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Psychology and Education go well together – for those occupied by psychology, classrooms and school settings offer a rich environment in which to apply psychological theories and ideas. For those working in education psychology provides a valuable source of knowledge to understand best practice. This topic covers four areas; Teaching and Learning; Student Participation; The Social World of Teaching and Learning; and Enabling Learning: Dealing with Diversity.

OCR NEW SPECIFICATION UNIT G543

Options in Applied Psychology Psychology of Education

Psychology of Education

Candidates should;

• be able to describe and evaluate the areas below in the light of psychological theories, studies and evidence; • always seek to apply psychological methods, perspectives and issues; • actively seek to apply theory and evidence to the improvement of real-life events and situations; • explore social, moral, cultural and spiritual issues where applicable; • consider ways in which the core areas of psychology (cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, physiological psychology, social psychology and the psychology of individual differences), studied in the AS course, can inform our understanding of psychology and education.

OCR Specification – www.OCR.org.uk

Teaching and learning

To discuss teaching and learning processes.

Theories of knowledge acquisition

• Stage theories (eg Piaget or Bruner); • Social construction theories (zone of proximal development, Vygotsky); • Behaviourist models linking stimulus and response (Watson, Skinner).

Personal approaches to learning • Variations on learning strategies (eg Curry’s onion model); • Differences in cognitive styles (eg Riding & Raynor, 1999); • Theory of multiple intelligences (Gardner).

Personal approaches to teaching • Behaviourist use of objectives and monitoring of tasks (eg Ausubel’s advanced organisers); • Cognitive approaches of discovery learning (eg Bruner’s spiral curriculum); • Social constructionist ‘co-operative learning’ (Vygotsky).

Student participation

Discuss ways of encouraging appropriate educational behaviours.

Theories of motivation • Motivation as an intrinsic or extrinsic process (eg Claxton); consider psychodynamic (drive) theories (eg Freud’s personalitytheory and defence mechanisms); • The humanist (needs) theories (eg Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs); • Cognitive (attribution) theories (eg Weiner’s attribution theory).

The social world of teaching and learning

To recognise the importance of relationships during the process of teaching and learning.

Personal and social development • Developmental stages such as industry/inferiority (eg Erikson’s 8-stage theory); • Humanist applications of acceptance and approval to learning (eg Rogers, 1977); • Moral development and the implications for social rules (eg Kohlberg).

Student–student social interactions

• Importance related to empathy and moral development (eg Gilligan 1982); • Friendships/bullying and academic success (eg Hartup 1989); • Anti-bullying strategies (eg Tatum & Herbert 1992).

Student–teacher social interactions

• Comparison of teacher/student communications between what is sent and what is received (eg Flander’s interaction analysis); • Transmission of teacher expectations of students (eg Brophy & Good, 1974); • Types and demands of questions used by teachers for primary and secondary pupils (Galton, 1999).

Enabling learning: dealing with diversity

Consider how to enable all students to reach their educational potential.

Dealing with additional needs • Individual support (eg Bloom, 1984); • Consideration of the implications of ability grouping (including provision for gifted students); most evidence (Sukhnandan & Lee, 1998) seems to suggest little outcome gain from grouping by ability; • The provision of remedial support such as reading recovery and various forms of differentiation.

Educational Psychology Studies Checklist

1. Teaching and learning

Theories of knowledge acquisition

Stage theories (Piaget or Bruner,

1966)

Social construction theories (Zone

of Proximal Development (ZPD),

Vygotsky)

Behaviourist models linking

stimulus and response (Watson

and Raynor, 1920; Skinner 1948)

Personal approaches to learning

Variations on learning strategies

(Curry’s onion model, 1983)

Differences in cognitive styles (Riding and Raynor, 1998)

Theory of multiple intelligences (Gardener, 1993)

Personal approaches to teaching

Behaviourist use of objectives and monitoring of tasks (Ausebel, 1977; Krathwohl,

2002)

Cognitive approaches of discovery learning (Bruner’s spiral curriculum, 1960)

Social constructivism – cooperative learning and scaffolding (Wood et al., 1976)

