Category: Psychology

INTRODUCTION TO THE THEORY

Humanistic theoryis a principle based on the appreciation of other human beings, unconditionally, for their self-fulfilment in life. Humanistic learning theory which came to effect after the behaviourist and the psychoanalysis theories. Hence, it is the duty of this section to discuss the Humanistic learning theory by looking at what it is, key principles and its influence on education.

The Humanistic learning theory as already alluded to, is one that came after theBehaviouristand Psychoanalysis theories where the later sought to understand human beings by analysing the deep unobservable unconscious processes and the former sought to understand human beings by looking at the changes in the outward observable behaviour. Humanism is a paradigm, a philosophy and pedagogical approach that believes learning is viewed as a personal act to fulfill one’s potential. The Humanistic learning theory’s birth is traceable from the likes of Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. It is worth noting that this theory took a different approach in the study of human beings.

Humanisticis understood in the principles of humanism; a belief in human based morality which is a system of thought that is based on the values, characteristics and behaviour that are believed to be best in human beings rather than on any super natural authority, a concern with the needs, wellbeing, and interest of the people.

It is also known as the‘Third Force Psychology’as represented in the work of American psychologist Carl Rogers, which views personal growth and mental health as the natural condition of human life. The humanistic school view every human being to possess a drive toward self-actualisation which is the fulfilment of a person’s greatest potential.

The works of Maslow (1970) and Santrock (2008) attest to the fact that human beings have the potential to attain or move toward self-actualisation. It is this inner propensity to grow and develop in every person that makes humanistic psychology to remain with no option apart from it embracing a positive or optimistic view of all people. As a result of people’s ability to move towards self-actualisation humanistic psychology, therefore, attaches a lot of emphasis on having an unconditional positive regard toward all people.

The Humanistic theory as already alluded to, is one that came after the Behaviourist and Psychoanalysis theories where the later sought to understand human beings by analysing the deep unobservable unconscious processes and the former sought to understand human beings by looking at the changes in the outward observable behaviour. The Humanistic learning theory’s birth is traceable from the likes of Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. It is worth noting that this theory took a different approach in the study of human beings.

MAIN CONCEPTION OF THE HUMANISTIC THEORY OF LEARNING

Humanism is the school of thought that lays emphasis on human behaviour and human centred education. It is concerned with the individual’s feelings, perceptions, beliefs and purposes. Humanist psychologists believe that human beings determine their own behaviour. One of the main proponents of this theory was Carl Rogers.

CARL ROGERS HUMANISTIC LEARNING PRINCIPLES

1. The desire to learn

Human beings have a natural desire to learn. Therefore, failure to learn is not due to the person’s inability to learn, but rather it is due to problems with the learning situation or environment. In the humanistic classroom, learners are given the freedom to satisfy their curiosity, to pursue their interests and to discover for themselves what is important and meaningful about their environment.

2. Significant learning

Significant or meaningful learning takes place when it is perceived by learners as being relevant to their own needs and purposes. The humanists regard learning as a dual process that involves both the acquisition of new information and the personalization of this information. Students learn best when learning is personally significant.

3. Learning without threat

Rogers argued that learning is best acquired and retained in an environment that is free from threats. The learning process is enhanced when students test their abilities, try new experiences or even when they make mistakes without experiencing any criticism.

4. Self-initiated learning

Learning makes sense when it is self-initiated and when it involves both the feelings and mind of the learners. Choosing one’s own learning is highly motivating and provides the student opportunity to“learn how to learn”and a sense of independence.

5. Whole-person learning

Learning must involve all aspects of the person: the cognitive, practical and affective aspects. This creates a feeling of total accomplishment or all –round development.

6. Learning and change

Learning must be suitable to the changing environment. Since knowledge is in a constant state of change every day and that yesterday’s learning may not enable a person to function successfully in the modern world, an individual must be capable of learning in a changing environment.

Carl Rogers identified two categories of learning, namely, meaningless (cognitive) and meaningful (experiential) learning.

Meaningless or cognitive learning

It involves academic knowledge and there is no personal learning for the individual. Since it only involves the mind, this type of learning has no relevance for the whole person.

Meaningful or Significant or Experiential Learning

This learning involves applied knowledge, such as how to repair something (e.g. a car). It is the learning that addresses the needs and wants of the learner, and thus has the qualities of personal involvement, self-initiation, self-evaluation and long –last9ing effects.

To Rogers, experiential learning is equivalent to personal development. In his view, all human beings have the natural propensity to learn. And so it is the teachers role to facilitate that learning by encouraging, clarifying and organizing learning resources, but not to impose their own view of knowledge on their students. Rogers suggested that learning is facilitated: –

1. When the student participates in the learning process, having control over its nature and direction;
2. When learning is primarily based on confrontation with real problems, whether they are social, personal, scientific or practical problems;
3. When learners are required to use self-evaluation to assess their progress.

Experiential education, or“learning by doing”is the process of actively engaging learners in an authentic experience that has benefits and consequences. Learners make discoveries and experiment with knowledge themselves, instead of hearing or reading about the experiences of others. Learners also reflect on their experiences, thus developing new skills, attitudes and ways of thinking. Experiential education also empowers learners to take responsibility for their own learning.

Instructional implications of humanistic theory

Learning should be person centred. The curriculum, content and teaching methods should be responsive to the learners’ feelings and personal development. There must be good interaction between the learners and teachers during teaching and learning. In order to further promote humanistic learning, the following instructional strategies and methods may be used:

• Provide learners with a variety of resources that can support and guide their learning experiences.
• Make use of peer tutoring. This involves learners teaching one another for the mutual benefit of the student tutor and student tutee.
• Use discovery learning to allow learners to seek answers to real questions, make their own discoveries and become involved in self – directed learning.

Role of the humanistic teacher

Carl Rogers made significant contributions to the field of education with his theory of experiential learning. Experiential learning’s key idea involves engaging student voice in active roles for the purpose of learning. The experiential learning mindset changes the way the teachers and students view knowledge. Knowledge is no longer just some information on paper. It becomes active, something that is dealt with in real life situations. It starts to make teachers become experience providers, and not just transmitters of the written word. Students become knowledge creators as well as knowledge gatherers.

Besides changing the roles of students, experiential education requires a change in the role of teachers. Teachers become active learners too, experimenting together with their students, reflecting upon the learning activities they have designed, and responding to their student’s reactions to the activities.

In humanistic education, the teacher’s role is mainly that of the facilitator. Teachers have to create a conducive learning atmosphere by encouraging students, clarifying issues and organizing learning resources. They also have to have to demonstrate realness or genuineness, i.e., to be honest in their relationship with learners.

Teachers also need to be trustworthy so that learners can feel free to explore with support from teachers. Teachers need to be empathetic to the learners, i.e., to put themselves in the place of learners and experience the learners’ perceptions and feelings.

To conclude, it should be noted that the humanistic theory of learning emphasizes democratic and discovery methods of teaching and learning. It encourages the involvement of pupils in the learning process. There should be unconditional positive regard because people function well when accepted as they are. Therefore, positive attitudes like love, respect, tolerance and acceptance are important in the learning-teaching process.

