EDUKASYONG PANTAHANAN AT PANGKABUHAYAN WITH ENTREPRENEURSHIP

This course shall include pedagogical content, knowledge and skills in technology
and livelihood education necessary in teaching and learning in the elementary level.
Selected topics in agriculture, industrial arts, fisheries, and livelihood education and
entrepreneurship shall form a major part of the course. The students will learn appropriate
teaching and assessment strategies and techniques including preparation of fruitful and
usable projects that can be utilized in teaching TLE in the elementary grades. This course
will utilize project based and experiential learning approaches.

Unit 1. Importance of Edukasyon Pantahanan at

Pangkabuhayan with Entrepreneurship in the K-12
Curriculum
1. Components of EPP in the K-12 Curriculum
A. Industrial Arts
B. Home Economics
C. Agriculture
D. Theories of Entrepreneurship

Unit 2. Learning Theories and their Impact to EPP Teaching

A. Behaviourism
B. Constructivist
C. Social Learning
D. Cognitivism
E. Experientialism
 IMPORTANCE OF EDUKASYONG PANTAHANAN AT PANGKABUHAYAN WITH
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE K-12 CURRICULUM

Components of EPP in the K-12 Curriculum

A. Industrial Arts
B. Home Economics
C. Agriculture
D. Theories of Entrepreneurship

Importance of Edukasyon Pantahanan at Pangkabuhayan with Entrepreneurship in the K-12 Curriculum

While the society all around is developing with technology and innovations, the K-12
schools have been in a stagnant scenario. Education is the driving force behind every country’s
economy, directly or indirectly. Sure, many schools have adapted to modernization, and have
started making students work in groups to solve problems, learn online and integrate science with
arts. But it is noticed even then, students that are graduating lack the advanced skills and
innovative thinking to work through the modern day challenges in the workplace. Thus,
entrepreneurship, the capacity to not only start companies, but also to think creatively and
ambitiously, is very important to be included in school curriculum.

Entrepreneurship education aids students from all socioeconomic backgrounds to think

outside the box and nurture unconventional talents and skills. It creates opportunities, ensures
social justice, instills confidence and stimulates the economy. Entrepreneurship education is a
lifelong learning process, starting as early as elementary school and progressing through all levels
of education, including adult education.

Introducing young kids to entrepreneurship develops their initiative and helps them to be
more creative and self-confident in whatever they undertake and to act in a socially responsible
way.

Components of EPP in the K-12 Curriculum

A. Industrial Arts
Industrial Arts has an important role to play as part of general education in our modern
society. Each day our world becomes more mechanized and technical with the invention and
production of more labor-saving devices. Many tradesmen and technicians are needed to install,
operate, and service these modern pieces of equipment. Industrial Arts offers the student an
opportunity to acquire some insight into various technical and trade areas. Lab or shop classes
are not designed to turn out tradesmen or technicians but are for the purpose of acquainting the
student with various occupations requiring some type of mental manual skill. Industrial Art class
experiences will have carry-over value in later life, in job situations, in consumer knowledge, or
possibly in home maintenance. Vocational Building Trades provides students an opportunity to
explore twenty areas of pre-apprenticeship training for those that are considering construction as
a career. Craftsmanship is not dead; it just has to be taught and honored.
 Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the
cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction
of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters traditionally
worked with natural wood and did the rougher work such as framing, but today
many other materials are also used and sometimes the finer trades of
cabinetmaking and furniture building are considered carpentry.
 Plumbing may be defined as the practice, materials, and fixtures used in installing,
maintaining, and altering piping, fixtures, appliances, and appurtenances in
connection with sanitary or storm drainage facilities, a venting system, and public
or private water supply systems. Plumbing does not include drilling water wells;
installing water softening equipment; or manufacturing or selling plumbing fixtures,
appliances, equipment, or hardware. A plumbing system consists of three parts:
 an adequate potable water supply system; a safe, adequate drainage system; and
ample fixtures and equipment.
 Electronics is the study of how to control the flow of electrons. It deals with circuits
that are made with parts called components and connecting wires that control
the flow of electricity and direct it to do useful things.
 Metal works is the process of shaping and reshaping metals to create useful
objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term it covers a wide
and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on every
scale: from huge ships, buildings, and bridges down to precise engine parts and
delicate jewelry.
Electrical is defined as something related to electricity, which is energy resulting from charged
particles. When a wire carries electric current to your television or refrigerator, this is an example of
an electrical wire.
 Orthographic drawing/CAD are a very common style of drawing and are easily
created with AutoCAD.

B. Home Economics
Is a field of study that is primarily concerned with strengthening family life and increasing
productivity of individuals in the social economy. It synthesizes knowledge from arts and science-
based disciplines to improve manipulative skills, organizational skills and social skills (James,
2003).

Home economics is a broad field of knowledge and services concerned with all phases of
family life. Lemchi (2001) also noted that Home Economics is a skill-oriented subject which is
capable of equipping the individuals with basic skills and knowledge that will help them to be self-
reliant and thereby contribute to the social and economic development of the individual, the family,
and the nation at large.
 Food, health and nutrition - Eating a well-balanced diet, with adequate
nutrients and appropriate calories, is a fundamental requirement for continued
health. An appropriate diet contributes to healthy development, healthy ageing
and greater resilience against disease. Similarly, a poor or inappropriate diet
places people at greater risk of infection and a range of chronic illnesses –
including cancer, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
 Personal finance and family resources - is the financial management which an
individual or a family unit performs to budget, save, and spend monetary resources
over time, taking into account various financial risks and future life events
 Textile and clothing is about the design, manufacture and marketing of clothing
and footwear and other textile products. Studying in this area includes
learning about fabrics and other materials and about weaving, dyeing, printing,
pattern-making, sewing, washing, etc.
 Consumer science is a social discipline that focuses on the interaction between
people and the environment. Some of the topics addressed by a specialist in
consumer science are nutrition, aging, housing, food safety, community, and
parenting.
 Household management refers to the various tasks and chores associated with
the organization, financial management, and day-to-day operations of a home.
Housekeeping is a term that is sometimes used to refer to the cleaning and
physical upkeep of a house, as distinct from financial issues or outdoor
maintenance.
 Human development is defined as the process of enlarging people's freedoms
and opportunities and improving their well-being. Human development is about the
real freedom ordinary people have to decide who to be, what to do, and how to
live.

