Theories and Their Usage in Education

• The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College (a bachelor’s degree in 1879)
• Johns Hopkins University in Maryland (PhD degree in 1884)

• Education should be clearly structured and individualized
• Recognize the uniqueness of all children (both genetic and experiential) (Gray and MacBlain 38)

• A PhD in Philosophy in 1918 (the University of Neuchatel)
• Postdoc training (Zurich, Paris)

1. Sensorimotor (0-2 years, children learn through sensory interactions)
2. Preoperational (2-7 years, children do not understand formal logic but learn to use symbols)
3. Concrete operational (7-11 years, children learn to perform concrete logical operations and solve tasks)
4. Formal operational (11-16 years, children understand the principles of abstract thinking) (Gray and MacBlain 75)

• A PhD in Psychology (Harvard University, 1931)
• Studied human behavior at the universities of Minnesota and Indiana

• Learning is impacted by positive and negative reinforcers and punishments
• Behavioral variations can be weakened or strengthened with the help of stimuli

• Studied psychoanalysis in Vienna
• Was a Harvard student (psychology), did not receive a formal degree
• Had no PhD degrees

• Eight stages of development:
  • Trust
  • Autonomy
  • Initiative
  • Industry
  • Identity
  • Intimacy
  • Generativity
  • The integrity of the ego (Charlesworth 131)
• Each stage is associated with an internal conflict
• The ninth stage is the stage of crisis (eight stages are manifested in reverse order)

• Three degrees in psychology: Bachelor 1930, Master 1931, PhD 1934
• The State University of Wisconsin

• Five levels of needs (from the lowest to the highest):
  • Physiological
  • Safety
  • Belongingness/love
  • Self-esteem
  • Self-actualization
• Basic needs (1 and 2) should be met prior to psychological (3 and 4) and self-fulfillment (5) ones (Gray and MacBlain 22)

• Studied medicine in Moscow but never received an academic degree
• Moscow State University (Master of Legal Studies, 1917)

• Children follow the example of adults and learn to perform some tasks on their own
• Three types of tasks:
  • Can be fulfilled without help
  • Require guidance to be fulfilled (ZPD)
  • Cannot be fulfilled (Gray and MacBlain 99)

• Degrees in Social Sciences: Bachelor (Brown University, 1979), Master (the University of Chicago, 1980)

• Teachers should foster mutual work and curiosity to avoid using rewards/punishments
• Praise should not be overused
• Criticized standardized tests (Charlesworth 72)

• Studied biology and plant biology, mathematics, foreign languages
• A student of Johann Pestalozzi who was a philosopher and an educator
• Did not finish his studies at the University of Gottingen

• Individual playing is the key element of early education
• Children can express themselves when playing
• Froebel was the first to “liberate the notion of play” (Gray and MacBlain 34)

• Bachelor’s degree in Education (the University of Wisconsin, 1903)
• Studied medicine and developmental abnormalities in Wisconsin
• PhD in Child Psychology (Clark University, 1906)

• Maturation – the process of development predicted by genetic characteristics
• Normally, the order of bodily systems to develop is fixed
• Children develop mechanisms for self-regulation (Charlesworth 10)

• A graduate of Williams College (1867)
• Studied theology and philosophy
• The first American to become a Doctor of Psychology (Harvard University, 1878)

• Hall tried to apply Darwin’s ideas to child development (Charlesworth 22)
• Adolescence (14-24 years) is characterized by mood swings, a proneness to conflict, criminal leanings, and risky behaviors
• Adolescence is the transition between irrationality and rationality

• The University of Edinburgh (studied medicine)
• Christ’s College (a Bachelor of Arts)
• Earned Bachelor’s degrees from Cambridge and Oxford (non-specialized)

• Some groups of living creatures can have common ancestors
• Natural selection is the key mechanism of evolution
• Due to natural selection, the number of organisms with traits favorable to survival increases, the converse is also true

(Gray and MacBlain 22)

• Studied natural sciences at Saint Petersburg State University
• A student at the Military Medical Academy in St. Petersburg (became a doctor of medicine in 1883)

• Living creatures can learn through association
• Conditioned responses can be caused by the combinations of stimuli

• Bachelor’s degree ( Wesleyan University)
• A PhD degree in Educational Psychology (Columbia University, 1897)

• Based on behavioral postulates (stimuli and response)
• Thorndike introduced three “laws” of learning:
  • The law of effect – responses followed by rewards turn into habits
  • The law of exercise – constant practice makes connections stronger, the lack of it weakens them
  • The law of readiness – some responses can be connected to meet certain goal

• Did not finish his studies at Furman University
• A PhD degree (the University of Chicago, 1903)

• Any child is a “tabula rasa”
• Children are easily manipulated and responsive to suggestion
• Stimuli are used to trigger reactions (the famous “Little Albert” experiment)

• Montessori’s approach to education is based on child-centeredness, independent learning (children should learn to solve tasks on their own)
• Children should be observed and helped to make choices
• Children “absorb” everything they see/hear/experience

• Children should learn by making discoveries
• Study materials should reflect children’s worldview
• Cognitive representation and its stages: enactive (actions), iconic (images), symbolic (verbal symbols)