Week Two: Learning Theories

Question 1

What were the findings from Pavlov’s Dog?

Answer 1

That behavior can be learned through association, and how stimuli can trigger automatic responses based on previous experiences.

Question 2

What were the findings from the Little Albert Experiment?

Answer 2

That emotions, such as fear, can be conditioned and generalised; contributing to the understanding of behaviourism

Question 3

What is Associationism?

Answer 3

learning involves the formation of connections between stimuli and responses

Question 4

What are the fundamentals of Operant Conditioning?

Answer 4

Responses that have positive outcomes are more likely to be repeated (and vice versa)

Question 5

What is Thorndike’s law of Readiness?

Answer 5

Students learn best when they are physically, mentally, and emotionally ready to learn; they do not learn well if they see no reason to learn.

Question 6

What is Thorndike’s law of Exercise?

Answer 6

Things most repeated are learned the best; you cannot learn a complex task in a single session!

Question 7

What is Thorndike’s law of Effect?

Answer 7

Learning is best when accompanied by a pleasant feeling and vice versa. Efficient learning occurs when learning is pleasant, and the learner takes satisfaction out of learning.

Question 8

What are the four key principles of Thorndike’s theory?

Answer 8

Practice and reward, stimulus and response, transfer of knowledge, association.

Question 9

What is positive reinforcement?

Answer 9

Adding something positive

Question 10

What is negative reinforcement?

Answer 10

Deleting something negative

Question 11

What is punishment?

Answer 11

Weakening a behavior by linking it to an aversive consequence; can occur through the addition, or removal of stimuli

Question 12

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 12

Consequences lead to a change in voluntary behavior

Question 13

What is classical conditioning?

Answer 13

Association of a stimulus with an involuntary reaction

Question 14

What is the food in Pavlov’s Dog experiment?

Answer 14

Unconditioned stimulus: no one teaches a dog to salivate to steak

Question 15

What is the dog’s salivation to food in Pavlov’s Dog experiment?

Answer 15

Unconditioned response: no one teaches dogs to salivate over food

Question 16

What is the neutral stimulus in Pavlov’s Dog experiment?

Answer 16

The sound of a bell before it has been associated with the presentation of food: it doesn’t mean anything to a dog unless conditioned to be

Question 17

What is the conditioned stimulus in Pavlov’s Dog experiment?

Answer 17

The sound of a bell after it has been associated with the presentation of food: the dog learns the sound of the bell means food is coming!

Question 18

What are Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development?

Answer 18

Sensorimotor stage, Preoperational stage, Concrete operations stage, Formal operations stage

Question 19

What occurs in the sensorimotor stage (Piaget)

Answer 19

physical interactions with the environment, cognition, and action; i.e. language, symbolic thought, memory

Question 20

What occurs in the preoperational stage (Piaget)

Answer 20

Development of operations and mental actions that follow rules, development of egocentrism centration (Focus on a single thing alone).

Question 21

What occurs in the concrete operations stage (Piaget)

Answer 21

Reversibility of operations, classification into hierarchies, logical and concrete thinking

Question 22

What occurs in the formal operations stage (Piaget)

Answer 22

Abstract thinking, hypothetical thinking

Question 23

What is constructivism

Answer 23

Learners construct their own knowledge when learning, through psychological constructivism and social constructivism

Question 24

What is psychological constructivism

Answer 24

Existing knowledge of the learner activel interact with the environment

Question 25

What is social constructivism

Answer 25

Social interaction and socio-cultural factors shape the learning process.

Question 26

What is observational learning?

Answer 26

That learners can learn through the way people behave

Question 27

What are the four aspects of Bondura's social-cognitive learning theory?

Answer 27

Attention, memory, imitation, and motivation

Question 28

What are Maslow's hierarchy of needs? (Bottom to top of pyramid)

Answer 28

Physiological (air, water), Safety, Love/Belonging, Esteem (respect, strength), Self Actualisation (Desire to do the best/most)

Question 29

What is the basic idea of the humanist learning theory?

Answer 29

Humans are good and want to learn, but may be prevented from doing so if criteria is not met (Maslow's hierarchy)

Question 30

What four stages of contexts make up Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model (inner circle to outer circle)

Answer 30

The Child, The Microsystem, The Mesosystem, The Exosystem, The Macrosystem

Question 31

What is 'The Mesosystem' section of Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

Answer 31

Childs relationship between microsystems in one life; i.e. their home-school relationship, parent-peer relationship.

Question 32

What is 'The child' in Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

Answer 32

The individual themselves; i.e. their Age, Sex, Health

Question 33

What is 'The Exosystem' section of Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

Answer 33

Contexts that individual isn't apart of, but can effect their life by effecting the micro/mesosystems; i.e. Extended family, Legal services, Media

Question 34

What contexts are included in the 'The Microsystem' section of Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

Answer 34

Immediate setting that individual interacts with, i.e. Family, peers, school, health services

Question 35

What contexts are included in the 'The Macrosystem' section of Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

Answer 35

The social and cultural norms of society, Attitudes and ideologies of culture, societal practices and expectations. i.e. national laws, expectation of a certain gender.

Question 36

What is the zone of proximal development?

Answer 36

The space between what a learner can do without assistance and what they cannot do, even with help. It identifies the skills that are just beyond a learner's current capabilities but can be mastered with guidance.

Question 37

What is self-efficacy?

Answer 37

Self-efficacy is a concept developed by psychologist Albert Bandura that refers to an individual's belief in their ability to successfully perform a specific task or achieve a particular goal. It plays a crucial role in motivation, learning, and personal development.

Question 38

How do Piaget's and Vgotsky's theories of cognitive development/learning differ

Answer 38

Piaget focuses on stages of cognitive development, whereas Vygotsky proposes that cognitive development is a continuous process influenced by social interactions and the cultural context.