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Home  Learning Theories  15 Learning Theories in Education (A Complete Summary)

Learning TheoriesBest of teacherofsci.com

15 Learning Theories in Education (A

Complete Summary)

ByPaul Fulbrook
-
18th April 2019

What are Learning Theories?

So what are educational learning theories and how can we use

them in our teaching practice? There are so many out there,
how do we know which are still relevant and which will work for
our classes?

There are 3 main schema’s of learning theories;

Behaviourism, Cognitivism and Constructivism. In this
article you will find a breakdown of each one and an
explanation of the 15 most influential learning theories;
from Vygotsky to Piaget and Bloom to Maslow and
Bruner.

By Paul Stevens-Fulbrook.

Swimming through treacle!

That’s what it feels like when you are trying to sort through
and make sense of the vast amount of learning theories we
have at our disposal.

Way back in ancient Greece, the philosopher, Plato, first

pondered the question “How does an individual learn something
new if the subject itself is new to them” (ok, so I’m
paraphrasing, my ancient Greek isn’t very good!).

Since Plato, many theorists have emerged, all with their

different take on how students learn. Learning theories
are a set of principles that explain how best a student
can acquire, retain and recall new information.

Go to the Learning Theories FAQ (at the bottom of this page)

Not Got Time to Read This Right Now?

CLICK HERE to Get this Guide to learning theories as a PDF

The Definitive Guide to Bloom's Taxonomy.

In this complete summary, we will look at the work of the

following learning theorists.

Despite the fact there are so many educational theorists, there

are three labels that they all fall
under. Behaviourism, Cognitivism and Constructivism.
 Feel free to
share this infographic by clicking on it.

Behaviourism.

Behaviourism is based on the idea that knowledge is

independent and on the exterior of the learner. In a
behaviourist’s mind, the learner is a blank slate that should be
provided with the information to be learnt.

Through this interaction, new associations are made and thus

learning occurs. Learning is achieved when the provided
stimulus changes behaviour. A non-educational example of this
is the work done by Pavlov.

Through his famous “salivating dog” experiment, Pavlov

showed that a stimulus (in this case ringing a bell every time
he fed the dog) caused the dog to eventually start salivating
when he heard a bell ring.

The dog associated the bell ring with being provided with food
so any time a bell was rung the dog started salivating, it had
learnt that the noise was a precursor to being fed.

I use a similar approach to classroom management.

I adapt my body language.

I have taught my students that if I stand in a specific place in

the classroom with my arms folded, they know that I’m getting
frustrated with the level of noise and they start to quieten
down or if I sit cross-legged on my desk, I’m about to say
something important, supportive and they should listen
because it affects them directly.

Behaviourism involves repeated actions, verbal reinforcement

and incentives to take part. It is great for establishing rules,
especially for behaviour management.

Cognitivism.

In contrast to behaviourism, cognitivism focuses on the idea

that students process information they receive rather than just
responding to a stimulus, as with behaviourism.
There is still a behaviour change evident, but this is in response
to thinking and processing information.

Cognitive theories were developed in the early 1900s in

Germany from Gestalt psychology by Wolfgang Kohler. In
English, Gestalt roughly translates to the organisation of
something as a whole, that is viewed as more than the sum of
its individual parts.

Cognitivism has given rise to many evidence based education

theories, including cognitive load theory, schema
theory and dual coding theory as well as being the basis
for retrieval practice.

In cognitivism theory, learning occurs when the student

reorganises information, either by finding new explanations or
adapting old ones.

This is viewed as a change in knowledge and is stored in the

memory rather than just being viewed as a change in
behaviour. Cognitive learning theories are mainly attributed
to Jean Piaget.
Examples of how teachers can include cognitivism in their
classroom include linking concepts together, linking concepts to
real-world examples, discussions and problem-solving.

5 Types of Questions in the Classroom We Should be Asking More.

Constructivism.

Constructivism is based on the premise that we construct

learning new ideas based on our own prior knowledge and
experiences. Learning, therefore, is unique to the individual
learner. Students adapt their models of understanding either by
reflecting on prior theories or resolving misconceptions.

Students need to have a prior base of knowledge for

constructivist approaches to be effective. Bruner’s spiral
curriculum (see below) is a great example of constructivism in
action.

