Learning Theories

What is learning?

• A lifelong activity.
• Can be intentionally or accidentally.
• A complex affair which involves a persisting change in human performance or performance potential.

What is learning theory?

• A set of laws or principles about learning.

As we know, many learning theories exist about how students learn. It is important to study the various learning theories so that the teachers can make deliberate arrangement events to facilitate a learner's acquisition of some goals. Furthermore, it can help the new teachers to define which educational practices are the best and suitable to help their students.

For this course, we are specifically look at two major learning theories that are behaviorism and cognitivism.

Behaviorism

• Sees learning as a product
• Prediction and control of behaviour
• Change in learner's behaviour

Cognitivism

• Place importance on meaningful learning
• Look into how learners construct meaning of the knowledge learnt or how learning takes place
• What happens in the mind
• Begins with what learners know