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Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment MaryAnn Butcher October 2010 University College of the Cayman Islands Post-Graduate Diploma in Education EDU 520 – Psychology of Education Dr. Louise Malcolm Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment ABSTRACT I was asked to write a paper on how aspects of selected behavioral theories of learning can help to contribute to an effective learning environment of students receiving either kindergarten, or primary, or secondary or tertiary level education. The school system faces many challenges in fulfilling its function of educating our children. While cognitive development or gaining knowledge may usually seem to be the ultimate goal, huge emphasis is placed on developing appropriate behaviors to help rather than disrupt the day to day functioning of the school environment. For this reason, it is important for educators to have an awareness and understanding of some of the theories regarding human development, especially those that are concerned with behavior management or behavior modification. This paper will explain how teachers can utilize elements from two Behavioral Learning Theories to establish and support good classroom management which is so vital to an effective teaching and learning environment. 1 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment Behavioral Theories Explained According to Slavin (2009) a Behavioral Learning Theory is an explanation of learning that emphasizes observable change. Learning can be generally defined as “the relatively permanent change in an organism’s behavior brought about as a result of experience or practice.” (Myers, 2001) Learning takes place at all stages of life and in many different ways. The focus of the behavioral approach is on how the environmental conditions (or stimuli) impact overt behavior. Behaviorists may acknowledge that learning can be impacted on by inner thoughts, feelings and motives. However, it is not recognized as learning until it is displayed by overt behavior. It is generally accepted that learning often takes place by association. Our minds naturally connect events that occur in sequence. By linking two events together and consistently applying a specific behavior, we exhibit associative learning. The events might be in the form of two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning). Conditioning is defined as the process of learning associations. (Myers, 2001) Classical Conditioning Classical Conditioning, the first type of learning to be discovered and studied within the behaviorist tradition, was first described by the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov. In the late 1800s to the early 1900s, as he and his colleagues studied the digestive process in dogs, Pavlov became intrigued with his observation that dogs deprived of food began to salivate when one of his assistants walked into the room. He began to investigate this phenomenon and established the laws of classical conditioning. 2 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment From his previous experiments, Pavlov was already aware that the presence of food, predictably and understandably, caused the dogs in his lab to salivate. Later, he would identify the food in this case to be the Unconditioned Stimulus and the salivation to be the Unconditioned Response. The unconditioned stimulus is one that unconditionally, naturally, and automatically triggers a response. The unconditioned response is the unlearned behavior that occurs naturally in response to the unconditioned stimulus. The dog’s salivation triggered by the presence of his assistant, Pavlov soon realized, was as a result of conditioning. Over a period of time, the dog had come to pair the sight of the assistant with the food he delivered. Even when the assistant brought no food, the dog salivated. In the Classical Conditioning theory, the assistant has become the Conditioned Stimulus. The conditioned stimulus is previously neutral stimulus that, after becoming associated with the unconditioned stimulus, eventually comes to trigger a conditioned response. The dog’s tendency to salivate on seeing the assistant only was identified as his Conditioned Response. The conditioned response is the learned response to the previously neutral stimulus. John B. Watson further extended Pavlov’s work and applied it to human beings. In 1921, Watson studied Albert, an 11 month old infant child. The goal of the study was to condition Albert to become afraid of a white rat by pairing the white rat with a very loud, jarring noise. At first, Albert showed no sign of fear when he was presented with rats, but once the rat was repeatedly paired with the loud noise; Albert developed a fear of rats. It could be said that the loud noise induced fear. The implications of Watson’s experiment suggested that classical conditioning could cause some phobias in humans. 3 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment It is generally easy to see examples of classical conditioning in the behavior of animals. A cat may come running for food the moment if it hears someone using a can-opener or even walking towards a particular drawer. Many dog trainers use classical conditioning techniques to help people train their pets. In reality, people do not respond exactly like Pavlov's dog, however, derivatives of these classical conditioning techniques are also useful in the treatment of compulsions, phobias or anxiety problems. Using Aversive Conditioning, counselors sometimes provide people who abuse alcohol with unpleasant experiences (such as nausea) that may reverse their positive associations with alcohol. Using Systematic Desensitization, a person who is afraid of spiders is exposed to stimuli that are increasingly threatening, each time gaining a level of tolerance. Stimuli may at first be a picture of a spider, then a toy spider, then a dead spider followed by a live one. Teachers are also able to apply classical conditioning in the class by creating a positive classroom