As students are constructing their own knowledge base,

outcomes cannot always be anticipated, therefore, the teacher
should check and challenge misconceptions that may have
arisen. When consistent outcomes are required, a constructivist
approach may not be the ideal theory to use.
Examples of constructivism in the classroom include problem-
based learning, research and creative projects and group
collaborations.

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1. Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development.

Jean Piaget
Piaget is an interesting character in Psychology. His theory of
learning differs from many others in some important ways:

First, he focuses exclusively on children; Second, he talks

about development (not learning per se) and Third, it’s a
stage theory, not a linear progression theory. OK, so what’s he
on about?

Well, there are some basic ideas to get your head around and
some stages to understand too. The basic ideas are:

 Schemas: The building blocks of knowledge.

 Adaptation processes: These allow the transition from one stage to
another. He called these: Equilibrium, Assimilation and Accommodation.
 Stages of Cognitive development: Sensorimotor; Preoperational;
Concrete Operational; Formal Operational.

So here’s how it goes. Children develop Schemas of

knowledge about the world. These are clusters of connected
ideas about things in the real world that allow the child to
respond accordingly.

When the child has developed a working Schema that can

explain what they perceive in the world, that Schema is in a
state of Equilibrium.

When the child uses the schema to deal with a new thing or
situation, that Schema is
in Assimilation and Accommodation happens when the
existing Schema isn’t up to the job of explaining what’s going
on and needs to be changed.

Once it’s changed, it returns to Equilibrium and life goes on.

Learning is, therefore, a constant cycle of Assimilation;
Accommodation; Equilibrium; Assimilation and so on…

All that goes through the 4 Stages of Cognitive Development,

which are defined by age:

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development.

The Sensorimotor Stage runs from birth to 2 years and the

child spends their time learning basic Schemas and Object
Permanence (the idea that something still exists when you
can’t see it).

The Preoperational Stage runs from 2 years to 7 years and

the child develops more Schemas and the ability to think
Symbolically (the idea that one thing can stand for another;
words for example, or objects). At this point, children still
struggle with Theory of Mind (Empathy) and can’t really get
their head around the viewpoints of others.
The Concrete Operational Stage runs from 7 years to 11
years and this is the Stage when children start to work things
out in their head rather than physically in the real world. They
also develop the ability to Conserve (understand that
something stays the same quantity even if it looks different).  

The Formal Operational Stage runs from 11 years into

adulthood and this is where abstract thought develops, as does
logic and cool stuff like hypothesis testing.

According to Piaget, the whole process is active and requires

the rediscovery and reconstructing of knowledge across the
entire process of Stages.

Understanding the Stage a child is in informs what they should

be presented with based on what they can and cannot do at
the Stage they’re in.

Piaget’s work on cognitivism has given rise to some brilliant

work from people like John Sweller who developed the
fantastic Cognitive Load Theory and John Flavell’s work
on metacognition

CLICK HERE to find out more about Piaget

2. Vygotsky’s Theory of Learning.

Lev Vygotsky

Vygotsky takes a different approach to Piaget’s idea that

development precedes learning.

Instead, he reckons that social learning is an integral part of

cognitive development and it is culture, not developmental
Stage that underlies cognitive development. Because of that,
he argues that learning varies across cultures rather than being
a universal process driven by the kind of structures and
processes put forward by Piaget.

Zone of Proximal Development.

He makes a big deal of the idea of the Zone of Proximal

Development in which children and those they are learning
from co-construct knowledge. Therefore, the
social environment in which children learn has a massive
impact on how they think and what they think about.

They also differ in how they view language. For Piaget, thought
drives language but for Vygotsky, language and thought
become intertwined at about 3 years and become a sort of
internal dialogue for understanding the world.

And where do they get that from? Their social environment of

course, which contains all the cognitive/linguistic skills and
tools to understand the world.

Vygotsky talks about Elementary Mental Functions, by

which he means the basic cognitive processes of Attention,
Sensation, Perception and Memory.

By using those basic tools in interactions with their

sociocultural environment, children sort of improve them using
whatever their culture provides to do so. In the case of
Memory, for example, Western cultures tend towards note-
taking, mind-maps or mnemonics whereas other cultures may
use different Memory tools like storytelling.

In this way, a cultural variation of learning can be

described quite nicely.
What are crucial in this learning theory are the ideas
of Scaffolding, the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
and the More Knowledgeable Other (MKO). Here’s how all
that works:

More Knowledgeable Other.

