paper
will define and discuss the five mental representations used in cognitive science to answer that
question. The five mental representations include logic, rules, concepts, analogies, and images.
In that order each will be discussed and applied to this writers professional learning or
educational environment to demonstrate an understanding of the concepts and how they are used
now or will be used in the future.
Part One: Analysis and Application
Logic. According to Thagard (2014, p.5), the mental representation of logic serves to
explain the ways in which the question as to why people make the inferences they do is
answered. When an individual looks at something and is able to classify or understand it a
certain way they use logic to do so. They apply knowledge of concepts they learned in the past
to make sense of the new or current situation. This previously acquired knowledge is also known
as schema (Strycker, 2016). Logic implies that past learning had to occur for the individual to be
able to draw conclusions about present situations that they are unfamiliar with. This past
learning will provide a base of knowledge for the learner to draw on when beginning to
assimilate new concepts and further their understanding of those already acquired. This type of
learning begins at a very young age. An infant may cry when they are hungry or need to be
changed. The parent picks them up and feeds them or changes them. The infant begins to see
the connection between crying and needs being met. They apply logic. If they cry, they will get

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the needed attention. A great example of when logic is encountered in a learning environment,
particularly in this writers professional learning environment, is in the teaching of math.
When teaching math to adults that have been previously failed by the traditional
educational institution the educator must find the logic that is already understood by the student
so they can present the new material in such a way that the students already acquired logic can
make sense of it. If the educator cannot find a somewhere on which to base the future teachings
the student may not be any more successful than they were in the past in their traditional public
education setting. In this writers educational environment there has been a recurring theme to
which a large portion of the students encountered are able to base their logic when learning math.
The use of money as a way to understand the logic behind addition and subtraction makes the
lesson not only more tangible but also more relevant to the student serving to help the student
learn the lesson and apply the knowledge to real life situations.
The technique commonly applied in the referenced educational environment to teach new
mathematic material using currency is to employ the logic already understood by the student.
Despite having little or no knowledge of how to complete a mathematical equation when written
out such as 16-3, the student is able to solve the problem using their understanding of how
money works. The student is asked to turn the question in to a problem relating to money. For
example, instead of asking what 16-3 is, the student is asked how much money will they have
left if they start with $16 dollars in their pocket and buy a slice of pizza for $3. They can come
to the logical conclusion that if they spend 3 of their 16 dollars on pizza they will have 3 less
dollars or $3. Then the student is asked to explain why this holds true. Relating math problems
to money makes the concept relevant to the individuals life and keeps the student interested in
learning because they are able to use the knowledge in everyday life. Using logic is perhaps the

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most basic teaching and learning method. This representation is further enhanced by the
employment of rules.
Rules. Thagard posits that the mental representation of rules serves to answer the
question as to why an individual displays a specific kind of intelligent behavior (2014, p. 5). The
pattern follows that people employ their rules to search for solutions and procedures for making
new rules. These procedures result in the behavior that follows. In other words, when an
individual has mastered the logic behind a concept, they begin to apply rules to the concept
making it a quicker and easier process to convert new ideas into their learning and making it
easier to classify and understand the material. Rules are formed when the learner begins to make
connections between concepts and knowledge they have acquired. When they feel they
understand a concept they can begin to use that understanding to discriminate new information
and decide whether it falls within the rules they have placed to define the concept. If the new
material does not fall within the rules than the definition of the concept either needs to be
updated to include the new information or a new concept must be formed.
In this writers professional learning environment rules are constantly being reviewed.
Much of the students previous learning involved only basic concepts with few if any rules.
Rules are applied to the students learning when taking assessments and quizzes on the most
obvious level. Assessments done in the classroom are always multiple choice at the lower level
to establish a baseline of knowledge. The student can use their mental representation of rules to
narrow down their choices. For example, if the student encounters a question that asks them to
identify a picture of a palm tree as a plant or animal they would use their previously established
rule to make this decision. An animal does not have leaves. This is a rule. Therefore the picture
is most likely not an animal.

