Language Learning Theories

Behaviorism:
Behaviorism considers language to be a learned behavior or habit, in which we
acquire through a process of Stimuli-response or positive reinforcement or
punishment.
Pioneers of the Behaviorism theory:
Ivan Pavlov, Watson, B F Skinner, Edward Thorndike, Gagne, Bandura.
Classical conditioning C.C:
Pavlov and Watson introduced to us what we know as CC, it is the association of a
neutral stimulus with an unvoluntary response.
To test his theory, Pavlov set up an experiment in which he rang a bell shortly
before presenting food to a dog. At first, the dog elicited no response to the sound
of the bell. However, eventually, the dog began to salivate at the sound of the bell
alone.
Operant conditioning O.C:
OC is the association of a voluntary behavior with a consequence, it is learning
appropriate behaviors, because I’m going to be rewarded, I’m going to have
something good happen to me.
OC is different from CC because in CC we learn automatic responses, normal
physiological or bodily functions, the responses or behaviors that we have in OC are
totally unrelated, here we learn appropriate behaviors.
Skinner’s rat experiment:
Skinner put a rat in a box with a lever. When the rat randomly bumped on the lever,
it received food. The rat then discovered or we can say learned to click on the lever
to receive food.
We have three types of operant behaviours, Reinforcers, Punishers, and Neutrals.
Operant behaviours can be lost, gained, or changed.
We have two types of Reinforcers
- Positive reinforcers: it increases the likability, the probability or repeating the
action, the behaviour by rewarding it with something pleasant to the learner.
- Negative reinforces it increases the likability, the probability or repeating the
action, the behaviour by removing something unpleasant to the learner.
We have also two types of Punishers:
- Positive punisher: it decreases the likability, the probability or repeating the action,
the behaviour by adding something unpleasant to the learner
- Negative punisher: it decreases the likability, the probability or repeating the
action, the behaviour by removing a previous pleasant reinforcer.

Thorndike’s theory of Behaviorism: Connectionism:

Connectionism sees the learning process as the outcome of the link or association
between stimuli and response. This relationship is strengthened or weakened
according to the strength of this link that the learners have.
Cat Maze box
Thorndike placed a hungry cat in a box. He called It the puzzle box. Outside this box,
he put a fish to encourage the cat to escape or try to open the door of the box and
reach food. Thorndike timed how long it took the cat to escape the box, once it did,
he returned it back in, and repeated the experiment several times. The cat tried
many different ways to escape the puzzle box and reach the fish. Eventually it
randomly stumbled upon the lever which opened the cage. In successive trials the
cat would learn that pressing the lever would have favorable consequences and they
would adopt this behavior, becoming increasingly quick at pressing the lever.
Edward Thorndike put forward a “Law of effect” which stated that any behavior that
is followed by pleasant consequences is likely to be repeated, and any behavior
followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.

Trial and Error Theory

According to Thorndike learning takes place by trial and error. Some people call it,
“Learning by selection of the successful variant,” accordingly when no ready-made
solution of a problem is available to the learner, he adopts the method of trial and
error. He first, tries one solution. If it does not help him, he rejects it, then tries
another, and so on. In this way he eliminates errors or irrelevant responses which do
not serve the purpose and finally discovers the correct solution.
Laws of Learning
- Law of Readiness: This law states that earning takes place when an action
tendency is aroused in the learner, Readiness means a preparation for action.
If one is not prepared to learn, or doesn’t want to learn, learning cannot be
automatically instilled in him.
- Law of Effect :responses that produce a satisfying effect become more likely
to occur again, and the opposite is true, responses that produce a
discomforting or an unpleasant effect become less likely to occur again. This is
what we saw with the cat experiment. When it made an unsuccessful
 attempt, it did not repeat it. But when she made successful attempts, those
were repeated because they gave the cat a satisfying effect, which is food in
that case, the food that was placed outside the box. This is also exactly what
we see in animal-based shows like the circus, the animal gets a reward, a
satisfying effect when they perform an action. If there was no reward or a
satisfying effect, then, the action, the response, or the behaviour will less
likely to be repeated again.
- Law of Exercise : states that drills, or practice helps in increasing the efficiency
and durability of learning. Connections are strengthened with practice and
weakened when practice is discontinued. That’s why, the learner needs to
practice what has been learned in order to understand and remember the
new information.
- Example of these laws:
The classic example of Thorndike’s S-R theory was the cat trying to escape
from a “puzzle box” by pressing a lever inside the box. After much trial and
error behavior, the cat learns to associate pressing the lever (S) with opening
the door (R). This S-R connection is established because it results in a
satisfying result (escape from the box). The law of exercise specifies that the
connection was established because the S-R pairing occurred many times (the
law of effect) and was rewarded (law of effect) as well as forming a single
sequence (law of readiness).

