Theories of learning

*Frequent response of stimulus-response sequence

*Provided the 50’s and 60’s audiolingual method.

*Some of the characteristics of it are: No interference of MY only SL. Repetition of drills are essential for classes. All error immediately corrected.

*The activities involved in behaviorism are good, the mistake would be in thinking they are the only ways to learn a language.

*Learner tries to make sense of new data by relating it to previews experiences.

*Learn by what we see, feel, and hear.

*Treats learners as thinking being and put them at the center of their learning process.

*Learning: conscious process of learning.

*Acquisition: unconscious process of learning.

*Both are important in language learning.

It is important to be eclectic and take what is good for all the approaches and methodologies that exist to enrich our students learning and not only benefit a few but almost all of them. It is important that as a teacher we demonstrate optimism and motivate our students because if they are motivated, they will be looking forward to learning. We should not take less importance for our student’s emotional side, knowing what they are dealing can also help us to have better classes.

*Chomsky set that thinking is a rule-governed behavior that can set the thinking of a person just by saying I will learn.

*Not forming habits but acquire rules.

*Mind uses the stimuli to find the pattern system.

*This led to the cognitive theory of learning.

*Cognitive and emotional factors affect learning process.

*Motivation is key for learning and Gardener and Lambert found two forms of motivation which are:

-Instrumental: motivated because of the need of something. An external need.

-integrative: Internal want. Personal achievement.

*Motivation might differ from students to student as well as age gaps etc.

*What makes language learning more interesting are not only the activities but putting enthusiasm and a bit of sugar to all the mix of a language learning course.

*The learning cycle follows the following phases and in the last one everything starts again: Learner wants to learn – Learner applies cognitive powers to acquire knowledge – Learning is successful – learner’s competence develops – increased competence enables learner’s learning more easily – Learner see learning as an enjoyable experience. (Go to firs phase again and repeat)

*Link can only be made with existing links (new data can be stored thanks to previous knowledge).

*Existing knowledge makes new knowledge to be stored.

*Some knowledge is more difficult to acquire, but once acquired it makes the knowledge wider and able to process more things.

*To learn something new, the learner must be motivated to take the trip with its highs and lows.