simple drill & practice patterns, such as
o
learning vocabulary in a language lab or
o
with classical learning software
learning psychomotor abilities, such as
o
typewriting, piloting, laboratory work, playing a piano
to generate models and mathematical formulas for explaining learning (quantitative description)
Disadvantage of that this kind of learning is it hardly leads to a deeper understanding of the learning content but mainly
to factual information. But one of the big dangers is also that stereotyped procedures de motivate the learners.
If the theory of Skinner’s “teaching machine” is applied to a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) we can develop the
following requirements for it to support the behavioristic learning theory:
The learning content needs to be separated into several small learning units.
The VLE has to provide a strict navigation through these units of information, which guarantees that:
o
Only relevant units are presented to the learner according to the prior knowledge/skill set required.
o
The information should be processed (taken up) by the learner and if not it should be reinforced
/immediately repeated. This could be done by post-tests and repetitions which are included in the
learning paths.
Both this requires active participation and monitoring from learner and teacher/ teaching tool (VLE).
To increase or at least maintain the motivation several measures can help:
Add multimedia, interactivity and element of suspense or humour to the learning content as a feedback, so that
it is fun to “drill and practice” it.
Background libraries, hyper text references, definition or dictionary services will make student not restricted
to the information of content only.
Skinner’s principle of teaching machine can be used as an extension to the teacher.
1.1.2 Cognitivism
Cognition refers to mental processes that can be described to an experience of feeling or of willing. Cognition includes
all processes of consciousness by which knowledge is built up, including topics like conception, perception, recognition
and reasoning.
In cognitivism the brain process and transforms is very important. There problem solving is the main way of learning.
According to cognitivism that it’s not one answer or reaction to a certain question or stimulus needs to be practiced but
more generally the right methods and procedures have to be learned and understood and which of them leads to one or
more of the right solutions. It is quite possible that not only one way leads to the optimum result but that several
procedures can do this; however all of them will be trained explicitly. Cognitive theories emphasize making knowledge
meaningful and helping learners organize and relate new information to existing knowledge in memory. Instructions
must be based on a student’s existing mental structures to be effective. Teachers should organize information in such a
way that learners are able to connect new information with existing knowledge in some meaningful way. Analogies and
metaphors are examples of this type of cognitive strategy.
Such cognitive emphases imply that major tasks of the teacher/ VLE developer include:
Every individual has different capacity of getting learning experiences to the situation and it brings different
outcome.
we should identify different manners to know the previous knowledge, skills and abilities of learner
The model e-learning system
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