The MKO can be (but doesn’t have to be) a person who literally

knows more than the child. Working collaboratively, the child
and the MKO operate in the ZPD, which is the bit of learning
that the child can’t do on their own.

As the child develops, the ZPD gets bigger because they can do
more on their own and the process of enlarging the ZPD is
called Scaffolding.

How to Study. The ULTIMATE Study Plan.

Vygotsky Scaffolding.

Knowing where that scaffold should be set is massively

important and it’s the MKO’s job to do that so that the child can
work independently AND learn collaboratively.

For Vygotsky, language is at the heart of all this because a) it’s

the primary means by which the MKO and the child
communicate ideas and b) internalising it is enormously
powerful in cementing understanding about the world.

That internalisation of speech becomes Private Speech (the

child’s “inner voice”) and is distinct from Social Speech, which
occurs between people.

Over time, Social Speech becomes Private Speech and Hey

Presto! That’s Learning because the child is now collaborating
with themselves!

The bottom line here is that the richer the sociocultural

environment, the more tools will be available to the child in the
ZPD and the more Social Speech they will internalise as Private
Speech. It doesn’t take a genius to work out, therefore, that
the learning environment and interactions are everything.

Scaffolding is also an integral part of Rosenshine’s Principles of

Instruction.

CLICK HERE to find our more about Vygotsky.

3. Bloom’s Domains of Learning.

 Benjamin Bloom

In 1956, American educational psychologist, Benjamin Bloom,

first proposed three domains of learning; cognitive,
affective and psycho-motor. Bloom worked in collaboration
with David Krathwohl and Anne Harrow throughout the 1950s-
70s on the three domains.

The Cognitive Domain (Bloom’s Taxonomy).

This was the first domain to be proposed in 1956 and it focuses

on the idea that objectives that are related to cognition could
be divided into subdivisions and ranked in order of cognitive
difficulty.

These ranked subdivisions are what we commonly refer to

as Bloom’s taxonomy. The original subdivisions are as follows
(knowledge is the lowest with evaluation being the most
cognitively difficult):
 1. Knowledge
2. Understanding
3. Application
4. Analysis
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation

However, there was a major revision of the subdivisions in

2000-01 by Bloom’s original partner, David Krathwohl and his
colleague, Lorin Anderson (Anderson was a former student of
Bloom’s).

The highlights of this revision were switching names of the

subdivisions from nouns to verbs, thus making them easier to
use when curriculum and lesson planning.

The other main change was the order of the top two
subdivisions was reversed. The updated taxonomy is as
follows:
 Feel free to share this infographic by
clicking on it.
 How to Study for a Test with 7 SIMPLE Strategies

The Affective Domain.

The affective domain (sometimes referred to as the feeling

domain) is concerned with feelings and emotions and also
divides objectives into hierarchical subcategories. It was
proposed by Krathwohl and Bloom in 1964.

The affective domain is not usually used when planning for

maths and sciences as feelings and emotion are not relevant
for those subjects. However, for educators of arts and
language, the inclusion of the affective domain is imperative
wherever possible.

The ranked domain subcategories range from “receiving” at the

lower end up to “characterisation” at the top. The full ranked
list is as follows:

1. Receiving. Being aware of an external stimulus (feel, sense, experience).

2. Responding. Responding to the external stimulus (satisfaction,
enjoyment, contribute)
3. Valuing. Referring to the student’s belief or appropriation of worth
(showing preference or respect).
4. Organisation. The conceptualising and organising of values (examine,
clarify, integrate.)
5. Characterisation. The ability to practice and act on their values.
(Review, conclude, judge).
The Psychomotor Domain.

The psychomotor domain refers to those objectives that are

specific to reflex actions interpretive movements and discreet
physical functions.

A common misconception is that physical objectives that

support cognitive learning fit the psycho-motor label, for
example; dissecting a heart and then drawing it.

While these are physical (kinesthetic) actions, they are a vector

for cognitive learning, not psycho-motor learning.

Psychomotor learning refers to how we use our bodies and

senses to interact with the world around us, such as learning
how to move our bodies in dance or gymnastics.

Anita Harrow classified different types of learning in the

psycho-motor domain from those that are reflex to those that
are more complex and require precise control.