How does learning comes about;

There are three main divergent views among psychologist on how learning comes about: these are categorised as:

(i) behaviourism

(ii) Social constructivism

(iii) cognitivism

Munsaka (2011:53) writes:“Humanistic psychology was designed as a general theory to explain how the full human potential can be tapped from all human beings, regardless of who or what they are”.In this, it is seen that the Humanistic theory can be appreciated that it is one theory that is designed to give room to human beings in the category of learning so that self-actualisations, a paramount parameter in the development of human beings is realised. This is in line with what Maslow (1970) contributed that the focus of the Humanistic perspectives is on the self which translates individuals’ perception into their experience thereby individuals have the freedom to choose their own behaviours rather than reacting to environmental stimuli and reinforcers.

It is worth learning that the Humanistic theory is aimed at tapping the full potential of human beings where the whole rounded development of learners is sought for. This is also supported by Woolfolk (2010) where he observes that Humanistic theory is concerned with personal growth and the full development of each human’s potential not just at intellectual level but also at emotional, psychological, creative, social, physical and spiritual levels.

With this, the physiological needs, psychological needs, spiritual needs, social needs, creative needs and emotional needs can be monitored. In all these needs, it will be to the knowledge of the teacher to understand that limitations in any of the above mentioned needs will result into impaired learning. Hence, under Humanistic theory of learning, a teacher is better positioned because learners’ achievements or failures will be understood accordingly where a moderated room for learning is created for the less privileged so that full potential of all learners is achieved.

Humanistic theory is different from other theories bordering on the three key principles:

– Humanistic psychology unlike other theories takes a positive or optimistic view of all people.

– Humanistic psychology views each human being as a unique whole.

– Humanistic psychology believes each person’s perspective or point of view should be respected. It places a lot of emphasis on having an unconditional positive regard toward, all people…

In this, it is learnt that every child has the potential to learn; hence the teacher should not judge negatively or positively depending on the outward appearance. They should instead strive to motivate learners into complete use of their full potentials.

Principles of Humanistic Education

There are five basic principles of humanistic education:

1. Students should be able to choose what they want to learn. Humanistic teachers believe that students will be motivated to learn a subject if it is something they need and want to know.
2. The goal of education should be to foster students’ desire to learn and teach them how to learn. Students should be self-motivated in their studies and desire to learn on their own.
3. Humanistic educators believe that grades are irrelevant and that only self-evaluation is meaningful. Grading encourages students to work for a grade and not for personal satisfaction. In addition, humanistic educators are opposed to objective tests because they test a student’s ability to memorize and do not provide sufficient educational feedback to the teacher and student.
4. Humanistic educators believe that both feelings and knowledge are important to the learning process. Unlike traditional educators, humanistic teachers do not separate the cognitive and affective domains.
5. Humanistic educators insist that schools need to provide students with nonthreatening environment so that they will feel secure to learn. Once students feel secure, learning becomes easier and more meaningful.

APPLICATION OF HUMANISTIC THEORY TO EDUCATION SYSTEM

Appreciating the fact that the Humanistic theory was designed as a general theory to explain how human beings’ full potential can be tapped to acknowledge the importance of the theory in the classroom:

Facilitator helps to establish the climate of the class attitude towards learning.

(1) The facilitator unconditionally helps the class or individuals classify their purposes.

(2) The facilitator helps each student utilise her/his own drives and purposes as the driving force in learning.

(3) The facilitator provides a wide range of resources for learning.

(4) The facilitator provides students with content which is relevant to the learner’s needs and interests, to give them control over their own learning and to equip them for the future by teaching them how to learn and how to solve problems.

In addition to the above stated application of humanistic theory to the learning environment, educators who embrace humanistic theory of learning should not condemn learners based on their past mistakes or behaviour, but instead focus on the present state of the learners and see how best to help them progress. After all, humanistic psychology holds the belief that the present is the most important aspect of the person thereby focusing on the here and now rather than looking at the past or trying to predict the future.

Furthermore, teachers should create a learning environment that will enable pupils become psychologically health. At the same time, educators should train learners to take responsibility over their own achievements. This is due to the fact that humanistic theory is reality based where learners should be responsible for their actions whether those actions ate positive or negative.

Lastly but not the least, the aim of educators should not only centre on making pupils obtain super grades during examinations but also to create a conducive learning environment where learners will be able to achieve personal growth and understanding through self-improvement and self-knowledge.

Learners have different personalities as such they react differently to different types of motivation. Therefore, teachers should bear in mind that no rigid motivational procedures suit all situations or problems. The following are some of the applications of motivation to classroom situations.

Active participation of learners

Learners are highly motivated when they are actively involved in the learning process. This can be achieved when age and level of mental development are taken into consideration. For instance, a teacher teaching (3-2) to grade ones will require concrete objects to help them understand what three minus two is in order to arrive at the answer. This will stimulate the learners’ interest and help them see the purpose and the goal which they will strive to achieve.

Knowledge of goals

Knowledge of objectives in a learning process enhances motivation. It is therefore imperative that teachers make known to the learners the objectives of the lesson as this will make the learners aware of what is expected of them

3.Relationship with life

Learners should always relate to real-life situations whenever they are learning. For instance, when as a teacher you are teaching about vegetables, you need to use local vegetables that the learners can relate with such as chibwabwa even when you are using western-oriented sources (books). Learners need to know what is local first before you introduce them to what is foreign.

Teacher-pupil relationship

A good teacher-pupil relationship enhances motivation in the learners. Learning is likely to take place when the learner feels comfortable with the teacher as they will be free to ask questions where they do not understand even outside the classroom. However, this relationship has to be strictly academic especially when opposite sexes are involved.

Applications of Motivation in Incentives

Incentives are a great aspect of motivation in the learning process. Learners will work extra hard in order to obtain some incentives. Teachers should use incentives such as high grades, praise, and recognition and in early grades use things like stars, stickers with characters that are valued by learners.

In some cases, a teacher can publish results for any given work so as to motivate those who do not perform well.

Knowledge of progress

Prompt knowledge of results after an assessment has a powerful effect on motivation in learning. In any given training situation, the learner needs to know how they are progressing. This can be done by providing the learner with the results of whatever work is given. A teacher should therefore give feedback to learners whenever work is given this will enable the learner to concentrate on what they are not performing well. This type of motivation is effective if the teacher is in the habit of giving internal assessments to learners at regular intervals.

Use of learning styles

People use different learning styles in order for learning to take place. Some learners learn faster when reading most of the materials on their while on the other hand others may learn faster by listening to the teacher. It would therefore be unrealistic for a teacher to employ only one type of learning method in a classroom of many learners. For instance, an auditory learner will be less successful and motivated if the learner if the teacher always uses reading a textbook as a means of instruction. Likewise, a kinaesthetic will be less motivated listening to the teacher all the time.

Teachers can also use various presentation modes such as ICT to present a lesson, however, care must be taken during planning so that the material focuses on the objective of the lesson.

Co-curricular activities such as subject clubs and field trips can also be used to motivate learners. This is so because such activities will enable learners to study the materials on the spot thereby developing interest which leads to better and lasting learning. Some researchers have provided that instruction in classrooms is increasingly routine and repetitive in nature and that if learning tasks were more like play or recreational activities, motivation in academic activities would increase.

There are four major approaches of motivation that are used in the learning and teaching environment.

These are:

1.The Behavioural Approach (Incentive Approach).

This approach requires one to use external rewards and punishment in order to shape and control behaviour of learners. Teachers are encouraged to use incentives such as praise, addressing learners even by name, giving them feedback after assessments. The incentives will create positive results as the learners will be compelled to work extra hard in order to maintain the flow of incentives or even get more.

