Theory Summaries

Locke and Rousseau: Learning Theory

John Locke is a major contributor to the learning theory. He considered children to be

born as blank slates, or “tabula rasa” (Crain, 2011). This means that children’s biology doesn’t

have a very profound impact on how they turn out if those around them molded them into what

they wanted them to become. Rather than relying on their inherent goodness, Locke proposed

that socialization would have a deeper effect on their learning.

Relationships with others has a large influence on children as they grow

and learn. They would become attached to and act like those that they

trust. Locke also said that rewards and punishments, repetition, and

imitation were effective ways for children to learn from their

environment.

(Sections of this assignment are excluded for the sake of brevity, as denoted by ellipses.)

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Jean-Jacque Rousseau is a large proponent of developmental theory, which says that

children develop as their genes direct (Crain, 2011). Nature is the main drive of development in

his point of view. Rousseau believed that children should be kept away

from the “social norms” and choose for themselves what they would

develop as (Crain, 2011). The nature in them would drive them to

develop successfully.

Rousseau asserted that there are essentially four stages of child

development: 1) Infancy (birth to 2 years), where the child would

experience the world mostly through their senses; 2) Childhood (2 to 12 years), where the child

gains a new sense of independence; 3) Late Childhood (12 to 15 years), where the child
transitions to adolescence and gains important physical and social skills; and 4) Adolescence (15

years to adulthood), where the child hits puberty and their cognitive skills increase significantly

(Crain, 2011, p. 15-16).

As we combine Locke’s and Rousseau’s ideas, we are able to see a basic and more

complete picture of how children truly develop and learn through a combination of experiences

involving nature and nurture. Core Concept 1 states that “Human development is shaped by

a dynamic and continuous interaction between biology and experience” (Phillips &

Shonkoff, 2000). This means that children really do have a say in their development as they

experience things and learn about the world around them, but they will still be influenced

by biological factors.

Key Terms and Concepts

Learning Theory: Children can become what they are molded to become through the

conditioning of those who desire them to learn. Locke was a primary contributor to this theory.

Nurture: Children will develop and change based on their experiences and the environment in

which they live, as theorized by Locke.

“tabula rasa”: Locke said children are a blank slate; can be painted upon like an empty canvas.

Socialization: Locke said children should become exposed to social interaction and taught to

abide by social cues and expectations.

“noble savage”: Children were not born evil but should be non-socialized and kept good as they

govern their own choices and are given freedom, as stated by Rousseau.

Nature: Rousseau said that children’s development depends on their genetic makeup.

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 B.F. Skinner

B. F. Skinner was a “strict behaviorist” (Crain 2011, p. 187) just like John Watson. He

advocated for the dispense of the use of phrases related feelings, because they came from internal

sources rather than external ones, which seemed a lot more powerful to him. He even published a

novel called Walden Two, which is about the utopian society that would exist if everyone used

his conditioning principles. Skinner believed that operant conditioning would be a better

conditioning method than classical conditioning because reflexes wouldn’t be involved.

Skinner diverged from Watson’s ideas and began to come up with new terminology and

different hypotheses regarding what kind of behavioristic techniques would work better in

molding children through the stimuli that are exposed to them. Reinforcement, shaping,

generalization, and other ideas helped to shape his further findings.

Since Skinner was so opposed to feelings having much effect on behavior, he ran into

difficulties that confused him. For example, he couldn’t see the mechanism for a person’s drive

to do something. He acknowledged that humans have emotions, but they affect our actions just

as much as thoughts do. This seems contradictory, but he still argued that we don’t only behave a

certain way because we “feel like it” (Crain 2011, 195).

This idea goes completely against Core Concept 4, which says that “Children are active

participants in their own development, reflecting the intrinsic human drive to explore and master

one’s environment” (Phillips & Shonkoff, 2000). Children do have a say in their development.

They do have emotions that help them control their actions and drive them to achieve important

things. Surely, Skinner was driven by his own feelings that helped him become what he wanted

to become.
 The idea of behavior modification based on external stimuli may have its weaknesses, but

it is very useful when concerned with children that have autism. These children have many

behavior issues and need the structure and goals to work towards to help them in their

development and self-control.

Key terms and concepts:

Operant conditioning: Subjects operate in their environments and react to stimuli while they are

free to move around. They are more likely to respond in the same ways because they led to

favorable consequences.