Implication of These Laws in Education:

Thorndike’s theory of Trial and Error and his three basic laws of learning have
direct educational implications. The ‘Law of Readiness’ lays emphasis on
motivation while the ‘Law of Exercise’ compels us to accept a well-known fact
‘Practice makes a man perfect’, and the third one i.e., ‘Law of Effect’ opens
fairly a large scope to discuss the role of reward and punishment as an
incentive in the child’s learning.

Cognitivism:
This theory sees learners as rational beings that require active participation in
order to learn, and whose actions are consequence of thinking. This learning theory
came in response to behaviourism. Cognitivists claim that behaviourism failed to
explain the cognitive part of the brain, they argue that language is not just a learned
habit devoid of creativity, but learners can manipulate language and use it in a
creative way according to their abilities.
Pioneers of Cognitivism: Jean Piaget’s, Noam Chomsky.
 We have many concepts in cognitivism:
we have the concept of the mind as computers, we have the concept of Schema, we
have Chomsky’s theory innateness, we have the concept of the memory which is
divided into 4 types, Sensory, short term, working, and long-term memory, and we
have also Jean Piaget’s four stages of the cognitive development process in a child,
we have LAD, and we have adaptation, which is divided into two parts assimilation
and accommodation.
Cognitivism uses the metaphor of the mind as computer: information comes in, will
be processed, and then will lead to certain outcomes.
The concept of Schema: Schema theory states that all knowledge is organized into
units. Within these units of knowledge, or schemata, is stored information Schemata
represent knowledge about concepts: objects and the relationships they have with
other objects, situations, events, sequences of events, actions, and sequences of
actions. Learning is thus a process of relating new knowledge to previously learned
one.
Memory can be divided into four types:
- Sensory memory is the momentary storage in the brain of images or sensations
just felt, heard, seen, smelled, or tasted. Sensory memory typically last only few
seconds.
- Short term memory is that section of the memory storage system of limited
capacity that is capable of storing material for a brief period of time. In classroom
for example, the teacher has to limit the number of items given to students;
moreover, he should be aware that learners remember the first and last items on a
list rather than central ones.
- Working memory is the part of short-term memory which is concerned with
immediate conscious perceptual and linguistic processing. In classroom, the teacher
should begin with an overview of the material learned by using image
representations and mind-mapping techniques
- Long term memory is the part of the memory stage system in which information is
stored for an extended period of time. In classroom, the teacher should link material
with hints, so the learners can find it easier to remember the items presented at
class.
Chomsky’s Theory Innateness:
According to this theory, humans are born with an innate knowledge of grammar
which gives them the ability to produce and acquire language. This ability only needs
exposure to people speaking; the child biological endowment will do the rest. This
principle applies to all human languages.
This theory argues that humans are not born as a blank paper and parents, the
environment will just fill in the blanks. But they are born with an innate knowledge,
an innate device called LAD, Language acquisition device. Chomsky gave an example
of a child when sometimes he can pronounce a word which he never heard or saw
before, a word which is not used in his household or environment.
The critical period hypothesis claims that there is an ideal time window to acquire
language in a linguistically rich environment, after which further language
acquisition becomes much more difficult and effortful. This time window is from
birth to puberty.
Limitation on Chomsky’s theory: Chomsky’s work was theoretical by focusing on the
complexities of grammar and not studying children in real situations. Furthermore, it
does not take into account the interaction between children and his parents nor
does it recognize why a child might want to speak. Bars and Sachs study showed
that exposition to language alone is not enough; it needs associated interaction.
Jean Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development:
Sensorimotor (0-2 years old): The child discovers and explores the world around
him through his senses.
Preoperational (2-7 years old): The child here starts to develop language and
thinking skills in different ways, words, and behaviours.
Concrete operational (7-12 years old): The child sees the world in relation to others,
not just himself. That’s why he becomes less selfish and more rational .In this stage,
the child acquires the ability to develop and apply logical and concrete rules to
objects including the ability to classify objects into groups and subgroups, in
addition to the ability to realize that their own thoughts and feelings are unique and
may not be shared by others or may not even be part of reality.
But during this stage, most children still can't think abstractly or hypothetically.
Formal operational (12-up, Adolescence through adulthood): The child develops
logical and abstract thinking, this enables him to understand abstract topics and
advanced problem solving.