environment to help students overcome anxiety or fear. Pairing an anxiety-provoking situation, such as performing in front of a group, with pleasant surroundings helps the student learn new associations. Instead of feeling anxious and tense in these situations, the child will learn to stay relaxed and calm. Classical conditioning can also occur unintentionally. Too frequent exposure to humiliation, failure, or other negative feedback may lower in individual’s self-confidence and lead to withdrawal. For example, if a child is constantly corrected during a reading exercise, the child’s feelings of humiliation may ultimately be replaced by a fear of reading aloud. Eventually whenever the teacher announces read-aloud-time, the child may withdraw or begin exhibiting undesirable behavior. For this reason, it is important for teachers to be careful or prepare their 4 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment students very well when engaging in such potentially “risky” activities in the classroom; it is important to minimize embarrassment or disappointment in the case of failure. The use of non-verbal cues in the classroom is also an example of classical conditioning. Often, students are not aware that their behavior has reached unacceptable standards. Just like any other reflexive behavior, talking or playing around when in a group of one’s peer is only natural. Rather than constantly telling students to be quiet or pay attention, teachers often utilize the following alternatives. A PE teacher may only have to blow on his whistle to make a large class stop what they are doing and pay attention. A band director might achieve the same result by simply standing at her podium and raising her baton. In the classroom, the teacher with the frequently disruptive student might find proximity to be more effective tool for correcting this behavior. By having the teacher simply stand near to him, the student is reminded of proper classroom behavior. Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning was the work of American Psychologist B. F. Skinner. As stated previously, operant conditioning involves the association of a behavior to its consequence. Behaviors followed by reinforcers increase. Those followed by punishment decrease. A reinforcer is any event that strengthens or increases the behavior it follows but they may be categorized in different ways. Positive reinforcers are favorable events or outcomes that are presented after the behavior. In situations that reflect positive reinforcement, a response or behavior is strengthened by the addition of something, such as praise or a direct reward. Negative reinforcers involve the removal of an unfavorable events or outcomes after the display of a behavior. In these situations, a response is strengthened by the removal of something 5 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment considered unpleasant. A teacher might allow students to do a lighter activity (such as playing a game) if they show focus and are successful in completing a more difficult one (such as written exercises) Primary reinforcers satisfy basic human needs such as food, water or security. Secondary reinforcers are reinforcers that acquire their value by being associated with a primary reinforcer. Money and grades are examples of secondary reinforcers. Good grades and certificates of recognition are commonly used in schools but their value to the student is primarily linked to the positive attention and praise that they then receive from their parents, teacher and peers. In discussing application of reinforcers to the classroom setting, it is important to also note the concepts of intrinsic and extrinsic reinforcers. Intrinsic reinforcers are behaviors that a person enjoys engaging in for their own sake, without any other reward. These include hobbies such as reading, singing, playing games or drawing. Extrinsic reinforcers are rewards or praise given to motivate people to engage in behavior that they might not engage in without them. Teachers are cautioned against applying extrinsic motivators towards activities which students are already intrinsically motivated to engage in. It is though that this may in some ways undermine the intrinsic reinforcers over a period of time. Sometimes punishment is mistakenly called negative reinforcement. However, the two are quite distinct. Negative reinforcement is the removal of something unpleasant as the result of a desired behavior while punishment, on the other hand, is the presentation of an adverse event or outcome that causes a decrease in the behavior it follows. There are two kinds of punishment. Punishment by application, which is sometimes referred to as positive punishment, involves the presentation of an unfavorable event or outcome in order to weaken the behavior which it follows. An example of punishment by application is scolding and lashing. Punishment by 6 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment removal, also known as Negative punishment, occurs when a favorable event or outcome is removed after a behavior occurs. Punishment in schools is thought to be even more ineffective than general punishment because there is often a time lag between the undesired behavior and the selected punishment. For children this can lead to a mental disconnect between the action and the consequence so behavior modification is less likely to occur. Consider the following scenario: a student misbehaves in the classroom causing the teacher to write a disciplinary action request for that student, yet the student remains in the classroom until the principal acts on the disciplinary referral. Integrating the principal into the discipline system has created a significant delay between the disruptive behavior and the punishment. The prescribed punishment is also often ineffective with many students. Students consistently given in-school-suspension can quickly become desensitized to the punishment. This form of punishment does little to actually help the student constructively deal with-or consider the consequences