PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES OF LEARNING PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES OF LEARNING

Definition of Learning
To gain knowledge, comprehension and mastery through experience or study ( The American Heritage Dictionary)

Refers to changes in observable behaviour (Psychologists)

A relatively permanent change in behavioural potentiality that occurs a result of reinforced practice ( Gregory A. Kimble )

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behavioural Approach
behaviourism is a theory of animal and human learning that only focuses on objectively observable behaviours and discounts mental activities. behaviour theorists define learning as nothing more than the acquisition of new behaviour.

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B.F. Skinner " The Grandfather of behaviourism"

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He and other behavioural theorists were concerned mainly with observable indications of learning and what those observations could imply for teaching.

They concentrated on observable 'cause and effect' relationships. Skinner and others viewed the teacher's job as modifying the behaviour of students by setting up situations to reinforce students when they exhibit desired responses.

behaviourists viewed learning as a sequence of stimulus and response actions in the learner.

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Conditioning
is the process by which the organism s behaviour becomes associated with some stimulus in the environment, so that when the stimulus is presented, the behaviour occurs.

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There are two different types of conditioning, each yielding a different behavioural pattern:

1.

Classical conditioning ( Type s ) occurs when a natural reflex responds to a stimulus.

Ivan Petrovich Pavlov Discovered by Russian Physiologist Ivan Pavlov (Salivation Response of Dogs)

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In this conditioning, the stimulus to which the response naturally occurs is called unconditioned stimulus. The response is called unconditioned response.

Essentially, animals and people are biologically "wired" so that a certain stimulus will produce a specific response.

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Unconditioned stimulus - presence of food Unconditioned response - salivation

Conditioned stimulus - sound of the bell

Conditioned response - salivation

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2. behavioural or Operant Conditioning type R) (

assumes that behavioural responses become connected to environmental stimuli largely as a result of what happens after the response occurs.

is a simple feedback system

If a reward or reinforcement follows the response to a stimulus, then the response becomes more probable in the future.

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B.F. Skinner used reinforcement techniques to teach pigeons to dance and bowl a ball in a mini-alley.

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Reinforcer stimuli occurring after a response

Positive Reinforcement

is the presentation of a pleasant stimulus following the occurrence of a response.

Negative Reinforcement

it refers to a method of increasing behaviour through the removal of an unpleasant stimulus following a response.

(People sometimes confuse negative reinforcement with punishment).

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Punishment is the presentation of an unpleasant stimulus following a response.

Extinction

it is a way to decrease the frequency of a response, which involves removing a pleasant stimulus that previously followed a response.

Stimulus Discrimination

is the process by which individuals learn that a particular response is appropriate in the presence of some stimuli, but not in the presence of others.

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Stimulus Generalization is the exact opposite of stimulus discrimination, it is the process by which people learn to make the same response in the presence of more than one stimulus

Shaping

it is the process of teaching anew behaviour by reinforcing behaviours that become closer and closer approximations of the desired behaviour.

(Sometimes called the method of approximations ).

successive

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There have been many criticisms of behaviourism, including the following:

1. behaviourism does not account for all kinds of learning, since it disregards the activities of the mind.

2. behaviourism does not explain some learning--such as the recognition of new language patterns by young children-- for which there is no reinforcement mechanism.

3. Research has shown that animals adapt their reinforced patterns to new information. For instance, a rat can shift its behaviour to respond to changes in the layout of a maze it had previously mastered through reinforcements.

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Edward L. Thorndike

(1874-1949)

Psychologist Wesleyan University (BS, 1895)

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Studied animal intelligence (known for his 'cats in a puzzle box' experiments on Trial and Error)

Ideas and Interests

Thorndike's early studies with animal behaviour led him to declare his Law of Effect.

The Law of Effect states that: a) Responses to a situation that are followed by satisfaction are strengthened

b) Responses that are followed by discomfort are weakened.

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How behaviourism Impacts Learning

This theory is relatively simple to understand because it relies only on observable behaviour and describes several universal laws of behaviour.

Its positive and negative reinforcement techniques can be very effective--both in animals, and in treatments for human disorders such as autism and antisocial behaviour.

behaviourism often is used by teachers, who reward or punish student behaviours.

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In short the behaviourists tried to explain learning without referring to mental processes.

The famous "Dog-Salivation-Experiment" by Ivan Petrovich Pavlov where he makes dogs salivate at the sound of a bell and with pigeons in the so called "Skinner Box" are very famous examples of behaviouristic learning experiments

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Social Learning
http://teachnet.edb.utexas.edu

Social learning theory focuses on the learning that occurs within a social context. It considers that people learn from one another, including such concepts as observational learning, imitation, and modeling. Among others Albert Bandura is considered the leading proponent of this theory.

