Learning Theories: An Educational Perspective

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For Vygotsky, language is at the heart of all this because a) it’s the primary means by which the MKO and the child communicate ideas and b) internalizing it is enormously Humanism recognizes the basic dignity and worth of each individual and believes people should be able to exercise some control over their environment. Although humanism as an educational philosophy has its roots in the Italian Renaissance, the more modern theorists associated with this approach include John Dewey, Carl Rogers, Maria Montessori, Paolo Freire, and Abraham Maslow. Humanist learning theory is a whole-person approach to education that centers on the individual learners and their needs, and that considers affective as well as cognitive aspects of learning. At its essence, “humanism in education traditionally has referred to a broad, diffuse outlook emphasizing human freedom, dignity, autonomy, and individualism” (Lucas, 1996). Within this broader context, humanism is also characterized by the following tenets (Madsen & Wilson, 2012; Sharp, 2012): Strongly influenced by technology, connectivism focuses on a learner’s ability to frequently source and update accurate information. Knowing how and where to find the best information is as important as the information itself. Assess performance. Employ measures such as assignments, activities, and projects to gauge whether learning has occurred. Boylston Street, Boston, MA, 02116. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. This

Empowering teachers to be, as Bates says, "in a better position to make choices about how to approach their teaching in ways that will best fit the perceived needs of their students." Constructivism is based on the premise that we construct learning new ideas based on our own prior knowledge and experiences. Learning, therefore, is unique to the individual learner. Students adapt their models of understanding either by reflecting on prior theories or resolving misconceptions. Learning does not happen in the same way or at the same time for all students. Understanding developmental stages can help instructors align instruction with student readiness. Adult learners may have needs and constraints that differ from younger learners. Elicit performance. Allow time for students to practice skills and demonstrate their abilities. Ideally, students would be given low-stakes opportunities for practice, so they feel comfortable if they do not succeed immediately. In cognitivism theory, learning occurs when the student reorganizes information, either by finding new explanations or adapting old ones.

Learning Theories_ An Educational Perspective, 6th Edition ( PDFDrive )

Zucca-Scott, L. (2010). Know thyself: The importance of humanism in education. International Education, 40(1), 32-38. The authors provide a clear, concise, and engaging overview of both traditional and current theories of adult learning. The book includes activities and concrete examples for implementing the theories in the classroom. Kuhlthau, C. C. (1990). The information search process: From theory to practice. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 31(1), 72-75. https://doi.org/10.2307/40323730 Certain understandings follow from Knowles’ assumptions that we can use to guide our practice with adult learners. To begin with, we should recognize and respect adults’ tendency to be self-motivated and self-directed learners. After all, in most states, school attendance is compulsory up to a certain age, and relatively strict curriculum standards are set by each state, meaning that children have little choice about attending school in some form or about what content they learn. At least in theory, adults have a choice about whether to attend college or engage in other kinds of learning opportunities such as workshops and professional development and continuing education courses. Presumably, adults are motivated to pursue these opportunities for a specific reason, whether out of personal curiosity, to advance in their careers, or to gain a new skill. These adult learners will likely have opinions and ideas about what they want to learn and perhaps even how they want to engage with the content, so Knowles suggests we provide adult learners with choices and opportunities for input to help shape the curriculum.

The passive view of teaching views the learner as ‘an empty vessel’ to be filled with knowledge," explains Simply Psychology, "whereas constructivism states that learners construct meaning only through active engagement with the world (such as experiments or real-world problem solving)." A " learner-centric approach" in which the potential is the focus rather than the method or materials. Cooke, N. A. (2010). Becoming an andragogical librarian: Using library instruction as a tool to combat library anxiety and empower adult learners. New Review of Academic Librarianship, 16(2), 208-227. https://doi.org/10.1080/13614533.2010.507388 Harasim (2017) makes the point that each learning theory is associated with particular pedagogies and learning technologies. Bates (2014) also argues that “the choice of or preference for one particular theoretical approach will have major implications for the way that technology is used to support teaching”. Schunk (2020) suggests that teachers need to ask the question ‘How does learning occur?’ and that whatever answer they come up with will inform lesson design, teaching practices and student activities. Ultimately, teachers use learning theories (consciously or not) and their related educational approaches and technologies to design, develop and deliver effective learning experiences. The challenge of applying learning theories to educational practiceI have included Cognitive Load Theory (CLT) as a distinct theory even though it is a cognitivist theory. The reason for this choice is that there is a global CLT research community which has generated significant research which is worth exploring in more detail. Findings from CLT are also very relevant to the design of digital and online learning. Interestingly, two of the key learning theories sources I am using (Harasim, 2017) and (Lefrançois, 2019) make no reference at all to CLT. However, in the UK, Professor Dylan Wiliam has stated that he thinks CLT “is the single most important thing for teachers to know” (Wiliam, 2017). What are the pedagogic properties of the major learning theories?

