EDUCATIONAL LEARNING THEORIES
EDUCATIONAL LEARNING THEORIES
Learning theory explain how student absorb, process or retain knowledge during learning. Emotional and environmental influences as well as past experience plays an important role in ways knowledge is retained.
The three major theories of learning were discussed and were put together with the collaboration on moodle.
of
positive and negative reinforcement are effective tools of learning and
behavior modification. It can also be punishment and reward system (Kelly,
2012). Example is the “Skinner
box experiment by B F Skinner.
LEARNING
THEORIES (B F Skinner and his rat experiment)
INTRODUCTION
Skinner is known as the father of operant
conditioning. Operant conditioning is a method of learning that occurs through
reward and punishments for behaviour.
He believes that the best way to understand behaviour
is to look at the causes of the action and its consequences. This approach is
what he called “operant conditioning”. According to his principle which was
based on “Thorndike’s law of effect (1898)” behavior that is followed by pleasant consequences is likely to be repeated, and
behavior followed by unpleasant consequences is less likely to be repeated.
SKINNER BOX
It is an enclosed apparatus that contain a bar or key
that an animal can press. When pressed, food or water or other. Reinforcement
can be Dispensed depending on the variable. Other stimuli might be present.
This can be lights, sounds and images. The floor might even be electrified.
EXPERIMENTAL
VARIABLE
This is something that can change or vary. It is used
in psychology experiments to determine if changes to one thing results in the
another.
Independent
variable: It is controlled by the experimenter
Dependent
variable: It is measured by the experimenter
PURPOSE OF
THE BOX
Using
the device, researchers could carefully study behavior in a very controlled
environment. For example, researchers could utilize the Skinner box to
determine which schedule of reinforcement led to the highest rate of response
in the study subjects.
COGNITIVISM: It is a learning theory in which a
child develops cognitive pathways in understanding and physical response to
experiences (Kelly, 2012).
Example is the “Little albert experiment by John Watson”. This experiment
explanation is gotten in collaboration with colleagues.
THE LITTLE ALBERT EXPERIMENT by John Watson
•
The experiment was to take the previous
experiment of Ivan Pavlov who carried out an experiment demonstrating the
conditional process of a dog see website for details of the experiment. https://www.verywellmind.com/pavlovs-dogs-2794989
•
•
Around the age of 9 months Watson and Rayner
exposed the child to a series of stimuli including a white rat, a rabbit, a
monkey, masks, and burning newspapers and observed the boy's reactions. The boy
initially showed no fear of any of the objects he was shown.
•
“Albert was exposed to the rat, Watson made a
loud noise by hitting a metal pipe with a hammer. Naturally, the child began to
cry after hearing the loud noise. After repeatedly pairing the white rat with
the loud noise, Albert began to cry simply after seeing the rat.
•
After this, they demonstrated that this fear can
be associated with other white, furry objects.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMnhyGozLyE
- The experiment
Results
•
After repeatedly pairing the white rat with the
loud noise, Albert began to cry simply after seeing the rat even when there was
no noise.
•
The Little Albert experiment presents an example
of how classical conditioning can be used to trigger an emotional response.
ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS
1. As
little Albert was young, he wasn’t able to give consent to the experiment
2. Albert
developed the fear during the experiment but no deconditioning was given after
the experiment
3. Some
believe that Albert was ill before the experiment and was known to John but the
experiment was still carried out
EVALUATION
1. This
experiment may not be a valid or useful theory to apply to learning theory
because
2. The
experiment was only carried out on one child
3. How
do we know that the condition causes the fair and not prior experience?
4. What
have they done to decondition the child or reverse the actions of the
experiment to conclude the theory?
(Green) “Experimental work had been done so far on
only one child, Albert B. This infant was reared almost from birth in a
hospital environment; his mother was a wet nurse in the Harriet Lane Home for
Invalid Children. Albert's life was normal: he was healthy from birth and one of the best developed youngsters ever brought
to the hospital, weighing twenty-one pounds at nine months of age. He was on
the wholestolid and unemotional. His
stability was one of the principal reasons for using him as a
subject in this test. We [p.2] felt that we could do him relatively little harm by carrying out such experiments as those outlined below.”
References-Albert experiment
•
https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26307-baby-used-in-notorious-fear-experiment-is-lost-no-more/
- Little Albert
•
https://www.ukessays.com/essays/sociology/ethical-concerns-of-the-little-albert-study-sociology-essay.php
- Ethics of the study
Constructivism:
It is the idea of people being responsible in creating their own
understanding of the world and using what they know based on previous
experiences in the process of linking new information to these experiences
(Kelly, 2012).
with constructivism, outcomes are not always predictable because learners are constructing their own knowledge. Thus, it does not work when the result always need to be consistent.
Examples of where this type of learning theory is applicable are: case studies, research project, problem based learning, brainstorming and group work. (http://thepeakperformancecenter.com/educational-learning/learning/theories/)
with constructivism, outcomes are not always predictable because learners are constructing their own knowledge. Thus, it does not work when the result always need to be consistent.
Examples of where this type of learning theory is applicable are: case studies, research project, problem based learning, brainstorming and group work. (http://thepeakperformancecenter.com/educational-learning/learning/theories/)
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