1. Reflex movements. These movements are those that we possess from

birth or appear as we go through puberty. They are automatic, that is
they do not require us to actively think about them e.g. breathing,
opening and closing our pupils or shivering when cold.
2. Fundamental movements. These are those actions that are the basic
movements, running, jumping, walking etc and commonly form part of
more complex actions such as playing a sport.
3. Perceptual abilities. This set of abilities features those that allow us to
sense the world around us and coordinate our movements in order to
 interact with our environment. They include visual, audio and tactile
actions.
4. Physical abilities. These abilities refer to those involved with strength,
endurance, dexterity and flexibility etc.
5. Skilled movements. Objectives set in this area are those that include
movements learned for sport (twisting the body in high diving or
trampolining), dance or playing a musical instrument (placing fingers on
guitar strings to produce the correct note). It is these movements that we
sometimes use the layman’s term “muscle memory”.
6. Non-discursive communication. Meaning communication without
writing, non-discursive communication refers to physical actions such as
facial expressions, posture and gestures.

Feel free to
share this infographic by clicking on it.

CLICK HERE to learn much more about Bloom’s Taxonomy.

4. Gagné’s Conditions of Learning.

 Robert Mills Gagné

Robert Mills Gagné was an American educational psychologist

who, in 1965 published his book “The Conditions of Learning”.
In it, he discusses the analysis of learning objectives and how
the different classes of objective require specific teaching
methods.

He called these his 5 conditions of learning, all of which fall

under the cognitive, affective and psycho-motor domains
discussed earlier.

Gagné’s 5 Conditions of Learning.

 Verbal information (Cognitive domain)
 Intellectual skills (Cognitive domain)
 Cognitive strategies (Cognitive domain)
 Motor skills (Psycho-Motor domain)
 Attitudes (Affective domain)

Gagné’s 9 Levels of Learning.

To achieve his five conditions of learning, Gagné believed that
learning would take place when students progress through nine
levels of learning and that any teaching session should include
a sequence of events through all nine levels. The idea was that
the nine levels of learning activate the five conditions of
learning and thus, learning will be achieved.

1. Gain attention.
2. Inform students of the objective.
3. Stimulate recall of prior learning.
4. Present the content.
5. Provide learning guidance.
6. Elicit performance (practice).
7. Provide feedback.
8. Assess performance.
9. Enhance retention and transfer to the job.

Benefits of Gagné’s Theory.

Used in conjunction with Bloom’s taxonomy, Gagné’s nine

levels of learning provide a framework that teachers can use to
plan lessons and topics. Bloom provides the ability to set
objectives that are differentiated and Gagné gives a scaffold to
build your lesson on.

5. Jerome Bruner.
 Jerome Bruner

Bruner’s Spiral Curriculum (1960).

Cognitive learning theorist, Jerome Bruner based the spiral

curriculum on his idea that “We begin with the hypothesis
that any subject can be taught in some intellectually
honest form to any child at any stage of development”.

In other words, he meant that even very complex topics can be

taught to young children if structured and presented in the
right way. The spiral curriculum is based on three key ideas.

1. Students revisit the same topic multiple times throughout their school
career. This reinforces the learning each time they return to the subject.
2. The complexity of the topic increases each time a student revisits it. This
allows progression through the subject matter as the child’s cognitive
ability develops with age.
3. When a student returns to a topic, new ideas are linked with ones they
have previously learned. The student’s familiarity with the keywords and
ideas enables them to grasp the more difficult elements of the topic in a
stronger way.
Bruner’s 3 Modes of Representation (1966).

Following the idea of the spiral curriculum, Bruner presented

the idea of three modes of representation. These modes of
representation refer to the way knowledge is stored in
memory. Unlike Piaget’s age-related stages, Bruner’s modes
are loosely sequential.

1. Enactive (age 0-1 years). Representation of knowledge through

physical actions.
2. Iconic (age 1-6 years). Visual representation of knowledge stored via
visual images.
3. Symbolic (age 7+ years). The use of words and symbols to describe
experiences.

Read (and watch the 10 videos) The New Teacher Mega Guide.

for brilliant guides for new and trainee teachers.

6. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

 Feel free to
share this infographic by clicking on it.

The basic premise for Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is that

students progress through a set of sequential needs from
physiological to self-actualisation. As they move up through the
levels, they feel more comfortable in their learning
environment and have the confidence to push further.

It’s important to note that any group of students will have

learners at different levels, some may not have the lower levels
met at home so making sure these students feel safe and
secure is of the utmost importance as they will find it very hard
to move to the upper levels.