However, this approach has some weaknesses which other scholars noted and worked on to develop counters which gave birth to other approaches. For instance, when you apply behaviouristic approach to learners, they do not master what they are being taught because their focus is on getting a reward and this limits their ability to be creative hence the need for a cognitive approach.

The Cognitive Approach.

This approach emphasises the fact that learners are not empty vessels and therefore they should be actively involved in the learning process. Under this approach, it is believed that learners instigate and sustain goal directed behaviour. This is so because learners set goals and employ cognitive processes such planning and monitoring. Teachers should therefore create a conducive environment for learners to understand the need and the importance of engaging themselves in the learning process.

3.The Social Cognitive Approach.

This approach takes into consideration both intrinsic motivational techniques and extrinsic motivational techniques. Under this process, the inner/internal desire must be complemented by what is realised after achieving the desired goal. For instance, a learner who likes mathematics may enjoy working with numbers because of the love that one has for the numbers but then praise, feedback and better grades might make such a learner even more interested to work with numbers.

The approach also emphasises the need that humans have to belong. All human beings have a deep-seated need for love and belongingness (Maslow, 1970). Teachers should therefore work hard to ensure that the learners need for love and belongingness is addressed. This can be achieved if teachers ensure that all the learners are treated equally and create an environment conducive enough for learning to take place.

4.The Humanistic Approach.

The Humanistic Approach emphasises that all humans have a deep-seated need for self-actualisation. Self-actualisation is a process of growth of becoming evident in the unfolding and fulfilment of self, i.e. trying to become the best we can be as individuals.

The approach recognises the power that lies in the learners to enable them to drive their own learning. This is why Humanistic psychologists believe that learning takes place from the standpoint of the believer rather than that of the observer. Therefore, a teacher using this approach endeavours to create an educational environment that fosters self-development, cooperation and positive communication.

Cognitive Field or Gestalt theory was formulated by a group of German Psychologists. The theory emphasizes insightful learning rather than mechanical conditioning. It is believed that meaningful learning can only take place through a sequence of problem-solving approach. In this article, you will learn how learning takes place through the application of logical principles and previous experience.

COGNITIVE FIELD THEORY OF LEARNING

The views of many theorists were collected by Gestalt to formulate a cognitive field theory. Notable among them were Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, and Wolfgang Kohler. Gestalt in German language means “organization or fusion”. This theory rejected the views that consider the learning process in an isolated form rather than in a total or holistic form. The theory does not support associating bits of experiences as postulated in the stimulus-response theories.

This theory is of the opinion that parts are configured or organized to make complete or meaningful experiences or impressions. The emphasis here is on the importance of experience, meaning, problem solving and the development of insights. The Gestalt therefore placed more credence on insightful learning rather than trial and error like that of Thorndike or mechanical conditioning as performed by Ivan Pavlov in hisclassical conditioning theory.

Insightful learning is hinged on the fact that animals undergo a series of problem-solving approach following a sequence of principles or logic and previous experience before arriving at a solution. In this theory, the cognitive ormental processesof the animals are regarded as the yardstick in the development of insightful learning.

To establish this fact, Gestalt Psychologists performed several experiments using apes as subjects. In one of the experiments, an ape(Sultan)was put in a cage. This sultan was very intelligent. In the cage was a stool and banana, hung on the top of the box. Initially, several unsuccessful attempts were made by the apes to get the banana. Suddenly, sultan decided to pull out the stool and climbed it to pluck the banana from where it was hung. This type of learning is called insightful, because it involves problem-solving approach.

Another experiment was performed with several apes including sultan, put in the box with a banana and a stick lying outside the cage. Several experimental apes stretched their hands to pick the banana from outside but were unsuccessful. The brilliant one among them (sultan) devised a solution by picking the stick outside first and using it to draw the banana closer until its hand touched the banana.

The last experiment performed by Kohler on this insightful learning, was an extension of the second experiment. In this case, the apes were put in the cage; banana and two sticks (long and short) were lying outside. None of these two sticks could get to the banana unless by joining them together.

The apes in the box made series of attempts to rake in the banana with the two sticks separately without succeeding. It was sultan who later manipulated and fixed the two sticks together before it could finally collect the banana. All these experiments indicated that learning cannot take place in a segregated way but in a complete form.

Insightful learning therefore adopts the following strategies in learning:

(a) identify and define the problem or task;

(b) formulate the hypotheses;

(c) come out with different solutions;

(d) select /implement the viable solution; and

(e) evaluate / appraise the selected solution or revisit the problem.

Differences between Behaviourists and Gestalt Theories of Learning



CLASSROOM IMPLICATIONS OF GESTALT THEORY

1. This theory has developed the concept that learners have different needs and concerns at different times, and that they have subjective interpretations in different contexts.
2. The teacher should realize the importance of instructional aids during teaching-learning activities, hence he/she should make use of teaching aids for a meaningful learning in the classroom.
3. The teacher should make his/her teaching more participatory to the students. It is on this basis that the teacher will be able to discover the hidden talents in his/her students.
4. If the classroom experiences of the students are related, students will be able to transfer the gained experience into future learning. This will then promote interrelatedness.
5. The teacher should not neglect the use of motivational strategies in teaching -learning activities. This reinforcement will stimulate the efforts of the students in the classroom.

Introduction

Psychology as a branch of knowledge is devoted to the study of behaviour of human beings and animals. To this end, the relevance of psychology cannot be doubted, more importantly that the well trained teachers will need it to understand the behaviour of his/her students in relation to the learning process. Ability to understand various techniques of carrying out investigation in the field of psychology will equally assist the teachers in resolving emergent educational problems. All the points mentioned above are the focus of this article.Meaning of Psychology

Definition of Psychology

Psychology affects every facet of our lives. A human being usually exhibits moods of joy and anger, have different learning ability and interact differently. When all these happen, we are eager in finding the circumstances that are surrounding these actions and make judgment in our own way. Psychology provides clues to these phenomena in a morescientific way. Therefore psychology is asciencesubject which seeks to comprehend, predict and control the behaviour of man and lower animals. As the society is getting more complex, psychology assumes a vital position in solving human problems.

Psychologist uses scientific methods to understand why people behave the way they do and develop principles and theories about them. Psychology is premised on logical ways for knowing, explaining, controlling and improving behaviour. Psychologists attempt to find answers to

1. how human beings and animals receive stimuli from their environment and their perceptions about such stimuli
2. how organisms learn and remember experiences
3. how they differ in their characteristics and
4. cope with various problems in life in order to understand the complex nature of organism and to contribute to better standard of living of organisms.

Methods of Investigation in Psychology

Survey Method

This is one of the most widely used techniques in psychology. It is a method of field observation. In this method, the researcher uses questionnaire orinterviewto obtain data from his/her respondents. The survey method is very important because the questions that are asked can be very pertinent to genuine problems and the responses can be got from the persons affected by the problems. The problem of this method is that the respondents may be biased when giving their responses.

Test Method

Test is one of the methods used to elicit responses from the subjects. It is used to collect information about respondent’s abilities, interests, attitudes and accomplishments.We can use test to seek information from a large number of people within a short time. Test method is more objective and therefore provides accurate data than questionnaire or interview.

Observational Method

This is the careful study of human and animal’s behaviour and record your findings simultaneously. In observing organism behaviour, the researcher needs to be highly skillful so that he/she can observe and record accurately in order to avoid subjective report. One of the disadvantages of this method is that the subject may decide not to show his/her true behaviour, if he/she knows that he/she is being studied.

