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Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778)
Jean-Jacques Rousseau focus is one of the first of child-centered learning theories. He believed that children should learn and develop naturally and freely in an environment. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
John Dewey (1859–1952)
John Dewey believed that learning comes from structured experience through socializing and other modes of inquiry. He incorporated hands-on and real-world experiences while including students' interest to create meaning of curriculum. His theories set-up practices for 21st-century learning like problem-based learning and student-centered activities. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
Maria Montessori (1870–1952)
Maria Montessori constructed the idea of early childhood education where the idea of free play with manipulatives and freedom expression is a way for students can learn. She believes in constructed student-centered activities with little adult facilitation. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
Edward Thorndike (1874 - 1949)
In Thorndike's scientific approach to learning, he believed that people can people learned through experimentation and trial-and-error. In his theory, he believes people are able to learn if they are mentally stimulated with the information. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
Lev Vygotsky: (1896–1934)
As part of the constructivist learning theory, he believed that through scaffolding and guidance, students can learning and reach each zone of development. In each ZPD, each child has a zone of which is they are able to do independently and a zone that needs guidance from the teacher in order to succeed. (Learning Theories and Theorists, n.d.) -
Jean Piaget (1896–1980)
Piaget's theories incorporate developmental stages of humans from birth till old age and mapping them into four cognitively developmental stages (sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete, formal operations). He recognized that students' development of knowledge correlates to their biological state of development. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
B.F Skinner (1904–1990)
B.F Skinner is a behavior theorist that believes that learning can be achieved by shaping a person's behavior. Students can learn different behaviors and skills from modeling from the teacher along with operational behavior techniques. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
Jerome Bruner (1915-2016)
Jerome Bruner focused on child discovery as the basis of learning by interacting with the world by exploring ideas, objects, questions, and doing different experiments. A method is using inquiry-based and problem-solving strategies to derive a solution, idea, or theory to a question. (How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory, 2015) -
Albert Bandura: (1925--)
In Bandura’s theory, students learn behaviors by observing models and examples of specific behaviors. His ideas in Social Learning Theory led a path for observational learning. (Learning Theories and Theorists, n.d.). -
Ellen Langer (1947--)
In Langer’s theory, students are able to make decisions and reflect on learning experiences. Students are open to new pieces of information and able to construct mindfulness and meaning from different perspectives. (Learning Theories and Theorists, n.d.) -
References
*How People Learn: Introduction to Learning Theory. (2015). Annenberg Learner (Firm). *Learning Theories and Theorists. Retrieved from https://tomprof.stanford.edu/posting/1711