Maslow’s theory lends itself more to building student/teacher

relationships rather than lesson or curriculum structure. You
can have the best resources and most tightly planned lessons
in the world but if you don’t show enthusiasm, passion and
empathy it will be very difficult for your students to feel their
needs have been met.

Further reading: simplypsychology.org

7. Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences.

Howard Gardner

Howard Gardner is an American developmental psychologist

and professor of cognition and education at the Harvard
graduate school at Harvard University. He studied under Erik
Ericson (Below) and Jerome Bruner (above).
He published “Frames of Mind” in 1983, in it, he laid out his
theory of “multiple intelligences”.

Gardner perceived intelligence as the ability to solve problems

or make products that are useful in one or more cultural
settings.

He developed a list of criteria he would use to judge possible

contenders for the title “intelligence”. Candidates had to satisfy
a range of the conditions on his list and also be able to solve
genuine problems of difficulties. Initially, Gardner named
seven intelligences.

Gardner’s 7 Intelligences.
1. Linguistic intelligence. The ability to learn and use language in written
and spoken forms to express oneself.
2. Mathematical intelligence. The ability to solve problems logically, to
solve mathematical problems and to perform scientific investigations.
3. Musical intelligence. Having skill in appreciation, composition and
performance of musical patterns, including the ability to recognise tone,
pitch and rhythm.
4. Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. Using mental abilities to coordinate
body movements to solve problems.
5. Spatial intelligence. Being able to recognise and use patterns in a wide
or confined space.
6. Interpersonal intelligence. The capacity to understand the
desires, motivations and intentions of other people.
7. Intrapersonal intelligence. The capacity to understand your own fears,
feelings and motivations.
The importance of multiple intelligence in the classroom.

Gardner suggested that the intelligences rarely operate

independently and compliment each other as students learn
new skills and solve problems. He also commented that
the intelligences are amoral, meaning they can be used for
constructive or destructive purposes.

Whilst Gardner’s theory hasn’t been hugely accepted in the

field of Psychology, it has had a strong positive response in
education, especially in the US.

In the face of criticism that it is hard to teach things in the

frame of a certain intelligence, Gardner replied by stating that
the seven intelligences give 7 ways to teach a subject, allowing
multiple strategies to be used, thus allowing all students to
make progress.

Gardner believes that all seven intelligences are required to live

life well and education systems should include all seven not
just the more academic first two.

Naturalist Intelligence.

Since its original publication, Gardner has since added an

eighth intelligence; Naturalist intelligence. This deals with an
individual’s ability to perceive, recognise and order features
from the environment.

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8. Erikson’s 8 Stages of Psychological

Development.

Erik Erikson

Erik Erikson was a stage theorist who developed Freud’s

“Psychosexual Theory” and adapted it into a psychosocial
(having both psychological and social aspects) theory
encompassing eight stages.

According to Erikson, we experience eight stages of

development during our life span. Within each stage, there is a
dilemma that we must resolve in order to feel a sense of
competence and will allow us to develop as a well-adjusted
adult.

Erikson’s 8 Stages.
1. Trust Vs. Mistrust (Age 0 – 1.5). In this first stage, infants must learn
that adults can be trusted. If treated poorly children may grow up feeling
mistrust towards people.
2. Autonomy Vs. Shame (Age 1.5 – 3). The “me do it’ stage, children
start to make decisions and show preferences of elements in their
environment such as what clothes to wear or what toy they prefer. If
children are not allowed to explore these preferences they may develop
low self-esteem and shame.
3. Initiative Vs. Guilt (Age 3 – 5). This stage involves children learning to
plan and achieve goals involving others. If parents or teachers allow
children to explore this and support their choices they will develop a sense
of purpose and strong self-confidence.
4. Industry Vs. Inferiority (Age 5 – 12). In this stage, children start
comparing themselves with their peers. Success at this will result in a
sense of accomplishment in their school work, social and family activities
and sports.
5. Identity Vs. Role Confusion (Age 12 – 18). Students in this stage are
asking themselves “Who am I” and “What do I want to do in my life”.
They will try out multiple roles during this time to find what one “fits”
best. A strong sense of identity and an ability to defend their core beliefs
in the face of other opinions would be considered success at this stage.
6. Intimacy Vs. Isolation (Age 18 – 40). As students progress into early
adulthood their focus shifts to making and maintaining strong, intimate
relationships with others.
7. Generativity Vs. Stagnation (Age 40 – 65). In middle adulthood,
people are concerned with contributing to society either through their
work or parenthood. Continued self-improvement for the benefit of other
people figures strongly here.
8. Ego Integrity Vs. Despair (Age 65+). Those in late adulthood reflect
on their lives, feeling a sense of satisfaction or failure. Those who feel
failure will often obsess with ideas of what they “should have” or “could
have” done.
Educational Implications of Erikson’s Theory of
Psychosocial Development.