Constructivism:
Constructivism holds that people actively construct or make their own knowledge
and that reality is determined by the experiences and interactions of the learner. In
other words, constructivism believes in personal construction of meaning by the
learner through experience, and that meaning is influenced by the interaction of
prior knowledge and new events.
What are the principles of constructivism?
Knowledge is constructed, rather than innate, or passively absorbed:
Constructivism's central idea is that human learning is constructed, that learners
build new knowledge upon the foundation of previous learning.
Learning is an active process: The second notion is that learning is an active
rather than a passive process. The passive view of teaching views the learner as ‘an
empty vessel’ to be filled with knowledge, whereas constructivism states that
learners construct meaning only through active engagement with the world (such as
experiments or real-world problem solving). Information may be passively received,
but understanding cannot be, for it must come from making meaningful connections
between prior knowledge, new knowledge, and the processes involved in learning.
All knowledge is socially constructed: Learning is a social activity - it is something
we do together, in interaction with each other, rather than an abstract concept. For
example, Vygotsky believed that community plays a central role in the process of
"making meaning." For Vygotsky, the environment in which children grow up will
influence how they think and what they think about.
Thus, all teaching and learning is a matter of sharing and negotiating socially
constituted knowledge.
All knowledge is personal: Each individual learner has a distinctive point of view,
based on existing knowledge and values.
This means that same lesson, teaching or activity may result in different learning by
each pupil, as their subjective interpretations differ.
Learning exists in the mind: The constructivist theory posits that knowledge can
only exist within the human mind, and that it does not have to match any real world
reality.
Learners will be constantly trying to develop their own individual mental model of
the real world from their perceptions of that world.
As they perceive each new experience, learners will continually update their own
mental models to reflect the new information, and will, therefore, construct their
own interpretation of reality.
Development precedes learning: humans need to develop their cognitive abilities
then they can learn. This goes back to the cognitive development of the child.

What are the three main types of constructivism?

