Learning Theories

Question 1

• Effective learning occurs when the senses are stimulated (Laird, 1985).
• By stimulating the senses, especially the visual sense, learning can be enhanced.

Answer 1

Sensory Stimulation Theory

Question 2

• B.F. Skinner believed that behavior is a function of its consequences.
• The learner will repeat the desired behavior if positive
  reinforcement (a pleasant consequence) follows the behavior.

Answer 2

Reinforcement theory (B.F. Skinner)

Question 3

• The emphasis is on the importance of experience, meaning, problem-solving and the development of insights.
• The theory has developed the concept that individuals have different needs and concerns at different times, and that they have subjective interpretations in different contexts

Answer 3

Cognitive-Gestalt Approaches

Question 4

• Individual personality consists of many elements
  … specifically … the intellect, emotions, the body
  impulse (or desire), intuition and imagination that all
  require activation if learning is to be more effective.

Answer 4

Holistic Learning Theory

Question 5

Learning will occur by the educator acting as a facilitator, that is by establishing an atmosphere in which learners feel comfortable to consider new ideas and are not threatened by external factors.

Answer 5

Facilitation Theory | The Humanist Approach (Carl Rogers)

Question 6

Characteristics of the Facilitation Theory include:
A. a belief that human beings have a (1) __________
B. there is some (2) _______ to, and _______
C. the most significant learning involves (3) __________

Answer 6

(1) natural eagerness to learn
(2) resistance; unpleasant consequences
(3) changing one’s concept of oneself

Question 7

People learn in four ways with the likelihood of developing one mode of learning more than another.
- through concrete experience
- through observation and reflection
- through abstract conceptualization
- through active experimentation

Answer 7

Experiential Learning (Kolb)

Question 8

The person develops a general diffuse reaction to stimulus.

Answer 8

Signal Learning or Conditioned Response

Question 9

This involves developing a voluntary response to a specific stimulus or combination of stimuli.

Answer 9

Stimulus-Response Learning

Question 10

The acquisition of a series of related conditioned responses or stimulus-response connections.

Answer 10

Chaining

Question 11

A type of chaining and is easily recognized in the process of learning medical terminology.

Answer 11

Verbal Association

Question 12

A great deal can be learned through forming large numbers of stimulus-response or verbal chains.

Answer 12

Discrimination Learning

Question 13

**To learn and retain large numbers of chains,
the person has to be able to _________ among them.

Answer 13

discriminate

Question 14

Learning how to classify stimuli into groups represented by a common concept.

Answer 14

Concept Learning

Question 15

A rule can be considered a chain of concepts or a relationship between concepts

Answer 15

Rule Learning

Question 16

The learner must have a clear idea of the problem or goal being sought and must be able to recall and apply previously learned rules that relate to the situation.

Answer 16

Problem Solving