THEORIES OF LEARNING

What is Learning?
Definition learning noun

the activity of obtaining knowledge This technique makes learning fun.

knowledge obtained by study His friends praised his generosity, wit and learning. Cambridge Advanced Dictionary

What is language learning?

Language can only be properly understood as a reflection of human thought process.
Language learning is conditioned by the way in which the mind observes, organises and stores information.

Namely, the key to successful language learning and teaching lies not in the analysis of the human nature but in understanding the structure and process of the mind. However, little do we know about how people learn.

Nevertheless, if the techniques, methods and content of language teaching is to be improved, what is done in the classroom should be based on sound principles of learning.

Given the developments in learning theories, the importance of each for language teaching should be taken into consideration and it is best to consider the theories relating to language and learning separately.

A (Very) Brief History of Learning Theory

As with the language description, the main developments in theories of how learners learn and relate each to the needs of the ESP learner and teacher are to be described. Until the 20th century there was no coherent theory of learning available to the language teacher. Certainly there were empirical observations, such as Comenius studies made in the 17th century and the precepts of the Direct Method at the end of the 19th century. But no coherent theory of learning emerged until psychology had been established as a respectable subject of scientific enquiry in the early 20th century.

J A N A M O S C O M E N I U S (1592-1670) was a Czeck teacher, scientist, Educator, and writer. He was a Unity of the brethen/Moravian Protestant Bishop, a religious refugee and one of earliest champions of universal champions of universal education a concept eventually set forth in his book Didactica Magna. Comenius became known as the teacher of nations. He is often considered the father of modern education.

To understand him better we need to have look at the way his thinks about education. According to Comenius, education is not merely the training of the child at school or in the home; it is a process affecting mans whole life and the countless social adjustments he must make. UNESCO:International Bureau of Education, 1999 p.173-96 Why his contributions are so important to our modern educational point of view is clearly given by Piaget. According to Piaget Except in a few cases, the real difference between Comenius and us is the difference that lies between seventeenth- and twentieth-century ways of thinking. We no longer believe that metaphysics will enable us to understand the development of the child or of man in society, or the interaction between man and nature, to say nothing of the laws of nature.

To understand him better we need to have look at the way his thinks about education. According to Comenius, education is not merely the training of the child at school or in the home; it is a process affecting mans whole life and the countless social adjustments he must make. UNESCO: International Bureau of Education, 1999 p.173-96. Why his contributions are so important to our modern educational point of view is clearly given by Piaget. According to Piaget Except in a few cases, the real difference between Comenius and us is the difference that lies between seventeenth- and twentieth-century ways of thinking. We no longer believe that metaphysics will enable us to understand the development of the child or of man in society, or the interaction between man and nature, to say nothing of the laws of nature.

After a very short historical journey, it is time we continued to the answer of the question.

Learning as a Black Box

INPUTS OUTCOMES

INPUTS

Learning

OUTCOMES

So whats happening inside the box?

A Brief Review
Behaviorism Mentalism Cognitivism Social Learning Theory Social Constructivism Multiple Intelligences Brain-Based Learning

Behaviorism
The first coherent theory of learning was behaviorist theory based mainly n the work of Pavlov in the Soviet Union and of Skinner in the United states. According to this theory, learning is a mechanical process of habit formation and proceeds by means of the frequent reinforcement of a stimulus-response sequence. The simplicity and directness of this theory had an enormous impact on learning psychology and on language teaching. It was widely used in Audio lingual Method in the 50s and 60s. The method laid down a set of guiding methodological principles firstly on the behaviourist stimulus response concept and secondly on an assumption that second language learning should reflect and imitate the perceived process of mother tongue learning.

In Behaviourism: Learning is defined by the outward expression of new behaviors Focuses solely on observable behaviors A biological basis for learning

Learning is context-independent
Classical & Operant Conditioning
Reflexes (Pavlovs Dogs) Feedback/Reinforcement (Skinners Pigeon Box)

Behaviorism in the Classroom

Rewards and punishments Responsibility for student learning rests squarely with the teacher Lecture-based, highly structured

Critiques of Behaviorism
Does not account for processes taking place in the mind that cannot be observed Advocates for passive student learning in a teacher-centric environment

One size fits all

Knowledge itself is given and absolute Programmed instruction & teacher-proofing

The basic exercise technique of a behaviorist methodology is pattern practice, particularly in the form of language laboratory drills. Such drills are widely used in ESP.
To illustrate; Combine the sentences with given words. A) The accident occurred in the lab. Workers were not well trained. (As) The accident occurred in the lab as personnel were not well trained. ____________________________________________________________ A) There are lots of accidents in the lab. Personnel should be well trained. (So) There are lots of accidents in the lab, so workers should be well trained. ____________________________________________________________ Moreover, modern ESP books have looked for more interesting ways of handling pattern practice and a number of useful variations on the basic idea have been developed.

