1. Behaviorism
*
By Margaret McCauley
*Hyperlinked to Justin K Reeve's blog Insights Into Educational Technology
2. Table of Contents
Behaviorism Summary
Behaviorism Summary Continued
B.F. Skinner
Skinner's Contributions
Uses of Behaviorism in the Classroom
Classroom Applications Continued
Behaviorism in My Classroom
My Classroom Continued
3. Behaviorism Summarized
Idea introduced in 1913 by John B Watson
– Been called Father of Behaviorism
Said behavior is result of environment
Discredited study of mind as unscientific
Rejected idea behavior results from
pleasure/discomfort
Trivia:Watson first to use lab rats
John B. Watson
4. Behaviorism Summary Continued
Equates man to animal; both learn through
rewards
Central figures include Pavlov, Thorndike and
Skinner
Experimented with behavioral conditioning
Used rewards to stimulate behavior in animals
Pavlov taught dogs to salivate at sound of tuning
fork
Thorndike taught mice to navigate mazes
5. B.F. Skinner
Born 1904 in Pennsylvania
Attended Hamilton College, later Harvard
Experimented with rats in psychology department
Also worked with pigeons during WWII
Was mechanically inclined
− Built several mechanical inventions (safer crib,
cumulative recorder)
Taught; had a wife and 2 children
6. Skinner's Contributions
Discovered operant behavior
– Idea that stimulus for behavior could occur after
behavior
– i.e. rat presses bar, causes food to appear so rat
presses bar again
Attempted to explain cognitive phenomena
– Motivation in terms of deprivation and
reinforcement
Token economies; a token is worth food
B. F. Skinner
7. Uses of Behaviorism in the
Classroom
Has implications in classroom management
− i.e. could condition students to follow rules
through rewards/punishments
Programs which reward correct responses are
great tools
− Computer games with positive reinforcers
Rewards for correct answers elicit more correct
answers
8. Classroom Applications Continued
“A behavior unrewarded will be extinguished,”
(Standridge, M).
Student stops misbehaving if unrewarded
Token economies; reward students with tokens
redeemable for prizes
Teaching students to link behaviors with
consequences/rewards
9. Behaviorism in My Classroom
Every behavior will have clear consequences
Use games/technology that provide feedback
Verbal rewards for correct responses
– Phrases like “Well done, good job” etc.
Token economies as reward systems
– Knowledge useful for money management later
• Each task broken into small steps
10. My Classroom Continued
• Programs where actions cause specific reactions
– Excel: input leads to specific output
• Videos that show action/reaction
– Chemical reactions, etc.
• Misbehaving students will be unrewarded
– Ignoring tantrums unless extremely disruptive
• Make sure students know what behavior led to
what consequence
11. Citations
• Reeves, Justin K. "Behaviorism Not As Dead As Previously
Thought." Insights Into Educational Technology. Weber School
District, 28 June 2010. Web. 2 Apr. 2012.
<http://blog.wsd.net/jreeve/behaviorism-not-as-dead-as-
previously-thought/>.
• Graham, George. "Behaviorism." Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy. Web. 8 Apr 2012.
<http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/behaviorism/>.
• Vargas, Julie S. "A Brief Biography of B. F. Skinner." B. F.
Skinner Foundation. Web. 8 Apr 2012.
<http://www.bfskinner.org/BFSkinner/AboutSkinner.html>.
• "Token Economy." Kids Making Change. Web. 8 Apr 2012.
<http://www.kidsmakingchange.com/TokenEconomy/cms/Token
_Economy.html>.