The definition of learning has long been discussed; however, a single, clarifying statement has never been universally agreed upon. How learning occurs is too complex of an issue for most to define in one way, there are several common elements among most definitions that create an umbrella effect, covering most definitions. Thomas Cleland, author and professor of psychology at Cornell University, believes that most disciplines consider learning to be the processing of information derived from experience (Barron et al., 2015). Under this umbrella definition, there are four main theories that prevail throughout different disciplines, behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, and connectivism.
Having been an educator for nearly two decades, beginning in my early twenties, I’ve run through my own personal definitions. Starting out in an all sixth grade, brick and mortar classroom, teaching math, I felt the only way to get my students to learn was to lecture them while they took detailed notes. This behaviorist theory was centered around my belief that the classroom needed pre-defined goals, regular formal assessment, and rote memorization. I became bored as a teacher, and noticed my students dozing off in class often.
I moved from a middle school brick and mortar classroom to an online school, teaching third through eighth grade. The wide range of ages, and the inability to physically engage with the students shifted my ideas on how learning occurs. The students would seek me out as a guide on the side. No longer the one to dispense information, I became the facilitator. The students didn’t stop learning once I quit imparting my wisdom. Quite the opposite, they used their access to more knowledge to dive deeper into their learning. The cognitive side of learning made sense, but I wasn’t sold. The students lacked the social interactions and chances to learn from each other.
My time in a private school setting, with smaller classes, holistic grading, and no standardized testing to take up precious hours, led me to really explore my views on learning. I worked on having a balance of every theory. With my students all learning differently, I sought to reach of them on their terms, with their preferred way of learning. The assignments differed from project based collaborations, to creative design. It wasn’t always perfect and it didn’t always work; however, the ability to be flexible, and adjust, helped guide my attitude towards learning.
Barron, A. B., Hebets, E. A., Cleland, T. A., Fitzpatrick, C. L., Hauber, M. E., & Stevens, J. R. (2015). Embracing multiple definitions of learning. Trends in Neurosciences,38(7), 405-407. doi:10.1016/j.tins.2015.04.008
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