Learning Theories
Best for eLearning
Behaviorism
Learners develop new behaviors through rewards and consequences.
Instructor's Role?
Present structured material/facts. Provide opportunities for practice with feedback for right or wrong answers.
(practice tests, Quizlet)
Learner's Role?
Practice over and over until able to perform automatically.
What's Happening?
Stimulus - Response pattern transferred to new situations.
Constructivism
Learners solve problems and build knowledge through experience.
Use cues and prompts to assist students in exploring topics and coming to new understandings.
(discussions, illustrative lectures, how-to tutorials)
Learner's Role?
Actively interact with instructor, peers, and instructional materials. Make connections between old knowledge and new.
What's Happening?
Higher order thinking skills like understanding, analyzing, and applying.
Instructor's Role?
Cognitivism
Learners remember information and apply it to new situations.
Instructor's Role?
Provide strategies to progress from basic skills to more complex. Present course in structured format.
(reflections, scenarios, asking complex questions)
Use internal mental processes to learn. Contemplate, remember, create.
What's Happening?
Using knowledge in real world situations to observe, categorize, and form generalizations.
Learner's Role?
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