NEN Summary: Schools of Thought

Schools of thoughts

A school of thought within educational psychology is the perspective of a group of people who share common opinions, outlooks, and ideas on how individuals learn, construct knowledge, and interact with one another.

Although the discipline of educational psychology includes many theories, theorists, and schools of thought, within this NEN summary, we will explore a range of schools of thought. These have been chosen based on their influence and practical application, both actual and theoretical.

Behaviourism

Behaviourism, which can also be referred to as behavioural psychology, is the school of thought which states all behaviours are learned through interaction with the environment. Learning within this school of thought is seen as a response to environmental stimuli.

Behaviourism is only concerned with observable stimuli-to-respond behaviours. The thought behind this stimulus-to-response mechanism varies from those within this school of thought, theorising that the behaviour is an involuntary or unconscious response to a conscious and calculated learnt behaviour.

Within this school of thought, the idea of conditioning is broken down into two categories classical and operant conditioning.

Constructivism

Constructivism is the school of thought that holds the idea that learning is constructed and that individuals build new knowledge upon the foundation of previous understanding. Constructivism sees learning as a gradual process split into two sections: social, learning from others and the environment an individual is in and cognitive, the biological process in which the brain interprets, stores, builds or constructs knowledge.

Learning occurs within constructivism through assimilation, adapting and accommodating information, linking specifically to Piaget. This can be done through social or internal processes. This is where the two sections differ. Assimilation of new information is adding new information to an existing understanding. Adapting current thinking is where the new information changes how to understand something. Finally, within constructivism, accommodating is the process where new information fits into our current understanding without the need to change.

A NEN Explain about Constructivism can be found here: NEN Explain: Constructivism.

Experientialism

Experientialism is the school of thought that sees experience as the most valuable source of knowledge and that knowledge is contrasted only when experience is provided, gained, or used. This school of thought is linked to the idea of trial and error. You will only learn to do something right if you first learn how not to do it.

Within Experientialism, the experience is seen as allowing an individual to construct, reconstruct, organise and reorganise their knowledge and understanding again and again. Each time adding meaning to the theoretical. This experience is then taken forward within the learning process and shapes the individual with new information and experience.

Within Experimentalism, an individual is not distinct from their experience, and their experience is not distinct from the individual’s learning.

Cognitivism

Cognitivism is the school of thought that focuses on how information is received, organised, stored, and retrieved by the mind during learning. This school of thought explores and explains the mental processes used by an individual and how these processes shape their knowledge and understanding.

As part of this exploration of the mental processes, Cognitivism sees an individual as being actively involved in how they process information, unlike the more passive thinking of behaviourism. An individual is an active participant in learning rather than a passive recipient.

Social Contextual

Social Contextual is the school of thought that thinks about learning as a collective activity; a learner cannot simply learn something by themselves but is instead influenced and impacted by those around them and the environment itself. This is because, within the Social Contextual school of thought, learning is a shared practice and process through observation, modelling and interaction with others and the environment.

Humanism

The Humanist school of thought believes that an individual is free-willed and capable of achieving when the environment is tailored to and meets their social, emotional, and cognitive needs. Humanism focuses on teaching and understanding the ‘whole’ individual, and all parts must be present to learn effectively.  

The Humanism school of thought with educational psychology also views an individual as being autonomous and someone with agency and, as such, should be allowed and encouraged to act accordingly in their learning journey.

Connectivism

Connectivism is a school of thought that emphasises the importance of networks and connections in the learning process. It suggests that learning is a process that occurs through the creation and sharing of knowledge within networks and that learners must develop the skills to navigate through these networks to access the knowledge they need.

Connectivism recognises that knowledge is not static but rather constantly evolving and emphasises the importance of staying up-to-date with the latest developments and trends in one’s field.