Learning Theories
Andrea Jackson
School of Education, Liberty University
504: Educational Philosophy and Theories of Learning
Dr. Griffin
October 1, 2025
Learning Theories
Introduction
For my assignment, I was given a scenario about Kevin, a sixth-grade student who is struggling
with math and has displayed unmotivated behavior in the classroom. His mother is in the
military and deployed overseas, so Kevin has had to change schools three times in the past two
years. He currently lives at home with his dad and two sisters. He is a good reader but struggles
with math, and he is currently failing. MS. Thomas has offered incentives, but Keven has
declined to participate. When Ms. Thomas met with Keven’s dad, he seemed tired and
unfocused, but he did say that Keven had always struggled with math. Keven enjoys playing
games on the computer, karate, and skateboarding. He even goes to church with his family on
Sunday and likes it. Ms. Thomas is worried about Keven being able to pass the state
standardized test coming up in three months. I will discuss how several principles of
developmental learning theories (Piaget, Vygotsky, Bandura, etc.) can be used to determine the
effective teacher strategies and learning environment for Keven.
Description of an effective teacher for Keven
Character Development
An effective teacher will not gauge their achievement exclusively on academics, but
through the provision of a student's character development, their various learning needs, the
basis of self-efficacy (which originates in the identity of Christ), and the development of an
optimistic relationship between the teacher and the student. “ An effective teacher are to be
tolerant and patient, open-minded, flexible, adaptive, compassionate and humorous to different
ideas, showing understanding, having high expectation of success from students,
encouragement and support; while the professional qualifications include having a good level of
general culture and adequate special field knowledge, planning teaching process, diversification
of the process, using teaching period effectively, creating a teaching environment in which all
students can participate, and monitoring students’ development” (Kose). According to Maslow’s
Hierarchy of Needs, a teacher must seek to give children greater self-esteem, love, and safety
motivation, enabling them to build resilience due to their surroundings. (Slavin & Shunk, 2021).
An effective teacher would help encourage the desired behaviors of a child by modeling correct
feedback towards stress and other overwhelming reactions. Not only will an effective teacher
help a student imitate
Christ, but they will also encourage students to enthusiastically engage in class.
Engaging with students who have diverse learning needs
An effective teacher will help Keven engage with his peers and become observant
during group time in the classroom. Keven seems to have social anxiety at school because he
has transferred to several schools in the past three years, and this could be the reason for his
not wanting to participate in math class. According to Shunk, “Peer relationships help young
children to overcome the egocentrism that Piaget described as being characteristic of
preoperational thinking, helping them see that others have perspectives that are different from
their own.” An effective teacher can help Keven build his self-esteem by making him feel
accepted by her and his peers, giving him positive feedback, and through metacognition. “.
Metacognitive learners are aware of their personal learning strengths and challenges “(Brenner,
C. A., 2022). Ms. Thomas can help Keven be aware of his personal strengths by giving him
positive feedback.
Building self-efficacy
The significance of a successful classroom is allowing students to build up their
selfefficacy through asking questions and being self-assured in their areas of education. The
teacher can play a vital role in enhancing Keven's self-efficacy by developing activities he can
finish in class. According to Grusec, Self-efficacy has been a part of Bandura’s theory since 1970.
“Selfefficacy theory has guided research in a variety of domains, including academic
achievement, health-related behavior, parenting styles, children's self-concept, athletic
performance, and clinical disorders”. (Grusec). A teacher’s self-efficacy is important for
engagement and learning.
In Piaget’s theory, we can use centration or reversibility to help build Keven’s self-efficacy. Ms.
Thomas can have Keven to use centration to concentrate on only one math problem or use
reversibility to direct him on how to work it differently.
Developing Relationships
The teacher should consider Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to guarantee that students’
needs are met entirely. The teacher's part includes offering planned and purposeful instructions
to communicate knowledge and skills to the students. Thomas Aquinas thought that teaching is
an honorable calling that serves humanity. A good teacher should be driven by a love of truth, a
love for people, and a love for God. (Gutek) An effective teacher will provide intellectual and
moral needs to survive in society. Ms. Thomas can be the tech Keven was to control his impulse
behaviors by also gaining his trust through practical skills. The always way she can build trust is
by building a relationship with Keven. Building relationships between teachers and students is
an essential practice in Christianity. Jesus was able to build a relationship by teaching his
followers. As stated in 1 Corinthians 12:12, "For just as the body is one and has many members,
and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ"(KJV).
