Theories of learning
This unit sets out some theories of learning and how they relate to teaching pupils with SEN. We look at theories of typical development and how they can inform teaching practice for these pupils.
The unit provides an introduction to the theorists:
- Vygotsky
- Piaget
- Dewey
In this unit you will:
- Use information from developmental theories to reflect on your own teaching practice.
- Observe three types of lessons that involve children with SEND – one practical, one desk-orientated, and one where pupils interact with each other – and understand how the different theories of development can be observed in children.
Upon completing this unit, you will:
- Be familiar with three main developmental/constructivist theories of learning.
- Understand the significance of theories of learning for a range of pupils with SEND.
- Consider how these theories may relate to building pupils’ skills across a range of areas.
Theories of learning
Child-centred learning
- Revolves around the learner
- Teachers act as facilitators
- Pupils freer to guide their own learning based on needs, interest and abilities
- Advocated by psychologists Dewey, Piaget, and Vygotsky and developed by practitioners such as Montessori
- Widely acknowledged to enhance a child’s learning and improve motivation, peer collaboration, and behaviour in the classroom
Teacher-centred learning
- Led by teachers
- Pupils follow instructions on how and what to learn
- Limits the child’s interaction with their learning
- Learning is a task, rather than a process of development with personal fulfilment
- Not considered good practice by the likes of Dewey, Piaget, Vygotsky and Montessori
Theorists
Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934)
Vygotsky was a Russian constructivist (that is to say he believed knowledge is socially constructed).
He was most interested in how pupils’ contact with the world was influenced by cultural tools, which helped them to construct knowledge.
Cultural tools include:
- Language
- Thought
- Play
- Imagination
Vygotsky believed that language is learned through interaction with adults and peers (through modelling), and is key in the development of abstract thought and the formation of concepts.
Among his key ideas were:
- The Zone of Proximal Development, which is often incorporated into SEND teaching in the closely related concept of scaffolding.
- Contingent support, which is the idea that teachers should only intervene in learning when children are really stuck and need assistance to move on to the next step in the learning process.
Vygotsky stressed the importance of collaborative learning, with more able pupils scaffolding those in the group that needed help. He also advocated classroom discussion of ideas and facts, to allow children to collaborate and build knowledge together.
Jean Piaget (1896–1980)
A French-speaking Swiss development psychologist and philosopher, Piaget specialised in epistemology, studying the origins and development of knowledge.
His development theory centred on the idea that, when pupils learn new things, they must adapt that information to fit in with the concepts they already know about. They do this through either:
Assimilation, which occurs when children transform the environment or outside influence so that it can be sorted into a pre-existing category (schema).
or
Accommodation, which is when a child changes the schema in order to accept new information, for example categorising and labelling things as they learn what they are.
The construction of knowledge was a key concept in Piagetian theory. He believed children achieved this as quasi-scientists, using trial and error and experiments with their surroundings to learn more about the world.
Like Vygotsky, Piaget believed in the importance of peer collaboration, in that it:
- Makes children view things from other perspectives.
- Allows them to discuss ideas with others at the same intellectual level and stage of development.
John Dewey (1859–1952)
Dewey was originally a philosopher, but after several years of teaching, his views about the acquisition of knowledge led him to write about education.
He argued that education should be a social environment that gives children a chance to participate in their own learning and use the provided curriculum to suit their needs.
He was an advocate of child-centred learning, reasoning that:
- Child-centred learning would allow pupils to identify their strengths and interests and incorporate these into their learning to better themselves.
- Teacher-centred learning was an opportunity for children to be inactive and told of knowledge and ideas without absorbing them or thinking for themselves.
However, he warned about being too child-centred in the classroom, as giving too much power to pupils could be just as detrimental as focusing on memorisation through rote learning.
To remedy this, he proposed a balance between straightforward teacher instruction and pupil-centred practice. The intention was to enable teachers to guide children without them becoming disinterested in the curriculum.
From this concept, the idea of ‘hands-on learning’ arose.