 Cognitive constructivism based on the work of Jean Piaget, social constructivism
based on the work of Lev Vygotsky, and radical constructivism based on the work of
Ernst Von Glasersfeld.
Cognitive constructivism states knowledge is something that is actively
constructed by learners based on their existing cognitive structures. Therefore,
learning is relative to their stage of cognitive development. It emphasizes the
development of meaningful learning by focusing on the mental processes that take
place within individuals.
Cognitivist teaching methods aim to assist students in assimilating new
information to existing knowledge, and enabling them to make the appropriate
modifications to their existing intellectual framework to accommodate that
information.
According to social constructivism learning is a collaborative process, and
knowledge develops from individuals' interactions with their culture and society. It
emphasized the development of meaningful learning by focusing on culture and
social interaction.
Social constructivism was developed by Lev Vygotsky who suggested that, every
function in the child's cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level
and, later on, on the individual level; first, between people (interpsychological) and
then inside the child (intrapsychological).
The notion of radical constructivism was developed by Ernst von Glasersfeld and
states that all knowledge is constructed rather than perceived through senses.
Learners construct new knowledge on the foundations of their existing
knowledge. However, radical constructivism states that the knowledge individuals
create tells us nothing about reality, and only helps us to function in your
environment. Thus, knowledge is invented not discovered.
The humanly constructed reality is all the time being modified and interacting to
fit ontological reality, although it can never give a ‘true picture’ of it.
How Cognitive Developments Occurs?
Schemas: According to Jean Piaget every child is born with innate cognitive
structures he calls schemes, they enable the child to interact with the external world
around him. Babies learn about objects around them sometimes by throwing them
on the floor. According to Piaget this approach of the child towards the object is a
schema, and he gave other examples of schemas like shucking the object, putting it
in his mouth, or banging it, hitting it on a surface, to see if it makes a sound or not, a
loud sound or a soft sound.
The Process of adaptation:
Jean Piaget viewed intellectual growth as a process of adaptation (adjustment) to
the world. This happens through assimilation, accommodation, and equilibration.
Assimilation
Piaget defined assimilation as the cognitive process of fitting new information into
existing cognitive schemas, perceptions, and understanding. Overall beliefs and
understanding of the world do not change as a result of the new information.
This means that when you are faced with new information, you make sense of this
information by referring to information you already have (information processed
and learned previously) and try to fit the new information into the information you
already have.
For example, a 2-year-old child sees a man who is bald on top of his head and has
long frizzy hair on the sides. To his father’s horror, the toddler shouts “Clown,
clown”
Accommodation
Psychologist Jean Piaget defined accommodation as the cognitive process of revising
existing cognitive schemas, perceptions, and understanding so that new information
can be incorporated. This happens when the existing schema (knowledge) does not
work, and needs to be changed to deal with a new object or situation.
In order to make sense of some new information, you actual adjust information you
already have (schemas you already have, etc.) to make room for this new
information.
For example, a child may have a schema for birds (feathers, flying, etc.) and then
they see a plane, which also flies, but would not fit into their bird schema.
In the “clown” incident, the boy’s father explained to his son that the man was not a
clown and that even though his hair was like a clown’s, he wasn’t wearing a funny
costume and wasn’t doing silly things to make people laugh.
With this new knowledge, the boy was able to change his schema of “clown” and
make this idea fit better to a standard concept of “clown”.
Equilibration
Piaget believed that all human thought seeks order and is uncomfortable with
contradictions and inconsistencies in knowledge structures. In other words, we seek
'equilibrium' in our cognitive structures.
Equilibrium occurs when a child's schemas can deal with most new information
through assimilation. However, an unpleasant state of disequilibrium occurs when
new information cannot be fitted into existing schemas (assimilation).
Piaget believed that cognitive development did not progress at a steady rate, but
rather in leaps and bounds. Equilibration is the force which drives the learning
process as we do not like to be frustrated and will seek to restore balance by
mastering the new challenge (accommodation).
Once the new information is acquired, the process of assimilation with the new
schema will continue until the next time we need to make an adjustment to it.

Constructivist approaches to teaching:

Constructivist learning theory underpins a variety of student-centered teaching
methods and techniques which contrast with traditional education, whereby
knowledge is simply passively transmitted by teachers to students.
What is the role of the teacher in a constructivist classroom?
The primary responsibility of the teacher is to create a collaborative problem-solving
environment where students become active participants in their own learning.
From this perspective, a teacher acts as a facilitator of learning rather than an
instructor.
The teacher makes sure he/she understands the students' pre-existing conceptions,
and guides the activity to address them and then build on them.
Scaffolding is a key feature of effective teaching, where the adult continually adjusts
the level of his or her help in response to the learner's level of performance.
In the classroom, scaffolding can include modelling a skill, providing hints or cues,
and adapting material or activity.
What are the features of a constructivist classroom?
 Tam lists the following four basic characteristics of constructivist learning
environments, which must be considered when implementing constructivist
teaching strategies:
1) Knowledge will be shared between teachers and students.
2) Teachers and students will share authority.
3) The teacher's role is one of a facilitator or a guide.
4) Learning groups will consist of small numbers of heterogeneous students.

Traditional Classroom Constructivist Classroom

Strict adherence to a fixed Pursuit of student questions and

curriculum is highly valued. interests is valued.