Within an educational frame, Erikson’s work gives us as

teachers a framework to base our teaching on. Knowing what
questions our students are asking of themselves and the world
around them allows us to plan effectively.

Problems arise when our class has children at different stages

in it, in this case, we must carefully differentiate our pedagogy
to allow supportive learning for all students.

9. Kolb’s Experiential Theory.

Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle.

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share this infographic by clicking on it.
 David Kolb

David Kolb, an American education theorist proposed his four-

stage experiential learning theory in 1984. It is built on the
premise that learning is the acquisition of abstract concepts
which can then be applied to a range of scenarios.

“LEARNING IS THE PROCESS

WHEREBY KNOWLEDGE IS
CREATED THROUGH THE
TRANSFORMATION OF
EXPERIENCE”
Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development (Vol. 1).
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Each stage in the cycle both supports and leads into the next
stage. Learning is achieved only if all four stages have been
completed, however, a learner may travel around the cycle
multiple times, further refining their understanding of the topic.
No one stage is an effective learning strategy on its own, for
example, if the reflective observation stage is skipped, the
learner could continue to make the same mistakes.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Dual Coding Theory

10. The Peter Principle.

Laurence Peter

The Peter Principle was developed by American educational

theorist Laurence Peter and was explained in the book “The
Peter Principle” that Peter wrote with his colleague, Raymond
Hull.

Originally the book was supposed to be a satirical view on how

people are promoted in organisations but it became popular as
it actually made a valid point.

Whilst not strictly a learning theory, it does have some

crossover to the classroom. The Peter Principal deals with four
levels of competence. They could give a teacher planning a
long term teaching strategy a framework to use when thinking
about how students progress.

1. Unconscious Incompetence. Not knowing how to do a task without

knowing you don’t know.
2. Conscious Incompetence. You still don’t know how to do the task but
now you know you don’t know. You are aware of a gap in your knowledge.
3. Conscious Competence. You can now do the task but it requires a lot of
concentration.
4. Unconscious Competence. You can perform the task with ease. This is
achieved by repeated practice.

I’m sure you can see how this would translate to a student’s
learning journey.

Further Reading: Peter, L. J., & Hull, R. (1969). The peter

principle. Amazon.

11. Laird’s Sensory Theory.

In 1985 Dugan Laird stated in his book “Approaches to Training

and Development” that learning occurs when the
senses are stimulated.

He quoted research that found that 75% of an adult’s

knowledge was obtained by seeing. 13% was through hearing,
the remaining 12% was learned through touch, smell and taste
combined.
Based on this research, providing visual prompts for students
will enhance their learning. However, making your lessons a
multi-sensual experience will enhance learning even further.
It’s worth considering this when planning your lessons.

FREE! Get this Guide to learning theories as a PDF…Click Here!

12. Skinner’s Behaviourist Theory.

B. F. Skinner

Operant Conditioning.

Operant conditioning is based on Thorndike’s “Law of Effect”

(1898), in which it is proposed that behaviours that are
followed by positive responses are likely to be repeated and
those that are followed by negative responses, not repeated.
Skinner refined the Law of Effect by introducing
“reinforcement” into the descriptions. Using Skinner’s new
description we end up with; those behaviours that are
reinforced are repeated (strengthened) and those not
reinforced tend to dissipate (are weakened).

Positive Reinforcement.

From a classroom management perspective, positive

reinforcement is an essential strategy for teaching
students how to act and conduct themselves.

Positive reinforcement (e.g. praise) should be given for

behaviours that are desirable, for example, verbally answering
questions in class. Initially, this should be done for all answers
given, regardless of whether they are correct. This will build a
culture of answering questions.

As the behaviour in question becomes commonplace, the

teacher should then both reduce the frequency of the
reinforcement and, as in our above example, only give it for
correct answers.

Ultimately the teacher will reduce the frequency of the positive

reinforcement to only those responses of the highest calibre.
This will create a culture of desired excellence in the students.
13. Rogers’ Humanist Theory.

