The Description Of Learning Theories

Learning theories are grouped into four main categories to include behaviorism, cognitive, humanistic, and social aspect. The concept of behaviorist perspective views learning as a result of environmental experiences. How the individual learns depends on the consequences of actions, that is, positive experiences are reinforced while negative do not tend to recur. This shows that behavior of the learner can be programmed. The concept of behavior theory is mostly used in health situations to promote not only individual health but community health as well. The social learning theory stresses the impact of environment on
the individual behavior. It emphasizes that the person could be influenced through observing other people or could be taught through modeling. In the study by Huesmann and Taylor (2006), they found out that violent news reports and fictional films increases aggression among young audience. This shows that social learning theory is used to influence values and attitude. Of particular concern are the negative effects it can do to a person. Although, the learning is not evident at the moment, it retains in the memory because of attention and may be reproduced when same scenario is presented. To answer the whys and how the individual learned the behavior could be answered using the social learning theory. The humanistic learning theory considers that learning takes place when feelings, ideas, and intention come into play. This theory focuses more on self awareness to achieve personal fulfillment. It also proposes that each individual has the capability to learn however the provision of the right environment is important if the person is to bring out his full potentials. Proponents of this theory also explained that the individual has to be studied as a whole and not only a part of him.
An example where this theory can be used is in counseling. The therapists can successfully treat patients who need to effectively communicate to others provided the therapist set aside all prior knowledge of the patient to fully understand the true nature of the person’s thoughts and feelings to provide appropriate intervention. If humanistic theory is geared towards studying the whole person, cognitive theory focuses on rational thinking. With this concept, individuals are responsible for their actions as epitomized in the study by Hammer (2010) where it was found out that criminal juveniles are fully capable of their behavior. The study further revealed that after a year of therapy using the cognitive-behavioral theory, the behavior of juvenile criminals showed a significant change. This shows that cognitive theory can be used in modifying behavior. Proponents of this theory also explain that a person is motivated with his intrinsic needs and to successfully adapt to his environment, there is a need to reorganize his thoughts. This is evident in a teaching- learning situation. In the excerpt from the study conducted by Blanton (1998), she found out that student are motivated to learn if they know the learning activity benefits them. Students who understand the purpose of any educational activity learns better and could retain the information than those who have no background knowledge of the relevance of the activity. Over all, learning theories help to solve problems of everyday life. Without the learning theories, people will not be able to adapt to the changing environment. Miller (2001) in his study pointed out that the theory of Carl Rogers is deemed empirical in this aspect where the learner has to learn how to learn to survive the ever changing environment. Miller further explained that in the life of students, they have to learn different adaptive ways because learning entails a variety of learning situations.


Article Written By i-churya

full time ESL teacher who enjoys traveling and meeting other people from all over the globe

Last updated on 28-07-2016 1K 0

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