Basic Principles

Learning happens when a correct response is demonstrated following the presentation of a specific environmental stimulus

Learning can be detected by observing an organism over a period of time

Emphasis is on observable and measurable behaviors

Uses a "black box" metaphor - the learner is a black box, what happens inside is unknown

Emphasis is on relationships between environmental variables and behavior

Instruction utilizes consequences and reinforcement of learned behaviors

Believes behavior is guided by purpose

Cues are antecedents to behavior and set the conditions for its occurence

Knowledge acquisition is described as a mental activity that entails internal coding and structuring by the learner

Learner is viewed as an active participant in the learning process

Emphasis is on the building blocks of knowledge (e.g. identifying prerequisite relationships of content)

Emphasis on structuring, organizing and sequencing information to facilitate optimal processing 

Focus is on how learners remember, retrieve, and store information in memory

Examines the mental structure and processes related to learning 

Learning is viewed as an active process that occurs within the learner and which can be influenced by the learner

The outcome of learning is not only dependent on what the teacher presents but also on what the learner does to process this information.
 

Knowledge is embedded in the context in which it is used (authentic tasks in meaningful realistic settings)

Create novel and situation-specific understandings by "assembling" knowledge from diverse sources appropriate to the problem at hand (flexible use of knowledge) 

Believes that there are many ways (multiple perspectives) of structuring the world and its entities

Believes that meaning is imposed by the individual rather than existing in the world independently