E-learning Curve Blog at Edublogs

As I’ve got some holiday time at my disposal over Christmastime , I’ve decided to refresh my knowledge on Learning Theory in the context of how I use the various learning models and methodologies. So that means that there will be a large amount of information concerning Cognitivism and its offshoots, and much less about the Behaviourist track . So, let’s start at the beginning…

What is learning?

In the field of organisational development, the terms ‘training’ and ‘learning’ are often used interchangeably: both broadly refer to the acquisition of new or enhanced knowledge, skills, attitudes or behaviour through the medium of instruction whether delivered by a source of information such as a text or a computer application, a teacher, or a mentor. The key difference between the two terms is in the reflexive nature of learning and the integration of the knowledge, skill, attitude or behaviour into the individual’s cognitive constructs – a process Lev Vygotsky called “internalisation” and elegantly described as “an internal reconstruction of an external operation (1978, p.56).

References

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978) Mind in society. Edited by Cole, M. John-Steiner, V. Scribner, Souberman, E. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press