Carl Rogers

Developed by the American psychologist Carl Rogers in

the 1980s, facilitative learning is a humanistic approach to
learning.

Humanism.

Humanism was developed to contrast cognitivism and

behaviourism. Both Rogers and Maslow (see above) based their
work in humanism. The key perspectives of humanism are as
follows:

 People have a natural desire to learn in order to achieve self-actualisation

(see Maslow’s theory above).
 It is not the outcome that is the most important part of education, it is the
process of learning itself.
 The students themselves should be in control of their learning and it
should be achieved through observing and exploring.
  The teacher should be an encouraging role model, motivating, guiding and
supporting students on their own personal journey.

Facilitative Learning.

Rogers’ views the teacher as a facilitator to learning rather

than just a conveyor of knowledge. The success of the teacher
is in their ability to build positive relationships with students.

Roger’s proposed three attitudinal core characteristics that a

teacher should possess for facilitative learning to be successful:

 Realness. The teacher should be themselves and use their own

personality when teaching. Being “real” with students breeds an ethos of
trust between students and a teacher. The teacher should be able to
convey their feelings rather than just being a monotonal, monochromatic
robot.
 Prizing, Accepting and Trusting. A teacher should care about their
students and accept their feelings, regardless of whether they assist or
detract from learning. Through these characteristics, deeper trust and
respect is built.
 Empathy. Understanding the student’s perception of learning and their
feelings.

The effectiveness of facilitative learning also requires certain

traits to be present in the student. They should be motivated,
aware of the facilitative conditions they have been provided
with and aware that the task they have been given is useful,
realistic and relevant.

If all these characteristics are present then, in the words of

Rogers himself:
“LEARNING BECOMES LIFE, AND A
VERY VITAL LIFE AT THAT. THE
STUDENT IS ON HIS WAY,
SOMETIMES EXCITEDLY,
SOMETIMES RELUCTANTLY, TO
BECOMING A LEARNING,
CHANGING BEING”.
Rogers, Carl R. The Interpersonal Relationship in the Facilitation of Learning. In Humanizing Education:
The Person in the Process. Ed. T. Leeper. National Education Association, Association for Supervision
and Curriculum Development, p1-18. 1967.

14. Canter’s Theory of Assertive Discipline.

Lee Canter

Assertive discipline is a structured system to enable teachers to

manage their classrooms. It focuses on the teacher developing
a positive behaviour management strategy rather than being
dictatorial.
Canter’s proposition is that the teacher has the right to decide
what is best for their students and that no student should
prevent any other from learning.

The teacher should very clear boundaries as to how they

expect their students to behave and work, the students should
know what these boundaries are and any deviation should be
met with an assertive action from the teacher.

This all sounds quite draconian, right?

However, if the teacher gives a firm, clear instruction and those

instructions are met, they should be followed by positive
reinforcement (see Skinner above). Any deviation from the
instruction should be met with negative consequences that the
students have prior knowledge of.

The behaviour management guru, Bill Rogers, bases his

strategies on the assertive teacher model, which I know from
personal use, works incredibly well.
 Feel free to
share this infographic by clicking on it.

15. Dreikur’s Classroom Management Theory.

Rudolph Dreikur

Rudolf Dreikur proposed the theory that mutual respect should

be the basis for discipline and that this mutual respect
motivates learners to display positive behaviours.

He believed students have an innate desire to feel like an

accepted member of a group and to feel like they have value
and confidence to contribute to that group. Dreikur called this
desire to belong, the “genuine goal of social behaviour”.

If students are unable to achieve this goal, they start a series

of “goals of misbehaviour”. The resulting misbehaviour is a
misguided attempt at gaining the sense of belonging they are
missing.

Dreikur’s 4 Goals of Misbehaviour.

1. Gain attention.
2. Gain power and control.
3. Gain revenge.
4. Display feelings of inadequacy.

If a student fails to gain social status by gaining attention, they

move on to trying to gain power and control, failure at each
successive level ultimately ends with feelings of inadequacy.

How to Combat the 4 Goals of Misbehaviour.

Gain Attention. Ignore the attention-seeking and use positive

reinforcement when positive behaviour is shown. Distract the
student by offering alternate actions or choices e.g. “Please
could you hand out the books”.

Gain Power and Control. Focus on all the good behaviour in

the class, while ignoring the attempt to gain power, on no
account should you engage in a battle for power. Bill Rogers,
the behaviour expert, calls this the black dot, white
square approach.

