Week 1 - Learning theories - A swinging pendulum between many? ... and just how useful are they anyway?

discussion posted a day ago by buckinsand

What do you hope to gain from completing this course?
I took a learning theories course some time ago as part of my own studies in Online and Distance education so I'm really looking to that this course as a refresher on the basics of learning theory and more specifically as to how they apply or are adapted to online learning. No shortage of material on learning theory in the context of traditional face to face instruction. I'm just hoping to see what changes if any have taken place since I last studied it.

What do you know about learning theory prior to taking this course?
I'm already familiar with behaviourism (associative), cognitive modelling, constructivism, and even connectivism (George Siemens)

What are two questions you have about learning theory? Key questions about learning theory are

Just what precipitates a change in the popularity or common use of a learning theory in one period of time with that of another? Is one a counter reaction to the other - a case of a swinging pendulum? What new theories are emerging?

For example, typical over reliance on behaviourist approaches because they tend to cater to education management's obsession with measuring outputs or progress yet such an approach typically does little to promote higher order thinking skills. As a result, there is often some form of push back from others in the form of promoting another theory to counter this like constructivism. Yet the predictable problem here is that it isn't always right for everything either. Moral of the story - perhaps we need a mix of learning theories to suit the different needs and contexts of the learners (?). For example, base knowledge (new terms, vocabulary that are part of the discourse of a subject need to be learned...likely through memorization - cognitive conditioning. We would never think that they would come about through constructivism>


I'm seeing the emergence of another learning theory of late. One that's targeted at helping with the design of online learning - one being proselytized by Diana Laurillard  - the conversational framework. How is that fairing with academics at the moment?

Another question which is likely to be more provocative

Just how important and useful is it to learn a variety of learning theories anyways?

Isn't the instructional design demanded in many contexts, formulaic because of time and efficiency pressures to produce materials - thus the tendency to use what already works so don't change or challenge it?