Experimental Method

This is a method in which the investigator makes use of both the main and control subjects in his/her findings. In this case, the researcher attempts to give special treatment to the experimental subject or group. i.e. the organism which is being studied is taken to undergo certain laboratory procedures and conditions, while the control subject or group is not put under any special treatment or condition. It only provides a baseline against which to compare the experimental group.

Case Histories Method

This is a technique in which the researchers collect data about the respondents through the existing scientific biographies or case histories of the respondents. In this case, histories of the individual are critically looked into so as to find out about certain problem or behaviour in that person. This method is usually good in studying people with abnormal behaviour.

Longitudinal Method

This type of method makes the investigator to do an extensive study of the subject, through time, with measurements made at periodic intervals. This method does not depend upon the memories of those interviewed at a later date. The problem with the method is that if the respondent disappears or dies before the conclusion of the investigation, the investigator may not have a conclusive report.

The relevance of Educational Psychology in the classroom can not be over-emphasized. This is because a teacher who has skills and knowledge in psychology will be able to manage his/her classroom effectively. Besides, knowledge of psychology is a sine-quo-non to successful teaching-learning activities.

What Is Educational Psychology

Educational Psychology is an integral part of psychology which seeks to find how positive relationship/interaction can be established between the teacher, students and the learning process. Educational psychology is an applied psychology which studies the ways in which the learner can be most effectively brought into contact with the learning process. Educational psychology is geared towards investigating or exploring the factors that will stimulate, enhance or obstruct the learning process. The knowledge and skills acquired from educational psychology will guide and direct in resolving the enormous problems confronting both the teachers and students in the classroom.

Implications of Educational Psychology to Classroom Situations

1) Educational Psychology allows the teacher to know the tone of his/her classroom. It assists the teacher to understand the behaviour of every member of his/her classroom.

2) It affords the teacher the opportunity to know the factors that can enhance or impede teaching-learning activities.

3) It helps the teacher to appreciate the importance of motivation, and how and when to motive the students in the classroom.

4) It equips the teacher to know or be able to predict what might likely happen to a learner in terms of his/her personality, developmental stages and psychological problem.

5) It gives the teacher the opportunity of varying his/her instructional strategies based on the behaviour of the students in the classroom. It is a known fact that no particular instructional method is regarded as the best. The viability of any instructional method is based on learners’ characteristics as well as the instructions to be delivered at a particular time.

6) Educational Psychology enables the teacher to understand the interest of the learners and how to follow this in planning the curriculum or learning contents.

7) It aids/guides the teacher in grading or placing the learners into a particular class. Feedback is an important aspect in the learning situation, a constant evaluation of students’ performance will serve as a yardstick of measuring or assessing whether the students are responding positively to learning situation or there is a need for the teacher to adjust his/her teaching style.

8) Behavioural problem is an integral part of learning process. It is an undesirable act in the classroom. However, a teacher who is well trained will be able to explain why students behave irrationally at a particular time and how the teacher can tackle such problems without much harm to the classroom teaching/learning activities.

9) It also assists the teacher to assess his/her effectiveness. It is believed that teacher’s effectiveness is measured based on the learners’ performance in the classroom, hence, a teacher with good foundation in psychology will be able to judge his/her own efficiency and competency.

Psychology of Learning

Psychology of Learning provides necessary theoretical and empirical data regarding the learning process. It describes the principles of learning,motivationstrategies, transfer of learning,memory, retention and forgetting. The interest in Psychology of Learning is not just in academic per se, but is useful in understanding the fundamental problems or emotional development motivation, social behaviour and personality of people.

Definition of Learning

Learning is a relatively permanent change in behaviour, which includes both observable activity and internal processes such as thinking, attitudes and emotions. Learning occurs right from the birth of the child and proceeds until he/she dies. Learning is acquired due to the prior experience one has gained.

A child may learn from his/her environment (teacher) consciously or unconsciously, and in the process, his/her behaviour is being modified either negatively or positively. However, the essence of enrolling in the school by the students is to acquire desirable/positive behaviour under the tutelage of the teacher. To this end, learning can be described as a process by which an individual:

1. acquires a novel idea or experience to a situation;
2. retains and applies the idea, skills and knowledge in solving the confronting problems.

iii. Modify one’s behaviour by the experience gained in the past and making the change permanent.

In view of the above points, learning is considered as:

1. relatively permanent change in behaviour
2. not just a visible but also a manifest responses of the learner
3. modifying the learner’s behaviour.
4. being dependent on previously acquired experience.

Some behaviour cannot be described as being learnt because they occur at the moment of anatomical maturation. This type of learning occurs as one matures physically. For example, a child does not learn how to walk, eat or talk but acquires these skills as he/she advances in age. This behaviour is regarded as “specie-specific behaviour”.

Conclusion

Educational Psychology is an applied psychology which seeks to find and provide necessary solutions to problems confronting the teacher and his/her students in the classroom. The importance of educational psychology cannot be over emphasized.

Examples of its relevance are: to equip the teacher on how to tackle students disciplinary problems in the classroom, guide the teacher in the selection of the learning contents according to the students’ cognitive capability, and to provide useful information about the differences among learners and how these can be taken care of so that every member of the class can benefit in the classroom activities. Psychology of Learning provides necessary theoretical and empirical data regarding the learning process.

Introduction

Psychology is regarded as a science which studies human and animal behaviour. There are many branches of psychology helping to study different characteristics an organism can exhibit at a particular time or situation. Psychology attempts to study the people in relation to areas like social, education, physiological, genetics, environment and industrial settings.

Branches of Psychology

Psychology is divided into several branches such as social, clinical, counselling, educational, developmental, industrial, sports, physiology, experimental, comparative, genetics, abnormal, environmental and engineering. These branches of psychology are explained below:

1. Social Psychology

This branch of Psychology is interested in the ways in which the behaviour of one affects others. It is the study of social behaviour and how they are influenced by the conditions in the society. Social Psychology is about group or collective behaviour. Why does an individual conform to opinions of a group? What factors determine our judgment/impression of others?

It studies the ways in which a person’s thoughts, feeling and behaviour are influenced by that of other people. Social learning is concerned with the behavioural processes, causal factors and results of interaction among persons and groups.

2. Clinical Psychology

This is the applied psychology that tries to use principles of knowledge in psychology to diagnose and treat emotional and behavioural problems. It uses the experiences gathered from developmental and abnormal psychology to determine the causative factors of a perceived problem. Psychologists in this field try to develop programmes of intervention that may assist the individual to overcome their emotional illness. A clinical Psychologist may work in places like hospital, juvenile court or practice privately.

3. Counselling Psychology

This is a field of Psychology typically used in the schools to give the students advice on problems of social adjustment, vocational/career or educational goals. The Psychologist assists the individual to discover his/her hidden or untapped talent in order to make use of this talent or resource effectively in solving personal problems. The counsellor changes the behaviour of his/her client through behaviour modification, modeling sensitization and rational thinking.

4. Developmental Psychology

Studies the process of human growth and the factors that are responsible for human behaviour from birth to the old age. This field of psychology seeks to find out the changes that take place during the individual’s cognitive, physical, emotional, motor, personality and social development. The major focus of the developmental psychologists are children and adolescents.

5. Educational Psychology

Is an applied psychology which seeks to find solution to the problems associated with the teaching and learning in the classroom. It is a branch of psychology that attempts to find the fundamental laws of human behaviour and their applications to learning, Skinner (1953).Educational psychologyis concerned with the curriculum planning, teacher-training and instruction design. It helps the learners and the teachers to optimally benefit in teaching-learning activities.