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General principles of social learning theory

People can learn by observing the behaviour is of others and the outcomes of those behaviours. Learning can occur without a change in behaviour. behaviourists say that learning has to be represented by a permanent change in behaviour, in contrast social learning theorists say that because people can learn through observation alone, their learning may not necessarily be shown in their performance. Learning may or may not result in a behaviour change. Cognition plays a role in learning. Over the last 30 years social learning theory has become increasingly cognitive in its interpretation of human learning. Awareness and expectations of future reinforcements or punishments can have a major effect on the behaviours that people exhibit. Social learning theory can be considered a bridge or a transition between behaviourist learning theories and cognitive learning theories.

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Role of Environment
The observer is reinforced by the model. The observer is reinforced by a third person. The observer might be modeling the actions of someone else The imitated behaviour itself leads to reinforcing consequences. Many behaviours that we learn from others produce satisfying or reinforcing results Consequences of the model s behaviour affect the observers behaviour vicariously. This is known as vicarious reinforcement. This is where in the model is reinforced for a response and then the observer shows an increase in that same response

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Contemporary social learning perspective of reinforcement and punishment:

Contemporary theory proposes that both reinforcement and punishment have indirect effects on learning. They are not the sole or main cause. 2. Reinforcement and punishment influence the extent to which an individual exhibits a behaviour that has been learned. 3. The expectation of reinforcement influences cognitive processes that promote learning. Therefore attention pays a critical role in learning. And attention is influenced by the expectation of reinforcement.

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Cognitive factors in social learning

Learning without performance: Bandura makes a distinction between learning through observation and the actual imitation of what has been learned. 2. Cognitive processing during learning: Social learning theorists contend that attention is a critical factor in learning. 3. Expectations: As a result of being reinforced, people form expectations about the consequences that future behaviours are likely to bring. They expect certain behaviours to bring reinforcements and others to bring punishment. The learner needs to be aware however, of the response reinforcements and response punishment. Reinforcement increases a response only when the learner is aware of that connection. 4. Reciprocal causation: Bandura proposed that behaviour can influence both the environment and the person. In fact each of these three variables, the person, the behaviour, and the environment can have an influence on each other. 5. Modeling: There are different types of models. There is the live model, and actual person demonstrating the behaviour. There can also be a symbolic model, which can be a person or action portrayed in some other medium, such as television, videotape, computer programs.

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Modelling
Conditions necessary for effective modeling to occur: Bandura mentions four conditions that are necessary before an individual can successfully model the behaviour of someone else: 1. Attention: the person must first pay attention to the model. 2. Retention: the observer must be able to remember the behaviour that has been observed. One way of increasing this is using the technique of rehearsal. 3. Motor reproduction: the third condition is the ability to replicate the behaviour that the model has just demonstrated. This means that the observer has to be able to replicate the action, which could be a problem with a learner who is not ready developmentally to replicate the action. For example, little children have difficulty doing complex physical motion. 4. Motivation: the final necessary ingredient for modeling to occur is motivation, learners must want to demonstrate what they have learned. Remember that since these four conditions vary among individuals, different people will reproduce the same behaviour differently.

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Effects of modeling on behaviour: Modeling teaches new behaviours. Modeling influences the frequency of previously learned behaviours. Modeling may encourage previously forbidden behaviours. Modeling increases the frequency of similar behaviours. For example a student might see a friend excel in basketball and he tries to excel in football because he is not tall enough for basketball.

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Self efficacy: People are more likely to engage in certain behaviours when they believe they are capable of executing those behaviours successfully. This means that they will have high self-efficacy. In layman's terms self-efficacy could be looked as self confidence towards learning.

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Self regulation: Self-regulation has come to be more emphasized in social learning theory. Self-regulation is when the individual has his own ideas about what is appropriate or inappropriate behaviour and chooses actions accordingly. There are several aspects of self regulation: Setting standards and goals Self observation Self judge Self reaction Promoting self-regulation can be an important technique. This is usually done by teaching the individual to reward himself after doing the needed behaviour. For example, a graduate student will tell himself to complete a certain chapter before taking a break and relaxing.

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Educational implications of social learning theory

1. Students often learn a great deal simply by observing other people. 2. Describing the consequences of behaviour is can effectively increase the appropriate behaviours and decrease inappropriate ones. This can involve discussing with learners about the rewards and consequences of various behaviours. 3. Modeling provides an alternative to shaping for teaching new behaviours. Instead of using shaping, which is operant conditioning, modeling can provide a faster, more efficientmeans for teaching new behaviour. To promote effective modeling a teacher must make sure that the four essential conditions exist; attention, retention , motor reproduction, and motivation. 4. Teachers and parents must model appropriate behaviours and take care that they do not model inappropriate behaviours.

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5. Teachers should expose students to a variety of other models. This technique is especially important to break down traditional stereotypes. 6. Students must believe that they are capable of accomplishing school tasks. Thus it is very important to develop a sense of selfefficacy for students. Teachers can promote such self-efficacy by having students receive confidence-building messages, watch others be successful, and experience success on their own. . 7. Teachers should help students set realistic expectations for their academic accomplishments. In general in my class that means making sure that expectations are not set too low. I want to realistically challenge my students. However, sometimes the task is beyond a student's ability, example would be the cancer group. 8. Self-regulation techniques provide an effective method for improving student behaviour.