C. Agriculture
Is the science and art of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development
in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species
created food surpluses that enabled people to live in cities. The history of agriculture began
thousands of years ago. After gathering wild grains beginning at least 105,000 years ago,
nascent farmers began to plant them around 11,500 years ago. Pigs, sheep and cattle were
domesticated over 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11
regions of the world. Industrial agriculture based on large-scale monoculture in the twentieth
 century came to dominate agricultural output, though about 2 billion people still depended on
subsistence agriculture into the twenty-first.
 Livestock Production. Livestock is commonly defined as domesticated animals
raised in an agricultural setting to produce labor and commodities such as meat,
eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool.
 Agricultural economics is an applied field of economics concerned with the
application of economic theory in optimizing the production and distribution of food
and fiber.

 Crop production. Irrigated farm areas mainly grow rice and sugarcane whereas
rained areas are planted with coconut, corn and cassava. The Philippines' major
agricultural products include rice, coconuts, corn, sugarcane, bananas,
pineapples, and mangoes.
 Modern Agriculture is a term used to describe the wide type of production
practices employed by American farmers. It makes use of hybrid seeds of selected
variety of a single crop, technologically advanced equipment and lots of energy
subsidies in the form of irrigation water, fertilizers and pesticides.


D. Theories of Entrepreneurship
It is a universal fact that entrepreneurship is an important factor in economic
development.

An Entrepreneur is the risk bearer and works under uncertainty. But no attempts were
made by economists for formulating systematic theory of entrepreneurship. According to William
J. Baumol, the economic theory has failed to provide a satisfactory analysis of either the role of
the entrepreneurship or its supply.

1. Economic Theory
The economic entrepreneurship theory has deep roots in the classical and
neoclassical theories of economics, and the Austrian market process (AMP). These
theories explore the economic factors that enhance entrepreneurial behavior.

1.1. Classical Theory

The classical theory extolled the virtues of free trade, specialization, and
competition (Ricardo, 1817; Smith, 1776).The theory was the result of Britain’s industrial
revolution which took place in the mid-1700 and lasted until the 1830s.The classical
movement described the directing role of the entrepreneur in the context of production and
distribution of goods in a competitive marketplace (Say, 1803). Classical theorists
articulated three modes of production: land; capital; and labor.
1.2 Neo-Classical Theory
The neo-classical model emerged from the criticisms of the classical model and
indicated that economic phenomena could be relegated to instances of pure exchange,
reflect an optimal ratio, and transpire in an economic system that was basically closed.
The economic system consisted of exchange participants, exchange occurrences, and the
impact of results of the exchange on other market actors. The importance of exchange
coupled with diminishing marginal utility created enough impetus for entrepreneurship in
the neoclassical movement (Murphy, Liao &Welsch, 2006).
1.3 Austrian Market Process (AMP)
These unanswered questions of the neo-classical movement led to a new
movement which became known as the Austrian Market process (AMP). The AMP, a
model influenced by Joseph Aloi Schumpeter (1934) concentrated on human action in the
context of an economy of knowledge. Schumpeter (1934) described entrepreneurship as
a driver of market-based systems. In other words, an important function of an enterprise
was to create something new which resulted in processes that served as impulses for the
motion of market economy.

2. Social Theory
Sociological theory is the third of the major entrepreneurship theories. Sociological
enterprise focuses on the social context .In other words, in the sociological theories
the level of analysis is traditionally the society (Landstrom, 1998)
 3. Psychological Theory
The level of analysis in psychological theories is the individual (Landstrom, 1998).
These theories emphasize personal characteristics that define entrepreneurship.
Personality traits need for achievement and locus of control are reviewed and empirical
evidence presented for three other new characteristics that have been found to be
associated with entrepreneurial inclination. These are risk taking, innovativeness, and
tolerance for ambiguity
3.1 Personality Traits Theory
Coon (2004) defines personality traits as “stable qualities that a person shows in
most situations”. To the trait theorists there are enduring inborn qualities or potentials of the
individual that naturally make him an entrepreneur. The obvious and logical question on
your mind maybe, “What are the exact traits/inborn qualities?” The answer is not a straight
forward one since we cannot point out at particular traits. However, this model gives some
insight into these traits or inborn qualities by identifying the characteristics associated with
the entrepreneur. The characteristics give us a clue or an understanding of these traits or
inborn potentials. In fact, explaining personality traits means making inference from
behavior.


3.1.1 Locus of Control
Locus of control is an important aspect of personality. The concept was first
introduced by Julian Rotter in the 1950s. Rotter (1966) refers to Locus of Control as an
individual’s perception about the underlying main causes of events in his/her life. In other
words, a locus of control orientation is a belief about whether the outcomes of our actions
are contingent on what we do (internal control orientation) or on events outside our
personal control (external control orientation).

3.2 Need for Achievement theory

While the trait model focuses on enduring inborn qualities and locus of
control on the individual's perceptions about the rewards and punishments in his or her
life, (Pervin, 1980,), need for achievement theory by McClelland (1961) explained that
human beings have a need to succeed, accomplish, excel or achieve. Entrepreneurs are
driven by this need to achieve and excel. While there is no research evidence to support
personality traits, there is evidence for the relationship between achievement motivation
and entrepreneurship (Johnson, 1990). Achievement motivation may be the only
convincing person logical factor related to new venture creation (Shaver & Scott, 1991).

4. Crop Production Theory

Plants are autotrophic and therefore they fix the energy of the sun and manufacture
food from simple inorganic substances for almost all other organisms through
photosynthesis. Crop plants have a wide range of development and growth responses to
sunlight, day length, temperature, nutrients, and water supply. Farmers do not, however,
choose plants as crops for optimum adaptation to individual environments, but those that
are preferred food, as in developing countries, or to meet market requirements, including
global trade. In consequence, crops are managed to withstand environmental stresses.
Socio-economic forces drive change in agriculture that is currently challenged to increase
production by 70% to feed 9.2 billion by 2050.
Green plants occupy a special place among all living things on earth, the biosphere,
because, uniquely, through their greenness, they connect earth to an external source of
energy, the sun. They ‘pack’ this energy into sugars or carbohydrates (CHOs) that become
the basis of all other living things, except for some chemoautotrophic organisms,
principally bacteria. This puts them at first position on the food chain that includes all other
organisms: humans, carnivorous and omnivorous creatures, and decomposers. The
carbon-based organic compounds that plants accumulate in vegetative structures and
storage organs are, directly or indirectly, food for the vast majority of organisms in the
biosphere. Plants alone are independent of other organisms by fixing carbon (C) from
atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and producing oxygen (O2) as well as carbohydrates
(CHOs). They are dependent only on mineral nutrients and water they absorb from soil for
the internal chemistry of their metabolism. The unique process by which plants fix solar
energy that then moves through the entire food chain until the C is returned as CO2 to the
atmosphere is called photosynthesis.
 5. Opportunity-Based Theory
The opportunity-based theory is anchored by names such as Peter Drucker and
Howard Stevenson. An opportunity-based approach provides a wide-ranging conceptual
framework for entrepreneurship research (Fiet, 2002; Shane, 2000). Entrepreneurs do not
cause change (as claimed by the Schumpeterian or Austrian school) but exploit the
opportunities that change (in technology, consumer preferences etc.) creates (Drucker,
1985). He further says, “This defines entrepreneur and entrepreneurship, the entrepreneur
always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity”. What is
apparent in Drucker’s opportunity construct is
that entrepreneurs have an eye more for possibilities created by change than the
problems. Stevenson (1990) extends Drucker’s opportunity-based construct to include
resourcefulness. This is based on research to determine the differences between
entrepreneurial management and administrative management. He concludes that the
hub of entrepreneurial management is the “pursuit of opportunity”.

