What is Learning Theory and Why Use It?
How do people learn? A question of interest for both students and teachers. People are different so it should be obvious that there are different methods of learning and teaching. This paper will focus on the Social Cognitive Learning Theory (SCLT), the Constructivist Learning Theory (CLT) and their connection to practice. How each theory can be used to guide and plan educational programs will be discussed with examples to demonstrate how learning outcomes can vary with theory application.
SCLT vs CLT
Pajares (2002) described Bandura’s SCLT as a triadic reciprocity resulting from the interaction of cognitive personal and biological factors, environmental influences, and behavior. Observational learning, the central theme of SCLT means we learn by others actions. While setting up for a band concert one evening I observed a fellow band member playing the cymbals which is done basically by banging the two cymbals together. A one year old child belonging to another band member turned her head toward the cymbal player and after a moment, began banging her two toys together. We all start by mimicking and repeating what others do and as we mature, the process becomes more entailed involving attention, retention, production, and motivation (Pajares, 2002). Paying attention means the observer has the ability to selectively observe the actions of another. The observer retains the information in order to duplicate it and by engaging in the observed behavior, the observer is reproducing what was observed. If the results are pleasurable or valued, then the learner will adopt the behavior for future use. An example is watching a cooking show. If the final product, always shown at the beginning of the s...
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...orld” – Nelson Mandela.
Works Cited
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John Dewey once said, “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” You may ask why John Dewey should be given merit for anything he says. In truth, John Dewey was one of the biggest supporters of constructivism in classroom. On a basic level, constructivism is described as learning by doing. This concept, while not necessarily new, is considered progressive. Today, we will explore the history and details of this concept, analyze how constructivism effects the modern classroom, and wrap it up with some concluding remarks.
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Applefield, J M, Huber, R, Moallem, M 2001, ‘Constructivism in theory and practice: Toward a better understanding’, High School Journal, vol. 84, issue 2, p35, 19pp
The term constructivism has been used to explain everything from school reform to teaching styles, and most importantly related to a learning theory. As you can imagine the term Constructivism has the potential to develop many misconceptions since it lacks a universal definition. “Constructivism is an important theory of learning that is used to guide the development of new teaching methods”(Baviskar, Hartle & Whitney, 2009, p.541). The framework of constructivism is built upon the understanding that “learning is an active process that is student centered in the sense that, with the teachers help, learners select and transform information, construct hypothesis’, and make decisions”(Chrenka, 2001, p.694). It is important to understand that when speaking about constructivism we are referring to a learning theory not teach...
Constructivism is a somewhat new, but up-and-coming ideology that is progressing through education. In order to properly understand constructivism, one must understand the history. Then, building upon the history one begins to understand its progression through education. Then, building upon that knowledge we can begin to see the applications of constructivism in the modern classroom. In the process of establishing the layout this paper, a method of constructivism, also known as scaffolding, was shown. Scaffolding is the process of establishing what a learner's base knowledge is and then teaching them in a method that relates and builds upon that. This leads into the broader idea of Constructivism, which the view of learning is based upon the learner produces knowledge and form meaning based upon their experience. ("Piaget's Theory of Constructivism", 2006)
Constructivism is a method that says students learn by building their schema by adding to their prior knowledge by the use of scaffolding (Rhinehart Neas). Because the students are basically teaching themselves new information, the teacher is there mainly for support and guidance for the students.
Behavior and social learning are two theories that are inherently intertwined. Behavior to some extent is taught for social reasons, and social learning can very much shape and create behaviors. While behavior is something intentionally taught, social learning can teach and reinforce many unintentional behaviors, such as dishonesty or aggression. In order to adequately discuss these two interrelated topics, theory exploration is in order.
Constructivist learning theory is creating meaning from experience. Learning is an active process within a context. Knowledge is constructed as opposed to being acquired. Our personal experiences subjectively shape our knowledge with each learning experience from the time we are born until we die. Constructivism is organic in nature because our learning is developed from prior knowledge within our mind while also constantly broadening with each new life experience. Learning is an autonomously controlled cognitive system, which interacts with its own conditions; this differentiates and modifies the independence of its own structure (Juvova et al., 2015). We as educators must turn away from the mindset that we are simply pouring knowledge