JOT2 - LEARNING THEORIES

And Why They Are Useful

By Anthony Williams

Task A - So Many Theories!

There are well over 20 prominent educational theorists cited and used by
teachers on a daily basis.
Their theories fall under 3 main categories
Behaviorism
Constructivism
Cognitivism

Behaviorism
Centered around the consequences and reinforcement of learned
behaviors.
Whats this look like in the classroom?
Positive reinforcement
Repetition, repetition, repetition
Student responses based on instructional cues
Corrective yet positive feedback
Practice of skills is strategically paired with targeted goals
More of a focus on fluency
Works great in Special Education

Constructivism
Learning is through the process of doing - not seeing or listening
Based on experiences and interactions
Create situational-specific understandings
Instruction supports knowledge construction not communication
Engage learning with actual tools in real world situations
Examples of lessons - Group learning, field trips, problem or object based
assignments, research projects

Cognitivism
Learning is more traditional, centered around memorization and using
mental tricks to remember key information.
Instruction is teacher led.
Looks like the following:
Explanations, demonstrations, guided examples, modeling, analogies,
metaphors, mnemonics, summaries, chunking, outlining, synthesis

All about storing information in your memory bank

Focuses on accessing prior knowledge and organizing new information.

Task B - Example Lesson

Who?
Small group, three 4th grade special education students. 1 boy, 2 girls.
Two girls form one group. The boy is separated and works alone.
Both girls have Learning Disorders, while the boy has an Emotional
Behavior Disorder.

What?
Reading and writing lesson

Where?
Special education classroom.

Why?
Scheduling, the students high level of needs demands for the setting and
manner in which the lessons are taught.

Lesson Plan
News & Feelings
The girls work on sight word flash cards. The boy begins multi-syllabic lesson from
Rewards curriculum.
The girls then begin a lesson on using boxes and bullets to identify the main idea
and supporting details.
The girls transition into independent typing exercises. I then begin the writing lesson
on revision with the male student.
One-on-one mini-lesson on revising a fictional story.
10 minutes of Free Choice earned.

What Theory Was I Using?

Predominant teaching theory used wasBehaviorism!
Why?

Short attention spans.

Positive Reinforcement
Constructive Feedback
Repetition
Free Choice

Task C - How Would This Look Using

Constructivism?
Combine the two groups.
Male student assists female students.
Peer edits
More physical interaction with the lesson
Watch clips of the movie while identifying details
Show past revisions of real books to show process in action outside of school

How Would This Look Using Cognitivism?

Audible flash card cues rather than visual
Organize sight words
Time limits for responses.
Outlined the story of the movie first.
Outlined his potential revisions.
Less question & response.

Task D - Which One Is the Best?

For this lesson Behaviorism is still the best choice.
Behaviorism because of something.
Cognitivism requires more advanced thinking. More patience and greater
attention span.
Constructivism requires something.

Task E - Why Should I Know The Different Design Theories?

We dont only teach academics

Invaluable knowledge for Special Education teachers.
More deliberate and purposeful instruction.
Different learning styles

Task F Pros/Cons of Backwards Design

Backwards Design
Strength 1 No superfluous information
Strength 2 Clear endpoint
Strength 3 Lessons geared towards assessments

Operant Conditioning
Weakness 1 Shortsighted with Special Education students
Weakness 2 A lot of pressure on the teacher

Pros/Cons Of Robert Gagnes Nine Events of

Instruction
Gagnes Nine Events of Instruction
Strength 1 Provides very clear sequence to teaching a lesson
Strength 2 Clearly identifies objectives and whats needed to meet them
Strength 3 How to cement the knowledge

Gagnes Nine Events of Instruction

Weakness 1 All learning broken down to a cognitive category
Weakness 2 Not ideal for short lessons
Weakness 3 Special Education goals dont easily align

Pros/Cons of Teaching for Understanding

Teaching for Understanding
Strength 1 Throughlines
Strength 2 More accountability
Strength 3 Particularly useful for Special Education students

Teaching for Understanding

Weakness 1 Extremely time-consuming
Weakness 2 Doesnt identify how to teach
Weakness 3 More of a framework

Task G - If I Could Only Choose One

Special Education students = Teaching for Understanding!
Time commitment not an issue
Throughlines
Less anxiety
Perfect for small groups
Framework
Weakness in Special Education