Learning Theory
The first part of the Instructional Design and Technology course focuses on learning theories.
These are foundational principles that underpin effective teaching and learning practices.
I am covering five pivotal theories that have shaped the landscape of education:
Behaviourism, which focuses on observable changes in behaviour; Cognitivism, which emphasises the role of mental processes in understanding information; Constructivism, which advocates for learners constructing their own understanding based on experiences; Connectivism, which highlights the importance of networks and connections in the digital age; and finally Andragogy, which centres on the specific needs and approaches for adult learning.
Behaviourism
Behaviourism is a learning theory that stems from the idea that all human behaviour is learned. Behaviourism focuses on observable and measurable behaviours.
It states that behaviours are gained by ‘conditioning’ which happens through interaction with the environment.
Cognitivism
Cognitivism centres on the mental processes involved in learning, emphasising how learners process, store, and retrieve information. Influenced by theorists such as Jean Piaget and Jerome Bruner, cognitivism highlights the importance of understanding the internal cognitive structures and the ways they are developed and altered through experience.
Licencing
For my portfolio, I have selected the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license.
Under this license, people can download and share my work, but it requires them to credit me as the author. I found this licence suitable as it allows others to modify and build upon my work but for non-commercial purposes only. I’ve always been happy to share my work with colleagues and community members, so this licence seemed to be the most appropriate for me.
Image Source: CreativeCommons.org by Cable Green is available under a
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license. I have not modified this work.