6. Industrial Psychology/Organizational Psychology

This psychology is the sub-field that applies psychological knowledge to areas like personnel policies, working conditions, production efficiency and decision-making. The psychologists in this field are concerned with the labour enhancement. They help industries or other establishments in personnel selection, training, leadership and management.

Organizational psychology is closely related to industrial. It deals with team building, development of communication skills, goal setting or job designs.

7. Sports Psychology

This is a sub-field of psychology that tries to apply skills and knowledge in psychology to promote the efficiency of sports men and women. The sports psychologists work to develop programmes of intervention that may assist sports men and women to cope and adjust well in their psychomotor domain.

8. Experimental Psychology

The major concern of the psychologists in this regard is to adopt scientific methods (experiment) in investigating how people react to stimuli, perceive the world around them, learn, respond and are motivated to action. It deals with the study of fundamental psychological processes such as sensation, learning, motivation, emotion and memory.

9. Comparative Psychology

Comparative Psychologists make attempt to study the animals in order to compare the behaviour of different species. These set of psychologists investigate the abilities; needs and activities of different types of animals as compared with human beings.

10. Genetics

This is the psychology/ science of heredity, the science which deals with inherited attributes of an organism.

11. Abnormal Psychology

Deals with disruptive or behavioural disorder of individuals. The psychologists are interested in finding the causes of violent or behavioural problems or the treatment that can be adopted to tackle such emotional problems.

12. Physiological Psychology

Examines the relationship between the bodily processes and behaviour. This branch of psychology assesses the functions of different parts of the brain, how hormones affect individual’s behaviour and the physical processes involved in learning and emotions.

13. Environmental Psychology

This is the application of psychological knowledge in finding the relationship that exists between human beings and the environment. The goal is to assist in environmental planning designing in order to save the environment.

Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), was a renowned Russian Psychologist. He propounded the theory of classical conditioning in learning. Classical conditioning theory explains how an organism’s behaviour becomes paired with some stimuli/factors in the environment. This theory, sometimes referred to as “stimulus-substitution”, represents a condition where through contiguity and repetition in a presentation of a stimulus, a learner generalizes an existing stimulus-response connection to some new stimuli.

The focus of this theory is on a pattern of learning where the catalyst for behaviour change is, what precedes behaviour. The theory was based on the fact that unconditioned stimulus would originally produce unconditioned response. For example, Pavlov believed that the food (U S) would naturally produce salivation (U R) in dog.

This kind of reaction or response was referred to as unlearnt reflex action. He went further to say that when U S (food) is paired with the sound of bell (C S) i.e. conditionedstimulus, the dog would produce salivation (U R). This is what he called the conditioning stage. At another stage, U S was removed leaving C S alone. After the experiment, the dog produced conditioned response (C R) salivation.

This stage of learning could be referred to as manifestation of conditioned response (learnt behaviour). Thus, the experiment is summarized below with these classical conditioning model

THE CLASSICAL CONDITIONING MODEL

Pavlov used this relatively simple experiment as a model for describing much of the automatic/nonconscious learning that occurs in everyday life. In any case where you have “learned” to respond automatically to some sort of stimulus with fear, joy, excitement, or anticipation you have become classically conditioned. In fact, a basic characteristic of classical conditioning, is that the learning is automatic and non-conscious. Pavlov identified four basic components in this classical conditioning model.

TheUnconditioned Stimulus(US)is the stimulus that naturally and instinctively elicits the target response, which, in the case of his classic experiment is the meat powder.The Conditioned Stimulus(CS)is the stimulus that comes to elicit the target response, which was the tuning fork tone in Pavlov’s experiment. The unconditioned and conditioned responses are a bit difficult to identify since they are often the exact same behaviour. For example, in Pavlov’s experiment they are both salivation.

The fundamental difference is that theUnconditioned Response(UR)occurs as a result of the unconditioned stimulus, and theConditioned Response(CR)occurs in response to the conditioned stimulus. In the Pavlov experiment, the unconditioned response is salivation in response to the meat powder, and the conditioned response is salivation in response to the tone of a tuning fork.

The conditioned reflex was a response (salivation) elicited by a stimulus (the tuning fork) other than the one that first produced it (food). The concept was used by psychologists as a new tool, as a means of exploring the development of behaviour. Using this tool, they could begin to account for behaviour as the product of prior experience. This enabled them to explain how certain acts and certain differences among individuals were the result of learning.

One special and most common example of classical conditioning is taste aversion. Taste aversion is a case where an organism learns to have an aversion to the taste or smell or other characteristics of some food or drink. For example, people consuming too much alcohol, can be made to learn to associate the smell or even sight of the alcohol with the sickness that resulted from consuming the alcohol, hence eventually made to exit.

JB Watson (1878 – 1958)

John B. Watson was the first American psychologist to use Pavlov’s ideas. Like Thorndike, he was originally involved in animal research, but later became involved in the study of human behaviour.(He is credited with coining the term “behaviourism”)

Watson believed that humans are born with a few reflexes and the emotional reactions of love and rage. All other behaviour is established through stimulus-response associations through conditioning.

Watson’s Experiment

Watson demonstrated classical conditioning in an experiment involving a young child (Albert) and a white rat. Originally, Albert was unafraid of the rat; but Watson created a sudden loud noise whenever Albert touched the rat. Because Albert was frightened by the loud noise, he soon became conditioned to fear and avoid the rat. The fear was generalized to other small animals. Watson then “extinguished” the fear by presenting the rat without the loud noise. Some accounts of the study suggest that the conditioned fear was more powerful and permanent than it really was.

Certainly Watson’s research methods would be questioned today; however, his work did demonstrate the role of conditioning in the development of emotional responses to certain stimuli. This may explain certain fears, phobias and prejudices that people develop.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

There are, of course, many variables that can affect the degree to which classical conditioning will or will not occur in different situations. As you might have suspected the study of classical conditioning can become quite complex through the consideration of these different variables, and learning researchers have examined many over the years. Here, we shall briefly consider some of these variables that have received the most attention.

• Latency:This is the time difference between the conditioned stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus.
• Extinctionrefers to the fact, that, if the conditioned and unconditioned stimuli are not paired for a given number of trials an organism will stop exhibiting the conditioned response.
• Spontaneous recovery:This is the re-occurrence of a classically conditioned response after extinction has occurred.
• Generalisation:This is the case where stimuli that are like the conditioned stimulus come to elicit the same response.
• Stimulus Discrimination:This is the ability to determine the type of stimulus that can produce reward.

Note that

1. The conditioned stimulus must come first. For example, if Pavlov always sounded the tone after the dog got meat powder, the tone, in the absence of the meat powder, would signal that the dog somehow missed getting its meat powder so, in fact, it might as well not salivate.
2. Given that the conditioned stimulus does precede the unconditioned stimulus, the general rule in conditioning is that the shorter the latency the more likely it is that the conditioning will occur.

The major principle behind classical conditioning is contiguity. Under the contiguity principle learning could only be explained by association , it has been argued that when two events repeatedly occur together they tend to become associated.

APPLICATION OF CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

Classical conditioning has a number of situations in our daily life in which it can be applied. Classical conditioning can be applied in a classroom situation, clinics as wells as in business and school general set up. Researchers have argued that classical conditioning can be involved in both positive and negative experiences of children in the classroom.