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An effective strategy when using rules to accommodate the learning process is for the
educator to clearly state the guidelines to the student and practice them. According to Goodman
et.al. (2008), one way to employ rule based learning is through the use of learning experiments
such as block learning experiments and two category experiments. In the two category
experiments the student is given a choice of two options by which to classify a concept or piece
of information. Each category is mutually exclusive meaning that the concept can only fall into
one or another and must be classified as such. This helps teach the student rules to help them
fully understand a concept.
Concepts. Concepts, according to Goodall et.al. (2008), are mental representations used
to provide a structure to reflect how the individual interprets the world. This is a very
individualized definition of concepts. Pavel (2009, p.6) uses a more broad definition of concepts
include the socially accepted meaning of one or more words. In other words, a concept is the
way in which an individual groups things. For example, the concept of language can understood
as a means of communicating. An individual could classify various different spoken languages
under the same concept regardless of the tongue. Spanish, English, French and Urdu would are
all classified as languages under the same concept. The concept can serve as a defining agent
when trying to categorize new material based on the rules that is has been assigned. A telephone
can be used for the purpose of communication much as language is but a telephone is not
language. A telephone must be used in conjunction with language for it to function as a method
of communication. Therefore the telephone does not fit into this concept.
The use of concepts in this writers learning environment come into play when discussing
and teaching math. Using the concept of subtraction, or the lessening of a thing is taught using
metaphors and analogies. Commonly money is used but it is not the only method. Students are

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also asked to gather objects of a certain amount such as six markers for example. The student is
then asked to subtract three. In those terms the learner is sometimes confused but when asked
how many they would have left if they were to give the instructor three markers the concept of
subtraction becomes more tangible and understandable for the student. This is practiced until the
student can effectively replace the phrase give with subtract and eventually the concept
expands to include numbers in an equation on the board as subtraction.
According to Pavel (2009), effective strategies when teaching concepts are the use of
metaphors and analogies. As referenced in the classroom mentioned above, objects, such as
markers, are used to symbolize something else, in this case numbers. This is a metaphor. It
connects two unrelated things to make a concept clearer. Analogies are also used in knowledge
creation by helping the learner to overcome the perceived differences in the object by focusing
on the similarities to make the concept clearer. An example of using analogies to aid in the
formation of concepts would be in the study of human anatomy. Many analogies are made
regarding the human body. One in particular is the human eye. A human eye can be compared
to a camera in an analogy. The human heart can be compared to a battery, and the brain
compared to a computer when using analogies. When a student is able to make an analogy using
the new material the instructor can be more comfortable in the acquisition of knowledge by the
student.
Analogy. Holyoak, Gentner, and Kokinov (2001, p.3-4) believe even very early humans
were able to create analogies in their mind but it wasnt until the written language appeared that
there was a name or proof of their existence. According to Thagard (2014), analogies as well as
concepts aim to explain why an individual may have a specific kind of intelligent behavior.
Analogies are explained by the verbal and visual representations of experienced or perceived

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situations that can be used for future reference. In other words, this mental representation allows
the person to use their past experiences as references to understand their new data by comparing
the similarities between the two. For example, the individual may encounter a problem such as
overbooking themselves for plans to attend two separate occasions. They experienced something
similar when they were a child or even read about a very similar situation in a book or on
television. They can make a comparison between the two situations and apply the resolution that
worked in the previous situations to the new one.
In this writers personal learning environment analogy is used very often in the teaching
of math. After providing in depth explanation of a problem and assisting in a step by step
manner to solve a problem the learner is given a very similar problem and asked to complete it
with less or no assistance. The student is given the advice to attempt to recall the steps they did
in the previous problem and see if they are applicable to the new problem. This comparison
between the two problems is an analogy. The student practices this over and over under close
supervision until the analogy is more permanent and the similarities of the problems are
understood. The student is tested for comprehension by the inclusion of a dissimilar problem. If
the student is able to conclude that the same steps cannot be taken to solve the problem it is
considered a success and the student moves on to a more difficult problem.
According to Pavel (2009, p.18), a common strategy when using analogy in education is
the use of the tree representation such as the decision tree and the truth tree. The tree allows the
learner to connect similar concepts by attributes. These connections are analogies. General
Logic Diagrams are another method in which analogies are used. These strategies are useful in
teaching language concept more than the side by side comparison strategy used in math learning.
This type of analogy representation can also be used to understand results in research by

