Behaviorists
advocate a number of principles that must occur for learning to take
place. In the article “The Behaviorist Orientation to Learning” (Smith,
1999), and in the chapter on behaviorism in the on-line book “Emerging Perspectives on Learning, Teaching,
and Technology” (Stanridge, 2002) the following principles emerge:
·
A change in behavior must occur for
learning to take place as such learning is an active rather than a passive
process.
·
Behaviors change according to its
consequence. Positive reinforcement such
as rewards is preferable to negative consequences such as punishment.
·
Consequences that occur immediately will
have a greater impact on behavior than those occur later.
·
Frequent practice is essential for
learning to take place.
An Instructional strategy that has emerged out of
these principles is direct instruction which allows for the active engagement
of learners with frequent assessment and feedback (Magliaro, Lockee and Burton,
2005). Several computer aided software
have been designed based on this model such as English Grammar 101
which also embed the principles of frequent practice, immediate feedback and
positive reinforcement.
The strategy of
reinforcing effort as described by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski (2007)
involve students using spreadsheet software to correlate their achievement to
the effort exerted. Every week , using a
spreadsheet software like Microsoft Excel, students assess their effort using a
rubric before a test, and then insert their test score after which they create
a chart to help them analyze the data. In
this strategy the learner is actively engaged in the process, and immediate
feedback is provided. Other behaviorist
principles are more sublime. Deeper
analysis by the student would be needed to correlate the connection between the
individual effort categories and the changes in the grade. However I believe it is a good strategy for
students, especially those in high school.
Pitler et al. also discussed the use of word
processing software, spreadsheet software, multimedia, web resources and
communication tools in helping students get the most out of homework. Multimedia and web resources are designed to
provide the learner with immediate feedback, frequent practice and active
engagement, while the word processing and spreadsheet application activates
higher order thinking skills.
The strategies outlined above all illustrate the
importance of behaviorist learning theory in the teaching -learning
process. Adhering to its principles in
the development of skills is very important, but what these strategies also illustrate
is how these they can also be used to develop higher level cognitive skills as
well.
References
Magliaro, S. G., Lockee, B. B., & Burton, J. K.
(2005). Direct instruction revisited: A key model for instructional technology.
ETR&D, 53(4), 41–54.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M.,
& Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that
works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Smith,
K. (1999). The behaviourist orientation to learning. In The encyclopedia of
informal education. Retrieved from http://www.infed.org/biblio/learning-behavourist.htm
Standridge,
M.. (2002). Behaviorism. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning,
teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/
1 comment:
English Grammar 101 is not a tool that I am familiar with, so I had to take a few minutes to look into it. It looks like a great resource, and I really wish my district had access to this or something like it. Grammar is one area in my curriculum where I feel as though a behaviorist approach needs to be use, because I think students learn such rules with continues practice. Unfortunately, grammar instruction is not a top priority where I currently teach. I think a computer resource, such as English Grammar 101, would be useful for my students because it is more interactive and provides immediate feedback. How often have you used this resource with your students and do you find it successful?
I also like your suggestion about have students assess their effort using a spreadsheet. I think this would be a great way for students to assess their own performance and track it over time, however my issue is finding time in class to complete such a task. I feel rushed as is to cover all of the content that is part of my curriculum; for my students to complete such an assessment, I envision at least half of a class period once a cycle, and this is time that I simply do not have. Is this something you have done with your students? If so, is it used only before a test as mentioned in your post?
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