Principal Empowerment

Title: Social Cognitive Learning Theory: An Integration Paper
Name: Salve S. Resuello

We have discussed a lot of topics in our Seminar on Educational Psychology class. These topics were very informative and relevant in the day to day activities of the teachers and I learned a lot from the discussions. One of the topics that I really like most is the Social Cognitive Learning Theory of Albert Bandura. This theory was focus on learning through observing others. As the discussant of this topic I made research works and I learned a lot during my research specifically on how learning takes place in this theory. There are three factor in it: the environmental factors, the personal factors, and the behavior. The interaction between the environment factors and the personal factors leads to behavior and this process is called Reciprocal Determinism. So, what does this tells us? That the environment has a strong influence in an individual’s behavior. This theory has five basic assumptions. First, people learn by observing others. In this assumption, models play an important role and each one of us serves as model to everyone. So, each one of us must be aware of our actions and must exhibit appropriate behavior at all times for through our actions we influence other people and people tends to imitate our actions. There is a saying that goes “Anumang gawa ng matanda, sa mata ng bata ay tama”. Second, learning is an internal process that may or may not lead to a behavior. Here, the individual internally processed the acquired knowledge and consequences of the action plays a vital role. If the action has a positive consequence, the individual tends to do the action but if it has a negative consequence, he tends not to do the action at all. Third assumption is a goal-directed behavior. This is relation with our goals in life. People set goals for themselves and direct their behavior toward that goal. Fourth is behavior becomes self-regulated. Here, the individual or the student thought on how to manage their own thought and actions in order reach a particular outcomes(Schunk, 2001; Zimmerman, 2000). In this assumption, there are three important sub-processes(Bandura, 1986; 1991) Self-observation which reflects an individual’s ability to monitor or keep track of their own behavior and outcomes. Self-judgment which is the process through which the individual’s evaluate whether their actions are effective and allow them to make progress toward their goals and self-reaction occurs when the individuals’ respond to the evaluations they have made by modifying their behavior, rewarding it, or discontinuing it. Last, it deals with reinforcement and punishment. People tends to be reinforced whenever they receive positive response or affirmations but they tend to inhibit whenever they receive negative response from others. Since models play an important role in this theory, they must possess certain characteristics in order for them to become effective. One, the model must be competent. People typically tend to imitate behaviors of models who do something well, not poorly. Two, they must have prestige and power. These are the qualities observers always looked for. Three, models must engage in gender-appropriate behaviors and last, the behaviors being modeled should be relevant to the learner’s situation. In this instance, students are more likely to learn or adopt behaviors that they believe will help them in their own circumstance. In this theory, there are four important things to remember in order for learning to occur.
First, attention. This refers to how a person perceives which person to observe and what aspects of behavior to observe. An individual must pay attention to the action or behavior. Second, retention. It is the process of remembering what has been seen and storing it in the memory. That is why we were able to recall our past experiences. Third, reproduction. It is the process by which a person physically acts out the behavior they have remembered. Last, motivation and reinforcement. An individual may acquire new skill through observation, but may or may not perform it until there is a motivation or incentives to do so. There are also five core concepts in Social Cognitive Learning Theory. 1. Observational Learning – people learn through observation. 2. Outcome Expectations – reflects individual’s beliefs about what consequences are most likely to ensue if particular behavior is performed. 3. Self-efficacy – reflects individual’s belief about whether they can achieve a given level of success at a particular tasks. 4. Goal Setting – reflects cognitive representations of anticipated desired or preferred outcomes. 5. Self-regulation – individual’s management or control of their own behavior.
Having all these learnings, it leads me to the realizations of how the environment affects the total development of an individual. I recall the saying “One can make or unmake an individual”. This means that every one of us can develop or destroy an individual. So, as educators, we should always bear in our minds that we are the molder of our students. We help them shape their future and their total development toward success lies in our hands.

References

Education – Portal.com
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Windows Internet Explorer www.education.com www.youtube.com

Title: Social Cognitive Learning Theory: An Integration Paper
Name: Salve S. Resuello

References: Education – Portal.com Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Windows Internet Explorer www.education.com www.youtube.com Title: Social Cognitive Learning Theory: An Integration Paper Name: Salve S. Resuello