6. Resource- Based Entrepreneurship Theories
The Resource-based theory of entrepreneurship argues that access to resources
by founders is an important predictor of opportunity based entrepreneurship and new
venture growth (Alvarez & Busenitz, 2001).This theory stresses the importance of
financial, social and human resources (Aldrich, 1999). Thus, access to Honing, 2003).
Financial, social and human capital represents three classes of theories under the
resource – based entrepreneurship theories.
6.1 Financial Capital/Liquidity Theory
Empirical research has showed that the founding of new firms is more common
when people have access to financial capital (Blanchflower et al, 2001, Evans &
Jovanovic, 1989, and Holtz-Eakin et al, 1994). By implication this theory suggests that
people with financial capital are more able to acquire resources to effectively exploit
entrepreneurial opportunities, and set up a firm to do so (Clausen, 2006).
6.2 Social Capital or Social Network Theory
Entrepreneurs are embedded in a larger social network structure that constitutes
a significant proportion of their opportunity structure (Clausen, 2006). Shane and Eckhardt
(2003) says “an individual may have the ability to recognize that a given entrepreneurial
opportunity exist, but might lack the social connections to transform the opportunity into a
business startup. It is thought that access to a larger social network might help overcome
this problem” (pp.333).
6.3 Human Capital Entrepreneurship Theory
Underlying the human capital entrepreneurship theory are two factors, education
and experience (Becker, 1975).The knowledge gained from education and experience
represents a resource that is heterogeneously distributed across individuals and in effect
central to understanding differences in opportunity identification and exploitation
(Anderson & Miller, 2003, Chandler & Hanks, 1998, Gartner et al, 2005, Shane &
Venkataraman, 2000).
 LESSON 2
Learning Theories and their Impact to EPP Teaching

Introduction:

Learning theory describes how students receive, process, and retain knowledge during
learning. Cognitive, emotional, and environmental influences, as well as prior experience, all
play a part in how understanding, or a world view, is acquired or changed and knowledge and
skills retained.

Learning design should be based on learning theories because:

 Theories provide a basis to understand how people learn and a way to explain, describe,
analyze and predict learning. In that sense, a theory helps us make more informed
decisions around the design, development and delivery of learning.

 There are different learning theories (behaviourism, cognitivism, constructivism,

connectivism, etc.). These theorists have thought deeply about learning and contemplated
and researched it extensively. Learning designers can leverage this knowledge to think
critically about learning and education.
 Learning theories offer frameworks that help understand how information is used, how
knowledge is created and how learning takes place. Learning designers can apply these
frameworks according to different learning and learner needs and make more informed
decisions about choosing the right instructional practices.

There is no one ‘best’ learning theory because:

 Each theory offers a different way to look at learning and the essential ingredients that
make learning happen. Using these theories as lenses, learning designers can
understand and describe the role of the learner, role of the instructor/teacher/facilitator
and how learning happens in different ways. Each theory has influenced and shaped
instructional practices and methods and all new theories will continue to do so.
 Different theories provide the context of learning, underlying motivation and methods of
teaching and these have implications for designing and delivering instruction. Also,
different theories are best suited to different learning outcomes and different audience
profiles.
 Since each theory comprises of facts and assumptions, learning designers must begin the
design of training by first identifying the goal of training and then select the right theoretical
framework that can help achieve those learning outcomes.

LEARNING THEORIES

BEHAVIORISM
Behaviorism is a worldview that assumes a learner is essentially passive, responding to
environmental stimuli. The learner starts off as a clean slate (i.e. tabula rasa) and behavior is shaped
through positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement. Both positive reinforcement and negative
reinforcement increase the probability that the antecedent behavior will happen again. In contrast,
punishment (both positive and negative) decreases the likelihood that the antecedent behavior will
happen again. Positive indicates the application of a stimulus; Negative indicates the withholding of
a stimulus. Learning is therefore defined as a change in behavior in the learner.

The theory of behaviorism focuses on the study of observable and measurable behavior. It
emphasizes that behavior is mostly learned through conditioning and reinforcement (rewards and
punishment). It does not give much attention to the mind and the possibility of thought processes
occurring in the mind. Contributions in the development of the behaviorist theory largely came from
Pavlov, Watson, Thorndike and Skinner

 Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist, is well known for his work in classical
conditioning or stimulus substitution. Pavlov’s most renowned experiment
involved meat, a dog and a bell. Initially, Pavlov was measuring the dog’s
salivation in order to study digestion. This is when he stumbled upon classical
conditioning.

Pavlov’s Experiment. Before conditioning, ringing the bell (neutral stimulus)

caused no response from the dog. Placing food (unconditioned stimulus) in
front of the dog initiated salivation (unconditional response). During
conditioning, the bell was rung a few seconds before the dog was presented
with food. After conditioning, the ringing of the bell (Conditioned stimulus)
alone produced salivation (conditioned response). This is classical
conditioning.
 CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Stage 1 – Before
conditioning

Bell No
(Neutral response
stimulus)
Step 2 – During
conditioning

Bell
(Neutral
stimulus

Paired
with

Meat Salivation
(Unconditioned (Unconditioned
stimulus) response)
Stage 3 – After
conditioning
Salivation
(Conditioned
Bell
response)
(Conditioned
Stimulus)

Somehow you were conditioned to associate particular objects with your teacher. So at
present, when you encounter the objects, you are also reminded of your teacher. This is an
example of classical conditioning.

