LEARNING THEORIES AND THEIR

IMPACT TO EPP TEACHING

LEARNING AND LEARNING THEORIES

•Learning
•is defined as a process that brings together personal and environmental experiences and
influences for acquiring, enriching or modifying one’s knowledge, skills, values, attitudes,
behavior and world views.

•Learning theories
•develop hypotheses that describe how this process takes place.
•The scientific study of learning started in earnest at the dawn of the 20th century.
•The major concepts and theories of learning include behaviorist theories, cognitive
psychology, constructivism, social constructivism, experiential learning, multiple intelligence,
and situated learning theory and community of practice.
 LEARNING
THEORIES

2. 3. Social 5.
1. Behaviorism 4. Cognitivism
Constructivist Learning Experientialism
BEHAVIORISM

• Behaviorist Theory utilizes key ideas from the work of B.F. Skinner, who theorized that
learning occurs through a series of rewards or punishments.
• While Skinner believed that all learning could occur this way, Behaviorist Theory is most
commonly utilized in classrooms today as a tool for behavior management.
• According to Skinner, rewards increase the likelihood that behaviors will be repeated, while
punishments decrease the likelihood of repetition.
• This theory can be applied in teaching EPP to motivate students to participate in lecture or
hands-on activities.
CONSTRUCTIVISM

• Constructivists see the learner as a constructor of knowledge.

• New learning is shaped by schemas, which the learner brings to the learning process.
• Lev Vygotsky is an important founder of Constructivist Theory.
• Vygotsky believed that learning is a collaborative process, and that social interaction is fundamental
for cognitive development.
• According to Vygotsky, students learn best when working collaboratively with those whose proficiency
level is higher than their own, allowing them to complete tasks they are not yet able to do
independently.
• Vygotsky identified these concepts as the More Knowledgeable Other and the Zone of Proximal
Development. Constructivist classrooms are student-centered, with the teacher acting as the
facilitator.
SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

• A well-known social learning theory has been developed by Albert Bandura, who works
within both cognitive and behavioral frameworks that embrace attention, memory and
motivation.
• His theory of learning suggests that people learn within a social context, and that learning
is facilitated through concepts such as modeling, observational learning and imitation
• Bandura put forward “reciprocal determinism” that holds the view that a person’s behavior,
environment and personal qualities all reciprocally influence each other.
• He argues that children learn from observing others as well as from “model” behavior,
which are processes involving attention, retention, reproduction and motivation.
• The importance of positive role modeling on learning is well documented.
COGNITIVISM

• Cognitive Theory is largely based on the work of Jean Piaget, who rejected the idea that
learners are passive and simply react to stimuli in the environment.
• Instead of focusing solely on observable behavior, Cognitive Theory seeks to explain how
the mind works during the learning process.
• Like a computer, the mind takes in information, processes that information, then uses that
information to produce learning outcomes.
• Piaget’s 4 Stages of Development indicate the learner’s ability to understand abstract,
complex concepts.
EXPERIENTIALISM

• Experiential learning theories build on social and constructivist theories of learning, but
situate experience at the core of the learning process.
• They aim to understand the manners in which experiences – whether first or second hand
– motivate learners and promote their learning.
• Therefore, learning is about meaningful experiences – in everyday life – that lead to a
change in an individual’s knowledge and behaviors.
EXPERIENTIALISM

• Carl Rogers is an influential proponent of these theories, suggesting that experiential learning is “self-
initiated learning” as people have a natural inclination to learn; and that they learn when they are fully
involved in the learning process.
• Rogers put forward the following insight:
• (1) “learning can only be facilitated: we cannot teach another person directly”,
• (2) “learners become more rigid under threat”,
• (3) “significant learning occurs in an environment where threat to the learner is reduced to a minimum”
• (4) “learning is most likely to occur and to last when it is self-initiated” (Office of Learning and Teaching,
2005, p. 9).
• He supports a dynamic, continuous process of change where new learning results in and affects learning
environments. This dynamic process of change is often considered in literatures on organizational learning.