2. Student Participation

Theories of motivation

Intrinsic/extrinsic motivation (Claxton, 1992); psychodynamic

theories (Freud, 1961)

Humanist ‘needs’ theories (Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs,

1954)

Cognitive attribution of theory (Weiner, 2000)

Encouraging educational engagement

The importance of play (Schweihart, 2000)

The emotional nature of learning (Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

Goleman, 1996; Petrides et al., 2004)

The implications of ability grouping (Sukhnandan & Lee, 1998)

Student beliefs and expectations

Social roles and academic success (Riley, 1995)

Learned helplessness (Seligman, 1975)

Developing positive self-esteem (Maslow, 1954; Dweck, 2004)

3. The Social World of Teaching and Learning

Personal and social development

Developmental stages (Erikson’s eight-stage theory)

The need for acceptance and approval (Rogers & Freiberg, 1994)

Moral Development (Kohlberg, 1981)

Student-Student social interactions

Empathy and morality (Gilligan, 1992)

Friendships/bullying and academic success

(Hartup, 1989; Demetrio et al., 2000)

Anti-bullying strategies (Tatum and Herbert,

1992; Smith and Shu, 2000)

Student-teacher social interactions

Comparison of teacher/student

communications (Flanders interaction analysis, 1970)

Teacher expectations of students (Brophy & Good, 1974; Rubie-Davies et al., 2006)

Types of questions and demands used by teachers (Galton et al., 1999)

4. Enabling Learning; Dealing with

Diversity

Dealing with additional needs

Individual support (Bloom, 1984)

Ability grouping (Sukhnandan & Lee,

1998; Freeman, 1997)

Remedial support (Reading Recovery,

Clay, 1985)

Enabling minority ethnic groups

Inter-group tasks (Aronson et al.,

1978; Strand & Demie, 2005)

“To ensure a fair selection you all get the same test. You must all climb that tree.”

Role models (Klein, 1996; Demie et al., 2006)

Positive support (Mac an Ghaill, 1988; DfES, 2007)

Enabling Genders

Gender differences in educational achievement (Arnot et al., 1996; Strand et al.,

2006)

Biological differences in brain structure (Bee, 2000; Solms & Turnbull, 2002)

Strategies for enabling the learning of boys and girls (Younger and Warrington, 2005)

Teaching and Learning

We’ve all been learning, all our lives. We are very used to it and often don’t notice it

happening!

Learning, that we do notice, usually takes place within educational settings – like schools,

college and training in employment.

Tasks

Think about the two examples you have just given. What was the same in both cases? What

was different?

Describe how you think you learnt to swim (or ride a bike!)

Describe how you think you learnt to do “bus stop” division at school.

Comparing learning strategies – Make a list here of all the things you do to help you to

revise or learn something new. Now copy out your neighbours list into the 2nd box.

Compare the lists – Are they similar? Does your friend have

strategies you would like to try? Who do you think learns the

best? Why?

Your learning strategies

Your friends learning

strategies

I think….

Because….

First

•

•

Then

•

•

Finally

•

•

If you were asked to teach a class of 1st year psychology

students about the Baron-Cohen “Eyes Task” how would you

do it?

Many factors need to be considered when thinking about the complex process of teaching

and learning. This section is divided into three broad areas of study. These are;

Theories of knowledge acquisition – a number of theories regarding individual

intellectual development, focussed on how knowledge is gained. Considers

interaction with the external environment, stage theories and expert teachers.

Personal approaches to learning – variety of theories that offer insight into the

diversity of how individuals go about learning. There are as many different ways of

learning as there are personality types! These theories help us to understand why

different learning styles exist and how we can use this knowledge to improve

learning.

Personal approaches to teaching – approaches to teaching can often relate

back to theories of knowledge acquisition. Think about organisation of learning

environments, planning of curriculum and language used in guidance.

How did your neighbour decide to

teach the Core Study?

All teachers are different and it is

not surprising that they teach in

different ways!