Following Jesus’s illustration of building strong relationships with his followers, one can produce
an encouraging and developmental learning atmosphere for students.
Effective Learning Environment
Direct Instruction
Keven appears to have a problem with his education, possibly because he has moved so
much between schools that it is tough for him to gain knowledge from new material. According
to Slavin and Shunk (2021), direct instruction is an engaging teaching method that involves clear
organization, step-by-step teaching, numerous examples, and demonstrations. Keven can
benefit from direct instruction because the teacher can state the objectives or goals that she
wants him to complete before the lesson and actively engage with him during the lesson. The
story of the lady at the well is an example of abandonment and despair. She meets Jesus, and
although he knows everything about her, he still shows her and gives her water to drink. He
clearly showed her compassion when others just ridiculed her. A more direct approach in the
classroom will motivate students and fully engage them in the classroom.
Technology
Today, technology has become an essential tool in the domain of public-school
education. Still, it is significant to remember that it is simply a tool and not the lesson itself. An
effective classroom would include technology that could be used to establish the objectives of
that lesson. An expert teacher would incorporate technology for Keven to help him catch up to
his peers on a more academic level.
Motivation
Bandura’s theory of observational learning of attention, retention, reproduction, and
motivational phases can help Ms. Thomas to teach Keven using guided practices. Ms. Thomas
can gain Kevin's attention by giving clear and motivating cues, by using originality, or by surprise.
She can use retention by modeling a math problem or behavior that she wishes for Keven to
practice. According to Shunk, during the reproduction phase, students try to match their
behavior to the models. Ms. Thomas can motivate Keven by telling him good job or well done
while he is working on an assignment. A child of an active duty or recently returned military
member may be more concerned about the safety of their parent or have anxiety when
separated from both of their parents. Additional children may misbehave and develop more
opposition as they fight with feelings of anger at being detached from their parents. A child who
misses his parent can tend to have behavioral outbursts. The best repetition that a teacher can
model to help his outbursts is to have an efficiently well-organized classroom guided with clear,
everyday goals and objectives. A teacher's purpose ought to inspire students to use their
exceptional environments and struggle to advance the classroom culture. As an alternative to
dwelling on and pushing one's "weaknesses," an effective classroom would use the limitations
and utilize them to support each other.
Behavior management
Albert Bandura's social learning theory suggests that observation and modeling
meaningfully influence why and how people learn. A different belief that learning occurs only
through direct collaboration with the environment, Bandura's theory recommends that people
can learn by observing other people's behavior. An example of Bandura's social experiment is
his research related to the infamous Bobo punching the clown. This experiment was designed to
study a child's behavior after observing an adult punching the clown. Bandura determined that
children tend to model the behaviors they observe in others, and this is because most human
behavior is learned from their peers or other role models. According to Shunk, “The 'purposive'
aspect of Tolman’s theory refers to the belief that behavior is goal-directed. An effective teacher
can use goals as a direct focus on the relevant task and behaviors they want students to
perform.
But goals by themselves do not enhance learning and motivation. According to Grusec, Sears'
theory develops an understanding of the way that children come to internalize, or to take on as
their own, the values, attitudes, and behavior of the culture in which they are raised. A teacher
can use her own beliefs about God and set an example for her students to follow. Piaget's
theory of moral development can help Keven because Ms. Thomas can use his cognitive abilities
to help him with social situations. Kohlberg believed that people learn through moral dilemmas,
such as punishment and obedience, found in his preconventional level of learning. An example
in the bible can be seen in Proverbs 22:6 states, "Train up a child in the way he should go; and
when he is old, he will not depart from it" (KJV).