Gain Revenge. Remember that the student is trying to gain a

sense of belonging and this revenge-seeking is a masked
attempt to gain it. Away from other students, let the student
know that you care about them and their education, that
despite their actions you want the best for them.

Display Feelings of Inadequacy. At this stage, the student

has given up on themselves. This stage will manifest in the
form of “not doing” (not doing homework, not participating
etc.). Students at this stage should be shown how to recognise
small successes and achievements. Showing an interest in
them and their work will always help slowly bring a student out
of this stage.

Learning Theories Summary.

I know what you’re thinking. “How the hell am I supposed to

do all of these” or “which ones should I use” or “I’m more
confused than ever!”.
That’s how I felt when I was doing my teacher training. The
truth is, great teaching involves a cocktail of most of these at
some point (and a few actual cocktails at the weekend to
recover!).

If you are just starting out on your journey as a teacher and

you are worried that you’ll do it wrong, just remember these
basic principles:

1. Building positive relationships with students is the bedrock of

EVERYTHING.
2. Setting clear boundaries that students are aware of.
3. Consequences of breaking those boundaries are also known in advance.
4. Focus on and reward the positive things that happen in your classroom
(positive reinforcement).
5. Treat your students as people with thoughts and feelings of their own
that, while may seem irrelevant to you, they are not to them.
6. It is easier and more effective to change your perspective to theirs than
make them change to yours.
7. Remember, their world is not the one you grew up in.

I hope you found this article useful, I know it reminded me of a

good few things that I may have been slacking with. Feel free
to share it with your teacher friends, I’m sure they will
appreciate it.

If you would like this article as a PDF, just click the button

below.

FREE! Get this Guide to learning theories as a PDF…Click Here!

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Learning Theories FAQ

What are Learning Theories?

Since Plato, many theorists have emerged, all with their

different take on how students learn. Learning theories are a
set of principles that explain how best a student can acquire,
retain and recall new information.

What is Behaviourism?

Behaviourism involves repeated actions, verbal reinforcement

and incentives to take part. It is great for establishing rules,
especially for behaviour management. Behaviourism is based
on the idea that knowledge is independent and on the exterior
of the learner. In a behaviourist’s mind, the learner is a blank
slate that should be provided with the information to be learnt.
Through this interaction, new associations are made and thus
leaning occurs. Learning is achieved when the provided
stimulus changes behaviour.

What is Cognitivism?
In contrast to behaviourism, cognitivism focuses on the idea
that students process information they receive rather than just
responding to a stimulus, as with behaviourism. There is still a
behaviour change evident, but this is in response to thinking
and processing information. In cognitive load theory, learning
occurs when the student reorganises information, either by
finding new explanations or adapting old ones.

What is Constructivism?

Constructivism is based on the premise that we construct

learning new ideas based on our own prior knowledge and
experiences. Learning, therefore, is unique to the individual
learner. Students adapt their models of understanding either by
reflecting on prior theories or resolving misconceptions.
Students need to have a prior base of knowledge for
constructivist approaches to be effective. Bruner’s spiral
curriculum is a great example of constructivism in action.

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15 Learning Theories in Education (A Complete Summary) by Paul Stevens-

Fulbrook is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-
NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Further Reading:
learningtheories.com

Fordham Edtech Resources

Paul Fulbrookhttps://teacherofsci.com
Paul Fulbrook (TeacherOfSci) is a Science teacher, writer and education blogger based in Brighton,
England. He started teacherofsci.com to help support teachers everywhere with the everyday
struggles that they are all faced with, both in the classroom and at home.

Join Over 12,000 Other

Teachers
By day, Paul Fulbrook is head of key stage 3 Science in a large
high school in the south of England.

He has been teaching since 2012 and his impression of a bee

pollinating plants is almost legendary!

By night (and any other spare minute!) he becomes

TeacherOfSci, an education blogger and author at
teacherofsci.com.

His books and articles have helped over 1 million teachers

across the globe since it launched in April 2018.

His teaching interests include behaviour

management, evidence-based teaching strategies and student
engagement.
Prior to teaching, he was a marine biologist working on coral
reef conservation.

He daily asks himself what’s harder to work with, children or

sharks!

He’s still not sure of the answer.

Get in touch!
Contact me:
paul@teacherofsci.com
+44 7899 996229
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