1. Theories of Knowledge Acquisition

1.1 Stage theories

Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development

These 4 stages of knowledge acquisition or “cognitive

development” are the most recognized in education

and educational psychology. Piaget was researching

children’s mental processes in the early 1920’s, he

worked with Binet on intelligence testing and

became fascinated with two key things; firstly, that

children of different ages performed at different

levels; and secondly, that their reasoning was

different to that of adults. He was interesting in

“knowing how we know” (Epistemology).

Piaget’s contructivist theory was that children

initially have existing understandings (schemas) of

the world and that they acquire knowledge by

changing their existing schema’s to make sense of

the new experiences. He called this accommodation.

Piaget’s research, (see Samuel and Bryant core

study), lead him to discover that children’s

development occurred in four crude stages outlined

below. Piaget’s research was criticised due to his lack

of rigorous measures, ethnocentric tasks, and limited

generalisability to children from different

backgrounds and cultures. He also disregards the

intricate social aspect of knowledge acquisition.

Stage 1 – Sensori-Motor

From birth to about 18months, children

live via senses.

“My food is warm and mushy – I am

happy.”

Stage 2 – Pre-operational

From 18months to about 7 years,

symbols and general rules become

important.

“If I say yum yum, I get some warm

mushy stuff.”

Stage 3 – Concrete Operational

Age 7 – 12 years, thought experiments

become possible but still limited by

present world.

“I like custard, but what if I put it with

cake?”

Sensori-motor

Stage 1

Pre-operational

Stage 2

Concrete operational

Stage 3

Formal operational

Stage 4

Stage4– Formal Operational

Age 12 years +, thoughts are governed

by logical reasoning; cause & effect are

considered.

Bruner’s Modes of Representation

Bruner (1966) presented three stages or modes of

representation necessary for knowledge acquisition. These

differ from Piaget’s stages in that they are not defined by

precise age ranges. Bruner highlights that children’s

intellectual development is dependant on progressing

through the three stages; and that the three stages exist

throughout an individual’s life.

The three stages are called representations because they

represent the rules that enable the individual to understand

the world.

3 further differences to the work of Piaget are;

1. Bruner considers the social world of the child and how

this causes different life experiences and therefore, the

development of a unique set of rule for each child.

2. Bruner recognises that intellectual development is a

result of interacting with the external environment and is not

limited to biologically determined age stages.

3. Bruner recognises that language assists in intellectual

development, as opposed to being a result of development.

Imagine yourself at age 7 - What did you think happened to the sun during night?

How does this differ from what you think now?

How does your “young schema” compare to your “present schema”?

KEY TERMINOLOGY

Contructivist Theory each

individual actively constructs

their knowledge from their own

experience.

Epistemology the study of how

we know what we know.

Classical Conditioning when a

natural stimulus is paired with a

neutral stimulus often enough to

cause the neutral stimulus to elicit

the natural response (See Pavlov’s

Dogs)

Unconditional Stimulus A

stimulus that elicits an innate

response e.g. food elicits

salivation.

OCR Psychology for A2 - Heinemann

Enactive Stage

"Knowing by doing"

Actions involved in making the lights work on a toy

Iconic Stage

(up to 6 years)

Mental imagery that represents larger chunks of knowledge.

Mental image of toy can be changed in the mid or

represented in drawing

Symbolic Stage

(Approaching adoloscence)

Experience of the world can now be represented by symbols i.e.

language - toys can now be described in words.

Bruner’s Modes of Representation

Some people do not see these as stages at all because they are

flexible and life-long. They are still worth knowing about because there are

still distinct differences between how children of different ages intellectually

develop.

TASKS

Use the table to note down the similarities and differences between Bruner and Piaget.

Similarities Differences

Imagine how you learnt to ride a bike – How would Piaget and

Bruner explain this?

1.2 Social Construction Theories

As you read through this section underline in red anything which is similar between

Vygotsky’s ideas and the ideas of Piaget and Bruner previously studied, underline in black

anything which is different.

Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

Vygotsky developed his socio-cultural (involves both societal and cultural influences on

learning) theory of ZPD at around the same time as Piaget was developing his ideas. Both

had an equal influence on Bruner.

