Important Perspectives in Learning Theories - Case Study Example

Learning theories Learning is an in-detachable phenomenon in the life of human beings. From infant to elderly, human beings continue to learn as Plato said “education and admonition commence in the first years of childhood, and last to the very end of life. (Mayer, 1996) Though learning is a common experience and lasts till the end of our life; it is not fully understandable. It is true that learning is made easier and intelligible by learning theories and models but even so, to some extent, it remains mysterious. In education and psychology, learning theories make an effort to explain how people and animals learn, which is very helpful to understand the highly complex process of learning. There are four important perspectives in learning theories, behaviorism, humanism, constructivism and cognitivism. Behaviorism In education, behaviorist theories maintain that learning is the result of ‘operant conditioning’ which is a process and both investigated and named by B F Skinner. The word ‘operant’ is used to explain the way in which behavior of an individual operates in a particular person. According to behaviorism theory, behavior of an individual may result either in punishment or in reinforcement. If the behavior results in reinforcement, then chances of same behavior occurring again are higher, at the same time, if a behavior results in punishment, then its chances of happening again are very remote. But we should remember that the issues related to punishment or reinforcement are quite complex. For instance, a punisher or reinforcer is identified within behaviorism by its effect on behavior. So, a punishment may not be regarded as punishment if it does not result in the reduction of a specific behavior. Therefore, behaviorists generally concentrate on measurable changes on behavior. Operant Conditioning ‘Operant conditioning’ uses the consequences of behavior to alter the form of behavior and its occurrence. It basically deals with modification of voluntary behavior. It generally, creates five consequences such as positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment, negative punishment and extinction. It is important to note that it is not the individuals who are reinforced or punished; rather it is his or her response which is reinforced or punished. In ‘operant conditioning’ context, the terms positive and negative are, generally, not used in their popular meaning, but rather positive means to addition and negative refers to subtraction. What is subtracted or added may be either punishment or reinforcement. The five consequences of behavior are:- 1. Positive punishment: - It happens when a response creates a favorable stimulus which results a rise in the frequency of that behavior. 2. Negative reinforcement: - It happens when a response results removal of an in favorable stimulus which again results a rise in the frequency of that behavior. 3. Positive punishment: - It happens when a response (behavior) results an unfavorable stimulus which causes a decrease in that behavior. 4. Negative punishment: -It occurs when a response (behavior) results removal of a favorable stimulus which, results a decrease in the frequency of that behavior. For example, taking a way a Childs toy following an undesired behavior. 5. Extinction: - It happens when a response (behavior) which had reinforced is no longer produces any result which slows down the frequency of such behavior. For example, in Skinner’s experiment, the rat pushing the lever was rewarded with food several times, again pushing the lever not resulted any reward and finally the rat stopped pushing the lever. Criticism of behaviorism Some of the criticisms against behavioral learning theory are the following: Behavioral theorists often underrate the significance of biological factors. They also tend to underestimate the significance of personality traits after highlighting the situational influences on personality. Behavioral theorists often undertake studies on animal behavior and then tend to generalize their findings to human beings. It can be misleading since humans multifaceted thought processes which affect behavior. Cognitivism Cognitive learning theories deals with how people comprehend and remember information, solve problems and ultimately learn. The term cognition is used to refer all processes by which sensory input is transformed, elaborated, stored, reduced, recovered and used. Many social scientists felt that due to strict focus on observable behavior and passive view of learning adopted by behaviorist theorists had limited the usefulness of behavioral theory. . For example, Noam Chomsky argued that language would be difficult to acquire through conditioning but could be explained by the existence of mental states and these mental states could be analyzed and described. So they started on researching on new areas. While the behaviorism school focused on studying observable behavior of animals and humans which resulted from exposure to diverse stimuli, the cognitive school delved into an area which was plainly forbidden for behavioristic experiments. The primary focus of the cognitive school is the mental processes on the part of the individual during the learning process. Moreover, in “cognitive theories knowledge is viewed as symbolic, mental constructions in the minds of individuals, and learning becomes the process of committing these symbolic representations to memory where they may be processed. The development of computers with a strict "input - processing - output architecture" from the 1960s and up till today certainly have inspired these "information-processing" views of learning.”