Pavlov also had the following findings:

 Stimulus Generalization. Once the dog has learned to salivate at the sound of
the bell, it will salivate at other similar sounds.
 Extinction. If you stop pairing the bell with the food, salivation will eventually
cease in response to the bell.
 Spontaneous Recovery. Extinguished responses can be “recovered” after an
elapsed
time, but will soon extinguish again if the dog is not presented with food.
 Discrimination. The dog could learn to discriminate between similar bells (stimuli)
and discern which bell would result in the presentation of food and which would
not.
 Higher-Order Conditioning. Once the dog has been conditioned to associate the
bell with food, another unconditioned stimulus, such as a light may be flashed at
the same time that the bell is rung. Eventually, the dog will salivate at the flash of
the light without the sound of the bell.
Edward L. Thorndike Edward Thorndike’s Connectionism theory gave us the original S-R
framework of behavioral psychology. More than a hundred years ago he
wrote a textbook entitled, Educational Psychology. He was the first one to
use this term. He explained that learning is the result if associations forming
between stimuli (S) and responses (R). Such associations or “habits”
become strengthened or weakened by the nature and frequency of the S-
R pairings. The model for S-R theory was trial and error learning in which
certain responses came to be repeated more than others because of
rewards. The main principle of connectionism (like all behavioral theory)
was that learning could be adequately explained without considering any
unobservable internal states.

Thorndike’s theory on connectionism, states that learning has taken place when a strong
connection or bond between stimulus and response is formed. He came up with three
primary laws:
 Law of Effect. The law of effect states that a connection between a stimulus and response
is strengthened when the consequence to positive (reward) and the connection between
the stimulus and the response is weakened when the consequence is negative. Thorndike
response is weakened when the consequence is negative. Thorndike later on, revised this
“law” when he found that negative rewards (punishment) do not necessarily weaken
bonds, and that some seemingly pleasurable consequences do not necessarily motivate
performance.
 Law of Exercise. This tells us that the more an S-R (stimulus-response) bond is practiced
the stronger it will become. “Practice makes perfect” seem to be associated with this.
However, like the law of effect, the law of exercise also had to be revised when Thorndike
found that practice without feedback does not necessarily enhance performance.
 Law of Readiness. This states that the more readiness the learner has to respond to the
stimulus, the stronger will be the bond between them. When a person is ready to respond
to a stimulus and is not made to respond, it becomes annoying to the person. For example,
if the teacher says, “Okay we will now watch the movie (stimulus) you’ve been waiting for.”
And suddenly the power goes off. The students will feel frustrated because they were ready
to respond to the stimulus but was prevented from doing so. Likewise, if the person is not
at all ready to respond to stimuli and is asked to respond, that also becomes annoying. For
instance, the teacher calls a student to stand up and recite, and then the teacher asks the
question and expects the student to respond right away when he is still not ready. This will
be annoying to the student. That is why teachers should remember to say the question
first, and wait for a few seconds before calling on anyone to answer.

Principles Derived from Thorndike’s Connectionism:

1. Learning requires both practice and rewards (law of effect/exercise).
2. A series of S-R connections can be chained together if they belong to the same action
sequence (law of readiness).
3. Transfer of learning occurs because of previously encountered situations.
4. Intelligence is a function of the number of connections learned.

John Watson

John B. Watson was the first American psychologist to work with Pavlov’s
ideas. He too was initially involved in animal studies, then later became
involved in human behavior research. He considered that humans are born
with a few reflexes and the emotional reactions of love and rage. All other
behavior is learned through stimulus-response associations through
conditioning. He believed in the power of conditioning so much that he said
that if he is given a dozen healthy infants he can make them into anything
you want them to be, basically through making stimulus- response
Experiment on connections through conditioning.
Albert
 Watson applied classical conditioning in his experiment concerning Albert, a young child
and a white rat. In the beginning, Albert was not afraid of the rat; but Watson made a sudden
noise each time Albert touched the rat. Because Albert was frightened by the loud noise, he soon
became conditioned to fear and avoid the rat. Later, the child’s response was generalized to other
small animals. Now, he was also afraid of small animals. Watson then “extinguished” or made the
child “unlearn” fear by showing the rat without the loud noise.

Surely, Watson’s research methods would be questioned today, nevertheless, his work did
clearly show the role of conditioning in the development of emotional responses to certain stimuli.
This may help us understand the fears, phobias, and prejudices that people develop.

Burrhus Frederick Skinner

Like Pavlov, Watson and Thorndike, Skinner believed in the stimulus-response
pattern of conditioned behavior. His theory zeroed in only on changes in
observable behavior, excluding any likelihood of any processes taking place in
the mind. Skinner’s 1948 book, Walden Two, is about a utopian society based
in operant conditioning. He also wrote, Science and Human Behavior, (1953) in
which he pointed out how the principles of operant conditioning function in social
institutions such as government, law, religion, economics and education.

Skinner’s work differs from that of the three behaviorists before him in that he
studied operant behavior (voluntary behaviors used in operating on the environment). Thus, his
theory came to be known as Operant Conditioning.

Operant Conditioning is based upon the notion that learning is a result of change in overt
behavior. Changes in behavior are the result of an individual’s response to events (stimuli) that
occur in the environment. A response produces a consequence such as defining a word, hitting a
ball, or solving a math problem. When a particular Stimulus-Response (S-R) pattern is reinforced
(rewarded), the individual is conditioned to respond.

Reinforcement is the key element in Skinner’s S-R theory. A reinforcer is anything that
strengthens the desired response. There is a positive reinforcer and a negative reinforcer.

A positive reinforcer is any stimulus that is given or added to increase the response.
An example of positive reinforcement is when a teacher promises extra time in the play area to
children who behave well during the lesson. Another is a mother who promises a new cellphone
for her son who gets good grades. Still, other examples include verbal phrases, star stamps, and
stickers.

A negative reinforce is any stimulus that results in the increased frequency of a response
when it is withdrawn or removed. A negative reinforce is not a punishment, in fact it is a reward.
For instance, a teacher announces that a student who gets an average grade of 1.5 for the two
grading periods will no longer take the final examination, the negative reinforce is “removing” the
final exam, which we realize is a form of reward for working hard and getting an average grade of
1.5.

A negative reinforce is different from a punishment because a punishment is a

consequence intended to result in reduced responses. An example would be a student who
always comes late is not allowed to join a group work that has already began (punishment) and
therefore, loses points for that activity. The punishment was done to reduce the response of
repeatedly coming to class late.

