Write a 4-6 page paper that examines a case study through the lens of two different learning theories.
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Introduction
For this assessment, you will examine how two theories could be compared in the application to an everyday learning situation. You will describe the basic tenets of each theory, use theory-specific terminology to hypothesize how a person in the case study has learned things so far that has resulted in the current challenge, and what will likely come next. Then, you will provide a theoretically grounded and evidence-based solution to the problem.
Preparation
Choose one of the provided case studies from Learning Theories: Case Studies. There is no need to recopy the case from the courseroom into the paper. Use the case name in the title of your paper. That will suffice for letting your reader know which person you will be working with.
Choose two learning theories from the list provided. Notice that you may be using theories not covered elsewhere in the course. If there is a specific learning theory you are currently working with in your studies that is not in this list, and if you would prefer to use it for this paper, check with your instructor.
- Köhler’s insight theory/Gestalt.
- Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of learning.
- Bruner’s discovery learning.
- Knowles’s andragogy.
- Rogers’s humanism (used as a theory of learning).
- Hebb’s neuropsychological theory.
- Miller’s information processing theory.
- Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance.
- Skinner’s behaviorism.
- Watson’s behaviorism.
- Pavlov’s behaviorism.
- Bandura’s social learning theory (1977).
- Bandura’s social cognitive theory (1986).
- Siegel’s connectivism.
- Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning.
Activity Instructions
Write a 4–6 page paper that addresses the following:
- Explain the basic assumptions, strengths and limitations of each learning theory.
- Analyze the ability of each theory to explain and predict a case.
- Using terms and concepts from Theory 1, describe the case study, hypothesizing how a person has learned things so far to result in their current challenge. Then, predict what will come next for them, using theoretical concepts.
- Then, using terms and concepts from Theory 2, describe the case study once again. Hypothesize how this person has learned things so far to result in their current challenge. Then, predict what will come next for them using theoretical concepts.
- Analyze an intervention.
- Explore at least one intervention for the challenge presented in the case that would be grounded in or connected with one of the theories.
- Explain why it would work better than an intervention grounded in the alternate theory, using evidence from your research.
- Apply APA style and formatting to scholarly writing.
- Exhibit adherence to stylistic conventions, document structure, and source attributions.
Additional Requirements
- Written communication: Write coherently to support central ideas, using appropriate APA format, with correct grammar, usage, and mechanics.
- Tone: Write in the third person, adhering to conventions of academic tone.
- Length of paper: 4–6 typed, double-spaced pages, not including the title page or reference page.
- References: At least five scholarly articles (from peer-reviewed journals). Books and other sources can be used, if needed, in addition to the journal articles.
- APA format: Follow current APA guidelines for style and formatting, as well as for citing your resources in the body of your paper and in alphabetical order on the reference page. Refer to Evidence and APA. You may also use the APA Paper Template [DOCX] Download APA Paper Template [DOCX].
- Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:
- Competency 1: Evaluate the strengths, limitations, and applications of the foundational learning theories.
- Analyze the ability of each theory to explain and predict a case.
- Competency 2: Evaluate the strengths, limitations, and applications of learning principles and concepts.
- Explain the basic assumptions, strengths and limitations of one learning theory.
- Explain the basic assumptions, strengths, limitations of a second learning theory.
- Competency 3: Apply evidence-based research in learning theories to guide decision making and problem solving.
- Analyze an intervention.
- Competency 4: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with expectations for members of the psychological professions.
- Apply APA style and formatting to scholarly writing.
The following case studies introduce you to people who are in a potential or current learning scenario. Review the details in each case and consider how learning theories may provide a framework for understanding and addressing each person’s need.
Greta
Greta is a 32-year-old single woman who has recently begun dating someone new and believes they could really have a future. There is just one problem. Greta is very afraid of dogs. Her new love has 3 enormous Leonbergers and has said that life wouldn’t be worth living without animals around. Greta knows she has to change.
