After reading these three articles, I got an answer to this question: “Which of the following three theories of learning methods can make learners master specific learning tasks more efficiently?” Through these analyses in the article, I can get and compare these three different theoretical methods.
The first is the approach of behaviorists, who choose to reinforce learners’ memories as experiences to enhance learners’ effectiveness. For example, whenever learners complete a learning task, they will get certain feedback, and each feedback will give learners a similar experience. While accumulating these experiences, learners will be handier to complete similar learning tasks. Behavioral scientists will consider how to better strengthen the learner’s memory such as before the class starts to do a small test, then give a teaching video, and then let the students do the same test, in order to inspire and exercise the students’ ability of independent thinking, but also strengthen students’ memory, because of the profound memory is more conducive to absorb the knowledge of learners.
The second is the method of cognitivism. They prefer to let learners recognize and understand themselves so as to choose the most appropriate and efficient learning method. No one knows you better than you do. Your schedule, habits, and preferences will determine how you learn, and you need to improve your learning style to make it more efficient. Cognitivism prefers to exercise the brain from the neuroplasticity of learners, as Destin Sandlin says in his video that “knowledge is not understanding”. But I think it is the understanding of the brain is not equal to the understanding of the body, it is a kind of incongruity existence. Sometimes your brain is telling you that you need to study when in reality you’re still lying on the couch watching TV (LOL).
The last approach is that of constructivists, who advocate that learners build their own experiences and adjust their learning methods on this basis. You’ll never know what’s best for you if you don’t experiment. At the same time, learners need the motivation to support their desire to learn and this motivation will become one of their potential for success. It could be your interest, it could be your curiosity about something, it could be your need, and once humans are motivated, they can accomplish incredible things.
My answer is this does not need to compare the three different kinds of learning thinking which is more efficient, because each individual learner is different, they have inconsistent thoughts, be fond of deviation and habits of the differences, some students don’t like a too flexible way of thinking that they are more suitable for behavioral scientists study way, and so on, Every theoretical learning method can be the most effective learning method for some learners. Those who design learning methods are more willing to constantly enrich each learning theory, consider more learners in a more comprehensive way, let them feel, and adjust a method more conducive to their own learning.
Take me as an example. The Chinese education I received since childhood is to keep doing similar questions. When I brush a certain number of questions, my speed of finishing such questions will continue to increase and my memory of such questions will be very profound. It should be known that each exam is to complete a certain number of questions in a limited time, for example, China’s college entrance examination mathematics is to complete 23 questions in 120 minutes, when 120 divided by 23 is about 5.2173, it means that you must complete each question within five minutes and 20 seconds to complete the exam within the specified time. But in reality, do you really have to do every question in 5 minutes and 20 seconds? The answer is no, depending on the type of question, how difficult it is and how much time I can be sure of getting it right, the amount of time I need for each block of questions will vary. For example, I can spend 35 minutes on the first 12 multiple-choice questions, 35 minutes on the middle 5 fill-in-the-blank questions, and 50 minutes on the last 6 answers. At the same time, because the solutions to the last two questions are usually very difficult, I think I do not have the capital to solve them, so I will choose to give up the time I would have spent on these two questions to solve the other questions, which is a way to ensure that I can get the maximum score within the limited time.
Therefore, I think the learning method I learned is more similar to the first behaviorist learning method, which may be stubborn and inflexible, but I think it is the most suitable method for me. Admittedly, other methods are not bad, but I have got used to it and firmly believe that this learning method will give me better learning results. I do not have an amazing memory nor a strong understanding. There are two Chinese idioms: one is “Clumsy birds have to start flying early”, the other is “practice makes perfect”, these two words are very suitable for me.
