B.F. Skinner: Reinforcement
Overview
The education reform movement of the 1990's has brought about a questioning
of traditional educational philosophies. The view that content acquisition and
basic skill development were the main objectives of education has given way
to a growing emphasis on social interaction, inquiry, and enhancing student
egos. Educators began incorporating cooperative learning, whole language approaches
and the recognition of differing student learning styles. Although these new
emphases have brought about many important changes in education, it is apparent
that many students have failed to learn important basic skills. To paraphrase
current language, many students neither know nor are able to use the curricular
content of schools.
This fact is now receiving wide publicity because of declining test scores, lack of confidence in our schools and loss of competitiveness. Numerous national and state reports have reported these contentions. Although many are calling for performance standards, few teachers use an approach that promotes a scholarly acquisition of content and, at the same time, allows time for other activities important in a contemporary course.
A teaching method that reflects the contributions of B.F. Skinner and is effective
for students who need practice in the basic skills of reading, writing, and
spelling and who may also be unmotivated to learn content on their own, centers
around the use of single concept daily examinations. Although many teachers
may feel that this approach is too "structured," they cannot deny
that many students today lack the independence to read a short body of material
and succinctly relate, either orally or in writing, what has been read.
The single-concept daily examination focuses on concept acquisition and the
development of communication skills. It is particularly valuable for teachers
of the social sciences, life sciences, English, or any course requiring reading
as a primary basis for knowledge acquisition. The daily test approach acknowledges
that only content objectives are attainable with the single concept daily test,
while social interaction, inquiry or process objectives require other teaching
methods.
Robert Gagné: Competencies/Focusing/Sequencing
Overview
Many of the methods of
instruction we are introducing feature problem solving, thinking, reflection,
and approaches for introducing information in indirect ways. However, there
are numerous occasions where direct, guided instruction is required. Examples
of the need for direct instruction include:
Robert Gagné promotes a highly structured approach to learning that increases
the probability that specific learning will occur. Gagné breaks down
the knowledge, skill, or process into small, carefully described components.
Mastery is required of activity A before one can proceed to activity B, etc.
Carefully crafted objectives, stated in measurable terms, initiate the learning
process. Learning activities are followed by an evaluative measure that seeks
evidence that the objective has been achieved.
The entire curriculum is arranged in chart form describing the pathways for completing the learning challenge. This format is used for automated or programmed instruction.