Skinner also looked into extinction or non-reinforcement: Responses that are not
reinforced are
not likely to be repeated. For example, ignoring a student’s misbehavior may extinguish that
behavior.

Shaping of Behavior. An animal on a cage may take a very long time to figure out that
pressing a lever will produce food. To accomplish such behavior, successive approximations of
the behavior are rewarded until the animal learns the association between the lever and the food
reward. To begin shaping, the animal may be rewarded for simply turning in the direction of the
lever, then for moving toward the lever, for brushing against the lever, and finally for pressing the
 lever.
Behavioral chaining comes about when a series of steps are needed to be learned. The animal would
master each step in sequence until the entire sequence is learned. This can be applied to a child being
taught to tie a shoelace. The child can be given reinforcement (rewards) until the entire process of tying
the shoelace is learned.

Reinforcement Schedules. Once the desired behavioral response is accomplished,

reinforcement does not have to be 100%; in fact, it can be maintained more successfully through
what Skinner referred to as partial reinforcement schedules. Partial reinforcement schedules
include interval schedules and ratio schedules.

Fixed Interval Schedules. The target response is reinforced after a fixed amount of time
has passed since the last reinforcement. Example, the bird in a cage is given food (reinforce) every
10 minutes, regardless of how many times it presses the bar.

Variable Interval Schedules. This is similar to fixed interval schedules but the amount of
time that must pass between reinforcement varies. Example, the bird may receive food (reinforce)
different intervals, not every ten minutes.

Fixed Ratio Schedules. A fixed number of correct responses must occur before
reinforcement may recur. Example, the bird will be given food (reinforce) everytime it presses the
bar 5 times.

Variable Ratio Schedules. The number of correct repetitions of the correct response for
reinforcement varies, example, the bird is given food (reinforcer) after it presses the bar 3 times,
then after 10 times, then after 4 times. So the bird will not be able to predict how many times it
needs to press the bar before it gets food again.
Variable interval and especially, variable ratio schedules produce steadier and more
persistent rates of response because the learners cannot predict when the reinforcement will
come although they know that they will eventually succeed. An example of this is why people
continue to buy lotto tickets even when an almost negligible percentage of people actually win.
While it is true that very rarely there is a big winner, but once in a while somebody hits the jackpot
(reinforcement). People cannot predict when the jackpot can be gotten (variable interval) so they
continue to buy tickets (repetition of response).

Implication of Operant Conditioning. These implications are given for programmed

instruction.
1. Practice should take the form of question (stimulus) – answer (response) frames which
expose the student to the subject in gradual steps.
2. Require that the learner makes a response for every frame and receives immediate
feedback.
3. Try to arrange the difficulty of the questions so the response is always correct and hence,
a positive reinforcement.
4. Ensure that good performance in the lesson is paired with secondary reinforcers such as
verbal praise, prizes and good grades.

Principles Derived from Skinner’s Operant Conditioning

1. Behavior that is positively reinforced will reoccur; intermittent reinforcement is particularly
effective.
2. Information should be presented in small amounts so that responses can be reinforced
(“shaping”).
3. Reinforcements will generalize across similar stimuli (“stimulus generalization”) producing
secondary conditioning.

Neo Behaviorism: Tolman and Bandura

With new researchers, explanations provided by the basic principles of behaviorism
appeared not to satisfy all learning scenarios. New theories came into view which maintained
some of the behaviorist concepts but excluded others, and added new ideas which later came to
be associated with the cognitive views of learning. The neo-behaviorists, then, were a transitional
group, bridging the gap between behaviorism and cognitive theories of learning.
Advance Organizer
Neo Behaviorism

Tolman’s Bandura
Purposive Social-
Behaviorism Learning
Theory

Goal-Directedness
Principles

Cognitive Maps
Modeling

Latent Learning Four Conditions

for Effective
Modeling
Intervening Variables

Tolman’s Purposive Behaviorism

Purposive behaviorism has also been referred to as Sign Learning Theory and is often
seen as the link between behaviorism and cognitive theory. Tolman’s theory was founded on two
psychological views: those of the Gestalt psychologists and those of John Watson, the behaviorist.
Tolman believed that learning is a cognitive process. Learning involves forming believes
and obtaining knowledge about the environment and then revealing that knowledge through
purposeful and goal-directed behavior.
Tolman stated in his sign theory that an organism learns by pursuing signs to a goal. i.e.,
learning is acquired through meaningful behavior. He stressed the organized aspect of learning:
“The stimuli which are allowed in are not connected by just simple one-to-one switches to the
outgoing responses. Rather the incoming impulses are usually worked over and elaborated in the
central control room into a tentative cognitive-like map of the environment. And it is this tentative
map, indicating routes and paths and environmental relationships, which finally determines what
responses, if any, the animal will finally make.”
Tolman’s form of behaviorism stressed the relationships between stimuli rather than
stimulus- response. Tolman said that the new stimulus (the sign) becomes associated with
already meaningful stimulus (the significate) through a series of pairings; there is no need for
reinforcement in order to establish learning.

Tolman’s Key Concepts

 Learning is always purposive and goal-directed. Tolman asserted that learning is
always purposive and goal-directed. He held the notion that an organism acted or
responded for some adaptive purpose. He believed individuals do more than merely
responded to stimuli; they act on beliefs, attitudes, changing conditions, and they strive
toward goals. Tolman saw behavior as holistic, purposive and cognitive.
 Cognitive Maps in rats. In his most famous experiment, one group of rats was placed at
random starting locations in a maze but the food was always in the same location. Another
group of rats had the food placed in different locations which always required exactly the
same pattern of turns from their starting location. The group that had the food in the same
location performed much better than the group, supposedly demonstrating that they had
learned the location rather than a specific sequence of turns. This is tendency to “learn
location” signified that rats somehow formed cognitive maps that help them perform well
on the maze. He also found out that organisms will select the shortest or easiest path
to achieve a goal.
 Applied in human learning, since student passes by the same route going to school every day, he
acquires a cognitive map of the location of his school. So when the transportation re-routing is
done, he can still figure out what turns to make to get to school the shortest or easiest way.
Latent Learning is a kind of learning that remains or stays with the individual until needed.
It is learning that is not outwardly manifested at once. According to Tolman it can exist even
without reinforcement. He demonstrated this in his rat experiments wherein rats apparently
“learned the maze” by forming cognitive maps of the maze, but manifested this knowledge of the
maze only when they needed to.
Applied in human learning, a two-year old always sees her dad operate the t.v. remote
control and observes how the t.v. is turned on or how channel is changed, and volume adjusted.
After sometime, the parents are surprised that on the first time that their daughter holds the remote
control, she already knows which buttons to press for what function. Through latent learning, the
child knew the skills beforehand, even though she has never done them before.

