Commentary 3

The To look to the way in which a psychologist both define and study learning.

This chapter look at—

· the comparative approach which uses the behaviourist perspective

· the cognitive perspective

· the socio-cultural perspective

THEORY –

· the different perspectives can lead t to different theories that allow insights into an issue.

· These perspectives and theories can complement each other, conflict with one another or coexist together. Coexistence is particularly important learning, and offers different that die in the process of learning.

· Different perspectives and theories give a variety of ways of providing their findings to day to day issues

METHODS –

· Both behaviourist and cognitive perspective use the most common psychological method – experimentation. Where a behaviourist would use it to explain behaviour, a cognitive psychologist would use them to inferences about mental processes.

· That comparative approach looks at the way humans are similar or different to other animals. The behaviourist perspective on learning it assumes that learning can be generalised , at least across vertebras and some time’s other animals too.

THEMES –

· The idea of change is central to learning. Unlike evolution, learning takes place you’re during the life time of an individual. Humans can learn things either on a subconscious level or a conscious level.

Thinking about theory Choosing and using perspectives and theories due –

It can be difficult to decide on ways of studying and learning and the skill is required when even defining it in ways it could be investigated. Different perspectives focus on different questions, but turning this around psychology is so complex perspectives may be looked at in many different ways, with the definition of the subject matter demanding a different perspective for investigation and understanding.

One perspective may be understood in different ways –

What happens when different theories seem to explain the same topic?

- Some may be discarded as they are not supported by evidence

- But sometimes after a lot of research, different theories can come into being, often done very different perspective.

How can these theories be viewed?

- Sometimes they are complementary of each other, each enriching understanding, and there is a sometimes in opportunity of synthesis between them

- They can also conflict with one another

- they might coexist with know what little communication between those who subscribe to them and minimal communication on how or how or not they relate to each other.

All 3 learning theories could be understood as a coexisting (offering different but not necessarily conflicting insight into learning. What we learn from animal observation maybe it was alongside what we they think we know about human learning. And sociocultural conditional that facilitate learning may provide picture learning as a broader topic.

It may be that some theories coexist as there has been no communication between psychologists on either side but despite this they could be conflicting.

Behaviourists and cognitive psychologists conflict barrage –

Behaviourist – it must be observable!

Cognitive psychology – what goes on in the mind?

Applying psychological knowledge—

3 c’s also considered here

Usefulness

- To change the world in a beneficial way- Skinner and behaviourism – Operant conditioning which can be used in the clinical setting ( mental health), studying for exams, children with SEN.

- Mercer – Collaborative work in school

Mapping traditions –

Have their roots in different historical traditions

Behaviourism was once dominant, but this is no longer the case.

An outsider’s view point is important in this perspective, no understanding of the way we think. A psychologist today wouldn’t call himself or herself a behaviourist.

The cognitive revolution – dates back to the 1960s when psychologist is wanted to understand what goes on in the mind. But it actually began much earlier than this PURPOSES and REPRESENTATIONS exist in some form in the mind.

This concern came to be considered a a move away from behaviourism towards cognitive psychology that the cognitive perspective was also influencing other areas of psychology Before behaviourism. So it could be argued that cognitive psychology existed before behaviourism. Look at examples in the book

The second cognitive revolution –

Sociocultural perspective – learning is affected by the culture in which it takes place and simultaneously cognitive, social, emotional, and part of developmental processes.

Comparative method

Behaviour gives them uses its own method, comparng the behaviour of different animals

They assumed that all animals will be the same

THINKING ABOUT THE THEMES

Fixity and change

Learning is about change in life, but on the other hand skills are also passed down

Changing environment - adaption

Conscious and subconscious. Curiosity.

	Erstellt von Anna Harvey vor etwa 11 Jahre

Notiz am Commentaries, erstellt von Anna Harvey am 23/04/2013.