Learning is based on repetition. Learning is interactive, building on

what the student already knows.

Teacher-centered. Student-centered.

Teachers disseminate information Teachers have a dialogue with

to students; students are students, helping students
recipients of knowledge (passive construct their own knowledge
learning). (active learning).

Teacher's role is directive, rooted Teacher's role is interactive,

in authority. rooted in negotiation.

Students work primarily alone Students work primarily in groups

(competitive). (cooperative).

What are the pedagogical (teaching) goals of constructivist classrooms?

Honebein summarizes the seven pedagogical goals of constructivist learning
environments:
1) To provide experience with the knowledge construction process (students
determine how they will learn).
2) To provide experience in and appreciation for multiple perspectives (evaluation of
alternative solutions).
3) To embed learning in realistic contexts (authentic tasks).
4) To encourage ownership and a voice in the learning process (student centered
learning).
5) To embed learning in social experience (collaboration).
6) To encourage the use of multiple modes of representation, (video, audio text,
etc.)
7) To encourage awareness of the knowledge construction process (reflection,
metacognition).
Twelve descriptors of constructivist teaching behaviours:
• 1. Encourage and accept student autonomy and initiative.
• 2. Use raw data and primary sources, along with manipulative, interactive,
and physical materials.
• 3. When framing tasks, use cognitive terminology such as “classify,” analyse,”
“predict,” and “create.”
• 4. Allow student responses to drive lessons, shift instructional strategies, and
alter content.
• 5. Inquire about students’ understandings of the concepts before sharing
[your] own understandings of those concepts.
• 6. Encourage students to engage in dialogue, both with the teacher and with
one another.
• 7. Encourage student inquiry by asking thoughtful, open-ended questions and
encouraging students to ask questions of each other.
• 8. Seek elaboration of students’ initial responses.
• 9. Engage students in experiences that might engender contradictions to their
initial hypotheses and then encourage discussion.
• 10. Allow wait time after posing questions.
• 11. Provide time for students to construct relationships and create
metaphors.
• 12. Nurture students’ natural curiosity through frequent use of the learning
cycle model.

Socio-Constructivism:
 The work of Lev Vygotsky has become the foundation of much research and
theory in cognitive development over the past several decades, particularly of
what has become known as sociocultural theory.
Vygotsky's sociocultural theory views human development as a socially mediated
process in which children acquire their cultural values, beliefs, and problem-
solving strategies through collaborative dialogues with more knowledgeable
members of society. Vygotsky's theory is comprised of concepts such as culture-
specific tools, Scaffolding, and the Zone of Proximal Development.
Vygotsky's theories stress the fundamental role of social interaction in the
development of cognition, as he believed strongly that community plays a central
role in the process of "making meaning" But unlike Piaget's notion that children’s
development must necessarily precede their learning, Vygotsky argued, "learning
is a necessary and universal aspect of the process of developing culturally
organized, specifically human psychological function". In other words, social
learning tends to precede, to come before development.
Vygotsky's theory differs from that of Piaget in a number of important ways:

2: Vygotsky places considerably more emphasis on social factors contributing to

cognitive development.
(i) Vygotsky states the importance of cultural and social context for learning.
Cognitive development stems from social interactions from guided learning
within the zone of proximal development as children and their partner's co-
construct knowledge. In contrast, Piaget maintains that cognitive development
stems largely from independent explorations in which children construct
knowledge of their own.
(ii) For Vygotsky, the environment in which children grow up will influence how
they think and what they think about.
Effects of Culture: - Tools of intellectual adaptation
Vygotsky claimed that infants are born with the basic abilities for intellectual
development called 'elementary mental functions.
Elementary mental functions include –
o Attention o Sensation o Perception o Memory
Eventually, through interaction within the sociocultural environment, these are
developed into more sophisticated and effective mental processes which
Vygotsky refers to as 'higher mental functions.'
Each culture provides its children tools of intellectual adaptation that allow them
to use the basic mental functions more effectively/adaptively.
Tools of intellectual adaptation is Vygotsky’s term for methods of thinking and
problem-solving strategies that children internalize through social interactions
with the more knowledgeable members of society.
For example, memory in young children this is limited by biological factors.
However, culture determines the type of memory strategy we develop. For
example, in western culture, children learn note-taking to aid memory, but in
pre-literate societies, other strategies must be developed, such as tying knots in
a string to remember, or carrying pebbles, or repetition of the names of
ancestors until large numbers can be repeated.
Vygotsky, therefore, sees cognitive functions, even those carried out alone, as
affected by the beliefs, values, and tools of intellectual adaptation of the culture
in which a person develops and therefore socio-culturally determined. The tools
of intellectual adaptation, therefore, vary from culture to culture - as in the
memory example.
The Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding:
The zone of proximal development refers to the difference between what a
learner can do without help and what he or she can achieve with guidance and
encouragement from a skilled partner.
To assist a person to move through the zone of proximal development, educators
are encouraged to focus on three important components which aid the learning
process:
• The presence of someone with knowledge and skills beyond that of the
learner (a more knowledgeable other).
• Social interactions with a skillful tutor that allow the learner to observe and
practice their skills.
• Scaffolding, or supportive activities provided by the educator, or more
competent peer, to support the student as he or she is led through the ZPD.
Scaffolding:
Scaffolding consists of the activities provided by the educator, or more
competent peer, to support the student as he or she is led through the zone of
proximal development. Support will be withdrawn as it becomes unnecessary,
the student will then be able to complete the task again on his own.
Lev Vygotsky views interaction with peers as an effective way of developing skills
and strategies. He suggests that teachers use cooperative learning exercises
where less competent children develop with help from more skilful peers - within
the zone of proximal development.
Scaffolding is a key feature of effective teaching, where the adult continually
adjusts the level of his or her help in response to the learner's level of
performance.
In the classroom, scaffolding can include modelling a skill, providing hints or cues,
and adapting material or activity, or verbally encouraging the learner.
Application of this Theory in Education:
A contemporary application of Vygotsky's theories is "reciprocal teaching," used
to improve students' ability to learn from text. In this method, teacher and
students collaborate in learning and practicing four key skills: summarizing,
questioning, clarifying, and predicting. The teacher's role in the process is
reduced over time.
Another application of this theory is group work or collaborative learning, here,
we have social interactions with peers and the teacher, also, the more skillful
peers (the knowledgeable other) can help those who are less skillful to operate
within their ZPD.

Humanism
The humanistic theory approach engages social skills, feelings, intellect, artistic
skills, practical skills, and more as part of their education. Self-esteem, goals, and
full autonomy are key learning elements in the humanistic learning theory.
History:
The humanistic learning theory was developed by Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers,
and James F. T. Bugental in the early 1900's. Humanism was a response to the
common educational theories at the time, which were behaviourism and
psychoanalysis. In this theory, Abraham Maslow suggested that before
individuals meet their full potential, they need to satisfy a series of needs.
However, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs can provide teachers a reminder and
framework that our students are less likely to perform at their full potential if
their basic needs are unmet.
The role of the teacher:
Humanistic teachers believe that knowledge and feelings go hand-in-hand in the
learning process. Cognitive and affective learning are both important to
humanistic learning. Lessons and activities should focus on the whole student
and their intellect and feelings, not one or the other.
The role of the student:
Students are responsible for learning choices, so helping them understand the
best ways to learn is key to their success. Provide motivation for classroom tasks.
Humanistic learning focuses on engagement, so teachers need to provide
motivation and exciting activities to help students feel engaged about learning.
Application of humanism in classroom:
The humanistic learning theory developed further and harnesses the idea that if
students are upset, sad, or distressed, they're less likely to be able to focus on
learning. This encourages teachers to create classroom environment that helps
students feel comfortable and safe so they can focus on their learning.
Positives of humanism in teaching:
It considers emotional states and how they impact learning, unlike many other
theories.

