Behaviorism: "Broadly defined as a theory of learning manifested by a relatively permanent change of behaviour as a result of experience with, and feedback from, the environment. The behaviourist approach was driven by attempts to treat psychology as an ‘objective science’ in which directly observable and measurable events and behaviours, rather than ‘mental events’, were focused on (Vousden, 2014, p. 42)."
Social Learning Theory: "It was held that merely observing others’ behaviour and ‘perceiving’ the consequences (e.g. reinforcements) through ‘observational learning’ and ‘modelling’ can influence learning and behaviour (Vousden, 2014, p. 42)."
Constructivism: "According to Piaget, intellectual development depends on actively exploring the environment, through assimilation, accommodation, and organisation, and adjusting one’s own cognitive structures according to those interactions to abstract general principles and rules – ultimately in an effort to understand the world in which we live. Constructivism sees the child as the central governing driver in their own intellectual environment, and places much less emphasis on external input in the way of teaching (Vousden, 2014, p. 43)."
Cognitive Learning Theory: A theory that "takes account of the way people represent and process information to develop mental representations that can form the basis for thought. For example, understanding the symbolic representations of language, how concepts are represented, and how different aspects of memory work will facilitate how to best present new material for optimal learning (Vousden, 2014, p. 44)."
Social constructivism sees learning as essentially social in nature.
"The effectiveness of teaching and learning techniques stands to benefit greatly from the application of a wide range of theories, each offering valuable insight into different aspects of learning (Vousden, 2014, p. 46)."
Lesson 2 Assignmet: My interview with Timothy Whipple gave me a terrific amount of insight into the use of learning theory in the modern elementary classroom. They do have the preferred theory of constructivism in his school, but a lot of the application of methods boils down to how the instructor applies the methods to their lesson. The approach of “LES is MORE” (lunch, explore, summarize) is simply a pneumonic device for the textbook definition of a teacher’s role in constructivism. “The main role for external input is to provide an optimal environment in which the child can explore and manipulate their surroundings (Vousden, Wood & Holliman, 2014, Pg. 43).” My experience interviewing Tim Whipple only reinforces why I think constructivism is the most applicable learning theory to modern classrooms, and Tim Whipple himself exemplifies the exact kind of teacher, “facilitator” in his words, I aim to be.
Application to my future career: What I learned this week can easily be applied to my future career as a social sciences teacher in some capacity in a secondary educational setting is simple; I can use the different teaching strategies to see what connects with the students best and build upon it. Take the knowledge they already have and expand their understanding of the basic concept they already have and get a better in-depth understanding of the many topics we cover. Group work helps some, and as long as there is a social factor in the learning the students will enjoy it. |
