Teachers can consider various learning theories when constructing a lesson to assist students to learn effectively. The three general theories are behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. Every single theory has a different perspective on how our learners learn so learning will look different, as will your strategies.
A behaviorist teacher considers learning is a new behavior. Students get rewarded, or at least receive feedback, when they get something correct. In a lesson about climate change, for instance, a teacher might employ flashcards or multiple-choice quizzes. When students respond correctly, they are awarded points or praise. This is fact memorization – repeating one thing many times over (Ertmer & Newby, 2013).
The cognitivist teacher is more concerned with students’ thinking. They think students learn better when they can organize and make sense of new information. In that same climate change lesson, the teacher could encourage students to construct a concept map, or relate the new information to what they already know. A teacher’s objective is to help a student process and memorize information with great clarity.
A constructivist teacher is adherent to the belief that students construct their own knowledge based on the experiences of their lives. Rather than simply delivering information, the teacher could have students complete a project on pollution in their city or conduct group discussions. Through cooperation and trying to solve issues together, students learn. The teacher is facilitator not an answer giver (Ertmer & Newby, 2013).
Some students might learn better with one way of doing it, and some might learn better with another. In my experience mixing these theories is useful. So we can begin with behaviorist applications to learning facts, then apply cognitivist approaches to organizing facts, and end with constructivist activities such as group projects. That way, students are more motivated and have a better understanding of the material (Park, 2020).
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