Behavioral Theory

Cognitive Theory

Introduction

Task

Process

Resources

Evaluation

Conclusion

Social Learning Theory

Introduction

Definition of Cognitivism and how it applies to learning:

Cognitivism focuses on an unobservable change in mental knowledge.
Cognitivism came about as a rejection of the behaviorist views. Psychologists believed that mental events, or cognitivism, could no longer be ignored.

General Assumptions of Cognitive Theories

1. Some learning processes may be unique to human beings.
2. Cognitive processes are the focus of study.
3. Objective, systematic observations of people's behavior should be the focus of scientific inquiry, however, inferences about unobservable mental processes can often be drawn from such behavior.
4. Individuals are actively involved in the learning process.
5. Learning involves the formation of menatal assocaitions that are not necessarily reflected in overt behavior changes.
6. Knowledge is organized.
7. Learning is a process of relating new information to previously learned innformation.

General Educational Implications of Cognitive Theories:

1. Cognitive processes influence learning.
2. As children grow, they become capable of increasingly more sophisticated thought.
3. People organize the things they learn.
4. New information is most easily acquired when people can associate it with things they have already learned.
5. People control their own learning.