Pattern practice exercises still have a useful role to play in language teaching, but only as one part of the whole learning process. As learning is much more complex than just imitative habit formation, subsequent needs for developements emerged. However, this does not necessarily mean that there is no place for pattern practice in a modern methodology.

Mentalism: thinking as rule governed activity There was considerable empirical evidence among language teachers that the Audiolingual Method and its behaviourist principles did not deliver the results promised.

The first successful assault on the behaviorist theory came from Chomsky (1964). He tackled behaviourism on the question of how the mind was able to transfer what was learnt in onestimulus response sequence to other novel situations. There was a vague concept of generalisation in behaviourist theory, this was always neglected and never properly explained.

This hypothesis then tested and modified by subsequent experience. The mind, in other words, does not just respond to a stimulus, it uses the individual stimuli in order to find the underlying pattern or system. It can then use this knowledge of the system in a novel situation to predict what is likely to happen, what is an appropriate response or whatever.

The mentalist view of the mind as a rule-seeker led naturally to the next important stage: The Cognitive Theory of Learning

Cognitivism
Cognitive Approach assumption: knowledge is always constructed by the learner in an active process of coming to terms with reality.

The Cognitive Theory of Learning: learners as thinking beings Whereas the behaviourist theory of lerning portrayed the learner as a passive receiver of information, the cognitive view takes the larne to be an active processor of information (Ausubel et al., 1978). Learning and using a rule require learners to think, that is, to apply their mental powers in order to distil a workable generative rule from the mass of data presented, and then to analyse the situations where the application of the rule would be useful or appropriate.

 In short, we learn by thinking about and trying to make sense of what we see, feel and hear. The basic teaching technique associated with a cognitive theory of language learning is the problem-solving task. In ESP such exercises have often been modeled on activities associated with the learners subject specialism.

To illustrate:

More recently, the cognitive view of learning has had a significant impact on ESP through the development of courses to teach reading strategies. A number of ESP projects have concentrated on making students aware of their reading strategies so that they can consciously apply them to understanding texts in a foreign language (Alderson, 1980 and Scott, 1981).

To illustrate:

Cognitivism
Grew in response to Behaviorism

Knowledge is stored cognitively as symbols

Learning is the process of connecting symbols in a meaningful & memorable way Studies focused on the mental processes that facilitate symbol connection

Cognitivism contributors
Jean Piaget
Genetic Epistemology Assimilation and Accommodation

Jerome Bruner
Discovery Learning Learner as independent problem-solver

Cognitivism in the Classroom

Inquiry-oriented projects

Opportunities for the testing of hypotheses Curiosity encouraged

Staged scaffolding

Critiques of Cognitivism
Like Behaviorism, knowledge itself is given and absolute Input Process Output model is mechanistic and deterministic

Does not account enough for individuality

Little emphasis on affective characteristics

As a conclusion,

The cognitive code view of learning seems to answer many of the theoretical and practical problems raised by behaviourism. It treats the learners as thinking beings and puts them firmly at the center of the learning process, by stressing that learning will only take place when mater to be learnt is meaningful to the learners. But in itself a cognitive view is not sufficient. To complete the picture we need an affective view, too.

Social Learning Theory (SLT)

A. Bandura (1973) put forward the theory. According to his theory, it posits that people learn from one another, via observation, imitation, and modeling. The theory has often been called a bridge between behaviorist and cognitive learning theories because it encompasses attention, memory, and motivation.

 Grew out of Cognitivism Learning takes place through observation and sensorial experiences Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery SLT is the basis of the movement against violence in media & video games
Bobo Doll Experiment

SLT in the Classroom

Collaborative learning and group work Modeling responses and expectations

Opportunities to observe experts in action

 Does not take into account individuality, context, and experience as mediating factors Suggests students learn best as passive receivers of sensory stimuli, as opposed to being active learners Emotions and motivation not considered important or connected to learning

Critiques of Social Learning Theory

Social Constructivism
Another cognitive psychologist, Lev Vygotsky shared many of Piagets assumptions about how children learn, but he placed more emphasis on the social context of learning. Piaget's cognitive theories have been used as the foundation for discovery learning models in which the teacher plays a limited role. In Vygotsky's theories both teachers and older or more experienced children play very important roles in learning.