It should be noted that among the things in the child’s schooling that produce pleasure because they have become classically conditioned are a favourite song, feelings that the classroom is a safe and fun place to be, and teacher’s warmth and nurturing. For instance, the song could be neutral stimulus for the child not until the child joins with the other classmates to sing it with positive accompanying positive feelings.

Additionally, classical conditioning can be applied in understanding different behaviour of pupils and seeking positive intervention. For example, children can develop fear of the classroom if they associate the classroom with criticism. Therefore, criticism becomes the conditioned stimulus, for example, a child fails a test and s/he is criticised which in turn produces anxiety; thereafter, the child associates tests with anxiety, so they become conditioned stimulus for anxiety.

Therefore, it comes out clear that test anxiety is another example of classical conditioning. Bad results on a series of tests will lead students to have a negative attitude taking tests. Counter-conditioning would be needed to reverse the anxiety. Relaxation techniques could be very useful in this situation. In this case, it is necessary for classroom responsible officers to avoid non constructive criticism.

It is also worth noting that Pavlov identifies the concept of stimulus generalisation in classical conditioning, where the dog did not just learn to salivate to the exact sound of the bell that it had been conditioned to. The dog had learnt to generalise response by salivating to sounds that were similar to that of the bell. Therefore a teacher would easily understand the behaviour of pupils in an event where the pupil is criticised for poor performance in biology test. When he she begins to prepare for chemistry test, the pupil becomes nervous because these two test are closely related in the sciences. Hence the pupil’s anxiety is generalised from taking a test in one subject to taking test in another.

Classical conditioning can also be used to help pupils start liking certain aspects of school which they might have disliked. For instance, the four-year boy who may not like school can be conditioned to start liking school by pairing the school environment with the toys which the child likes so that the boy can associate the school to the things he likes. After repeatedly pairing the toys boy would now like the school environment because he associates the school environment to the things he likes.

The technique is also useful in the treatment of anxiety problems. Teachers are able to apply classical conditioning in the class by creating a positive classroom environment to help students overcome anxiety or fear. It has therefore been established that pairing an anxiety-provoking situation, such as performing in front of a group, with pleasant surroundings helps the student learn new associations. Instead of feeling anxious and tense in these situations, the child will learn to stay relaxed and calm.

Many dog trainers use classical conditioning techniques to help people train their pets. In Africa societies for instance in Zambia Eastern province classical conditioning is used in the keeping of chickens and pigs in many of the villages of the Eastern Zambia. In this particular case the owner of pigs and chickens identifies a particular sound to be made for instance in case of pigs and individual would shout“kudya kudya”which is neutral stimuli followed by presentation of food which is unconditioned stimulus.

After contiguous pairing, the pigs are able to associate the shouting kudya kudya to the presentation of food. This is used similarly with the chickens where they are taught to associate the sound made to the presentation of grain. This is used when a farmer wants to gather his or her domestic animals for counting.

Implications of Pavlov’s Theory to Classroom Situations

The theory believed that one must be able to practise and master a task effectively before embarking on another one. This means that a student needs to be able to respond to a particular stimulus (information) before he/she can be associated with a new one.

Teachers should know how to motivate their students to learn. They should be versatile with various strategies that can enhance effective participation of the students in the teaching-learning activities.

Most of the emotional responses can be learned through classical conditioning. A negative or positive response comes through the stimulus being paired with. For example, providing the necessary school material for primary school pupils will develop good feelings about school and learning in them, while, punishment will discourage them from attending the school.

Operant conditioning theory of learning was formulated by B.F. Skinner. Who was an American Psychologist. His theory came based on the lapses discovered in the classical conditioning theory. Skinner believed that classical conditioning explained only how behaviour that has already been acquired can occur in the presence of a new stimulus.

Operant or instrumental conditioning, however, believed that most learning consist of acquiring new behaviour. He believed that behaviour is an outcome of response that follows the action. The learner will possibly repeat the action or a particular behaviour if it is followed/ rewarded with a pleasant consequence (positive reinforcement).

Skinnerexplained the two types of responses in his theory. One can be elicited only by the stimulus or information an individual acquires at a particular period (reflex response). For example, stepping on a sharp object or touching a hot metal will originally make someone to produce reflex response. The second type is the response that an individual elicits following his/her own decision.

This type of response is called operant conditioning. It is based on the fact that behaviour operates upon the environment to generate its own response. This operant behaviour emits voluntary response. Operant conditioning believes that behavioural responses become connected to environmental stimuli largely as a result of what happens after the response occurs.

To establish his claims, Skinner performed many experiments with pigeons and white rats in the laboratory. He constructed a box (Skinner box) with a small lever inside it. The lever releases food to the animals whenever the lever is pressed. In one of the experiments, an hungry rat is placed in the box and if the rat presses the lever, the food would drop for it. The lever in this box is mechanically connected to a device that automatically records every attempt the rat made.

In the box the rat moved around tirelessly and each time the lever is pressed, the food falls for the rat. The rat becomes persistent in pressing the lever so that the food could fall. The food that comes down for the rat reinforces its action, this lever pressing becomes a conditioned response for the rat.

In contrast, if the food is not accompanied with the pressing of lever, the number of presses would fall gradually to the lowest point. In this type of theory, it is the result or consequence of a behaviour that makes that behaviour more likely to be repeated on learned. If the result of behaviour is gratifying, one is likely to respond the same way the next time one encounters that stimulus. In the above experiment, the pressing of lever becomes instrument (instrumental).

Skinner in this theory identified the two types of reinforcers, they are homework is a positive reinforcer. By this action, it is likely that such a student will want to continue doing his/her assignment promptly. However, the student who receives punishment for misbehaving in the classroom is not likely to repeat the action for which he/she has received unpleasant/negative reward.

TYPES OF OPERANT CONDITIONING PROCEDURES

Five procedures are defined by the presentation or removal of a reinforcement or punishment. In this scenario, the term positive is used to imply addition, and negative to denote subtraction of an incentive. The procedures are:

1.Positive reinforcement (Reinforcement)

This occurs when a behaviour (response) of the subject is followed by a stimulus that is rewarding and this increases the frequency of that behaviour. Positive reinforcement usually is favourable events given to the subject after portraying a desirable behaviour.

In an experiment involving a rat for instance, a stimulus such as food or a sugar solution could be delivered when a rat engages in a target behaviour, such as pressing a lever. Other than food, other forms of positive reinforcement may include praise, rewards, smile and so on. Positive reinforcement essentially targets to increase the likelihood of certain behaviours.

2.Negative reinforcement

A negative reinforcer is any stimulus the removal or withdrawal of which increases the likelihood of a particular behaviour. Electric shock, loud noise and so on, are said to be negative reinforcers (Shah, 2009). Negative reinforcement occurs when a behaviour is followed by the removal of an aversive stimulus, thereby increasing that behaviour’s frequency. This kind of negative reinforcement is called escape. A similar procedure called avoidance occurs when the desired behaviour allows the organism to totally avoid shock, like in the case of exposure to electric shock.

Negative reinforcers typically are characterized by the removal of an undesired or unpleasant outcome after the desired behaviour. A response is strengthened as something considered negative is removed. In the Skinner box experiment, negative reinforcement can be a loud noise continuously sounding inside the rat’s cage until it engages in the target behaviour, such as pressing a lever, upon which the loud noise is removed.

