Humanistic learning theory's impact on curriculum design in schools

Curriculum Design

Selected Learning Theory

Impact on Curriculum Design

The objective of this work is to describe how a selected learning theory impacts curriculum design. Included will e a discussion of the learning theory "Humanistic: A. Combs and D. Snygg" and how it impacts curriculum design and the use of this theory in the 21st Century schools.

Combs and Snygg presented a theory in 1949 which is known as "Perceptual Psychology" which has been described as follows: "Human beings and their behavior is a function of perception or in other words "human behavior is a function or expression or a more or less organized field of perceptions, meanings, values, beliefs, understandings, thoughts, and feelings encompassing the entire universe (including a sense of self) experienced by an individual from moment to moment."(Richards, 2003)

Fields of Meanings are Not Merely Random

One very important point of the theory of Combs and Snygg is as stated by Richards (2003) citing Combs and Snygg: "fields of meanings or perceptions are not just random or chaotic in nature. They are organized or structure in characteristic and distinctive ways." Art Combs and his students and colleagues found during their research conducted at the University of Florida found that: "All the good helpers in all of the professions we looked at are people who are....deeply sensitive to how things look from other fellow's point. This is what is sometimes called the internal as opposed to the external frame of reference. Sometimes it is called empathy. It has to do with the capacity to put yourself in the other person's shoes and see how things look from his point-of-view. (Combs, 1970 p.11)

The theory of Combs and Snygg did not have the impact in general that other theorists did but their theory was noticed by a group of humanists. Snygg and Comb's understanding of motivation was stated as: "The basic need of everyone is to preserve and enhance the phenomenal self, and the characteristics of all parts of the field are governed by this need." The individual's view of self is that which is called the phenomenal self. This view is developed over the course of a lifetime and is based on cultural and personal experiential factors.

Does Curricular Design Really Matter?

According to the works of many, curricular design is very vital in its' structure when considering student achievement in learning. In fact, many are the reports that curricular design "can very extensively influence outcomes through their impact on the development of students as learners." (Ramsden and Entwistle, 1981; Gibbs, 1992; Long, 2000; Norton et al., 2001: in by Kell and Deursen, 2002). In the report of a study concerning the student's learning and the impact of the curriculum design on that learning it is stated by Kell and Deursen (2002) that: "the study results appear to confirm that students' learning development is influenced by their educational experience. Educators and course designers therefore have a responsibility to consider the influence of their curricula during course design activities." (Kell and Deursen, 2002) in the review of literature the relationship that exists between behavior and experience is much like simple principles of cause and effect. Such as if the ball is pushed across a level surface then the ball will roll as far as the momentum of the push causes it to roll. Richards states that, "Combs, his colleagues and a host of other professionals have sought to help us understand that the quality of human interactions holds the key to professional effectiveness and is governed by the relationship between experience and behavior." How much the design of curriculum may affect the student in terms of learning outcomes is another very important consideration in this humanistic theory of Combs and Snygg.

Summary & Conclusion

It is clear that the curriculum design is impacted by the theoretical framework which the designer of the curriculum adheres to whether it is that of Vgotsky, Bruner or of the humanistic theory purported by Combs and Syngg. Kell and Deursen (2002) state, "Educators and course designers....have a responsibility to consider the influence of their curricula during course design activities." Stated as well by Boeree (1998) is that: "Learning occurs when the differentiations involved have direct relevance to the individual's needs, that is, when learning is meaningful to that individual. As long as teachers insist on forcing material that, from the students' perspective, has no relevance to them or their lives, education will be an arduous process." Boeree also states that it is interesting that a boy cannot remember his multiplication tables is able to remember statistics in baseball back to the early beginnings long before he was born. He states that teachers much remember that "it is not because the children are dumb. It is because they don't see any reason for learning them. Teachers must get to know their students, because the motivation to learn is "inside" them, in their phenomenal fields and phenomenal selves." (Boeree, 1998) Teachers must know their students in order to find that which motivates them in their own experiential beliefs which are various across the vast population of students with their many differentiated learning styles, experiential factors and belief systems.