(http://www.funderstanding.com/constructivism.cfm) Cognitivism had replaced behaviorism as the most popular model for understanding mental function and became the leading force in psychology in the second half of 20th century. It is also called cognitive information processing. It doesn’t refute behaviorism entirely but rather than expansion which explains that mental states are appropriate to analysis and subject to examination. Constructivism Constructivism refers to teacher supported learning process which is initiated and directed by the student. Generally, it is a set of beliefs about the nature of human learning which guide teaching methods and constructivist learning theories of education. Constructivist ideas were not given much importance till Jean Piaget provided scientific evidence for it. Today, constructivist theories are very influential in the informal learning sector. A few historical personalities who influenced constructivism are Giambattista Vico, John Dewey, Immanuel Kant, Jean Piaget, Herbert Simon, Jerome Bruner, Ernst Von Glassersfeld, Paul Watzlawick and Edger Morin. According constructivist theory learning is a process in which an individual constantly builds or constructs new concept or ideas based upon past and current knowledge. In other words, learning through one’s experience, therefore constructivist learning is a personal endeavor in which ideas, concepts, general principles and rules may be applied in a real world context. In constructivist learning a teacher confines his role to a facilitator who motivates students to find out principles for themselves and to build knowledge by solving realistic problems which is also called knowledge construction as a social process. An individual can clarify and organize his/her ideas and can explain to others. It gives him/ her opportunity to elaborate on what he/she learned. Moreover, he/she also get exposed to the views of others. It gives him/her to find out inconsistencies and a flaw by learning .Constructivism itself has many aspects such as discovery learning, generative learning and knowledge building. Irrespective of the variations, it promotes an individuals free exploration within a given structure or framework. Constructivist theory Jean Piaget is given credit for the formulation of the theory of constructivism. According to him, through processes of assimilation and accommodation people construct new knowledge from their experiences. When peoples’ experiences are aligned with their internal representation of the world, assimilation takes place. They incorporate the new experiences in to an already existing framework. In the process of accommodation, an individual reframes his/her mental representation of the external world to fit new experiences. In a sense, it can be described as a mechanism by which failure leads to learning. When people behave with a belief that the world operates in one way and when it goes against their expectations, they fail. An individual could learn from his experiences by trying to reframe his/her model of the world behaves and by accommodating these new experiences. Constructivism explains how learning should take place and also suggests that learners should construct knowledge. The learner as a unique individual Constructivism regards each learner as a unique person with unique backgrounds and needs. The person who undergoes the process of learning is seen as multidimensional and complex. (Gredler, 1997). Constructivism promotes, utilizes, encourages and rewards which all of them considered as a very essential part of the learning process. (Wertsch, 1997). It gives importance to culture and background of the learner. It gives confidence to the learner to arrive at his or her version of truth which is influenced by his or her culture, background or embedded worldview. It also emphasizes the importance of the type of the individual’s interaction with knowledgeable members of the society. Young children expand their thinking abilities by interacting with the physical world, adults and other children. The responsibility of learning According to constructivism, the responsibility of learning should lie with the learner. So constructivism gives importance to individual being actively involved in the learning process. But in the previous educational theories, the responsibility rested with the teacher and the learner played a receptive and a passive role. The motivation for learning In constructivist learning theory, learners’ motivations depend upon their confidence in their potential for learning. The feelings of competence to solve new complicated problems are powerful than any outside motivation and acknowledgement. By completing successfully challenging tasks, individuals attain confidence and motivation to take more complex challenges. The role of the instructor According to constructivist learning theory, an instructor play the role of facilitator and not teacher. While a teacher delivers a lecture which covers the subject matter, a facilitator helps the learner to acquire his or her own comprehension of the subject matter. Criticism of constructivist theory of learning According to cognitive scientists, they are either misleading or contradict known findings. Some other criticisms of constructivist theories are the following: Very subjective and unpredictable Assessment of learners’ grasp of material is difficult Time consuming and expensive Human resource intensive Acceptance of verbal behavior without analysis Humanistic theory of learning The humanistic theory of learning emphasizes the ‘natural desire’ of human beings to learn. Since there is a strong natural desire, the learners need to be given authority and should have control over the learning process. So a teacher surrenders a great deal authority and becomes a facilitator. The humanistic theory is advocated by Carl Rogers, John Holt, Abraham Maslow, Kold, and Malcom Knowles. The humanistic school of thought believes that human beings are different from other species and possess capabilities which are not found in animals (Edwords, 1989). Therefore, humanists give priority to the study of human interests and needs. A central assumption in humanistic theory is that human beings behave out of internationality and values. (Kurtz, 2000). This is completely in contrast to the beliefs of behaviorist theorists and cognitive psychologists. Humanists also tend to believe that it is important