As noted from the foregoing, reinforcement is a central concept in Behaviourism, and was seen as a central mechanism in the shaping and control of behaviour. A common misconception however, arises that negative reinforcement is synonymous with punishment. This misconception is rather pervasive.

To be clear, while positive reinforcement is the strengthening of behaviour by the application of some event (e.g., praise after some behaviour is performed), negative reinforcement is the strengthening of behaviour by the removal or avoidance of some aversive event (e.g., opening and raising an umbrella over your head on a rainy day is reinforced by the cessation of rain falling on you).

The key aspect to note in reinforcement is that both types of reinforcement strengthen behaviour, or increase the probability of a behaviour reoccurring; the difference is in whether the reinforcing event is something applied (positive reinforcement) or something removed or avoided (negative reinforcement).

Schedules of reinforcement

Part of Skinner’s analysis of behaviour involved not only the power of a single instance of reinforcement, but the effects of particular schedules of reinforcement over time. Munsaka (2011:11) and Karen, (1975) both identify two main categories of schedules of reinforcement being continuous and intermittent reinforcements. These are described in depth below.

Continuous reinforcement refers to constant delivery of reinforcement for an action; every time a specific action was performed the subject instantly and always received reinforcement. This method is impractical to use, and the reinforced behaviour is prone to extinction.

Under intermittent reinforcement, we have interval and ratio schedules.

(i) Interval Schedules are based on the time intervals between reinforcements. Interval schedules are further sub divided into:

• Fixed Interval Schedule (FI): Here incentives are based on the principle in which reinforcements are presented at fixed time periods, provided that the appropriate response is made.
• Variable Interval Schedule (VI): An operant conditioning principle in which behaviour is reinforced based on an average time that has expired since the last reinforcement.

Both FI and VI tend to produce slow, methodical responding because the reinforcements follow a time scale that is independent of how many responses occur.

(ii)Ratio Schedules:based on the ratio of responses to reinforcements

• Fixed Ratio Schedule (FR):An operant conditioning principle in which reinforcement is delivered after a specific number of responses have been made.
• Variable Ratio Schedule (VR):An operant conditioning principle in which the delivery of reinforcement is based on a particular average number of responses (ex. slot machines).

VR produce slightly higher rates of responding than FR because an organism doesn’t know when next reinforcement is. The higher the ratio, the higher the response rate tends to be.

1.Positive punishment (Punishment)

Simply put, punishment is the opposite of reinforcement. Weber (1991:72) noted that, “punishment is any operation that decreases the rate of response. For example, when a rat presses the lever, shock is presented.” This action will automatically lead to a decrease in lever pressing, as such, punishment would have occurred.

Positive punishment is sometimes referred to as punishment by application. When shock or other unpleasant means are instituted to decrease behaviour, the consequence is referred to as positive punishment. This involves the presentation of an unfavourable event in order to weaken the response that follows. Positive punishment is sometimes a confusing term, as it denotes the “addition” of a stimulus or increase in the intensity of a stimulus that is aversive (such as spanking or an electric shock).

2.Negative punishment (Penalty)

This kind of punishment is associated with the removal of a stimulus, such as taking away a child’s toy or withdrawing a privilege following an undesired behaviour. This results in a reduction of unwanted behaviour. This procedure is considered negative because something is removed or taken away from the child (in the case of a human subject).

3.Extinction

Occurs when, a behaviour (response) that had previously been reinforced is no longer effective. For example, a rat is first given food many times for lever presses. Then, in “extinction”, no food is given. Typically, the rat continues to press more and more slowly and eventually stops, at which time lever pressing is said to be “extinguished.”

Extinction may mean the loss of an acquired response or the failure to make a learned response. Usually, extinction is brought about when following a period of reinforcement for responding, reinforcement is no longer offered. We can thus conclude that the goal of extinction is to curtail or completely eradicate a certain response action by stopping the provision of a stimulus. This in due course eliminates certain behaviour.

As noted from the above descriptions on punishment and extinction, these two have the effect of weakening behaviour, or decreasing the future probability of a behaviour’s occurrence, by the application of an aversive stimulus/event (positive punishment or punishment by contingent stimulation), removal of a desirable stimulus (negative punishment or punishment by contingent withdrawal), or the absence of a rewarding stimulus, which causes the behaviour to stop (extinction).

The aim of punishment and extinction is to weaken the incidences of a particular behaving reoccurring stimulus/event (positive punishment or punishment by contingent stimulation), removal of a desirable stimulus (negative punishment or punishment by contingent withdrawal), or the absence of a rewarding stimulus, which causes the behaviour to stop (extinction). The aim of punishment and extinction is to weaken the incidences of a particular behaving reoccurring.

Classroom Implications of Instrumental/Operant Conditioning Theory

The teacher should know that the environment or the conditions in which the students learn are very significant to the learning outcomes, hence, the teacher should provide conducive learning environment and conditions for his/her students.

1. Reinforcement is an essential factor if the students must perform well in a given task. To this end, the teacher should not neglect the use of motivation that can adequately propel the students into actions.
2. If a student engages in a disruptive behaviour, the teacher should not reinforce such a behaviour rather, he/she should endeavour to tell such a student the dare consequence of that action.
3. When there is interference in the transfer of experiences by the learners, the teacher may use explanations and reinforcement to strengthen the desired facts and weaken the undesired one.

Conclusion

The Instrumental/Operant Conditioning of Skinner revealed that behaviour is an outcome of response that follows the action. Skinner believed that responses are divided into two. These are the involuntary behaviour and operant response i.e. the behaviour that is dictated by the learner’s interaction with his/her environment. The relevance of reinforcement/motivation and punishment to students learning is also discussed in this article.

Albert Bandurais noted as one of the exponents of theory of social learning and observational learning. Social learning theory explains human behaviour from the point of continuous reciprocal interaction between cognitive, behavioural and environmental influences.

THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

As stated above, observational learning is a type of learning which occurs when an organism’s responding is influenced by the observation of others who are called models, (Weiten, 2004). There are three basic concepts at the centre of social cognitive learning theory. These include the fact that

• People can learn through observation,
• Mental states are important to learning (intrinsic reinforcement) and that
• Learning does not necessarily lead to behaviour change.

Bandura departed from behaviourists ideas that learning leads to a change in behaviour. This theory holds that people can observe new behaviours without change in behaviour or imitate the behaviour observed.

Observational learning emphasises the importance of observing and modelling the behaviours of others. Weiten (2004) defined a model as a person whose behaviour is observed by another.

Schunk (2009) presents that there are three basic models in observational learning these include a live model (models that are present or appear in person), models that are not human beings for example televised talking animals (on television these would be Garfield, Penguins of Madagascar, Lion King and Tom and Jerry) and other cartoon characters. The last model is the symbolic or fictional model which encompasses computers, videotape, DVD or in print /that is books and magazines.

Bandura (1986) maintains that people’s characteristic patterns of behaviour are shaped by the models they are exposed to. Some models are more influential than others. For example, people are more likely to imitate people they like and respect or better put,significant others.

As discussed by Santrock (2006) Bandura demonstrated observational learning through the Bobo doll experiment. In the experiment, an equal number of children were randomly picked to watch one of three movies which showed a person beat up an adult size plastic toy calledBobo doll. In the first group, children saw the model being rewarded for the aggressive behaviour as such when later on the children were given to play with the Bobo doll themselves, they too tended to be more aggressive. The second group of children watched the model being punished for aggressive behaviour and hence they themselves showed less aggression towards the doll. The last group of children watched a film where there were no consequences for the aggressor’s behaviour.

