Three learning theories

The three learning theories of Behaviourism, Cognitivism, and Constructivism each have their strengths and weaknesses.

Behaviourism:

Strength: Focuses the learner on the outcomes, applied successfully in military training.

Weakness: Learner ‘trained’ to rely on stimuli to achieve outcomes.

Cognitivism:

Strength: Learners are trained to produce consistent exact routines to achieve outcomes.

Weakness: Only a limited number of correct solutions are learned.

Constructism:

Strength: Learner can construct own novel solutions to solve real life problems.

Weakness: Learners construct their own solutions and the divergency does not apply well to systems.

(Mergel, 1998)

A Behaviourist approach suits basic / foundational skills; A Cognitive approach suits situations where many learners prepare to work together in a system; a Constructivist approach suits finding solutions for uncommon or new problems.

Reference:

Mergel, B. (1998). Instructional Design & Learning Theory. Available: http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mergel/brenda.htm