 Grew out of and in response to Cognitivism, framed around metacognition Knowledge is actively constructed Learning is
A search for meaning by the learner Contextualized An inherently social activity Dialogic and recursive The responsibility of the learner

Lev Vygotsky
Social Learning Zone of Proximal Development

Social Constructivism in the Classroom

Journaling

Experiential activities Personal focus

Collaborative & cooperative learning

Critiques of Social Constructivism

Suggests that knowledge is neither given nor absolute Often seen as less rigorous than traditional approaches to instruction Does not fit well with traditional age grouping and rigid terms/semesters

Multiple Intelligences (MI)

Howard Gardner viewed intelligence as 'the capacity to solve problems or to fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural setting' (Gardner & Hatch, 1989). He reviewed the literature using eight criteria or 'signs' of an intelligence: Potential isolation by brain damage.

 The existence of idiots savants, prodigies and other exceptional individuals. An identifiable core operation or set of operations. A distinctive development history, along with a definable set of 'end-state' performances. An evolutionary history and evolutionary plausibility. Support from experimental psychological tasks. Support from psychometric findings. Susceptibility to encoding in a symbol system. (Howard Gardner 1983: 62-69)

 Grew out of Constructivism, framed around metacognition All people are born with eight intelligences:
1. Verbal-Linguistic 2. Visual-Spatial 3. Logical-Mathematical 5. Musical 6. Naturalist 7. Interpersonal

4. Kinesthetic

8. Intrapersonal

Enables students to leverage their strengths and purposefully target and develop their weaknesses

 Linguistic intelligence involves sensitivity to spoken and written language, the ability to learn languages, and the capacity to use language to accomplish certain goals. This intelligence includes the ability to effectively use language to express oneself rhetorically or poetically; and language as a means to remember information. Writers, poets, lawyers and speakers are among those that Howard Gardner sees as having high linguistic intelligence.

 Naturalistic intelligence has to do with nature, nurturing and relating information to one's natural surroundings. This type of intelligence was not part of Gardner's original theory of Multiple Intelligences, but was added to the theory in 1997. Those with it are said to have greater sensitivity to nature and their place within it, the ability to nurture and grow things, and greater ease in caring for, taming and interacting with animals. They may also be able to discern changes in weather or similar fluctuations in their natural surroundings. They are also good at recognizing and classifying different species. They must connect a new experience with prior knowledge to truly learn something new.

 Logical-mathematical intelligence consists of the capacity to analyze problems logically, carry out mathematical operations, and investigate issues scientifically. In Howard Gardner's words, it entails the ability to detect patterns, reason deductively and think logically. This intelligence is most often associated with scientific and mathematical thinking.

 Musical intelligence involves skill in the performance, composition, and appreciation of musical patterns. It encompasses the capacity to recognize and compose musical pitches, tones, and rhythms. According to Howard Gardner musical intelligence runs in an almost structural parallel to linguistic intelligence.

 Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence entails the potential of using one's whole body or parts of the body to solve problems. It is the ability to use mental abilities to coordinate bodily movements. Howard Gardner sees mental and physical activity as related.

 Spatial intelligence involves the potential to recognize and use the patterns of wide space and more confined areas.

 Interpersonal intelligence is concerned with the capacity to understand the intentions, motivations and desires of other people. It allows people to work effectively with others. Educators, salespeople, religious and political leaders and counsellors all need a well-developed interpersonal intelligence.

 Intrapersonal intelligence entails the capacity to understand oneself, to appreciate one's feelings, fears and motivations. In Howard Gardner's view it involves having an effective working model of ourselves, and to be able to use such information to regulate our lives.

MI in the Classroom
Delivery of instruction via multiple mediums

Student-centered classroom
Authentic Assessment Self-directed learning

Critiques of MI
Lack of quantifiable evidence that MI exist Lack of evidence that use of MI as a curricular and methodological approach has any discernable impact on learning

Development process is a time-sink

Suggestive of a departure from core curricula and standards

Brain-Based Learning (BBL)

This learning theory is based on the structure and function of the brain. As long as the brain is not prohibited from fulfilling its normal processes, learning will occur.

Brain-Based Learning (BBL)

Grew out of Neuroscience & Constructivism D. Souza, N. Caine & G. Caine, E. Jensen (1980s to present) 12 governing principles
1. Brain is a parallel processor 2. Whole body learning 3. A search for meaning 4. Patterning 7. Focused attention & peripheral perception 8. Conscious & unconscious processes 9. Several types of memory 10. Embedded learning sticks

5. Emotions are critical

6. Processing of parts and wholes

11. Challenge & threat

12. Every brain is unique

People often say that everyone can learn. Yet the reality is that everyone does learn. Every person is born with a brain that functions as an immensely powerful processor. Traditional schooling, however, often inhibits learning by discouraging, ignoring, or punishing the brains natural learning processes.