The concept of intervening variable. Intervening variables are variables that are not
readily seen but serve as determinants of behavior. Tolman believed that learning is mediated or
is influenced by expectations, perceptions, representations, needs and other internal or
environmental variables. Example, in his experiments with rats he found out that hunger was an
intervening variable.

Reinforcement not essential for learning. Tolman concluded that reinforcement is not
essential for leaning, although it provides an incentive for performance. In his studies, he observed
that a rat was able to acquire knowledge of the way through a maze, i.e., to develop a cognitive
map, even in the absence of reinforcement.

SOCIAL LEARNING
Albert Bandura’s Social learning theory focuses on the learning that occurs within a
social context. It considers that people learn from one another, including such concepts as
observational learning, imitation and modeling. The ten-year old boy Sergio Pelico did watch
Saddam’s execution on TV and then must have imitated it.
Among others, Albert Bandura is considered the leading proponent of this theory.

General principles of social learning theory

1. People can learn by observing the behavior of others and the outcomes of those
behaviors.
2. Learning can occur without a change in behavior. Behaviorism say that learning has to
be represented by a permanent change in behavior, in contrast social learning theorists
say that because people can learn through observation alone, their learning may not
necessarily be shown in their performance. Learning may or may not result in a behavior
change.
3. Cognition plays a role in learning. Over the last 30 years, social learning theory has
become increasingly cognitive in its interpretation of human learning. Awareness and
expectations of future reinforcements or punishments can have a major effect on the
behaviors that people exhibit.
4. Social learning theory can be considered a bridge or a transition between behaviorist
learning theories and cognitive learning theories.

How the environment reinforces and punishes modeling

People are often reinforced for modeling the behavior of others. Bandura suggested that
the
environment also reinforces modeling. This is in several possible ways:
1. The observer is reinforced by the model. For examples a student who changes dress to
fit in with a certain group of students has a strong likelihood of being accepted and thus
reinforced by that group.
2. The observer is reinforced by a third person. The observer might be modeling the actions
of someone else, for example, an outstanding class leader or student. The teacher notices
this and compliments and praises the observer for modeling such behavior thus reinforcing
that behavior.
3. The initiated behavior itself leads to reinforcing consequences. Many behaviors that we
 learn from others produce satisfying or reinforcing results. For example, a student in my
multimedia class could observe how the extra work a classmate does is fun. This student
in turn would do the same extra work and also experience enjoyment.

4. Consequences of the model’s behavior affect the observer’s behavior vicariously. This is
known as vicarious reinforcement. This is where the model is reinforced for a response
and then the observer shows an increase in that same response. Bandura illustrated
this by having students watch a film of a model hitting an inflated clown doll. One group
of children saw the model being praised for such action. Without being reinforced, the
group of children began to also hit the doll.

Contemporary social learning perspective of reinforcement and punishment

1. Contemporary theory proposes that both reinforcement and punishment have indirect
effects on learning. They are not the sole or main cause.
2. Reinforcement and punishment influence the extent to which an individual exhibits a
behavior that has been learned.
3. The expectation of reinforcement influences cognitive processes that promote learning.
Therefore, attentions pays a critical role in learning, and attention is influenced by the
expectation of reinforcement. An example would be, when the teacher tells a group of
students that what they will study next is not on the test. Students will not pay attention
because they do not expect to know the information for a test.

Cognitive factors in social learning

Social learning theory has cognitive factors as well as behaviorist factors (actually
operant factors)
1. Learning without performance: Bandura makes a distinction between learning through
observation and the actual imitation of what has been learned. This is similar to Tolman’s
latent learning.
2. Cognitive processing during learning: Social learning theorists content that attention is a
critical factor in learning.
3. Expectations: As a result of being reinforced, people form expectations about the
consequences that future behaviors are likely to bring. They expect certain behaviors to
bring reinforcements and others to bring punishment. The learner needs to be aware,
however, of the response reinforcements and response punishment. Reinforcement
increases a response only when the learner is aware of that connection.
4. Reciprocal causation: bandura proposed that behavior can influence both the environment
and the person, in fat each of these three variables, the person, the behavior, and the
environment can have an influence on each other.
5. Modeling: There are different types of models. There is the live model, an actual person
demonstrating the behavior. There can also be a symbolic model, which can be a person
or action portrayed in some other medium, such as television, videotape, computer
programs.

Behaviors that can be learned through modeling

Many behaviors can be learned, at least partly, through modeling. Examples that can be
cited are, students can watch parents read, students can watch the demonstrations of
mathematics problems, or see someone act bravely in a fearful situation. Aggression can be
learned through models. Research indicates that children become more aggressive when they
observed aggressive or violent models. Moral thin king and moral behavior are influenced by
observation and modeling. This includes moral judgments regarding right and wrong which can,
in part, develop through modeling.

Conditions necessary for effective modeling to occur

Bandura mentions four conditions that are necessary before an individual can
successfully model the behavior of someone else.
1. Attention – the person must first pay attention to the model.
2. Retention – the observer must be able to remember the behavior that has been observed.
One way of increasing this is using the technique of rehearsal.
3. Motor reproduction – the third condition is the ability to replicate the behavior that the
model has just demonstrated. This means that the observer has to be able to replicate the
 action, which could be a problem with a learner who is not ready developmentally to
replicate the action. For example, little children have difficulty doing complex physical
motion.

4. Motivation – the final necessary ingredient for modeling to occur is motivation, learners
must want to demonstrate what they have learned. Remember that since these four
conditions vary among individuals, different people will reproduce the same behavior
differently.

Educational Implications of social learning theory

1. Students often learn a great deal simply by observing other people.
2. Describing the consequences of behavior can effectively increase the appropriate
behaviors and decrease inappropriate ones. This can involve discussing with learners
about the rewards and consequences of various behaviors.
3. Modeling provides an alternative to shaping for teaching new behaviors. Instead of
using shaping, which is operant conditioning, modeling can provide a faster, more
efficient means for teaching new behavior. To promote effective modeling, a teacher
must make sure that the four essential conditions exist; attention, retention, motor
reproduction, and motivation.
4. Teachers and parents must model appropriate behaviors and take care that they do not
model inappropriate behaviors.
5. Teachers should expose students to a variety of other models. This technique is
especially important to break down traditional stereotypes.

