Behaviourism and Humanism Learning Perspectives

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Behaviourism and Humanism Learning Perspectives The two perspectives of adolescent learning this essay will discuss are behaviourism and humanism. Both of these perspectives search for the reasons humans do things however the contrasts between the two are rather extreme. The behaviourist school of thought considers observed physical behaviour and believes behaviour can be predicted and controlled (O’Donnell et al, 2012, p. 230). Skinner and Watson are the most well known developers of this theory, and in the early stages of behaviourism animal behaviour was studied. Humanism came about as a response to behaviourism; with humanists looking at the whole person and their experience, believing that learning is a part of natural human growth. Two influential humanists in regards to education are Rogers and Maslow (DeCarvalho, 1991, p. 89). Although conflicting, the two learning perspectives can be seen in secondary school classrooms today and their implications for productive adolescent learning differ greatly. Although both behaviourist and humanistic learning theories entail a student responding to their environment; behaviourists are only concerned with observable behaviour. The teacher is at the centre directing a lesson, breaking down tasks into small steps and giving students clear expectations. Reinforcers are used constantly to encourage students to continue on the task at hand and keep the lesson moving forward (O’Donnell et al, 2012, p. 227). The desired response is achieved when the task is satisfactorily completed. To assess whether learning has occurred the teacher may conduct quizzes or other assessment tasks. Humanists on the other hand consider internal changes that cannot always be seen. They are opposed to what they believe is an aim “to cultivate enforced desired behaviour, as if people were pigeons or laboratory rats” (DeCarvalho, 1991, p. 94). A

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