Biblical basis for my learning theories
The best practice of modeling and teaching can be seen through Jesus. It is important as
a teacher to realize that students have different learning needs and family backgrounds. A
teacher needs to be liked by Christ in and outside the classroom by having a positive attitude
and behavior. The wise man demands: “My son, give me your heart” (Prov 23:26a). The Hebrew
term “heart” states to a person’s focus of thought and obligation; therefore, this is a call for the
young person to be careful and pay close attention to himself. He continues: “Let your eyes
observe in my ways” (Prov 23:26a). This is meant to say that Christian are to observe Christ and
follow his example as in the classroom students are direct to follow the example of their
teacher. An example of moral dilemmas can be seen through Abraham when he faced a moral
test of faith when demanded by God to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac. In spite of his love for
Isaac, Abraham obeyed, displaying his readiness to prioritize his relationship with God above all
else. Genesis 22:2 records God’s command: “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering. David dealt with the moral
dilemma of how to answer to Saul, his persecutor and the anointed king of Israel. In spite of
having the chance to kill Saul, David took mercy, sparing his life twice out of respect for God’s
anointed leader. In 1 Samuel 24:6, David says, “The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my
lord, the Lord’s anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the Lord’s anointed.
“Daniel’s faith was put to the test when he confronted King Darius’s ruling and continued to pray
to God. Facing the prospect of death in the lion’s den, Daniel chose to persist to be faithful,
believing in God’s protection. Daniel 6:23 states that, “Then the king was exceedingly glad and
commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So, Daniel was taken up out of the den, and
no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.”
Conclusion
Keven is struggling in math because of family background, lack of motivation, and his
lack of having a role model to help to be become more socially involved. By addressing these
primary issues and generating a caring and positive learning environment, educators can help
students like Kevin overcome difficulty and achieve academic success. It is vital for society to
recognize and address these problems to ensure that all students have identical opportunities
to succeed in their academic goals. It is also important that teachers use direct instruction to
teach students like Keven to become more successful in the classroom. . It is important as a
teacher to realize that students have different learning needs and family backgrounds. We as
Christian are to be like Christ in everything we do. Several principles of developmental learning
theories (Piaget, Vygotsky, Bandura, etc.) were used to determine the effective teacher
strategies and learning environment for Keven. Albert Bandura's social learning theory suggests
that observation and modeling meaningfully influence why and how people learn as Sear ‘s
theory believe we learn from how we are raised. Kolberg believes that we learn through moral
dilemmas. The significance of a successful classroom is allowing students to build up their
selfefficacy through asking questions and being self-assured in their areas of education. The
teacher should consider Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to guarantee that students’ needs are
met entirely. Another way Ms. Thomas can teach Keven is by helping him realize his cognitive
abilities to socialize with his peers. Technology can be used to help motivate Ken, since he likes
computers, she can use computers to teach him a lesson by also using direct instruction. Ms.
Thomas needs to be tolerant and patient, open-minded, flexible, adaptive to Keven needs to be
an effective teacher. Ms. Thomas can help Keven engage with his peers and become observant
during group time in the classroom if she wants to have positive effect on Keven’s education.
Having an effective learning environment will motivate Ken to learn. Also building trust by
talking to Keven on a more personal level will help him to become motivated to learn. We as
Christ are motivated by God through his teaching in the Bible.
References
Brenner, C. A. (2022). Self-regulated learning, self-determination theory and teacher candidates’
development of competency-based teaching practices. Smart Learning Environments,
9(1)https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-021-00184-5
Grusec, J. E. (1992). Social learning theory and developmental psychology: The legacies of
Robert Sears and Albert Bandura. Developmental Psychology, 28(5), 776–786.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.28.5.776
Kose, A., & Uzun, M. (2018). Prospective Teachers’ Views on Effective Teacher Characteristics and
Their Occupational Self-efficacy Perceptions in terms of These Characteristics. Educational Process:
International Journal, 7(1), 60-73. https://doi.org/10.22521/edupij.2018.71
Slavin, R.E., & Schunk, D.H. (2021).Learning Theories EDUC Print Offer, Custom Edition for Liberty
University.New York, NY. Pearson Education, Inc
The Holy Bible : the 21st Century King James Version : containing the Old Testament and the
New Testament. (1994). 21St Century King James Bible Publishers.
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