Hanna Schmidt

Mrs. Shank

Teacher Academy

4 December 2020

Chapter 2

2.2 Learner Exceptionalities

2.1.6 Compare theories and philosophies of education and training impacting learners with

exceptionalities.

Several educational theories and philosophies have come together to build the foundation

of education, and to teach teachers the importance of differentiation​ ​when teaching. In specific,

work from theorists Albert Bandura, Abraham Maslow and Benjamin Bloom have set examples

for teachers to follow in order to meet the needs of all their students. Students with learning

exceptionalities and those on IEPs or 504 plans all benefit from differentiated teaching/specific

accommodations because it grows their ability for success at school. Learning exceptionalities

are ​individuals whose physical, behavioral, or cognitive performances require additional services

to meet the expected needs​. IEPs are individual education plans in which outline goals and

accommodations a child will meet/receive throughout the year. 504 plans ​agree to provide

students with proper accommodations such as extended time to help them best succeed. They are

not as much academic related as IEPs ​(​evidence 2.2.1).

Albert Bandura created the Social Cognitive Theory. This theory states that people learn

from one another via observation, imitation and modeling. It is often called a bridge between

behaviorist and cognitive learning theories because it encompasses attention, memory and

motivation. An example of how this theory is used is through peer teaching. Peer teaching is
when one peer uses their understanding of a concept to teach it to their other peers. Peer teaching

instills confidence in a students ability to retain information. Another way this theory can be used

is through games/role play. Games/role play create healthy competition amongst students and

allow them to use creativity to enhance their learning. This theory is helpful for hands on

learners and those with anxiety or depression. It allows hands-on learners to get involved and

physically do tasks in order to build their understanding of a concept. In terms of students with

anxiety/depression, this theory works to improve their emotional state by giving them confidence

and correcting faulty self beliefs or habits of thinking when presenting/sharing their ideas with

their peers (evidence 2.2.2).

Similar to Bandura’s theory, Abraham Maslow’s theory focuses on making students

comfortable and confident while in their learning environment. Maslow’s theory of Hierarchy of

Needs states that if a student isn't learning properly, then one of their basic needs may be going

unfulfilled. For example, if a student comes to school hungry, then they are not coming ready to

learn. (evidence 2.2.2). An assignment we did in Teacher Academy that can be related to the

safety level of Maslow’s theory was the classroom design project (evidence 2.2.3). This project

focused on creating a classroom environment that was welcoming towards students. In my

classroom, I created a reading center. Its purpose was to give students a safe place to relax which

is why I filled it with books and alternative seating. As a teacher, it is important to create spaces

such as these because they give students a sense of security ​(evidence 2.2.4).

Lastly, unlike Bandura’s and Maslow’s theories, Benjamin Bloom created a theory based

on how an individual thinks, rather than focusing on their confidence and comfortability in a

learning environment. Bloom’s theory is called Taxonomy which promotes ​higher forms of

thinking in education. His theory puts emphasis on analyzing and evaluating concepts,
procedures, and principles rather than just remembering facts. Bloom’s theory has a direct

impact on learners with gifted abilities because it teaches students to make their own decisions in

a classroom setting, and it teaches life skills (evidence 2.2.2). A gifted learner would be able to

use these skills in school when reading a book/article to pull out the important information, or in

the real world when posed with a problem or challenge at work. Taxonomy is often presented in

the form of a pyramid that goes into detail about the levels/steps of taxonomy which include

remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate and create (evidence 2.2.5).

Due to the works of ​Bandura, Maslow, Bloom and many more, teachers have numerous

techniques regarding how to use differentiation in their teaching. Whether its peer teaching

because some students learn best from their peers like Bandura’s theory suggests, providing a

child who skips meals with a snack every morning like Maslow’s theory suggests, or giving a

gifted learner a harder assignment like Bloom’s theory suggests, differentiation is important.

When working with students who range in ability, a teacher should be able to tailor what/ how

something is taught, so the needs of every student is met. Differentiation results in growth and

success for everyone which should be every teacher's ultimate goal.