In this foundational work, Freire presents the concept of the banking model of education. This book provides a social justice foundation for a humanistic approach to education. So, how do learning theories apply in the real world? Education is an evolving field with a complicated future. And, according to Roggeman, the effects of applied educational theory can be long-lasting. Educational theories of learning are one thing. Adult learning theories are another. Learn more on our blog.

Behaviorism

Helping outsiders (colleges, testing firms, etc.) determine what kind of education you had or are receiving. Enhance retention and transfer. Give students opportunities to practice skills in new contexts, which improves retention and helps students see how the skills are applied to different areas. Different theories of learning reflect diverse views and beliefs on the origin, nature and limits of knowledge. Bates (2014) states that “every teacher starts from some epistemological or theoretical position, even if it is not explicit, or even if the teacher is not fully aware of their beliefs”. Harasim (2017) also thinks that all teachers hold “some perspective on how to teach (and concomitantly, even if unconsciously, a perspective on how people learn)”. Therefore teachers may have different views as to how best to teach. For example, Pugsley (2011) sees the roles of educators “more as facilitators of learning, rather than imparters of knowledge”. In contrast, Hirsch (2016) and proponents of direct instruction argue that knowledge and curricula are fundamental to education. While learning theories can be interesting on their own, our goal as instructors is to apply them to classroom practice. Imagine that you are a high school librarian working with a class that has just been assigned a research paper. Your goal for this session is for students to brainstorm keywords and synonyms for their topics, and to learn how to string those words together using the Boolean operators and, or, and not. You want to be sure the students understand the function of the Boolean operators and can remember how to use them for future searches. Stages of Cognitive development: Sensorimotor; Preoperational; Concrete Operational; Formal Operational.

Like students themselves, learning theories in education are varied and diverse. In addition to the five theories outlined above, there are still more options, including: effect on the latter. Transfer is critical, for without it all learning would be situationally spe-Connectivism is a learning theory focussed on technology and achieved some traction in the early 2000s. However, arguably it isn’t a fully formed learning theory, and it has very little to say about how people learn using technology. Online Collaborative Learning theory (Harasim 2012), is a more recent constructivist theory which focuses on the use of technology “to increase and improve communication between teacher and learners” (Bates, 2015). While testing has fallen out of favor with many educators and education theorists, cognitivists find tests can be beneficial as both a retrieval practice and a diagnostic tool. They view tests not only as a way to measure what has been learned but as a way to practice retrieval of important concepts, and as a way to identify gaps or weaknesses in knowledge so that learners know where to concentrate their efforts (Brown et al., 2014). Cognitivists encourage “spaced practice,” or recalling previously learned information at regular intervals, and “interleaving,” or learning related concepts together to establish connections among them. Their research has found that retrieval is more effective when the brain is forced to recall information after some time has passed, and when the recall involves two or more related subjects or concepts. Finally, cognitivists also promote problem-based learning, maintaining that “trying to solve a problem before being taught the solution leads to better learning, even when errors are made in the attempt” (Brown et al., 2014, p.4). Sharp, A. (2012). Humanistic approaches to learning. In N.M. Seel (Ed.), Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Springer. Piaget and Perry offer developmental models that outline stages broadly aligned with a person’s age. Both models assume a relatively linear chronological development, with children and young adults passing through different stages at roughly the same time. Vygotsky, on the other hand, describes a model that focuses more on the content being mastered rather than the age of the student. According to Vygotsky’s theory, known as Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), as learners acquire new knowledge or develop new skills, they pass through three stages, often illustrated as concentric circles, as in Figure 3.2. The center circle, or first zone, represents tasks that the learner can do on their own. The second zone, or the Zone of Proximal Development, represents an area of knowledge or set of tasks that the learner can accomplish with assistance. The tasks and knowledge in this zone require students to stretch their abilities somewhat beyond their current skill level but are not so challenging as to be completely frustrating. The outermost circle, or third zone, represents tasks that the learner cannot yet do. Vygotsky posits that by working within the ZPD, learners can continue to grow their skills and abilities and increase their knowledge (Flair, 2019).