Adem can Günal 2368124

FLE 200
Response Paper
I have learned from the content of this week that there are three major theories of
learning which influence the field of curriculum. These theories are behaviorism, cognitive-
developmental theory, and phenomenology, or humanistic psychology.
Behaviorism is the oldest theory which is affected by the ideas of Thorndike, Pavlov,
Watson, Skinner, and Bandura. The Turkish education system is highly influenced by this
theory as far as I observed from my process of education. Behaviorism emphasizes methods
such as conditioning, rewarding, reinforcement, and punishment. I might say that these
methods constitute more than half of my memories related to my primary school years. I
remember that our teacher was rewarding us with candies and stars when we accomplished
something in the class or when we did our homework precisely. On the other hand, he used to
punish the students who conducted unpleasant behaviors in the class. Personally, I think that
the idea of punishment is archaic, and it is not an effective way of showing the right to the
students. What I mean as a right here is behaving decently. Thus, I think that behaviorism
does not fit the nature of human learning as it is deficient in some humane aspects. However, I
can integrate some parts of behaviorism such as praising or rewarding into my future teaching
because I think it creates a warm connection between teachers and students.
The cognitive-developmental theory, which has developed in the 1950s,, is influenced
highly by the ideas of Montessori, Piaget, Vygotsky, and Gardner. This theory emphasizes the
developmental stages and the multiple intelligences of the students or learners. It considers
the importance of the environment in learning and cognitive development in contrast to the
hereditarians. As a teacher candidate, I also give importance to the developmental stages and
multiple intelligences such as linguistic, intrapersonal, and logical-mathematical, etc. I should
be aware of my students’ levels and tendencies while preparing materials and classroom
activities. For example, I can set multiple intelligence tables, the aim of which is to improve
each intelligence of my students. Abilities such as critical thinking, creative thinking, and
intuitive thinking are also emphasized in the cognitive-developmental theory. I also think that
schools and curriculums should aim to boost these skills of the students due to the fact that
these are the abilities of the twenty-first century. I think that I should definitely benefit from
this theory in my future classrooms.
Phenomenology or humanistic psychology is a rather novel theory that is influenced by
the ideas of Maslow, Rogers, Goleman, and Seligman. The phenomenology emphasizes the
students’needs, attitudes, and feelings. It focuses on the total person. According to this theory,
students’ personal needs should be fulfilled for a decent learning. I also think that way if the
child or student lacks some basic needs such as love, esteem, or happiness, she/he might not
be able to be successful as long as these needs are not fulfilled. The theory also emphasizes
concepts such as self-fulfillment, self -actualization, and self-realization.
In conclusion, I think that as a teacher candidate, I should combine these theories
according to my students’ needs and conditions. I should benefit from these theories as much
as I can for the sake of my students’ success and well-being.