1. Behaviorism Learning Theory
T.N.
EME 2040
November 15, 2011

2. What is the Behaviorism Theory?
Behaviorism is a view that operates on a principle of
“stimulus response.”
Behaviorism is the prediction and control of human
behavior where independent thinking play no
essential part of its teaching methods.
To a behaviorist, human learning is solely an objective
and experimental branch of natural science.

3. What is the Behaviorism Theory?
The learner starts off with a
clean slate.
Then behavior is shaped with
positive or negative
reinforcements.
Positive rewards indicate the
application of a stimulus.
Negative rewards indicate the
withholding of a stimulus.
Learning is defined as a
change in behavior in the
learner.

4. Three Basic Assumptions
1. Learning is manifested by a change in behavior.
2. The environment shapes the behavior.
3. The principles of proximity and reinforcement are
central to explaining the learning process.
Learning is the acquisition of new behavior through
conditioning.

5. Important Contributors
Ivan Pavlov
B.F. Skinner
Albert Bandura

6. Ivan Pavlov
Pavlov became famous for his
behavioral experiments with
dogs. He won the Nobel Prize
in 1904.
Pavlov’s Experiment
He provided dogs with a
stimulus (food.) The dogs would
produce his desired reflex
(salivation.) He would ring a
bell. Eventually the dogs
associated the bell with food
and they would begin to salivate
when he rang the bell. This
process is called classical
conditioning.
Classical conditioning is the
natural reflex that occurs in
response to a stimulus.

7. B.F. Skinner
Skinner conducted experiments with pigeons.
He would reward them when he saw them
behaving in a desired manner. He was able to
teach them to teach them complex tasks using
the stimulus-response pattern.
He believed people shape their behavior based
on the rewards/positive reinforcement they
receive. He believed human behavior is based
on stimulus-response theory.
Found that reinforcement is a powerful
motivator.

8. Albert Bandura
Bandura believes people acquire
behaviors through the observation of
others and then they imitate what
they have observed.
He analyzed a person’s personality as
an interaction among three things: the
environment, behavior, and the
person’s psychological processes.

9. Classroom Implications
The teacher will reward positive behavior. Behaviors
that are rewarded will increase.
The teacher will not reward negative behavior.
Behaviors that are not rewarded will decrease.
Since students learn without teaching in their natural
environments, teachers will arrange special
opportunities to expedite learning.
The teacher should:
1. Give the learner immediate feedback.
2. Break down the task into smaller steps.
3. Repeat the directions as many times as possible.
4. Work from the most simple to the most complex tasks.
5. Give positive reinforcement.

10. What I Think
I believe students learn from positive and negative
reinforcements. A student that receives an award for a
positive behavior will be more inclined to repeat the
behavior then the student who did not receive an
award. I will practice this theory in my classroom by
reinforcing behaviors that are good, such as turning in
homework and sharing with the other students. I think
praise is very important and it is key to the motivation
of students.

11. Works Cited
http://cie.asu.edu/volume8/number10/index.html#beh
avior
http://21stcenturytechnologyclassroom.blogspot.com
/2009/07/behaviorism-in-classroom.html
Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the
Classroom by Shelly, Gunter, and Gunter.