Vygotsky was influenced by Marxism and the importance of the role of the individual within

a group. Stalin suppressed Vygotsky’s work as it was considered anti-Soviet (it highlighted

individual differences) thus preventing the West from seeing it until the 1960’s when

“Thought and Language (1962)” was finally published. Bruner even wrote the forward in it.

Task

What are the alternative words for

these English and American things?

Why do we have different words for

things?

English American

jumper

pants

tap

The ZPD is the most influential idea that Vygotsky

presented. It has become one of the most influential

ideas within education (I myself learnt about it during

teacher training!). Vygotsky’s premise was that

knowledge acquisition and cognitive development

was attributed to interaction with others in a social

world where language is the foremost means of

communication.

He suggested that children interacted with the

environment and adults to help them make sense of

their experiences. Known as “Social Construction”,

the child interacts with the external world, via others, making sense of it through language,

which has cultural, historical meanings.

From this understanding of the implications

of social interactions, Vygotsky devised the

ZPD, and defined it as; the difference in what

a child can achieve alone, compared to what

they could achieve when given help.

There are different ways to picture this idea.

Two of which are included left and below.

Vygotsky found that children who were given advice and suggestions when they got stuck

achieved much more than expected compared to children not given any assistance.

“Without verbal assistance, the children could only show what they could do, but with

assistance, they could show what they were capable of,” (Bainbridge et al., 2008). This

difference is the Zone of Proximal Development. If a child has a bigger ZPD they easier they

will find learning; the smaller the ZPD, the harder they will find learning.

Tasks

Is all adult help actually helpful?

Is learning always a case of telling people how to do something?

Is this reductionist? How?

Work in a pair to answer the following questions:

1. How does Vygotsky link language to learning?

2. Why is this considered a socio-cultural theory?

3. How does Vygotsky describe cognitive development as being socially constructed?

Decide if you want to argue on the side of Piaget/Bruner or on

the side of Vygotsky. Take some notes down, pros and cons for

your chosen side, ready for the debate.

1.3 Behaviourist Models

Watson and Behaviourism

Watson was one of the first “Behaviourist”. Behaviourist

believed that the environment itself has an impact on human

behaviour and favoured observation of behaviour as an

experimental method free from the subjective views of the

researcher. The behaviourists completely rejected idea that

behaviour could be understood by finding out what

individuals thought of their own behaviour. Watson’s main

interest was in the behavioural response to an environmental

stimulus (See Little Albert). This is called “Classical

Conditioning” because it is to do with reflex or automatic,

uncontrollable responses.

Watson and Raynor – Conditional Emotional Reaction

The study on “Little Albert” suggests that complex

behaviours, such as emotional responses, are learned

responses to environmental stimuli. Watson’s views are often

viewed as objectionable; he thought that he could train a

child to become anything from a beggar, to a judge!

Tasks

His ideas are also reductionist. Why?

What are the weaknesses of the study?

What are the strengths of the study?

Why do you think Little Albert was removed after Stage 5?

Little Albert – Watson (Summary)

Aim; to see if is possible to induce

fear of a previously unfeared

object through classical

conditional and to see if the fear

could be transferred to other

similar objects.

Method; a case-study undertaken

on one child in controlled

laboratory conditions.

Participants; Little Albert had no

fearful reactions to a rat, a rabbit,

a dog, a monkey, a mask with hair

or cotton wool. When Albert was

8 months old, he reacted violently

to a test where a suspended steel

bar was hit with a hammer. His

response was used to condition

Albert to fear rats.

Design; a single subject design,

behaviours measured were

Albert’s reaction to stimuli before

and after the conditioning.

Procedure;

Session 1-When Albert was

presented with a rat in the

laboratory, a steel bar was struck.

He jumped and fell forward. The

second time, he began to

whimper. Albert was then given a

week off.

Session 2 – The rat alone was

presented to Albert. Then the rat

was presented with the steel bar

noise 3 times. This was followed

by 1 presentation of the rat alone,

then 2 more with the rat and

noise and finally 1 more of just the

rat.