of-their disruptive behavior. Put simply, neither the classical conditioning nor the operant conditioning theory recommends punishment as a way to shape behavior. Instead, both theories prefer to focus on trying to identify elements which bring the individual to some form of pleasurable or desirable result. (Mahto, 2006) There are an overwhelming number of examples of reinforcers and punishments at work in the classroom but note should also be made of the following principles which govern how and when they should be applied. One of the most important principles of behavioral learning theories states that consequences which immediately follow behaviors in time affect behavior far more than delayed consequences do. 7 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment The Premack Principle states that enjoyable activities can be used to reinforce participation in less enjoyable activities. (Slavin, 2009) In schools and home alike children are often told that if they complete difficult or undesirable tasks such as reading or eating their vegetables, then they would be allowed to participate in enjoyable activities such as playing games or eating ice cream. According to Mahto, (2006), identifying the baseline behavior helps us understand the effect of operant conditioning. The baseline behavior level is the starting point, the behavior present prior to the introduction of reinforcement. In a classroom, for example, teachers can use their observations of behavior at the beginning of the school year to identify the baseline behavior. The baseline behavior will be different for each student. When asking students to line up, for example, a teacher may observe that some students do so quickly and quietly, while others may push others around or wander off. Terminal behavior usually refers to a very specific outcome or objective. For example, the teacher’s desired terminal behavior may be something similar to “I want all of my students to quietly line up within one minute of my first asking them to do so.” Immediacy of reinforcement is important to teaching, but so is the decision as to what to reinforce. Shaping in behavioral learning theories refers to the teaching of new skills or behaviors by reinforcing learning for approaching the desired final behavior. In a differentiated lesson the teacher can reward mastery by students at different levels and not just the ones who are the most academically gifted. By setting out smaller developing tasks, the teacher is able to teach the skills step by step, gradually shaping the final learning objective. Another behavioral learning theory that can contribute to an effective learning environment is Extinction. This is the weakening and gradual disappearance of a behavior as 8 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment reinforcement is withdrawn. (Slavin, 2009) A popular example of extinction in classroom management practice is when teachers ignore students who call out answers without raising their hands. The student who does this is often seeking attention and any acknowledgement from the teacher would only serve as reinforcement of this behavior. Ignoring the student removes the reinforcer and so eventually the child will stop calling out and raise his hand. According to Myers, D. (2001), if a desired response is reinforced each time it occurs, learning occurs rapidly. This is called continuous reinforcement. However, real life or real classroom situations do not usually allow for continuous reinforcement. Partial reinforcement is more often found. Schedules of reinforcement can be used to increase the probability, frequency, or persistence of desired behavior. Reinforcement schedules may be based on ratios or intervals and maybe fixed or variable. In a fixed-ratio schedule, the reinforcer is given after a fixed number of behaviors. This may take the form of the teacher promising a sticker if ten math problems are correctly completely. A variable-ratio schedule is one in which the number of behaviors required for reinforcement is unpredictable, although it is a certainty that the behaviors will eventually be reinforced. When students in a classroom raise their hands to answer questions, they never know when they will be reinforced by being able to correctly answer the question but they expect that at some point in time this will happen. In fixed-interval schedules, reinforcement is only available at certain known periodic times. An example of this type of schedule is the end-of-term exam or other predicable periodic assessment. While the predictability of the end of term exam might motivate students to prepare by studying, this often results in procrastination and cramming. In a variable-interval schedule, reinforcement is available at unexpected times. An example of this would be pop quizzes or 9 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment random book checks. Students are then motivated to maintain a consistently good standard of work throughout the year. Conclusion Classical conditioning and operant conditioning can both be used in a variety of ways to help facilitate the effective learning environment. Behaviors, whether reflexive or learned, must fit within the rules and practices of the classroom environment in order to ensure that all students are able to get their best chance at learning. The process is not one-sided. Rather, the best instances of behavior modification in action involve teacher, students and parents. All parties must be fully aware of the expected behaviors and the appropriate reinforces. Reinforcers (and when necessary, punishiers) must always be applied in a timely and consistent fashion. 10 Behavioral Learning Theories In The Effective Learning Environment REFERENCES ATHERTON J S (2010) Learning and Teaching; Behaviourism http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/behaviour.htm MAHTO, A (2006) Classical and Opertant Conditioning: Potential Tools for Classroom Management MYERS, D (2001) Psychology – 6th ed. SLAVIN, R (2009) Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice – 9th ed. 11