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Learning Theory

Learning Theory . EDUC 275 Winthrop University Lisa Harris, Marshall Jones, Suzanne Sprouse. How does learning theory inform teaching?. Source of instructional strategies, tactics, and techniques. Provide a foundation for appropriate strategy selection.

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Learning Theory

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  1. Learning Theory EDUC 275Winthrop University Lisa Harris, Marshall Jones, Suzanne Sprouse

  2. How does learning theory inform teaching? • Source of instructional strategies, tactics, and techniques. • Provide a foundation for appropriate strategy selection. • Provide information about relationships among instructional strategies and instructional contexts. • Allow teachers to select strategies that are the most likely to work.

  3. Learning theories help explain … • How learning occurs. • Factors that influence learning. • The role of memory. • How students transfer information to other contexts. • How instruction should be structured to facilitate learning.

  4. Ways of knowing • Knowledge has a separate, real existence of its own outside the human mind. Learning happens when this knowledge is transmitted to people and they store it in their minds. (Roblyer, page 53) • Humans construct all knowledge in their minds by participating in certain experiences; learning happens when one constructs both mechanisms for learning and his or her own unique version of the knowledge. (Roblyer, page 53)

  5. Three Major Branches • Behaviorism/ Direct Instruction • Cognitivism • Constructivism

  6. Behaviorism • Learning occurs when students are able to provide the proper response to the given stimulus • Methods include the use of instructional cues, reinforcement and practice. • Students learn basic skills before moving to more complex processes. • Instructional goal – elicit the desired response from the learner who is presented with a garget stimulus

  7. Behaviorism Continued • Teacher role: Transmitter of knowledge/expert source • Student role: Receive information; demonstrate competence – all students learn the same material • Curriculum: Skills are taught in a set sequence • Learning goals: Stated in terms of mastery learning • Types of activities: Lecture, demonstration, seatwork, practice, testing • Assessment strategies: Written tests, same measures for all students

  8. Examples of Content Taught using Behaviorism • Multiplication Tables • Branches of Government • Procedural tasks • Driving a stick shift • Listing State Capitals

  9. Cognitivism • Shift in thinking about learning • Behaviorists: learning as observable behavior • Cognitivists: learning as complex cognitive processes • How people reason, problem solve, learn language and process information • Learners’ thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and values impact learning • Focus on relationships between pieces of information (ex. chunking)

  10. Cognitivism Continued • Teacher role: Construct appropriate learning environments and materials, scaffolding the learning process • Student role: Actively involved in the learning process through self-planning, monitoring, revising, understanding relationships • Curriculum: Relationships among information is stressed • Learning goals: Understanding processes as well as basic skills, learning how to learn • Types of activities: using graphic organizers, demonstration/ think aloud, matrices, advanced organizers • Assessment strategies: performance assessment, project-based learning, essay questions (i. e. summarize, compare and contrast)

  11. Examples of Cognitivist Content • Compare and contrast two characters in a novel. • Draw the stages of the water cycle. • The writing process (drafts and revision).

  12. Constructivist Learning • Knowledge is a function of how the individual creates meaning from his or her own experiences (Ertmer, p. 9) • Meaning is created rather than acquired. • Content knowledge is embedded in the context in which it is used.

  13. Constructivist Instruction Cont. • Teacher role: Acts as a guide and facilitator; collaborative resource as students explore topics • Student role: Collaborate; develop competence; may learn different material • Curriculum: Based on projects that foster higher level and lower level skills at the same time • Learning Goals: Stated in terms of growth from where the student began; work independently and with groups • Types of Activities: Group projects, hand-on exploration; product development • Assessment: Performance tests and products (ex. Portfolios); quality measured by rubrics and checklists; measure may differ among students

  14. Examples of Constructivist Content • Causes of WWII • The strengths and weaknesses of Democracy • How technology fosters collaboration • The effects of global warming

  15. Which theory is better? • Neither • Depends on your needs • Depends on your content • Depends on your environment • Depends on your students

  16. Why are these theories important? • Gets to the notion of HOW you learn • How you LIKE to learn • How to manage favorite and least favorite environments • Affords us variety in pedagogy

  17. Now, an activity

  18. In groups create a list of the following: • How do you like to learn… • To use a new electronic device (phone, PDA, etc) • Manuals? Play around? Watch an expert? Others? • To play a new board/card/video game • Read directions? Play a practice round? Others? • A list of items or set of definitions • Read? Recite many times? Flash cards? Others?

  19. Take your list • Rank your learning strategies by voting on them. • Record your votes on the list • 100%, or ¾, or 1 out of 3 • Find out which ones your group thinks are best to use. • Are they behaviorist, cognitivist or constructivist in nature?

  20. Make a hard decision • Thinking as a teacher, your group should pick three learning strategies from your list that you would recommend to your students. You must pick three and only three. • Thinking as a teacher, your group should pick three learning strategies from your list would you NEVER use. You must pick three and only three.

  21. Here’s the thing… • Good teaching is all about examples and options for learning • You should never discard a possible learning theory PARTICULARLY the ones that few people will use. • Don’t forget the principles of UDL/ Multiple Intelligence • Yes, this was a dirty trick to make a point.

  22. Exploring Theorists • In groups, use Inspiration to create a concept map of the three major learning theories discussed in this article. • Compare and contrast the characteristics of each theory. • Give highlights of the theory. • Give examples of appropriate technology integration for each theory.

  23. Sources • Ertmer, P.A. & Newby, T.J. (1993). Behaviorism, Cognitivism, Constructivism: Comparing Critical features from an instructional design perspective. Improvement Quarterly, 6 (4): 50-72. • Integrating Educational Technology into Teaching, M.D. Roblyer • Constructivist vs. Directed PowerPoint by Dr. Marshall Jones

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