CONSTRUCTIVIST
(CONSTRUCTIVISM)

What is meant by constructivism? The term refers to the idea that learners construct
knowledge for themselves---each learner individually (and socially) constructs meaning---as
he or she learns. Constructing meaning is learning; there is no other kind. The dramatic
consequences of this view are twofold;
1) We have to focus on the learner in thinking about learning (not on the subject/lesson
to be
taught):
2) There is no knowledge independent of the meaning attributed to experience
(constructed) by
the learner, or community of learners.

Advance Organizer

Constructivism

Views of Characteristics
Organizing
Constructivis of
Knowledge
m Constructivism

Individual
Constructivis
m

Social Constructivism
 In this quotation, “filling up the pail” is more
linked to rote learning and behaviorism. It
connotes that teaching is dominated by the
teacher and the learners are passive
receivers of knowledge. “Lighting the fire” is
related to the cognitive perspective and
constructivism. It signifies that teaching
involves giving opportunities for learners to
explore and discover. Learners construct
their own meaning. Learners generate
insights and are “enlightened”.

Two Views of Constructivism

Individual Constructivism. This is also called cognitive constructivism. It emphasizes

individual, internal construction of knowledge. It is largely based on Piaget’s theory.
Proponents of this type choose child-centered and discovery learning. They believe the learners
should be allowed to discover principles through their own exploration rather than direct instruction
by the teacher.
Social Constructivism. This view emphasizes that “knowledge exists in a social
context and is initially shared with others instead of being represented solely in the mind
of an individual.” It is based on Vygotsky’s theory. Here, construction of knowledge is shared by
two or more people. According to social constructivists, the opportunity to interact and share
among learners help to shape and refine their knowledge construction becomes social, not
individual.
Characteristics of Constructivism

Whether one takes the individual or social view of constructivism, there are four
characteristics that these two views have in common. According to Eggen and Kauchak, these
are:
1. Learners construct understanding. As discussed earlier, constructivists do not view
learners as just empty vessels waiting to be filled up. They see learners as active thinkers
who interpret new information based on what they already know. They construct
knowledge in a way that make sense to them.
2. New learning depends on current understanding. Background inform is very important.
It is through the present view or scheme that the learner has that new information will be
interpreted.
3. Learning is facilitated by social interaction. Constructivists believe in creating a
“community of learners” within classrooms. Learning communities help learners take
responsibility for their own learning. Learners have a lot of opportunities to cooperate and
collaborate to solve problems and discover things. Teachers play the role of a facilitator
rather than an expert who has all the knowledge.
4. Meaningful learning occurs within authentic learning tasks. An authentic task is one
that involves a learning activity that involves constructing knowledge and understanding
that is so akin to the knowledge and understanding needed when applied in the real world.
Example, a writing activity where six-year olds prepare a checklist of things they need to
do in school is a more an authentic activity than for them to be working only on tracing
worksheets with dotted lines.
Organizing Knowledge

Concepts. A concept is a way of grouping or categorizing objects or events in our mind.

A concept of “teach” includes a group of tasks such as model, discuss, illustrate, explain, assist,
etc. In your life as a student you would learn thousands of concepts, some simple ones, and other
more complicated that may take you to learn them more gradually. The concepts you learn are
also revised as you learn more and experience more.
  Concepts as Feature Lists. Learning a concept involves learning specific
features that characterize positive instance of the concept. Included here are
defining features and correlational feature. A defining feature is a characteristic
present in ALL instances. Example, a triangle has three sides. Having three sides
is a defining feature of a triangle because ALL triangles should have three sides.
If one doesn’t then it is not a triangle. A
correlational feature is one that is present in many positive instances but not
essential for concept membership. For example, a mother is loving. Being loving
is a feature commonly present in the concept of a mother. But a mother may not be
loving. So “being loving” is only a correlational feature, not a defining one.
 Concepts as Prototypes. A prototype is an idea or a visual image of a “typical”
example. It is usually formed based on the positive instances that learners
encounter most often. Example, close your eyes now and for a moment think of a
cat. Picture in mind what it looks like. You probably thought of an image of the
common car we see, rather than some rare breed or species. Once learners have
their own concept of prototypes, the new examples that they see are checked
against this existing prototype.
 Concepts as Exemplars. Exemplars represent a variety if examples. It allows
learners to know that an example under a concept may have variability. Example,
a learner’s concept of vegetable may include a variety of different examples like
cauliflower, kangkong, cabbage, string beans, squash, corn, potatoes. When he
encounters a new type of vegetable like “bitsuelas”, he would search from the
exemplars he knows and looks for one that is most similar, like string beans.
Making Concept-learning Effective. As a future teacher, you can help students learn concepts
by doing the following:

 Provide a clear definition of the concept

 Make the definition features very concrete and prominent
 Give a variety of positive instances
 Give negative instances
 Cite a “best example” or a prototype
 Provide opportunity for learners to identify positive and negative instances
 Ask learners to think of their own example of the concept
 Point out how concepts can be related to each other
Schemas and scripts. A schema is an organized body of knowledge about something. It is like
a file of information you hold in your mind about something. Like a schema of what a teacher is.
A script is a schema that includes a series of predictable events about a specific activity. Examples
would include knowing the series of steps done when we visit a doctor, or what transpires at the
beginning of the class when the teacher arrives.
Your role as a teacher is to bring learners to construct their own knowledge such that they
have a well-organized set of concepts, aim to make clear those concepts that are still vague for
them, and to pave the way for them to overcome misconceptions. It is important that you acquire
skills on how to facilitate concept formation and development. Constructivism can be an excellent
guide for you.
Applying constructivism in facilitating learning

 Aim to make learners understand a few key ideas in an in-depth manner, rather than
taking u so many topics superficially.
 Give varied examples.
 Provide opportunities for experimentation.
 Provide lots of opportunities for quality interaction.
 Have lots of hands-on activities.
 Relate your topic to real life situations.
 Do not depend on the explanation method all the time.
COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE
Gestalt psychology was at the forefront of the cognitive psychology. It served as the
foundation of the cognitive perspective to learning. It opposed the external and mechanistic
focus of behaviorism. It considered the mental processes and products of perception.
 Advance Organizer
Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt Principles Insight Learning Lifespace (Lewin)

Law of Proximity Inner Forces

Law of closure Outer Forces

Law of closure

Law of closure

Law of closure

Gestalt theory was the initial cognitive response to behaviorism. It emphasized the
importance of sensory wholes and the dynamic nature of visual perception. The term gestalt
means “form” or “configuration.” Psychologists Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Kohler and Kurt
Koffka studied perception and concluded that perceivers (or learners) are not passive, but rather
active. They suggested that learners do not just collect information as is but they actively process
and restructure data in order to understand it. This is the perceptual process. Certain factors
impact on this perceptual process. Factors like past experiences, needs, attitudes and one’s
present situation can affect their perception.

