CI 512: Teaching and Learning
Thursday, 7/21: Week 1
Classical Learning Theories
Behaviorism
Class Outline –
Classical Theories and
Behaviorism
Note Taker: Iman Alattar
Observer: Martin Rausch
 Community Standards and Logistics (9:00-9:05)
 Syllabus Questions and Outline of the Course (9:05-9:20)
 Classical Learning Theories (9:20-9:40)
 Behaviorism, Drill & Practice
 Small Group Discussion and Break (9:40-10:30)
 Whole Class (10:30-11:00)
 Snapshots Work-time (11:00-11:35)
 Observer Observations (11:35-11:40)
 Conclusions and Exit Cards (11:40-11:50)
Scoring Guide for Synthesis
Paper
Summarizes at least three
theories of teaching and
learning
Articulates an educational
philosophy that includes at
least one theory of teaching
and learning
Applies age-appropriate
application of teaching and
learning theory within a
cultural and community
context
Uses knowledge of teaching
and learning theories to
depict respectful,
supportive and challenging
learning environments
No Evidence
Some
Evidence
Substantial
Evidence
No Evidence
Some
Evidence
Substantial
Evidence
No Evidence
Some
Evidence
Substantial
Evidence
No Evidence
Some
Evidence
Substantial
Evidence
Community Standards
Goals
Practices
- Respectful
Interaction
- Inclusion of Diverse
Perspectives
- Active Participation
- Allow time for reflection
- Distinguish facts from opinions
in discussion
- Use moderation judiciously to
balance between free-flowing
conversation and domination
- Come to class prepared
- Be respectful
Comments from Exit Cards
 Many are aware of their role as a listener
and a speaker in the class
 Learning names
 Community practice of stating your
name before you talk
 Changing Seats
 Lingering Questions about Course Content
Tentative Calendar
7/19
Introductions, Course Expectations,
Theory
7/21
Work on Snapshots
Classical Learning Theory
Behaviorism
7/26
Snapshot Draft 1
Procedural vs. Conceptual
Understanding
7/28
Work on Snapshots
Learning and Transfer
Dewey and Realistic Education
8/2
Snapshot Draft 2
Constructivism I
8/4
Constructivism II
Group work brainstorm- evaluation
criteria
8/9
Synthesis Draft Due
Response Due
Social Learning Theory
Work on Presentations
8/11
Snapshots Due
Response Due
Reactions to constructivism
Work on Presentations
8/16
Presentation Paper Due
Presentations
8/18
Synthesis Paper Due
Presentations and Wrap-up
Classical Learning Theories
 Plato
 Lock
 Freud
Plato (428?-347 BC)
All knowledge rests in an eternal
soul, but is forgotten upon birth
Er visited the Lethe river in Hades
and witnessed souls drinking
forgetfulness
Knowledge construction is the
process of remembering what was
forgotten
Allegory of the Cave
How is learning symbolized in this
allegory?
How does teaching take place?
Plato
“Learning” is a passive process
Instruction should be teacher
centered- those with greater
wisdom can be a guide for the
ignorant
Emphasis on the importance of
learning virtues and reason
“We must reject the conception of education
professed by those who say that they can put
into the mind knowledge that was not there
before– rather as if they could put sight into
blind eyes… The faculty by which he learns is like
an eye which cannot be turned from darkness to
light unless the whole body is turned; in the
same way the mind as a whole must be turned
away from the world of change until it can bear
to look straight at reality.”
- Plato, The Republic
John Locke (1632-1704)
 “Tabula rasa” (blank slate) philosophy
maintains that human minds are born
completely free of content
 The mind is biologically wired with abilities
such as memory, recall, and the capacity
to join ideas together
 Simple ideas are formed directly through
experience and observation
 Simple ideas can be combined to form
complex ideas.