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comparing the subjects. The tree is a visual representation of the analogy making the similarities
easier to connect and see. The learner does not have to rely on just mental imagery to make the
connection because it has already been laid out before them.
Images. Imagery is a useful technique in learning. According to Reading Rockets (2009,
para.1), imagery can be compared to mind movies. They help the learner to clarify
information and understanding of texts using any of the five senses. Imagery creates memory by
stimulating the individuals sense or senses. Imagery can be the description of a smell using
analogies and great detail. It can be the use of a mental picture laid out in great detail so the
learner can construct it in their own mind. It can be the feel of a fan blowing across the
individuals face to represent a windy day.
This writer uses imagery regularly in the personal learning environment to help make
concepts more complete. When introduced to a new concept it is mentally pictured or physically
drawn out and examined looking for details that can be compared to already acquired
information that may make it more understandable or memorable. For example, when studying
the 5 mental representations each representation discussed was carefully considered and mental
images of each were imagined. This writer was able to imagine carrying out the process of
logical reasoning in a situation to better understand what it means. Rules were also mentally
illustrated as attributes were imagined to be listed into mutually exclusive categories. Concepts
were imagined as the result of combining the use of rules and logic into one polished thing.
Reading Rockets (2009, para.2) suggest the method of asking the listener to describe their
mental picture they have created in response to the text they have been read and talking about
how these pictures help them better understand the story. Mousavi and Meshkini (2011) indicate
that using mental imagery in sports can increase the performance of an athlete. It is utilized by

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having the athlete picture the movement that should be made in the way it is supposed to be
made much like they would try to do in a physical practice. The mental practice improves the
physical practice even though it was only carried out in the mind. This can be applied to a
classic education environment in a variety of subject learning. A student can be asked to
consider an experiment and carry out the steps in their head before carrying it out physically and
then asked to make comparisons between what they imagined would happen and what actually
did happen. The reality, if different from the imagined can now replace any inaccuracies of the
mental image making it a learned concept more easily.
Part Two: Connections and Reflections
The five mental representations used in learning were not completely foreign concepts
prior to encountering the in this class but a deeper understanding of the meaning and importance
of each has definitely been achieved. Previously, my understanding of logic was something that
was obviously true or defined. My understanding has been broadened to include the rules that
make something logical. I can bring this into my own future teaching environment with the
understanding that not everyone has established the same rules to apply the logic that I had
thought was obvious and I can be more conscious of that before making that assumption before I
try to build on a concept.
Concepts to me where just another word for ideas. I now understand a concept as
something that is a result of taking a pieced of material and applying logic and rules to it.
Sometimes it will prove to be a new concept and sometimes the rules and logic will make the
concept fit in to the same category as something else. I can compare this to finding what is
believed to be a new species of animal. The scientist may look at it and not recognize it as a
previously known species but upon the application of rules and logic they will discover that it is

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actually a type of octopus or some other animal. The scientist might also find that it is indeed a
new species of animal and make new rules that apply to this animal that make it mutually
exclusive to other species.
Analogies and images are terms that were most familiar to me and perhaps most used as
well. I have found analogies to be the most useful in my teaching and also in my learning.
When I am able to compare something new to something I already understand it makes it much
easier for me to grasp and remember. I employ this strategy when teaching as well as it seems
most affective because I can make the comparison to something already known and relevant to
my students life. I use these analogies to help them build a complete concept for them to work
with later. I apply the same logic to my own learning.

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References

Goodman, N. D., Tenenbaum, J. B., Feldman, J., Griffiths, T.L. (2008) A reational analysis of
rule-based concept learning. Cognitive Science. Volume 32.
Holyoak, K.J., Gentner, D., & Kokinov, B.N. (2001) Introduction, the place of analogy in
cognition The analogical mind: Perspectives from cognitive science. Cambridge, MA.
MIT Press
Mousavi, .S.H., Mishkini, A. (2011) The effect of mental imagery upon the reduction of athletes
anxiety during sport performance. International Journal of Academic Research in
Business and Social Sciences. 1(3)
Pavel, G. (2009) Concept learning, investigating the possibilities for a human-machine dialogue.
Knowledge Media Institute, Intelligent support for learning concepts. December 2008.
P.6
Reading Rockets (2009) Picture this. Using mental imagery while reading. Retrieved from
http://www.readingrockets.org/article/picture-using-mental-imagery-while-reading
Strycker, J (2016) Logic models as a way to support online students and their projects. The
Journal of Educators Online 13(2) p. 136
Thagard, P. (2014) Cognitive Science. Stanford Encyclopedia of Phiosophy. Retrieved from
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/cognitive-science/