Learning Theories and

Techniques

Engr. Lawal I. Umar (ilawal010@gmail.com, 07066794845)

Definitions
• Learning is a relatively permanent change in mental processing,
emotional functioning, and behavior as a result of experience
• Learning is a process, not a product
• Learning is a change in knowledge, beliefs, behaviours or attitudes
• Learning Takes time; especially with changes to core beliefs, behaviours, and
attitudes
• Learning is not something done to students, but something that students
themselves do
• Learning Theory is a coherent framework of integrated
constructs and principles that describe, explain, or predict how
people learn.
Definitions
“Learning is defined as a process that brings together
personal and environmental experiences and
influences for acquiring, enriching or modifying one’s
knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, behavior and
worldviews,”

“Learning theories develop hypotheses that describe

how this process takes place.”
Generalizations about Learning
• Learning is a function of physiological and neurological
developmental changes.
• Brain processing is different for each learner.
• Learning is active, multifaceted, and complex.
• Meaningful practice strengthens learning connections.
• Stress can interfere with or stimulate learning.
Why Learning Theories?
• Provide information and techniques to guide teaching and
learning
• Can be employed individually or in combination
• Can be applied in a variety of settings as well as for personal
growth and interpersonal relations
Impacts of Learning Theories?
• Teaching and learning may appear to be a universal experience.
• After all, everyone goes to school and learns more or less the
same thing, right? Well, not quite.
• As the prolific number of educational theorists in learning
suggests, there’s actually an impressive variety of educational
approaches to the art and science of teaching.
• Many of them have been pioneered by educational theorists
who’ve studied the science of learning to determine what works
best and for whom.
Learning Theories
Generally, there are five widely accepted learning theories
teachers rely on:
• Behaviorism learning theory
• Cognitive learning theory
• Constructivism learning theory
• Humanism learning theory
• Connectivism learning theory
•Educational theorists, teachers, and experts believe these
theories can inform successful approaches for teaching and serve
as a foundation for developing lesson plans and curriculum.

Behaviorism
As Simply Psychology
puts it:
“Behaviorism is only
concerned with observable
stimulus-response
behaviors, as they can be
studied in a systematic and
observable manner.”
Application
•Learning is based on a system
of routines that “drill”
information into a student’s
memory bank, as well as
positive feedback from
teachers and an educational
institution itself.
•If students do an excellent
job, they receive positive
reinforcement and are signaled
 Application
Cognitivism •Developed in the 1950s, this theory
moves away from behaviorism to
Learning relies on both focus on the mind’s role in learning.
external factors (like According to the International
information or data) and Bureau of Education:
the internal thought •“In cognitive psychology, learning
process. is understood as the acquisition of
knowledge: the learner is an
information-processor who absorbs
information, undertakes cognitive
operations on it and stocks it in
 Constructivism Application
•“The passive view of teaching
The learner builds views the learner as ‘an empty
upon his or her vessel’ to be filled with knowledge,”
previous experience explains Simply Psychology,
and understanding to “whereas constructivism states that
“construct” a new learners construct meaning only
through active engagement with the
understanding. world (such as experiments or real-
world problem solving).”
 Application
Humanism •With the understanding that people
are inherently good, humanism
A “learner-centric focuses on creating an environment
approach” in which conducive to self-actualization.
•In doing so, learners’ needs are met
the potential is the and they are then free to determine
focus rather than their own goals while the teacher
the method or assists in meeting those learning
materials. goals.
 Connectivism Application
•Strongly influenced by technology,
Informed by the connectivism focuses on a learner’s
digital age, ability to frequently source and
connectivism departs update accurate information.
•Knowing how and where to find the
from constructivism
best information is as important as
by identifying and the information itself.
remediating gaps in
knowledge.
Why are learning theories important?
• Just as no two people are the same, no two students learn
in the exact the same way or at the exact same rate.
• Effective educators need to be able to pivot and craft
instruction that meets the needs of the individual student
to address the needs of the ‘whole child/Adult.’
• Sound knowledge in multiple learning theories is a first
step to this and another reason why great teachers work
their entire careers to master both the art and the science
of teaching.
Other theories in education
In addition to the five theories outlined above, there are still more options, including:
•Transformative learning theory: This theory is particularly relevant to adult learners.
It posits that new information can essentially change our worldviews when our life
experience and knowledge are paired with critical reflection.
•Social learning theory: This theory incorporates some of the tacit tenets of peer
pressure. Specifically, students observe other students and model their own behavior
accordingly. Sometimes it’s to emulate peers; other times it’s to distinguish themselves
from peers. Harnessing the power of this theory involves getting students’ attention,
focusing on how students can retain information, identifying when it’s appropriate to
reproduce a previous behavior, and determining students’ motivation.
•Experiential learning theory: There are plenty of clichés and parables about teaching
someone something by doing it, although it wasn’t until the early 1980s that it became
an official learning theory. This approach emphasizes both learning about something
and experiencing it so that students can apply knowledge in real-world situations.
How Learning theories influence
learning
Applied learning theories directly impact a classroom
experience in a variety of ways, such as:
• Providing students with structure and a comfortable, steady
environment.
• Helping educators, administrators, students and parents align on
goals and outcomes.
• Empowering teachers to be, as Bates says, “in a better position to
make choices about how to approach their teaching in ways that
will best fit the perceived needs of their students.”
• Impacting how and what a person learns.
• Helping outsiders (colleges, testing firms, etc.) determine what
kind of education you had or are receiving.
• Allowing students a voice in determining how the class will be
managed.
• Deciding if instruction will be mostly teacher-led or student-led.
• Determining how much collaboration will happen in a classroom.
Common Principles of Learning
• Promoting change
• Relate to what learner knows and is familiar with
• Keep experiences simple, organized, and
meaningful
• Motivate learner (deprivation, goals,
disequilibrium, needs, tension)
• May need incentives and rewards, but not always
• Experiences must be at the appropriate
developmental level
• Make learning pleasurable, not painful
• Demonstrate by guidance and attractive role
models
Common Principles of Learning
• Making learning relatively permanent
• Relate experiences to learner
• Reinforce behavior
• Rehearse and practice in variety of settings
• Have learner perform and give constructive feedback
• Make sure interference does not occur before, during, or after
learning
• Promote transfer
• Have learner mediate and act on experience in some way (visualize,
memory devices, discuss, talk, discuss, write, motor movement)
Summary of Learning Methods & Learning Styles

Intuiting Feeling
•Practice •Personal
•Apply Experience
concepts •Role plays
•Simulations •Group exercises
Strive for
Diversity

Thinking Sensing
•Reading •Lectures
•Questioning •Discussion
•Independent •Problem
activities solving
Questions to Consider

• In what ways do the learning theories differ?

• In what ways are they similar?
• How can the learning theories be used in combination
to change behavior and enhance learning?
• Why are some theories more effective with certain
individuals than with others?
• How does learning occur?
• What kinds of experiences facilitate or hinder the
process?
• What helps ensure that learning becomes permanent?
Thank You