After this, Albert reacted to the

rat alone by immediately crying,

turning and crawling away from

the rat.

Albert was removed from the

study after his fifth session. We do

not know if he had a fear of rats

for the rest of his life. This study

was extremely unethical!

Skinner - Operant Conditioning (a short note!)

Operant conditioning is the conditioning of voluntary behaviours. Behaviours that are

“operant” are behaviours which are normal to the creature being observed i.e. Children cry;

dogs bark at strangers; rats eat cheese etc.

Skinner investigated what caused certain behaviours to increase or decrease particularly

looking at pigeons and rats. He found that if the result of behaviour was a reward, or the

behaviour itself was rewarding, then that behaviour increased in frequency, and if the result

was a punishment then the behaviour would decrease.

Skinner’s argument was that this reward/punishment approach could be applied to human

learning. He believed in positive reinforcement and that good behaviour will be increased

through intermittent rewards such as praise or a treat or just satisfaction at completing a

task. Skinner, in comparison to Watson, focussed on PRAISE and REWARDS as opposed to

punishment.

Tasks

Watch the video on Watson and Little Albert. Summarise what you have seen and the study

in general. Think about the order of stimulus and response and compare to Skinners ideas.

2. Personal Approaches to Learning

There are three areas within this section – it is best to start with how learners approach

their own learning. This is due to the wide variance in both individual learning styles and

educational settings.

2.1 Variations on Learning Strategies

Curry’s Onion Model (1983)

Curry’s model attempts to help us understand how each individual approaches learning

situations. It highlights the fact that understanding of learning could be improved by the

consideration of the variety of levels of learning activity.

OUTER

Mcarthy’s (1990) 4MAT System is a good example of the outer layer i.e. the numerous

strategies individuals employ and the connected instructional practises. It suggests that

learners prefer asking different questions about the learning activity which leads to the type

of learning task chosen.

Outer; represents how individuals would like

to engage with learning activities.

Known as “Instructional preference”

Varies dependant on learning environment

Middle; represents how individuals prefer to

think about the learning activities. Intellectual

processing of information.

May change as a result of instructional

preference.

Inner; represents individuals assimilation and

adaptation of information.

Won’t be affected by learning environment.

Laye

r 1

___

____

____

_ • Description

Laye

r 2

____

____

___

___ • Description

Laye

r 3

____

____

___

____ • Description

Task

Using the internet and books; research Mcarthy’s 4MAT System and fill in the table below

Preferred Question Type of Learner Preferred learning activity

Why?

What?

How?

If?

In addition to Mcarthy’s 4MAT system, Rezler and Rezmovic (1981) created the Learning

Preference Inventory (LPI) which suggests that strategies for learning are linked to whether

the activities involve concepts which are abstract or concrete; whether individuals are

working independently or as part of a group; and whether the task set is organised by the

teacher or by the learner. What is important is that both the 4MAT and LPI systems identify

that every individual will use different learning strategies when attempting an activity; and

that the strategies are not rigid and can change according to the learning environment.

Tasks

What are the different layers of Curry’s Onion Model and what does each layer represent?

What is a learning strategy? Support your response with relevant research.

2.2 Differences in cognitive styles

The outer layer of Curry’s Onion Model represented the variable strategies which learners

use to deal with different learning environments. The middle layer is considered by Curry as

more stable. This layer comes into play once the individual has begun task, when they are

thinking more about what is involved in the task and are processing the information. At this

point, learning involves the consideration of how the individual will digest the information –

this is known as learning style. You will probably have come across learning styles before, in

your own education.

Task

Do you know what your learning style is? Using the internet, find a learning styles test and

find out what your learning style is.

Learning styles differ from strategies previously discussed because they are linked closely to

actual cognitive processes as opposed to the activity; they are less likely to be disturbed by

the environment the learning is taking place in.

VAK Model of Learning Styles (Rose, 1985)

The VAK (Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic) model is the most popular model of learning

styles in schools today. When you carried out the task above, you most likely found out

which learning style you are according to the VAK model. The VAK model is based on

research into neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) the idea is that the learning style of an

individual reflects their preference of sensory input (seeing, hearing, doing)

Task

Research the three VAK learning styles and fill out the table below.