6.

The core principles of brain-based learning state that: The brain is a parallel processor, meaning it can perform several activities at once, like tasting and smelling. Learning engages the whole physiology. The search for meaning is innate. The search for meaning comes through patterning. Emotions are critical to patterning. The brain processes wholes and parts simultaneously.

7. Learning involves both focused attention and peripheral perception. 8. Learning involves both conscious and unconscious processes. 9. We have two types of memory: spatial and rote. 10. We understand best when facts are embedded in natural, spatial memory. 11. Learning is enhanced by challenge and inhibited by threat. 12. Each brain is unique.

3.

The three instructional techniques associated with brain-based learning are: Orchestrated immersion Creating learning environments that fully immerse students in an educational experience Relaxed alertness Trying to eliminate fear in learners, while maintaining a highly challenging environment Active processing Allowing the learner to consolidate and internalize information by actively processing it

How Brain-Based Learning Impacts Education CurriculumTeachers must design learning around student interests and make learning contextual.

CurriculumTeachers must design learning around student interests and make learning contextual.

Instruction Educators let students learn in teams and use peripheral learning. Teachers structure learning around real problems, encouraging students to also learn in settings outside the classroom and the school building.

Assessment Since all students are learning, their assessment should allow them to understand their own learning styles and preferences. This way, students monitor and enhance their own learning process.

BBL in the Classroom

Opportunities for group learning

Regular environmental changes

A multi-sensory environment Opportunities for selfexpression and making personal connections to content Community-based learning

Critiques of BBL
Research conducted by neuroscientists, not teachers & educational researchers Lack of understanding of the brain itself makes brain-based learning questionable

Individual principles have been scientifically questioned

Other Learning Theories of Note

Andragogy (M. Knowles) Flow (M. Czikszentmihalyi) Situated Learning (J. Lave)

Subsumption Theory (D. Ausubel)

Conditions of Learning (R. Gagne)

Learning as a Not-So-Black Box

INP
INPU

UT S
OU ES M O TC
Lost

TS

INPUTS

Learner

OUTCOMES

IN

S PU T

Environment

OUT C

OME S

INP

S T U

There are also some sort of crucial items that need to be taken into consideration when it comes to learning, such as;

The affective factor. Learners as emotional beings

People think but they also have feelings. It is one of the paradoxes of human nature, although we are all aware of our feelings and their effects on our actions, we invariably seek answers to our problems in rational terms.

This attitude affects the way we see learners- more like machines to be programmed than people with likes and dislikes, fears, weaknesses and prejudices.

But learners are people. Even ESP learners are people. They may be learning about machines and systems, but they still learn as human beings. Learning, particularly the learning of a language, is an emotional experience, and the feeling that the learner process evokes will have a crucial bearing on the success or failure of the learning (Stevick, 1976).

The importance of the emotional factor is easily seen if we cosider the relationship between the cogntive and affective aspects of the learner. The cognitive theory tells us that learners will learn when they actively think about what they are learning. But this cognitive factor presupposes the affective factor of motivation.

Before learners can actively think about something, they must want to think about it. The emotional reaction to the learning experience is the essential foundation for the initiation of the cognitive process.

How the learning is perceived by the learner will affect what learning, if any, will take place.

The cognitive/affective learning interplay in the form of a learning cycle as it is given below:

Entry point

Learner wants to learn

Learner sees learning as an enjoyable and satisfying experince

Learner applies cognitive powers to acquire knowledge A positive learning cycle

Increased competence enables learner to learn more easily

Learning is successful

Learners competence develeopes

The relationship between the cognitive and emotional aspects of learning is, therefore, one of the vital importance to the success or otherwise of a language learning experince.

This brings us to a matter which has been one of the most important elements in the developement of ESP-motivation.

The most influential study of motivation in language learning has been Gardner and Lamberts (1972) study of bilingualism in French speaking Canada. They identified two forms of motivation: instrumental (Need) integrated (Want)

Instrumental motivation is the reflection of an external need. The learners are not learning a language because they want to (although this does not imply that they do not want to), but rather because they need to. In other words, wanting to learn a language for the purpose of obtaining some concrete goals such as a job, graduation, or the ability to read academic materials. This form of motivation is thought to be less likely to lead to success than integrated motivation.

The need may derive from varying sources. the need to sell things to speakers of the language; the need to pass an exam in the language; the need to read texts in the language for work or study. Whatever they are, the motivation is an external one.

