Synopses & Reviews
Both a serious academic text and a delightful story, this book offers a clear, readable look at a full range of learning theories from behavioral to cognitive. It also covers memory, motivation, connectionism (neural net models), and social learning and concludes with a comprehensive synthesis. Its most apparent strength is its easily accessible style, but its greatest value lies in the clarity of its concepts and its emphasis on practical applications. THEORIES OF HUMAN LEARNING is narrated by a Professor. But this Professor isn't just anyone. In fact, those familiar with previous editions may conclude that he is related to Kongor and Kro, two extraterrestrials who so successfully guided students through the first two editions---or to the Old Man or, later, the Old Woman who led readers through the next editions. Wise as he is, the Professor does the job even more effectively than his predecessors in this sixth edition of THEORIES OF HUMAN LEARNING: WHAT THE PROFESSOR SAID.
About the Author
Guy Lefrançois is the author of leading Thomson Learning textbooks in child and adult development (OF CHILDREN AND THE LIFESPAN), and in Educational Psychology (PSYCHOLOGY FOR TEACHING). He is currently at the University of Alberta.
Table of Contents
PART I: SCIENCE AND THEORY. 1. Human Learning. PART II: MOSTLY BEHAVIORISTIC THEORIES. 2. Early Behaviorism: Pavlov, Watson, and Guthrie. 3. The Effects of Behavior: Thorndike and Hull. 4. Operant Conditioning: Skinner's Radical Behaviorism. 5. Evolutionary Psychology: Learning, Biology, and the Brain. PART III: THE BEGINNINGS OF MODERN COGNITIVISM. 6. A Transition to Modern Cognitivism: Hebb, Tolman, and the Gestaltists. PART IV: MOSTLY COGNITIVE THEORIES. 7. Three Cognitive Theories: Bruner, Piaget, and Vygotsky. 8. Symbolic Models of the Mind and Neural Networks. 9. Learning and Remembering. 10. Motivation. 11. Social Learning: Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory. PART V: SUMMARY. 12. Summary, Synthesis, and Integration. Epilogue. Glossary. References. Name Index.