The Cognitive Perspective on Learning: Its Theoretical Underpinnings and Implications for Classroom Practices

Abstract

Learning theories are essential for effective teaching in that they shed light on different aspects of the learning process. The spectrum of learning theories can be categorized into three main areas: behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. Behaviorism as a teacher-centered instructional framework for a long time dominated educational settings, shaping every aspect of curriculum and instruction. In contrast to behaviorism, cognitivism is a relatively recent learning theory and its features are not well known or are confused with constructivism by teachers. This article aims to provide an overview of the core characteristics of cognitivism, its philosophical and theoretical basis, its implications for classroom practices, and its illustrative teaching methods. Cognitive apprenticeship, reciprocal teaching, anchored instruction, inquiry learning, discovery learning, and problem-based learning are explicated as the most distinctive methods of the cognitive perspective on learning.

Keywords:

• cognitivism
• cognitive learning theory
• instructional frameworks
• teaching methods

Notes

1. The implications of Jerome Bruner's theory of learning for instruction resemble those of Piaget in some respects (e.g., teaching new concepts to students via enactive, iconic, and symbolic presentations).

2. Bartlett is the originator of the notion of schema in the early 1930s.