Learning Style Preferred learning activity

Difference in cognitive styles – Riding and Raynor.

Platt (2001) claims that there is no evidence for NLP theory,

which causes doubt over VAK model.

Coffield (2004) concluded that all models used in educational

settings lacked validity and reliability. They looked at R&R’s

theory and found some validity but little reliability, meaning

that there is some evidence for a link between information-

processing and cognitive styles, but this has not been studied

enough for its usefulness to be accepted by academia.

Tasks

According to Riding and Raynor’s theory of cognitive styles,

what type of learner are you?

Do you prefer the big picture or do you like to analyse the

detail? Do you like to use imagery or verbalisations?

Teachers use learning styles in the classroom. Why might

they find them useful?

Why do some theorists reject learning or cognitive styles?

Ways to organise information

Holist Analyst

Ways to represent information

Verbaliser Holist/Verbaliser Analyst/Verbaliser

Imager Holist/Imager Analyst/Imager

Figure 1; Riding and Raynors Cognitive Styles

Cognitive styles and learning

strategies – Riding and Raynor

(1998)

R&R questioned the usefulness of

learning styles in education.

They reviewed the research on

learning styles and identified

common features which

highlighted how learners

processed information.

They concluded that there was

poor evidence for existing

learning styles but that there

were some common features

which suggested more stable

cognitive processes. In addition,

they suggested that many learning styles are more flexible

learning strategies that are used

to cope with learning

environments. They suggest that

these strategies can actually be

changed and improved.

R&R argue that idea of ‘cognitive

styles’ would be more useful than

‘learning styles’; they suggest that

two dimensions of cognitive style

exist which operate on a

continuum.

Dimension 1: Ways of organising

information. Holist (read a poem

and understand general info) or

Analyst (Focus on structure within

the poem)

Dimension 2: Ways of

representing information.

Verbaliser (Use words and

language) or Imager (Use visual

representations)

Thus, according to R&R there are

four types of cognitive style. The

learning strategies involved can

change, but the cognitive style

remains the same.

Linguistic

Uses words, reading,

writing, high verbal

memory

Writers, teachers,

lawyers etc.

J.K Rowling

Your Lecturer (Probably!)

Logical-Mathematical

Numbers, abstract thought,

computer technology

Engineers, doctors etc.

Einstein

Spatial

Hand eye-coordination,

visual memory of

places

Surgeons, sailors, artists.

Picasso

Musical

Identify notes, pitch and rhythm

Musicians, composers, conductors

Steve Tyler

Robbie Williams

Bodily-Kinaesthetic

Dexterous, good at

movement, good balance

Athletes, builders, dancers

Ashley Cole

Interpesonal

Extrovert, empathises with others

Teachers, managers

Nelson Mandela

Maybe your lecturer!

Intrapersonal

Introspective, self aware of

own goals and emotions

Psychologists, writers

Dalai Lama,

2.3 Theory of multiple intelligences

The inner layer of Curry’s Onion Model represents the stable cognitive processes that are

not affected by the environment learning takes place in. Gardner (1993) suggests that

cognitive styles are a product of individuals having multiple intelligences (MI).

These seven intelligences have to meet certain criteria in order to be distinguishable from standard, limited skills or abilities. The intelligences must be linked to a specialised part of the brain, and there must be evidence of the individual having a great talent in that area. As educational systems do not usually reflect the variety of learning styles, concentrating on logical/linguistic intelligences. Therefore the main critisism for Gardneers MI is that, as children are thought to have varying levels of each intelligence (and a different learning style as a result) schools would have to adopt a very different approach to teaching where in geography singing about volcanoes is just as valid as studying them from a book or watching a film about them. Again, academia is skeptical and research, such as Watson (2006) questions the evidence for an MI approach. Many academics critisise the approach because it suggests that children can all perform to a high standard if the have the appropriate MI based experience – this could make it difficult to distinguish academic ability.

Figure 2; Gardner's Seven Core Intelligences

Most

Least

Tasks What is the basis for Gardner’s theory of MI?

