Behaviorism and Technology in the Classroom

So, I started a new class for my Graduate Certificate in Integrating Technology. This week, we are exploring instructional strategies that embed technology and how they relate to Behaviorist Learning Theory. Remember Skinner and the Stimulus/Response theory that most of us learned about in our Psych 101 classes? Well, we are concentrating on how technology can help teachers apply those principals in their classrooms. One way is to reinforce effort. Students need to see a correlation between increased effort and increased success. One way that my textbook suggested was to have the students create spreadsheets to give themselves a concrete visual showing the correlation. This spreadsheet is completed by the students after they rate themselves on the amount of effort they have given before a test and the score that they receive on the test. I love this idea! First of all, the students are rating themselves. I have found that consequences and reinforcements are very effective when they are self- imposed and self-assessed. I also like this idea because the reinforcement is the success itself, not some external reward. Being a teacher of the Gifted, I see the long term consequences when students attribute success to their intelligence and not to their effort. If you are interested in reading more on how this correlates to the Gifted student, there is an interesting article in Scientific American Magazine that talks about how to bring out the potential in Gifted students: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=coaching-the-gifted-child
The other concept that was discussed was the use of technology in homework and practice. A big part of behaviorism is reinforcement. In this aspect, we are talking about the reinforcement of skills. One idea was the creation of spreadsheets to reinforce and practice math concepts in relation to graphs. Because the graphs are computer generated, the variables can be easily changed so that the students have more of a chance to compare and analyze various graphing representations which would lead to the reinforcement of the mathematical concept. Another idea that was presented was the idea of using web resources and multi-media to reinforce and practice a needed skill. These resources provide immediate reinforcement or correction and are able to be easily differentiated in regards to skill level so that students are able to drill and practice at their instructional level. Personally, I have found a multitude of highly engaging Apps for my I-Pad that I use with my son to practice his spelling words and sight word practice that reinforces these skills, and he loves it. Visit www.apple.com/itunes and do a category search in education. A final resource to consider is the use of communication software where students are able to reinforce each other’s learning in a collaborative environment.