By : Nurul Syahirah Vaisnavy
FOUNDERS:
1) John B. Watson ( early 20th century) 2) Ivan Pavlov
3) B.F. Skinner
4) E.L Thorndike 5) Bandura
Behavior can be conditioned by altering the environment. BEHAVIORISM Manipulating and giving a certain stimulus, a certain response can be produced.
According to the psychologist Skinner : Language is a conditioned behavior: the stimulus response process (Stimulus Response Feedback Reinforcement).
Children start out as clean slates and language learning is the process of getting linguistic habits
printed on these slates through positive and negative reinforcement or punishment.
Both positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement increase the probability that the antecedent behavior will happen again. Punishment decreases the likelihood that the antecedent behavior will happen again.
Learners learn language step by step,
i.e. Imitation - Repetition - Memorization - Controlled drilling - Reinforcement.
They learn to speak by imitating the utterances heard
around them and strengthen their responses by the repetitions, corrections, and other reactions that adults provide.
Therefore, language is practice based.
Learning is controlled by the conditions under which
it takes place and that, as long as individuals are subjected on the same condition,
They will learn in the same condition.
In summary, the behaviorist is not concerned with how or why knowledge is obtained, but rather if the correct response is given.
The following is a list of behaviorist principles quite often applied in teaching and learning in the classroom :
Use a system of rewards to encourage certain behaviors and
learning. Provide immediate and frequent feedback for complex and difficult concepts Provide practice, drill and review activities to enhance mastery of facts Break down complex task into smaller and manageable sub skills Sequence material from simple to more difficult to enhance understanding Reinforce when students demonstrate the modeled behavior Establish a contract with students on the work to be done and what rewards will be given
CRITICS
Some teachers fear that rewarding students for all
learning will cause students to lose interest in learning for its own sake. Using a reward system or giving one student increased attention may have a detrimental effect on other students in the classroom.