“Skinner Box”: An animal is placed in a box, presses a lever, food is deposited in the box, and

the animal presses the lever repeatedly to yield the desired result, thus increasing the rate of

response and reinforcing the behavior.

Stimulus generalization: A child is reinforced by one behavior, so they respond this way in

different circumstances that do not necessarily apply to what the conditioner hopes for them to

do.

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Application Guide: Effective Social Interaction

Did you know that a child’s successful cognitive and language development depends

largely on their social interactions? You can have one of the greatest influences on your child’s

development in this area. A child thrives on the intentional and deliberate attention you give to

them. This is especially true during play. If they often play by themselves, they may eventually

struggle with their speech and cognitive processing skills. What if you don’t know where to

start? There is no need to worry. Ideas for supporting your child through social interaction will
be shared with you on this guide. Do all you can to support your child’s development by

employing these effective strategies:

1. Help them broaden their understanding by using intersubjectivity. This simply means that

they will arrive at a shared understanding with you or another child as you say things

like, “I think [this way]. What do you think?” (Berk & Meyers 2016). Sometimes a child

will still not have the same views as you, but that is nothing to be discouraged about.

2. While playing with the child, scaffold their play.

This means that parents and caregivers should pay

attention during the child’s play, break down

tasks, suggest strategies, and gradually turn the

responsibility over to the child. Overall, you are a

support to the child.

3. You can help them label their actions and objects

by narrating what you’re doing. Children do this all the time. It is called “private talk”

(Crain 2011), and helps children develop self-control and awareness of what’s happening

around them. For example, you can say, “I’m driving this blue car to the grocery store.”

You can also say what the child is doing to further scaffold the child’s learning.

4. Ultimately, let the child lead in play. Often, a parent will have their own agenda in play.

This stamps out a child’s creativity and doesn’t help them to stretch their understanding.

We must remember that “children are active participants in their own development,

reflecting the intrinsic human drive to explore and master one’s environment”(Core

Concept 4).

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 Disposition Essay

There are many things I am doing now to become a protector of children and a defender

of childhood. I truly care about children and their well-being. I am doing my best to treat

children with respect. I respect their emerging sense of agency as I try to find out what I can do

to help them or intervene in their lives for the better (Phillips & Shonkoff 2000, Core Concept

10). There are times when I babysit children that may show signs of insecure attachment. They

don’t talk as much, and they don’t really care when their parents leave (Crain 2011, Bowlby). I

will play with them, read with them, and engage in facial interactions with them. These kinds of

interactions will help them adjust the internal working model that relationships can be different

than what they may have experienced before (Phillips & Shonkoff 2000, Core Concept 5).

I plan to continue in my efforts to become a protector and defender of childhood as I

move forward in life by doing my best to pay attention to children’s needs. I will remember

about how the development of children progresses. This will be increasingly important as I

become a parent and when I am providing other care for children that are not my own. I have to

remember what is developmentally appropriate for children of different ages. We must always

consider what is age appropriate, individually appropriate, and culturally appropriate [ CITATION

Cop09 \l 1033 ]. As a parent, I must refrain from anger when I have a fleeting thought that they

should immediately recognize that what they have done is wrong or otherwise against my will.

They simply don’t understand what is right in my mind or what is socially acceptable. For

example, older infants will cry for long periods of time and the parents will get upset at them

because they think they are manipulating them into showing them attention. Many parents don’t

understand their children, and this results in unnecessary stress on them and on the children.
 I will also strive to encourage children’s curiosity as they go about exploring and actively

participating in their own development (Phillips and Shonkoff 2000, Core Concept 4). I must not

stamp out their creativity by imposing my own agenda on them. They will make many new

discoveries on their own as I let them learn about their environment. They may teach me new

things as they become fascinated in certain subjects that I am not even familiar with. As I

encourage children to learn in these ways and work to help them in a balanced way, they will be

able to develop stronger cognitive, social, emotional, and physical skills that will help them

develop into resilient children.

 References

Berk, L. E. & Meyers, A. B. (2016). Infants, Children, and Adolescents. Boston, Massachusetts:

Pearson.

Crain, W. (2011) Theories of Development. Boston: Prentice Hall.

Phillips, D. & Shonkoff, J.P. (2000). From Neurons to Neighborhoods. Washington, D.C.: The

National Academy Press.