Integrative motivation, on the other hand, derives from a desire on the part of the learners to be members of the speech community that uses a particular language. It is an internally generated want rather than an externally imposed need.
That is to say, When students want to learn a language to become part of a speech community (integrate). People who immigrate to new countries are some examples of people who may want to identify with the community around them. An important aspect of this form of language learning is using language for social interaction. This form of motivation is thought to produce success in language learners.

Learning and acqusition

Much debate has recently cemtered around the distinction made by stephen Krashaen (1981) between learning and acqusiton. Learning is seen as a conscious process, while acqusition proceeds unconsciously. According to the view we have advocate so far is that for the second language learner both processes are likeley to play a useful part and that a good ESP course will try to exploit both.

A model for learning

In the lights of thet ideas it has been discussed there should be a model of learning process to present. That will provide a practical source of reference for the ESP teacher and course designer.

First of all, the mind should be depicted as a network of conecions, rather like a road map. The indivudual houses, towns and villages represent items or bundles of knowledge. These various settlements, however, are only useful if they are connected to the main network by roads. The mind of the learner is like a developement agency. It wants to bring the settlements into the network and so develop their potential. To achive this communication links must be established.

However, as with any communication network, links can only be established from existing links. There is no limit to the number of links possible. Indeed the more links a place already has the more it is likely to attract


Individual items of knowledge, like the towns, have little significance on their own. They only acquire meaning and use when they are connected into the network of existing knowledge.
It is the existing knowledge that makes it possible to construct new connections. So in the act ofacquiring new knowledge it is the learners exisiting knowledge that makes it possible to learn new items.


Items of knowledge are not of equal significance. Some items are harder to acquire, but may open up wide possibilities for further learning. Like a bridge across a river or a tunnel through a mountain, learning a generative rule may take time, but once it is there, it greatly increase the potential for further learning. This why so often learning appears to progress in leaps and bounds. For a long time it might appear that little progress is being made; then suddenly the learner makes an enormous leap to a higher level of competence. Think of these leaps as the crossing of rivers, mountains and other major obstacles.


Roads and railways are not built haphazardly. They require planning. The road builder has to recognise where problem lie and work out strategies for solving those problems. In the same way the learner will make better progress by developing strategies for solving the learning problems that will arise. A communication network is a system . If the road builder can see the whole system, the planning and construction of the roads will be a lot easier. Language is a system, too. If the leaner sees it as just a haphazard set of arbitrary and capricious obstacles, learning will be difficult, if not possible.


Finally, before anyone builds a road, crosses a river or climbs a mountain, they must have some kind of motivation to do so. If they could ot care less what is beyond the mountains, dislike the people who come from there or are simply afraid of travelling, the chances of communication links being established are minimal. A communication network is a system . If the road builder can see the whole system, the planning and construction of the roads will be a lot easier. Language is a system, too. If the leaner sees it as just a haphazard set of arbitrary and capricious obstacles, learning will be difficult, if not possible.

First of all, there must be a need to establish the links. In ESP this need is usually taken for granted. But as anyone who has set out on a long and possibly difficult journey will know, a need is not enough. You can always find an excuse for not going. The traveller must also want to make the journey.

As a result, with learning, a need to acquire knowledge is a necessary factor, but of equal, if not greater importance, is the need to actually enjoy the process of acquisition.

After the brief summary of the most important developemnets in approaches to learning and considered their relevance to ESP. In conclusion, we should like to make two points: First, we still do not know very much about learning. It is important, therefore, not to base any approach too narrowly on one thary. As with lanuage descriptions, it is wise to take ecclectic approach, taking what is useful from each theary and trusting also in the evidence of your own experince as a teacher. It is possible that there are cognitive, affective and behaviourist approach to the teaching of pronunciaiton, a cognitive approach to the teaching grammar and use affective criteria in selecting your text.

 Second, theories of learning and language descriptions are casually linked. As Corder (1973) says: There is no logical connection between a particular psychological theory of how grammar is learned an any particular theory of language structure.. There is, however, an undaubted historical connection between them.

Dudley Evans and St. John (1998) identify five key roles for the ESP practitioner: -teacher -course designer and materials provider -collaborator -researcher -evaluator.

REFERANCES Dudley-Evans, T., & St John, M. (1998). Developments in ESP: A multidisciplinary approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (UNESCO, International Bureau of Education), vol. XXIII, no. 1/2, 1993, p. 173-96. UNESCO:International Bureau of Education, 1999

THANK YOU

OKT. NECMETTN KLTR