to study individual as a whole, especially as an individual develops and grows over the life span. Some other areas of interest of the humanists are the study of self, goal setting, motivation etc. There are several view points within the humanistic approach to learning. One important view point is naturalistic or modern humanism which traces its roots to Aristotle and Socrates (Gogineni, 2000). It is defined as “a naturalistic philosophy that rejects all supernaturalism and relies primarily upon reason and science, democracy and human compassion" (Lamont, as cited in Edwords, 1989). Therefore, it is described as human centered or anthropocentric. Two important branches of modern humanism are religious and secular humanism. According to the advocates of the secular humanism, all human beings have within themselves all that is important to grow and develop and all human beings have unique capacities. On the other hand, religious humanists are of the opinion that religion is a crucial factor on human development and promote a communal aspect of their approach, even if an atheistic one. An important, but small, group within humanism does not agree with the atheistic thesis. They trace their lineage to Plato, St. Augustine and various religions. According to them, though human beings are distinct species and separated from all animal species, a Supreme Being or God is the centre of human beings existence. (Maritain, J. 1936/1996). They believe that human beings are both spiritual and endowed with free will. Probably the open promotions of atheism by the modern humanists have drawn the anger of religious leaders toward humanism, especially fundamentalist Christians (Waggoner, R. 2001). Other important learning theories also promote a strictly materialistic view of human beings. For instance, Skinner’s ‘operant conditioning’ theory hypothesizes no important differences between human beings and animals. According to Piaget’s cognitive development theory, the only difference between animals and human being is that a human being acquires the capacity to engage in abstract symbolic thought. Principles and Objectives of humanist learning theory According to Huitt’s systems model of human behavior, the main focus of humanistic education is on the emotional system and the regulatory system (Huitt, 1995). But, the promotion these systems are often ignored in our present education system (Am, 1995). The regulatory system behaves as a filter for linking internal thoughts and environments to other feelings or thoughts as well as connecting feelings and knowledge to action. The emotional or affective system colors, elaborates, reduces or modifies information obtained through the regulatory system or received from the cognitive system. According to Gage and Berliner, the basic objectives of the humanistic view of education are the following: Advocate independence and positive self direction Acquire the capacity to take responsibility for what is learned Promote creativity Develop curiosity and Promote an interest in the arts. (Gage & Berliner, 1991). As explained by Gage and Berliner, the five principles of the humanistic view of education is: Students will learn best what they want and need to know Understanding how to learn is more important than obtaining knowledge Self evaluation is the only meaningful evaluation of a student’s work Feelings are as significant as facts An individual learn best in a non threatening environment. The purpose of humanistic education is to provide a base for personal development and growth so that learning will continue throughout the life (DeCarvalho, 1991). Due to lack of cohesiveness in relation to defining the crucial components of the humanistic approach has hindered its development. Nevertheless, the findings of Aspy and Roebuek’s study of facilitative teaching in association with Giaconia and Hedges Meta-analysis of open education indicate that Rogers and Freiberg approach may be more expressive of the critical conditions for attaining academic success as well as significant emotional and affective results. The main criticism against humanist theory of learning is centre around its lack of concrete treatment approaches aimed at specific issues. Critics also points out it is difficult to develop a treatment technique and observe the effectiveness of technique. It is also not very effective with people suffering from mental health problems. Moreover, it also makes some generalizations about human beings which are not regarded as complete. Are all people good or are their some individuals who are not capable of this? Why do quite a few people make negative choices even when positive solutions are available? These types of questions bother humanistic thought. In spite of all these problems, it is one of the important theories to explain learning process and has been included in many differing views on psychotherapy. Works Cited Mayer, F. A history of educational thought. Columbus, OH: Charles E. Merrill Books, Inc. 1966. p.88. . Gredler, M. E. Learning and instruction: theory into practice (3rd ed). 1997. Upper Saddle River. Wertsch, J. V. Vygotsky and the formation of the mind. 1997. Cambridge. Edwords, F. What is humanism? Amherst. NY: American Humanist Association. 1989. Kurtz, P. Humanist manifesto 2000: A call for a new planetary humanism. Amherst. New York: Prometheus Books. 2000. Gogineni, B. The Humanist. Humanism in the twenty-first century. 60(6). 2000. p. 27-31. Maritain, J. Integral humanism: Temporal and spiritual problems of a new Christendom. Chicago: University of Notre Dame Press. 1936/1996. Waggoner, R. Worldviews in conflict. Selma AL. 2001. 15 June. 2007 . Huitt, W. An overview of a systems model of human behavior. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. 1995. Am, O. The evolutionary structure of the school system. Stavanger. Norway. 1995. Gage, N., and Berliner, D. Educational psychology (5th ed). Boston: Houghton, Mifflin. 1991. DeCarvalho, R. The humanistic paradigm in education. The Humanistic Psychologist, 19(1), 88-104. 1991. Read More