When Greta was six years old, while she was walking the two blocks to school all by herself, a beautiful shiny black dog was in a yard along her path. Delighted, she opened their gate and rushed to the dog. The dog charged at her and gave warning barks but Greta just wanted to pet it and kept coming. The dog bit her on the shoulder and shook her and dragged her around the yard, not releasing her until a passer-by pulled the dog off her and called 911. Greta sustained some injuries from the bite and had a shoulder surgery to repair a ligament. Throughout the rest of her childhood, Greta developed more and more fears. First, it was anything about hospitals and dogs, other black animals, then loud noises, sirens, first responders, and she struggled with wetting accidents due to fears for quite some time as a child. In college Greta worked through some of her anxieties with a counselor, but she did not address her dog fears as she claimed “I have just become really good at avoiding dogs”.
Ari
Ari describes himself as being an “awkward geeky sort”. His very favorite thing to do is play video games, particularly creative and multiplayer games, and he is quite famous in his online communities and has developed a popular YouTube channel mostly with his Minecraft server.
At 10 years old, Ari is 5’ 7” tall. His physical development is “off the chart” and physical education teachers have tried to coax him into athletic activities for years as they see his height as a true advantage. Ari’s parents say “his body hasn’t caught up with itself yet. He stumbles on stairs and bumps into walls… he just doesn’t have much coordination. Everyone in our family is tall (both of us are over 6’2”), and we all took this same path. Sports don’t tend to work well until about 13 or 14 years old, sadly.”
At school, Ari has begun to notice that all the popular boys are athletes, and has now shared with his parents “I just want to be able to run fast and throw a ball… I’m tired of being picked last all the time in gym class, and I just want to fit in”. They have noticed that Ari’s performance at school seems to be suffering lately; he claims it is a result of being a social outcast. The parents said “well, he’s learning something at this school, but maybe not what we would hope he is learning. Maybe we should look at a different kind of school.”
Dot
Dot grew up in a large family in the Midwest. By the time she married Bill after college, she was a “whiz” in the kitchen, particularly with baked goods, and Dot and Bill and their kids enjoyed her skills with home-cooked hearty meals when the children were young.
Dot, her husband, and four children moved from their very small town to a large coastal city and Dot took a full-time job about five years ago. Things got busy over time and their lives became fast-paced. Dot turned to prepared foods for many of their dinners and stocked the pantry with snacks and other easy-to-grab foods for lunches and breakfasts on-the-go. Her spouse and children are all having issues with food sensitivities and Dot has been recently chastised by her physician that something has to change—her weight has ballooned and she is pre-diabetic. She admits she does not seem to have an “off-button” when it comes to sweets and is really distracted by them and will sometimes just eat a couple of boxes of cookies and nothing else during the day.
Dot’s physician suggested she might suffer from sugar addiction and said to stop all processed foods and sugar. Dot is in agreement yet every time she tries to come up with a healthy meal plan she says she can’t think it through and doesn’t follow the plan and they end up ordering pizza instead. She claims the whole thing is exhausting and every time she tries to find out information on the web every nutrition guru contradicts the rest. “I know I have to fix this, but it seems I have to un-learn everything I know and then figure out exactly what I am supposed to eat.”
Mike
Mike is 28 years old. He has recently been released from prison after serving 4 years for distribution of a controlled substance. Before he was incarcerated, Mike struggled for many years with addiction, primarily to methamphetamine and heroin. During his time in prison, Mike finished an associate’s degree in food service and is hoping to someday have a career as a chef.
Mike comes from a very high-achieving family. His parents and siblings are all successful and have “fancy degrees”. He is estranged from his family currently due to his behaviors in the past while he was trying to score drugs. Mike shared that when he was a child he was considered hyperactive and his school demanded he was put on medication as he would not sit still. He was prescribed Adderall, which he took from age 6 until he was in high school when he started to sell some of it or trade it for marijuana.
Despite this, he did very well in school and graduated 5th in his class and was on the 4A state champion varsity baseball team. He sustained an injury to his knee post-season his senior year, effectively ending his opportunity to play in college. Once he went to college “everything fell apart”. He would start his day with a bong hit and then stay high all day long. He said that once he was in recovery he realized he is a perfectionist and has a very deep fear of failure.
He is now in his halfway house for 6 months and says the biggest thing he wants to learn is how to live a clean life “on the outs” and not be so hard on himself with unreasonable expectations.