Verified Document

Learning Theory: The Process Through Which Humans Essay

Learning Theory: The process through which humans learn has been an issue of significant concern since the emergence of formal education thousands of years ago. In attempts to understand the process of human learning, there have been several theories and concepts that have been developed from time to time. These concepts and theories have particularly been a reflection of the various paradigm shifts in thought and practice. The most significant shift or event that contributed to understanding the process of human learning took place in the past century. This shift resulted in the development of a plethora of ideas regarding the most appropriate practices for encouraging learning. Notably, the shift led to the development of learning theory because of the extensive considerations by early educators and philosophers.

Learning theory is centered on identifying the best practices for encouraging learning since it traces the roots of learning and how the process of learning takes place. Learning theory is divided into two major schools of thought i.e. rationalism...

While rationalism considers learning as a process originating from reasoning, empiricism argues that experience is the source of learning and knowledge. As a result of ongoing considerations by educators and philosophers, learning theory has significant contribution to andragogy i.e. adult learning. Actually, andragogy is a term that has been used as a learning theory to understand how adults learn. The contribution of learning theory to andragogy is evident in the fact that adult learning is based on empiricism i.e. experience as source of knowledge. Actually, Malcolm Knowles developed this concept based on his experiences as a teacher and evaluation of the existing learning theories. Therefore, learning theory has provided the basis or school of thought with which andragogy is founded and developed.
As part of the process of understanding how humans learn, pedagogy and andragogy are concepts with some similarities and differences. The main similarities between pedagogy and andragogy include the fact that both concepts are…

Sources used in this document:
References:

Edgar, D.W. (2012). Learning Theories and Historical Events Affecting Instructional Design in Education: Recitation Literacy Toward Extraction Literacy Practices. SAGE Open, 2(4). Retrieved from http://sgo.sagepub.com/content/2/4/2158244012462707.full

Knowles, M.S., Holton, E.F. & Swanson, R.A. (2011) The Adult Learner., Oxford, UK: Elsevier,

Retrieved from http://theteachingdoc.hubpages.com/hub/Malcolm-Knowles-and-Adult-Learning-Theory
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Learning Theory Researchers Have Suggested
Words: 2770 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

A dog hits a lever when it sees a light that signifies that it will be shocked. A person takes medicine before having certain foods that he or she knows will cause a stomachache (Sidman, 2006, p. 136). Above, the differences between operant and classical conditioning were noted. However, sometimes the distinction is blurred. In biofeedback, for instance, psychologists feed back information to the patients regarding their physiologic processes, which

Learning Theories Behavioral Learning Theory
Words: 2408 Length: 9 Document Type: Term Paper

There are advantages and disadvantages to the theory of constructivism. On the positive side, it means that children are ferocious learners because they have the innate neural tools in place to properly absorb and classify information. Piaget would argue that children need only be given the stimuli -- environment, information or other factors -- at the appropriate time when a child's brain is ready to absorb information. Piaget suggested that learning

Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory
Words: 3838 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

The message from this simple analysis is clear: people interpret reality in different way ways. In Bandura's view, internal reinforcement is a potent force for enhancing or bolstering the mental states of individuals. Hence a feeling of pride, satisfaction and accomplishment helps both to enhance the individual's cognitive development as well as the learning process. 3. Learning does not always precipitate change in behavior. In other words, people do not

Transformational Learning Theory in the Context of Adult Learning
Words: 2173 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

Transformational Learning More than twenty-five years ago, Jack Mezirow initiated a profound movement in the field of adult education, that of transformative learning theory. Since this time, the concept of transformative learning has been a topic of much research and theory building in the field of adult education as described in more detail in this research paper. Although Mezirow is considered to be the major developer of transformative learning theory, other

Dispositional and Learning Theory
Words: 1143 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Dispositional and Learning Theory The objective of this study is to describe the role of personality in affecting situational behavior and examine the personality characteristics attributed to each of the theories. This work will additionally explain the interpersonal relational aspects associated with the theories selected. Personality is defined by Gordon Allport as the "dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine a person' behavior and thought." (Psychological Musings, 2011,

The Impact of Social Learning Theory
Words: 5230 Length: 17 Document Type: Research Paper

Theoretical Analysis: Julian Rotter Social Learning Theory Including Locust ControlBackground: Historical OverviewJulian Rotter was born in 1916 in Brooklyn, New York as the third son of Jewish immigrant parents (Walker, 1991). Rotter’s father had a successful business that was negatively impacted by the great depression. It was due to the great depression that Rotter became aware of social injustice and the impact of the situation environment on individuals. Rotter’s interest

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now