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Classical conditioning - Pavlov
Classical conditioning Classical conditioning, stimulus response. In classical conditioning a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a reflex reaction e.g. a bell is rung and salivation occurs (Experiments on digestion in dogs) -
Connectionism - Thorndike
Connectionism Thorndike’s theory consists of three laws: effect (responses to a stimulus which are rewarded will become habitualised), readiness (series of responses can be chained together) and exercise (connections become strengthened with practice). These actions resulted in the formation of neural bonds or connections between perceived stimuli and emitted responses. -
Purposive behaviourism - Tolman
Sign Theory An example of purposive behaviourism in which learning is sign-oriented and goal-driven, rather than by the usual S-R. -
Classical conditioning - Watson
Behaviourism Classical conditioning, stimulus response. Extended Pavlov’s work into the behaviours of young children, suggesting that classical conditioning could cause phobias. (Work on infants using rats and a loud bell to induce fear where previously there had been none) -
Mastery Learning - Morrison
Mastery Learning Mastery learning - "Pretest, teach, test the result, adapt procedure, teach and test again to the point of actual learning." -
ZPD - Vygotsky
Zone of Proximal Development Learning is fundamentally a social process in which cognitive development occurs through interactions between and connections with more knowledgeable others. Learning occurs best when activities are within the Zone of Proximal Development, the gap between a learner being able to solve a problem independently and being able to solve it with guidance from others. -
Developmental Stage Theory - Piaget
Developmental Stage Theory Individuals construct knowledge through the processes of assimilation and accommodation. Views cognitive development of children as having four distinct stages which are sequential and related to age: Sensorimotor (Learning is through assimilation (organising information into existing schema) and accommodation (modifying schema)), Preoperational (make mental representations of unseen objects), Concrete (employ deductive reasoning) and Formal (use abstract thought). -
Drive Reduction Theory - Hull
Drive Reduction Theory Hull’s version of behaviourism, like others, explored stimulus-response circumstances, but uniquely proposed that individual must be driven or desire the outcome arising from the response. (e.g. the student must want to learn) -
Operant conditioning - Skinner
Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning, stimulus response. A learner working in an environment discovers that certain behaviours or actions result in a stimulus or reward. Behavioural shaping involves rewarding behaviours which become progressively closer to that of the ideal. The desired response can be reinforced more successfully through partial reinforcement schedules – where the correct response is reinforced some of the time. -
Taxonomies of learning behaviours - Bloom
Bloom's Taxonomy Cognitive and Psychomotor taxonomies of learning behaviours -
Cognitive Dissonance - Festinger
Cognitive Dissonance When an individual experiences tension as a result of inconsistency between two or more cognitions s/he is said to suffer cognitive dissonance. This tension can be reduced in three ways: reducing the importance of the conflicting beliefs, acquiring new beliefs which restore the balance or removing the source of conflict. -
Subsumption Theory - Ausubel
Subsumption Theory When presented with new material, learners reorganize their existing cognitive structures to accommodate this fresh information and lead to conceptual understanding. -
Conditions of Learning - Gagne
Conditions of Learning The Conditions of Learning specifies a taxonomy of several different types or levels of learning: verbal information, intellectual skills, cognitive strategies, motor skills and attitudes. In addition, Gagne outlines 9 instructional tasks and the corresponding cognitive processes. -
Attribution Theory - Weiner
Attribution Theory People try to determine why people do what they do. This attribution takes place in three stages: observing a behaviour, determining it to be deliberate and attributing it to internal or external causes. -
Social Learning - Bandura
Social Learning Theory People learn from one another by observation and imitation of the attitudes, behaviours and emotional reactions of others in order to form a guide for future actions. -
Looped Learning - Argyris & Schon
Double-loop learning in organisations (PDF) Learning involves detection and correction of errors which can be achieved either by searching for an alternative strategy (single-loop learning) or questioning the original premise upon which the strategy was based (double-loop-learning) -
Domain of Cognition - Stahl & Murphy
A taxonomic arrangement of 21 different compenents of memory, thinking and learning -
SOLO Taxonomy - Biggs & Collis
SOLO Taxonomy The SOLO (Structure of Observed Learning Outcome) Taxonomy describes a sequence of five levels, increasing in complexity, of a student's understanding. -
Theory of Multiple Intelligences - Gardner
Theory of Multiple Intelligences This notion proposes seven ways through which people perceive or understand the world: visual-spatial, bodily-kinaesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic & logical-mathematic. -
Experiential Learning - Kolb
Experiential Learning Learning is cyclical consisting of four stages: concrete experience (DO), reflective observation, (OBSERVE), abstract conceptualisation (THINK) and active experimentation (PLAN) -
Distributed Cognition - Hutchins
Distributed Cognition This proposes that knowledge, cognition and experience are distributed across the individuals, artefacts and tools in an environment. -
Cognitive Apprenticeship - Collins et al
Cognitive Apprenticeship - Collins, Brown & Newman Learning is both situated within a context and guided by a community and more knowledgeable others. -
Situated Learning - Lave
Situated Learning Rather than dealing with abstract knowledge, <b>situated learning</b> is embedded within an activity, context or culture. It is often unintentional, rather than deliberate and is termed legitimate peripheral participation. -
Cognitive Load Theory - Sweller
Cognitive Load Theory Explains the importance of ensuring that the load on working memory is not excessive, thereby allowing long-term memory to accommodate the necessary changes in schema when learning occurs. -
Cognitive Flexibility Theory - Spiro et al
Cognitive flexibility theory - Spiro, Feltovitch & Coulson Describes the “ability to spontaneously restructure ones knowledge ... to radically changing situational demands.” As such, knowledge transfer to new situations is of great importance. -
Communities of Practice - Lave & Wenger
Communities of Practice Learning socially through participation and collaboration in a group of people with common interests undertaking a specific practice. -
Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning - Mayer
Cognitive theory of multimedia learning The act of learning (filtering, selecting, organising and integrating information) is more effective when drawing on the potential of using the visual and auditory channels for processing the information in parallel -
Taxonomy of Essential Thinking Skills - Presseisen
To support teachers in developing thinking skills in their students. Aims to improve students' cognitive performance by encouraging self-regulation. -
Connectivism - Downes & Siemens
Connectivism Knowledge exists within networks (of people and technologies) rather than solely within individuals; learning is the cultivation of the network by reorganising the nodes and connections to provide meaning.
