is a theory of learning based upon the
idea that all behaviors are acquired
through conditioning. Conditioning
occurs through interaction with the
environment. According to behaviorism,
behavior can be studied in a systematic
and observable manner with no
consideration of internal mental states.
is a technique used in behavioral training in which
a naturally occurring stimulus is paired with a
response.
 Next, a previously neutral stimulus is paired with the
naturally occurring stimulus.
 Eventually, the previously neutral stimulus comes to
evoke the response without the presence of the
naturally occurring stimulus.
 The two elements are then known as the
conditioned stimulus and the conditioned
response.


Is a method of learning that occurs through
rewards and punishments for behavior.

Through operant conditioning, an association is
made between a behavior and a consequence
for that behavior.
"The consequences of
behavior determine
the probability that
the behavior will
occur again“
-- B.F Skinner
B.F. Skinner is famous for his research on operant
conditioning and negative reinforcement.
 He developed a device called the "cumulative
recorder," which showed rates of responding as a
sloped line.
 Using this device, he found that behavior did not
depend on the preceding stimulus as Watson and
Pavlov maintained.
 Instead, Skinner found that behaviors were
dependent upon what happens after the
response. Skinner called this operant behavior.

The behaviorist approach to teaching has practical
applications in education. In particular,
understanding basic skills and core subject
knowledge. The approach of using positive and
negative reinforcements to elicit desired behaviors
of students is also useful in establishing and
maintaining classroom management.

Typical classroom instruction consistent with the behaviorist
theory includes; classroom management, rote memorization,
and drill and practice.
Behaviorist adult education has inspired many of the
current practices in e-learning, from the design of courses
using the mastery model to such advanced practices as
learning objects linked to behavioral objectives,
personalization of content based on gap analysis, and
competency modeling.
 In its most extreme form, behaviorist education is simply
training that teaches learners rote behaviors through drill
and practice.
 This philosophy has been adopted by corporate training
because it is grounded in psychological principles that
efficiently produce overt, observable, and measurable
outcomes, which are popular in corporate environments
that are also focused on measurable results.
 Behaviorist adult education lends itself to clear and
measurable outcomes.
Cognitivism is a theory which attempts to
answer how and why people learn by
attributing the process to cognitive
activity. This theory followed the
behaviorist school of thought. The
cognitivists’ quarrel with the behaviorists
was that their focus on observable
behavior did not account for what was
going on in the mind.
The cognitivist paradigm essentially argues that the
“black box” of the mind should be opened and
understood. The learner is viewed as an information
processor (like a computer).
 Mental processes such as thinking, memory, knowing,
and problem-solving need to be explored.
 Knowledge can be seen as schema or symbolic mental
constructions.
 Learning is defined as change in a learner’s schemata.

He described the domains of
learning. He identified three:
 cognitive
 affective
 Psychomotor
He also designed Bloom’s
Taxonomy:
Benjamin Bloom
In Cogntivism, learning is a change in
knowledge stored in memory.
Information processing is governed by
an internal process — rather than
external circumstance as emphasized
by behaviorism. The process includes
selecting information (attention),
translating information (encoding),
and recalling that information when
appropriate (retrieval).
They agree on many general points about the study
of psychology.
Where they differ primarily is on the issue of whether
mental representations play a role in the
generation of behavior.
This difference has led to some methodological
differences as well: cognitivists use computers to
model psychological phenomena whereas
behaviorists rarely did.
However, these two divergent perspectives provide
unique approaches to how learning takes place.

BullyingNewsVideo (2008, September 13) Classical Conditioning Ivan Pavlov [video file] Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhqumfpxuzI
Patricia M. Davis, (1999). Behaviorist theories of learning
Retrieved from
http://www.sil.org/lingualinks/literacy/implementaliteracyprogram/beh
avioristtheoriesoflearning.htm


Brenda Mergel, (1998, May) Instructional Design & Learning Theory
Retrieved from
http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mergel/bre
nda.htm