In this experiment, Bandura demonstrated that children learn and imitate the behaviours that they observe in other people. It can further be stated about the social cognitive learning theory that observing a model does not guarantee learning or later ability to perform the behaviour. Rather, models provide information about probable consequences of action and motivate observers to act accordingly. When the models observed are rewarded or punished for their behaviour, we the observers ensure that we modify our behaviour based on what the consequences are.

In addition, the social cognitive learning theory stresses the point that social factors, individual internal cognitive processes and obvert behaviour cannot be separated as they are crucial at achieving meaningful learning. It should be noted here that it is this interaction between environmental factors and personal factors which is referred to as reciprocal determinism.

To explainreciprocal determinism,the following examples will be used:

(a)Environment influences an individual: a given school introduces culture (traditional dancing and singing) as an extra curriculum activity and students as such join groups of their choice.

(b)Behaviour influences the environment: the cultural groups become big and successful such that students are even invited to perform at national level. This achievement in behaviour motivates the school to expand the programme and include traditional games such assolo

(c)Personal factors influence behaviour: many students join the cultural groups and view them as future careers. The example above shows the inter play of environmental factors, obvert behaviour and personal factors.

For social learning theory to take place, there are four factors which must be present. These are observers (learners), teacher (model), learners’ attention and proximity or nearness. The process of learning is influenced by the extent of identifications and imitations by the learners to the other three factors.

In most cases, an individual will like to emulate a model who is perceived to be competent, powerful, and attractive, as well as someone whose behaviour is relevant to the observer. This means that we learn by observing the behaviour of others.

In social learning theory, reinforcement is not a prerequisite for a learning to occur, but this increases the chance that what has been learnt will definitely be performed. This theory is therefore rested on the fact that an action or behaviour can be performed if the model is pleasantly rewarded. It is also believed that there is probability that an observer might drop a behaviour if he found out that the model has received a negative reinforcement for practicing such a behaviour.

CRITICAL STAGES OR BASIC PROCESSES IN OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING

It is stated that in observational learning as in any other type of learning, there are phases or stages that should be followed. If the stages are not seriously adhered to, the, desired results may not be attained. Among the stages listed are:attention, retention reproduction and motivation. The first two stages highlight the importance of cognition in this type of learning.

(i)Attentionis the first stage of observational learning. This phase requires that learners focus all their energies on the model so as not to miss out any detail on what the model is saying or doing. It is also believed that learners will pay more attention to models who are attractive and are of high status or those who are in the circle of significant others.

(ii)Retention stage: This is the second stage, which involves coding of information with a view to falling back on it or retrieving it in future. This is so because an individual may not have occasion to use the observed response for weeks, months or even years. Therefore, an individual must store a mental representation observed in the memory. The learner’s rate of retention in the phase of retention can be aided by the use of simple descriptions or vivid images of the teacher or model. Sequence markers can also be used to facilitate retention.

(iii)Thereproduction stageis the stage where learners will strive to make an attempt and remember the observed behaviour. This the phase where the learners may have to make several attempts until the targeted behaviour has been learnt accurately. Enacting a modelled response depends on an individual’s ability to reproduce the response by converting the stored mental images into obvert behaviour. This phase can be termed as the trial-adjustment and readjustment stage. It should be mentioned here that teachers are required to give prompt feedbacks to enable the learners to make necessary adjustments.

(iv)Motivation is the last stage of observational learning process. As stated earlier on, observational learning involves the idea of seeing what the model is doing and evaluating the consequences of the modelled action. This actually means the learner has to make the final decision on whether or not to perform the modelled behaviour. The decisions of which will be determined by the consequences observed. Thus, learners are more likely to perform the modelled behaviour if the consequences are positive. On the other hand, an individual is unlikely to reproduce an observed response unless he/she is motivated to do so. Therefore, learning does not always lead to change of behaviour.

Furthermore, reinforcement is very important in the process of learning. According to the social learning theory, performance or non-performance of modelled behaviour may also be attributed to the kind of reinforcement that the learner receives. Three types of reinforcement are distinguished by the social learning theory:

(1)Direct reinforcement: A learner who models behaviour and is praised or admired for the same will be said to have experiencedirect reinforcement.

(2)Vicarious reinforcementthat includesvicarious positive reinforcementandvicarious punishment. Bandura (1977) definedvicarious reinforcementas a reinforcement that occurs when an individual imitates the behaviour of someone who has been reinforced for that behaviour. This can happen through watching, listening to or reading about other people. For example, a child can be reinforced to work hard in school after listening to someone who has excelled in education and living a decent life.

Vicarious punishmentis a decrease of a probability of behaviour due to having observed this behaviour leading to negative consequences. For example, an individual can stop abusing drugs after watching a person suffering from various health complications due to smoking or after watching someone (model)being imprisoned because of being found in possession and abusing drugs.

(3)The third type of reinforcement isself-reinforcement. In this type of reinforcement, the learner waits for no external approval or disapproval. The learner bases his decision to either exhibit behaviour o or not on the inner satisfaction. For example, an individual reward or punish him/herself for meeting or failing to meet own standards. It is this kind of reinforcement which is recommended as most desired in learning because it with stands extinction and usually results in meaningful learning. Learners who are self-reinforced set their own goals. However, care should be taken to ensure that the goals set are realistic when this is not done; the result might lead to either, discouragement or disappointment.

The social learning theory highlights how a variety of personal factors govern behaviour. In recent years, Bandura has emphasised on howself-efficacy can influence behaviour. Self-efficacy refers to one’s belief about one’s ability to perform behaviours that should lead to expected out comes. Self-efficacy is very important in learning because it is directly related to effort and task persistence. For example, learners whose self-efficacy is high are likely to exert effort in the midst of difficulty and still will show enthusiasm to perform a task when they have the required skills.

APPRECIATION OF THE SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

It is an observable fact that we acquire, maintain and modify behaviour that we see others perform. The theory helps us to draw the conclusion that human beings are not passive in learning. This implies that human beings are rational, organised and self-reflecting beings who are able to interpret the world around them. This can be seen in their ability to observe and evaluate consequences.

The social cognitive theory exposes the autonomy of human beings to choose which behaviours to imitate in spite of being exposed to various behaviours. The theory of operant conditioning boarders on the concept that people learn by doing. However, the social cognitive theory projects a much different view which is that behavioural consequences as opposed to cementing behaviours work as sources of information and motivation.

It is because of consequences that people are able to verify the accurateness or appropriateness of behaviour. It is only natural to emulate people whose actions have led to success. For example, we choose which behaviours to keep and when to use them.

Furthermore, the theory lays bare the interplay of personal factors, environmental factors and behaviour. These are very important factors in the process of learning.

Classroom Implications of Social Learning Theory

1. The teacher is a model for students in his/her classroom, and he/she has a profound effect on students’ attitudes, beliefs and behaviour. In this case, the teacher should be a good model.
2. The teacher should always make sure that he/she does not condone any irrational behaviour from his/her students. Any offending student should be appropriately dealt with, so as to serve as a deterrent to other members of the classroom.
3. The teacher should not forget to give complimentary remarks such as “well done”, excellent”, “good boy/girl,” “keep it up”, as a way of encouraging other students to imitate a good behaviour.
4. Teacher/parents should discourage their students/children from watching violent films or keeping friends of doubtful characters.