Psycho Study

7/25/2019 Psycho Study

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Julie Robinson1327405RP 1

Consider the implications of current theories of cognitive development

in terms of their relevance to teaching and learning in your subject.

There are several theories as to how children learn whatever the subject.

Some theories support each other; others contradict. What is important

is that teachers understand the need to teach in a way that reinforces

how people naturally learn (Muijs !"#! p. $#%. &oo'in at the mental

processes used by people establishes how lanuae ma'es people feel and

how it ma'es them thin'. Muijs uses different evidence from a number of

theorists to understand the different processes pupils use to learn and

how teachers need to teach in order to et the best from their lessons.

)sin the evidence presented by Muijs it will be possible to see that

there is not one stand*alone theory relevant to teachin and learnin in

+nlish but that a combination of these theories will enable teachers to

teach effectively.

,n the #-!"s and #-"s behavioural theorists used scientific e/periments

with animals and humans to loo' at how learnin outcomes were directly

related to chanes in behaviour (ibid%. 0owever as time has moved onthe theory has developed to include e/pectations thouhts motivation

and beliefs (Muijs !"#! p. $%. 1ehaviourists such as 1andura see

learnin as a process that occurs when respondin to e/ternal stimuli

(ibid% and see this as conditionin the mind.

1ehaviourists have bro'en this conditionin down further. They see

classic conditionin as somethin that becomes a habit and is somethin

that occurs naturally. 2ear seven pupils are tauht not to shout out but to

raise their hand in response to a 3uestion; they stop tal'in when theteacher raises their hand and says loudly three two one and a result of

conditionin at primary school. This chanes as pupils et older and et

out of the habit of respondin to teachers raisin their hand to elicit

silence. 1ehavioural or operant conditionin occurs in response to

e/ternal stimulus which is then further reinforced by either a reward or

punishment. 4or e/ample in +nlish when teachin 2ear 5 1oy by 6oald

7ahl a reward system can be used to et the best descriptive writin

from pupils. The chapter The 1icycle and the sweet shop uses

descriptive lanuae to describe the various sweets on offer. 0andin outweird tastin sweets for the pupils to try will et mi/ed responses; some


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will li'e them some will spit them out but the rewards come when they

have produced an e/ceptional piece of descriptive writin and they are

then rewarded with a nice familiar sweet to describe. Those who really

have e/celled receive more than one showin the rest of the pupils what

can be achieved.

8iaets theory does have its limits as children do not learn in the same

way and they process information differently. When learners are

confronted with new situations 9and: the mental stimuli they have learnt

to respond to are not present (Muijs !"#! p. $% they do not 'now how

to respond and it could possibly result in neative behaviour. +/ternal

stimuli is not enouh to understand how people learn9and it is therefore

necessary to: loo' at what is oin on inside the brain (ibid% to et the

fullest understandin of learnin outcomes.

years%. ,n the first ae brac'et babies 'nowlede is limited and

learns from actions and sensory information (ibid%. 1etween two and

seven children can use eneral lanuae and symbols to learn yet they

are still mentally undeveloped and strule to thin' differently and adapt.

When they reach the third stae they start to understand how to use

loical rules and can start to thin' differently and move their learnin in

different directions. They are still limited and rely on imaes and visual

information to continue to support their learnin. ?nce they reach the

formal operational stae (Muijs !"#! p. $@% at twelve plus they can

start to thin' differently and they start to enerate different

possibilities for any iven situation in a systematic way (ibid%.


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While 8iaet has been very specific in how and when childrens learnin

develops he does not account for children developin at different staes.

0is theory is too riid (ibid%. +ven in +nlish a 2ear 5 top set class can

see a number of children with different learnin ability. Some children

still need visual stimuli in order to learn. ?thers have already moved onto

the final stae of learnin and are able to use their imaination in order

to respond to various learnin situations. ,n these situations a teacher

needs to respond to the varyin needs of these pupils. While it is

impossible to produce a lesson for each roup and teach it simultaneous

differentiation techni3ues can ensure all children have e/cellent learnin

outcomes. Ahallenin those children who have developed at a faster rate

than others is essential in order to move them into hypothetical

situations. Teachin the same lesson ensures all pupils proress and learn

from each other. Teachers who allow children to lead learnin whether a

starter or plenary confirms 8iaets theory that social transmission

allows children to interact with each other and learn from each other.


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e/ample when puttin toether a timeline of a pupils life for use in their

own autobioraphy some pupils would be able to complete the tas' 3uite

easily. < teacher can then use those pupils to assist their classmates who

are not able to easily put thins into chronoloical order in completin the

tas'.This has a double effect of challenin the hih achievers to leadlearnin and for those with less ability to learn from their peers without

them realisin it. With the co*operation and interaction of other pupils in

lessons the scaffoldin helps develop better understandin and learnin.

To conclude there are a number of theories at present which have

strenths and wea'nesses. 0owever every classroom practitioner in

every subject needs to ta'e into consideration all the available theories

to create an effective learnin environment. ?ne siCe does not fit all.

What wor's for one 2ear roup may not wor' for another. ,t is up to theteacher to ascertain the merits of each theory and apply the appropriate

one to each classroom environment. This assinment has only loo'ed at

three out of many theories. To only use one of these three theories for

teachin and learnin in +nlish would be detrimental to the pupils

learnin. What is needed is a combination of different theories to ensure

effective teachin and learnin in the classroom.

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1iblioraphy

Muijs 7. (!"#!% )nderstandin( how pupils learnF theories of learnin( and

intelli(ence in 1roo's B.

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