Kurt Koffka
Wolfgang
1887-1941 MaxWertheimer
Kohler
1887-1967 1880-1943

Gestalt Principles
Law of Proximity. Elements that are closer together will be
perceived as coherent objective. On the left, there appears to be
four columns, while on the right, there appears to be four
horizontal rows. When objects we are perceiving are near each
other, we perceive them as belonging together.
Law of Similarity. Elements that look similar will be perceived as
part of the same form. There seems to be a triangle in the square.
We link similar elements together.
 Law of Closure. We tend to fill the gaps or “close” the figures we
perceive.
We close a space by completing a contour and ignoring gaps in the
figure.

Law of Good Continuation. Individuals have the tendency to continue

contours whenever the elements of the pattern establish an implied
direction. People tend to draw a good continuous line.

Law of Good Pragnanz. The stimulus will be organized into

as good a figure as possible. In this example, good refers to
symmetry, simplicity and regularity. Based on our
experiences with perception, we “expect” certain patterns
and therefore perceive that expected pattern.

Law of Figure/Ground. We tend to pay attention and perceive

things in the foreground first. A stimulus will be perceived as
separate from its ground.

Insight Learning

Gestalt psychology adheres to the idea of learning taking place by discovery or insight.
The idea of insight learning was first developed by Wolfgang Kohler in which he described
experiments with apes where the apes could use boxes and sticks as tools to solve problems. In
the box problem, a banana is attached to the top of a chimpanzee’s cage. The banana is out of
reach but can be reached by climbing on and jumping from a box. Only one Kohler’s apes (Sultan)
could solve this problem. A much more difficult problem which involved the stacking of boxes was
introduced by Kohler. This problem required the ape to stable stack. Kohler also gave the apes
sticks which they used to rake food into the cage. Sultan, Kohler’s very intelligent ape, was able to
master a two-stick problem by inserting one stick into the end of the other in order to reach the
food. In each of these problems, the important aspect of learning was not reinforcement,
but the coordination of thinking to create new organizations (of materials). Kohler referred
to this behavior as insight or discovery learning.

Gestalt Principles and the Teaching-Learning Process

The six gestalt principles not only influence perception but they also impact on learning.
Other psychologists like Kurt Lewin expounded on Gestalt psychology. His theory focusing on
“lifespace” adhered to gestalt psychology. He said that an individual has inner and outer forces
that affect his perceptions and also his learning. Inner forces include his own motivation, attitudes,
and feelings. Outer forces may include the attitude and behavior of the teacher and classmates.
All these forces interact and impact on the person’s learning.
 EXPERIANTIALISM

Learning by doing. This is the basis for the experiential learning theory. Experiential
learning focuses on the idea that the best ways to learn things is by actually having experiences.
Those experiences then stick out in your mind and help you retain information and remember
facts.
David Kolb is best known for his work on the experiential learning theory or ELT. Kolb
published this model in 1984, getting his influence from other great theorists including John Dewey,
Kurt Lewin, and Jean Piaget. The experiential learning theory works in four stages—concrete
learning, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. The first
two stages of the cycle involve grasping an experience, the second two focus on transforming an
experience. Kolb argues that effective learning is seen as the learner goes through the cycle, and
that they can enter into the cycle at any time.
 Concrete learning is when a learner gets a new experience, or interprets a past
experience in a new way.
 Reflective observation comes next, where the learner reflects on their experience
personally. They use the lens of their experience and understanding to reflect on
what this experience means.
 Abstract conceptualization happens as the learner forms new ideas or adjusts
their thinking based on the experience and their reflection about it.
 Active experimentation is where the learner applies the new ideas to the world
around them, to see if there are any modifications to be made. This process can
happen over a short period of time, or over a long span of time.

Kolb went on to explain that learners will have their own preferences for how they enter the
cycle of experiential learning, and that these preferences boil down to a learning cycle.

Kolb's experiential learning cycle model.

The experiential learning cycle rests on the idea that each person has a specific type of
learning tendencies, and they are thus dominant in certain stages of experiential learning. For
example, some learners will be more dominant in concrete learning and reflective observation,
while others will be dominant in abstract conceptualization and active experimentation.

The four learning styles are:

1. Diverging. The diverging learning style is full of learners who look at things with a unique
perspective. They want to watch instead of do, and they also have a strong capacity to
imagine. These learners usually prefer to work in groups, have broad interests in cultures
and people, and more. They usually focus on concrete learning and reflective observation,
wanting to observe and see the situation before diving in.
2. Assimilating. This learning style involves learners getting clear information. These
learners prefer concepts and abstracts to people, and explore using analytic models.
These learners focus on abstract conceptualization and reflective observation in the
experiential learning style.
3. Converging. Converging learners solve problems. They apply what they’ve learned to
practical issues, and prefer technical tasks. They are also known to experiment with new
ideas, and their learning focuses on abstract conceptualization and active
experimentation.
4. Accommodating: These learners prefer practicality. They enjoy new challenges and use
intuition to help solve problems. These learners utilize concrete learning and active
experimentation when they learn.
Experiential learning examples.
There are many ways that experiential learning is used every day. Some examples include:
 Going to the zoo to learn about animals through observation, instead of reading about
them.
 Growing a garden to learn about photosynthesis instead of watching a movie about it.
 Hoping on a bicycle to try and learn to ride, instead of listening to your parent explain the
concept

Benefits of experiential learning.

There are many benefits of experiential learning for teachers and students, including:
 Opportunity to immediately apply knowledge. Experiential learning can allow students to
immediately apply things they are learning to real-world experiences. This helps them
retain the information better.
 Promotion of teamwork. Experiential learning often involves working in a team, so learning
in this setting allows students to practice teamwork.
 Improved motivation. Students are more motivated and excited about learning in
experiential settings. Experiments are exciting and fun for students, and they will be
passionate about learning.
 Opportunity for reflection. Students using the experiential model are able to spend time
reflecting about what they are experiencing and learning. This is valuable as they are able
to better retain information when they can think about what’s happening to them.
 Real world practice. Students can greatly benefit from learning that helps them prepare
for the real world. Experiential learning is focused on using real situations to help students
learn, so they are then better prepared for their future.