A study by Rothstein (2008) found the
following
“On average, professional parents spoke more than
2,000 words per hour to their children, workingclass parents spoke about 1,300, and welfare
mothers spoke about 600. At 4 years old, children
of professionals had vocabularies that were nearly
50 percent larger than those of working-class
children and twice as large as those of welfare
children.”
How could this be explained through
Lockean educational theory?
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
 Learning is controlled by
our psyche
 Learning is a challenging
processes in which a
child’s “natural state” is
changed
 Constant conflict between
the ego and natural
desires
The child is frightfully inconsiderate of others and egotistic; he is
only concerned with getting his own way and satis-fying his own
desires; he is quite indifferent as to whether this hurts others or not.
He is dirty and odoriferous; he does not mind catching hold of the
most disgusting things or even putting them to his mouth. He is quite
shameless so far as his own body is concerned and very curious
about the things that other people wish to conceal from him. He is
greedy and will steal dainties. He is cruel to all living creatures that
are weaker than himself and filled with a perfect lust for destroying
inanimate objects. He has an abundance of naughty bodily tricks, he
sucks his fingers, he bites his nails, he picks his nose and plays with
his sexual organs; he does all these things urged by his intense
desire for self-fulfillment, and regards the slightest hindrance as
intolerable.
-Anna Freud (1935)
Small Group Discussion
1. Phillips and Soltis (Behaviorism)
 What are the primary features of
behaviorism?
 How to the tenants of behaviorism align
with current standardized testing practices?
2. Resnick and Ford (Drill and practice)
 For what types of learning has drill and
practice been particularly effective for you?
For what types of learning has it been
ineffective?
3. Brownell (Reaction to drill and practice)
Behaviorism
 Lens for research
 Theory on what consists of learning
 Focuses on external behaviors of humans
 Views human learning as biologically similar to animal
learning
Behaviorism
 Classical Conditioning
 Pavlov (1849-1946)
 Focuses on involuntary response mechanisms for learning
 Operant Conditioning
 Thorndike (1874-1949)
 Reinforcement (positive and negative) to reinforce bonds
 Skinner (1904-1990)
 Continuous vs. intermittent reinforcement schedules
Drill & Practice and the role of
automaticity
 Working memory space is limited
 Automaticity frees up space in working
memory to allow for other cognitive
function
 Common examples include talking while
driving, reading, and arithmetic
Working Memory Theory
Miller (1957) The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus
Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing
Information
Barn
Engine
Bay
Fire
Ticket
Key
Swallow
Hair
Green
Cabin
Duck
Anger
Place
Gun
Data
Land
Hard
Feet
Spoon
Loud
Heart
Working Memory Theory
Miller (1957) The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus
Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing
Information
 Differentiation of Inputs of a single characteristic
(loudness, pitch, taste, shades of grey) (7±2)
 Memorization of “bits” of information (7±2)
 “Bits” could be recoded into “chunks”
Recoding Binary Data into
Chunks
Barn
Engine
Bay
Fire
Ticket
Key
Swallow
Hair
Green
Cabin
Duck
Anger
Place
Gun
Data
Land
Hard
Feet
Spoon
Loud
Heart
Working Memory and Recoding
Sidney Smith (1954) was able to
recode at a 5:1 ratio and recite a 40
digit binary number to the Eastern
Psychological Asociation
Snapshots
Group Activity
 Think of a personally significant learning experience
 How might you explain or interpret this experience
through the lens of behaviorism?
Snapshot Draft (due Tuesday 7/26)
 Carefully describe one learning experience in a well
written paragraph
 Interpret this experience through the lens of
behaviorism
Snapshots Groups
Group
1
Group
2
Group
3
Group
4
Group
5
Group
6
Iman
Derek
Colin
Teale
Greg
Mike T.
Carlos
Arielle
Westie
Chad
Michael
Nick
Mike P.
Chai
Karen
Sean
Kyle
Laura
Casey
Mike M.
Martin
Exit Cards
 Rate your level of participation for today
(0-3)
 What went well for you in class?
 What could be improved for you in class?