I found the session earlier this week very informative in regards to understanding the different theories of learning. It was interesting to discuss how these theories are addressed through a range of teaching styles and the impact adopting a particular style can have on different children’s learning.
Initially we covered the three theories of learning; behaviourism, constructivism and social constructivism. Discussion concluded that in the primary setting children learnt through more of an individual process and so the constructivism approach appeared more widely used, compared to the secondary setting which took a more behaviourism approach, in that the strategy of reinforcement and rewards was used to aid learning. When asked to evaluate my own experience of learning I concurred that I encountered this too. However as all children learn and adapt at different stages it provokes the question that during lessons how can teachers ensure all individuals have successfully learnt and achieved the learning outcome? Teachers must use a range of methods to assess children; written, observing and informal talks to name just a few. These assessment tools enable the teacher to gauge an understanding of whether a chunk of the teaching has been resonated and further learning has occurred for all, and so can highlight areas for development which perhaps may need further addressing in future lessons.
Through discussion it was concluded that a blended approach of teaching is necessary to achieve greatest learning for children. Social constructivism is learning through collaboration and discussion with others, as well as the learner making connections to prior knowledge. This creates the scaffolding for children’s learning. By this we mean
‘helping a child to focus on significant elements of a task, breaking a task into subsequence’s if necessary, or finding other ways to subtly support the learner to meaningfully complete the structure or task, and subtly phasing out assistance as the child’s competence increased’. (Lytle, D. E., 2003)
The idea of scaffolding supports the theory of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), in that a child cannot extend their ZPD as they are unable to move into the next stage of learning without the relevant knowledge from another. In this respect, I find scaffolding, and there social constructivism highly important in the contribution to teaching and learning.
The latter part of the session raised discussions of the effects of nature versus nurture on the different approaches of learning. How a child learns is influenced by the individual’s internal thoughts, views and beliefs. As a result of this great discussion exists as to what creates these personal characteristics. Arguments backing nature state that individuals are born with pre-determined genetics which determine the characteristics and that the individual will live their life without these changing. However arguments supporting the nurture view suggest that many factors can influence, change and adjust these characteristics, such as the way in which the individual is brought up, the environment they are in and stimulations from other outside factors for example other individuals.
Throughout my educational life I have experienced all three theories of learning. I fully agree with the idea that a blended approach is most effective when teaching as this will cater for all different types of learners and so successful learning will occur for all.
Lytle, D. E. (2003). Play and Educational Theory and Practice. London: Greenwood Publishing Group. 75.
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