Gestalt Theory
According to the Gestalt Theory, which is commonly known as the Law of
Simplicity, every stimulus is perceived by humans in its “most simple form”. The
main focus of the theory is “grouping” and the entire theory emphasizes on the
fact that the whole of anything is greater than the sum of its parts. Besides,
“gestalt” in German means the “shape of an entity’s complete form”. Thus, the
operational principle of the brain is holistic and has a self-organizing inclination.
The 4 Laws of Organization
The factors that determine the principle of “grouping” –also known as the “laws
of organization”- are the following:
1. Proximity
Elements are typically grouped together based on their immediacy
2. Similarity
Elements similar to one another tend to be grouped together
3. Closure
Elements are typically grouped together if they are a part of an entity
4. Simplicity
Elements should be organized into simplistic figures, based on their
symmetry, smoothness and regularity
The primary goal of the Gestalt Theory is to encourage the brain to view not just
the whole, but also the parts that make up that whole. For example, when
someone is looking at a tree, is he just staring at this tree, or does he also see the
leaves, the branches, and the trunk? The whole and the sum of its parts are two
entirely different things, and learning can be achieved if learners are able to
cognitively process how parts can make up this whole.
The main principles of the Gestalt Theory
The main principles of the Gestalt Theory in Learning are:
1. Teachers should encourage their students to discover the relationship of the
elements that make up a problem
2. Incongruities, gaps, or disturbances are essential stimuli in the learning
process
3. Educational instruction should be based on the Laws of Organization
In a learning environment, the Gestalt Theory applies to problem solving and
perception. However, it can be used in all aspects of education. A perfect
example was provided by Wertheimer himself, when he asked children to find
the area of a parallelogram. He suggested that, as long as parallelograms had a
normal shape, the children could apply the standard procedure in order to
determine the area. However, if the parallelogram had an irregular shape,
children could not apply the same logic or principles, but had to solve the
problem by understanding the actual structure of the shape.

Multiple Intelligence Theory

The theory of multiple intelligences proposes the differentiation of human
intelligence into specific “modalities of intelligence”, rather than defining
Intelligence as a single, general ability. This theory was developed by Howard
Gardner.
There are eight multiple Intelligences:
Linguistic intelligence
- Ability to use language effectively, either in oral or written forms.
Musical Intelligence
- Ability to perceive, identify, transform and express musical forms.
Logical-Mathematical intelligence
- Ability to use numbers effectively and analyze problems logically.
Spatial intelligence
- Ability to imagine drawings in two or three dimensions and to
understand space.
Body-Kinaesthetic intelligence
- Ability to express ideas, handle tools, or perform physical
exercises with the body.
Interpersonal intelligence
- Ability to interpret the mental state (feelings & motivations) of
others.
Intrapersonal intelligence
- Ability to understand oneself.
Naturalistic intelligence
- Ability to identify, classify, and manipulate elements in the
environment.
Knowing how to target the various intelligence of students can help teachers to
plan engaging and effective lessons.

Bloom’s Taxonomy
We talk about learning levels in teaching with reference to the of Bloom’s
Taxonomy theory.
This theory suggests that not all the student have the same level of
learning or skills. If fact, there are six levels of cognitive learning according
to the revised version of Bloom's Taxonomy. Each level is conceptually
different. The six levels are remembering, understanding, applying,
analyzing, evaluating, and creating.
Based on this statement, Bloom's taxonomy can be an important tool in
differentiating between students who have widely varying comprehension
and skill levels. Teachers can do an initial assessment to see where students
fall on this taxonomy. Then, they can have students work to master the
level they are already at, and the students can proceed to higher levels
when they have mastered that particular aspect of the taxonomy. In this
way, the same basic content can be taught, but instruction can be more
individualized based on each of their varying skill levels.
For example, a literature teacher could have all of the students in a
classroom read the same story. He or she could then tailor the questions to
suit a particular student's ability using the verbs supplied by the taxonomy
scale. A student who registers low on the scale could be asked to describe
or explain something, while a student whose skill level is higher could be
asked to compare and contrast something. Ideally, the teacher should
include questions that work on the student's current level of understanding
and also incorporate questions that are on the next level up in the
taxonomy. This prevents students from feeling discouraged and giving up.
It also bolsters confidence and challenges students in a way that is not
overwhelming.
Again, the teacher should include these things in the lesson plan before the
teaching process.