How could MI be used in a school to help learning? Why do academics disagree with the MI theory? Use the table below to list which intelligence you think is the most intelligent, and which is least intelligent. Discuss your choice with your neighbour.

3. Personal Approaches to Teaching

3.1 Behaviourist use of objectives and monitoring of tasks

There are just as many ways for teachers to approach teaching, as there for students to

approach learning.

The behaviourist approach puts emphasis on observable

outcomes, ignoring what could be happening in terms of

cognition or social learning. It is sometimes called mastery

learning as the focus is on being clear about the expected

outcomes and the process students must go through in order to

achieve the outcomes. In this way, teachers are controlling the

learning environment, which obviously relates back to the

behaviourist approach where the argument is that observable

behaviour is the result of the stimuli in the environment.

The outcome and process behaviours become teacher

expectations which can therefore be used to assess student’s

achievement. You may be familiar with them when they are termed “Learning Objectives”

or “Learning Intentions”. They may be written in three different ways, or a combination of

all three.

1. What the learner will do. (Bake a cake)

2. What the learning activity is. (Use an oven and recipe book)

3. How the success will be identified. (Bake at least 2 batches of good cakes)

Tasks

Who is in control of your learning?

What does the teacher do that influences how/what you learn?

It is important to know the

difference between educational

outcomes and educational

processes.

Educational outcomes are the

expected behaviours or levels of

performance which can be

observed after a learning task.

Educational processes are the

expected behaviours observed

during a learning task.

Create

Use the parts/factors to make something new.

Evaluate

Make judgements

Analyse

Consider all the parts/factors

Apply

Carry out a procedure

Understand

Construct meanning

Remember

Recall information

Blooms Taxonomy (1950) has been recently updated by his

co-author Krathwohl (2002). This is a clear example of what

behaviours can be observed after learning as taken place.

These are grouped into cognitive, affective and

psychomotor with cognitive being the most used.

Tasks

Use Bloom’s taxonomy to write three learning objectives that a teacher might use in a

lesson teaching a numbers in French.

Key Study – Krathwohl; A

revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy

(2002)

This was a review of the original

taxonomy carried out by Bloom. It

involved consulting with

“measurement specialists” and

agreeing on what the different

levels of the taxonomy would be.

The taxonomy is used to identify

achievement in educational

settings.

Evaluation;

This is a theoretical construction,

which does not reflect the

complexities of real teaching and

learning situations; it could be

considered reductionist. Learners

who always begin with easier

tasks could become bored.

Behaviourist teachers try to

control the learning environment

by identifying clear expectations

of behaviours that will be a result

of successful learning.

(i.e. if successful learning has

occurred now, you will be able to

evaluate Bloom’s taxonomy and

answer the tasks set)

Figure 3; Blooms Taxonomy - Updated Krathwohl (2002)

What is an outcome? What is a process?

If you are a behaviourist teacher, what are you controlling? How are you controlling this?

Describe how Bloom’s taxonomy is a behaviourist approach.

Outcome Process

3.2 Cognitive approaches to discovery learning

Bruner (1960) The Process of Education; Discovery Learning and The Spiral

Curriculum

Bruner wrote his book “The Process of Education” as the result of the education conference

in 1959. He did not just think about how learning occurs, but also thought about the

influence this should have on the curriculum.

Bruner argues that learning involves both the actual

understanding of principles and concepts, and the

development of attitudes towards learning. As you may

have experienced, just being told facts about a topic is

not as enjoyable as finding it out for yourself. However,

discovery learning is not perfect and cannot be used for

all learning tasks; it would take a long time for a learner to ‘discover’ long multiplication!

The spiral curriculum is a concept which involves a subject or

topic being taught year upon year, firstly at a basic level and

then, as the years progress, getting more and more in depth

and complex. Bruner came up with this idea because he did

not believe that the stages children go through when

learning were as rigid as first thought by Piaget. Bruner

believed that any subject could be taught to any child at any

age – as long as the teaching was ‘intellectually honest’ and

accounted for the child’s actual ability.

Tasks

What is discovery learning?

How might a nursery teacher help children to ‘discover’ gravity?

Why does Bruner suggest that, when using a spiral curriculum, the learning task must

‘honestly’ reflect the child’s actual ability?

Where did Bruner get his ideas from? Is he comparable with Piaget?

Demonstration: Modelling the

task if necessary.

Frustration Control; Helping to make the

task less stressful

Marking critical features; Commenting on the significant

features of the task

Direction Maintainance: Keeping the child focussed on the goal

Reducing degrees of freedom: Simplifying some of the procedures to help the child manage

Recruitment: Getting the child interested and aware of the possible outcomes

3.3 Social constructivism; co-operation learning and

scaffolding.

Unlike Piaget’s theory that we construct our own knowledge from

interactions with the external world; social constructivism is the

belief that knowledge is constructed as a result of social

interaction. Commonly seen in school

settings, where children work in groups

to complete tasks, social

constructivism has multiple benefits

aiding learning, self-esteem and

socialisation.

Key Study – The role of tutoring

in problem solving. Wood et al.,

Aim; To investigate the nature of

‘tutoring’.

Sample: 30 3, 4 and 5 year olds

(10 of each age bracket, 5 of each

gender in each age group)

Design: Participant observation of

a task involving construction

(connecting 21 wooden blocks to

make a pyramid). Tutors offered

verbal or physical advice

(showing). The tutor would only

intervene once the child got stuck.

Findings; Wood described the

tutors responses as “Scaffolding

Functions” (See figure 4)

Evaluation; Wood and his

colleagues found that scaffolding

enabled a child to achieve above

expectation. The observations

focussed on one child at a time,

which has very low ecological

validity as children do not tend to

have 1-2-1 learning situations

within school.

As the researchers had considered

scaffolding before carrying out

the research, they may have been

influenced by their own biases.

Scaffolding differs from

Vygotsky’s ZPD because it involves

a set of procedures that need to be

considered before the learning

task begins. The task is initiated

and maintained by the tutor,

unlike Vygotsky who tends to

follow the child’s lead.

Figure 4: The 'scaffolding functions’ of learning

Tasks

Use the blank triangle to fill in examples of how a teacher might “scaffold” learning to ice-

skate or learning to ride a bike.

Define social constructivism.

How does it compare to Piaget and Vygotsky’s theories?

SECTION SUMMARIES

1. Theories of knowledge acquisition

Bruner suggests stages are not dependant on age, are used throughout life and that

language is very important.

Piaget thought children’s learning was age-dependant and developed stages of cognitive

development. He saw the child as a “lone scientist” trying to understand the world.

Vygotsky thought children learned through the social world and language.

Watson and Skinner believed that learning was the result of conditioned responses to

environmental stimuli.

2. Personal approaches to learning

Strategies for learning are variable and help learners to engage with the task.

Many ‘learning styles’ maybe considered ‘cognitive styles’

Curry’s Onion model distinguishes between the different psychological levels involved in

learning.

Learning/Cognitve styles and MI have very little academic support, although they are

supported by those who actually use them in learning environments.

3. Personal approaches to teaching

Behaviourism teaching focuses on the identification of specific learning objectives

Learning objectives are used to identify what is being learnt and are used to monitor

achievement.

Discovery learning encourages children to think like experts

The spiral curriculum allows any subject to be taught to any learner.

Cooperation learning raises self-esteem as well as aiding knowledge acquisition.

Scaffolding is the steps used by a teacher/tutor/expert to help a learner/child/novice, it is

the relationship between them.

Watson

Ausubel

Rose

Riding and Raynor

Piaget

Bruner

Curry

Watson and Raynor

Gardner

Reiser and Rezmovic

Wood

Vygotsky

Skinner

Scaffolding

Stage Theory

Discovery Learning

Zone of Proximal

Development

Advance organisers

Modes of representation

Multiple intelligences

Cognitive styles

Behaviourism

Little Albert

VAK

Operant Conditioning

Teaching and Learning – Revision Activities

Match the psychologist with the theory

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