Learning is a process that modifies individual behavior through acquiring new knowledge or skills. Several major learning theories aim to understand and guide this process. These include operant conditioning, which focuses on behavioral changes in response to environmental stimuli and consequences; Gagne's theory of hierarchical learning categories ranging from simple to complex; and Merrill's component display theory which classifies learning outcomes and emphasizes instructional sequencing and elaboration. Other theories examine cognitive processes like information processing, social interactions, attribution of successes or failures, and motivational factors.

2.  The process of learning is an individual experience for
each person. Learning takes place whenever an
individual’s behavior is modified-when a person
thinks or acts differently, when he or she has acquired
new knowledge or a new skill.
 Since a major purpose for preparing instructional
media is to effect behaviors that serve objectives, it is
appropriate to turn to the psychology of learning for
help in locating principles that would guide the
planning of effective instructional media.

3.  A number of major theories have influenced
psychology and education. They have received much
attention from practitioners since the mid-twentieth
century. Brief overviews of eight important theories
are considered here.

4.  The theory of operant conditioning is build on Skinner’s
view that learning is behavioral change (Skinner,1954).
Behavior is the result of an individual’s response to events
taking place in one’s environment. These are the
stimuli(message),which elicit responses(learning) in the
learner. A response produces a consequence, such as
defining words, solving a math problem, or writing a
chemical formula.
 Operant conditioning is applied when the microcomputer
is used to teach basic skills like identification,
discrimination, and problem solving, often in drills and
practice programs.

5.  (Gagne, 1985). Basic information or simple skills that are learned
contribute to the learning of more complex knowledge and skills.
Gagne categories of learning:
1.Verbal information-learning names, dates, definition, and facts,
which provide basic terminology relating to the topic.
2.Intellectual skills- learning how to use verbal information
through discriminations, grouping facts with common features.
3.Motor skills- performing physical skills and behaviors to ward
persons, objects, and events.

6.  The component display theory(Merrill) provides more details for
designing specific instructional sequences than does Gagne theory of
conditions of learning. It classifies outcomes of learning in two
dimensions:
 Content (facts, concepts, procedures, and principles)
 Performance (remembering, using, and finding, a generality).
 Then, in the delivery of instruction, this theory gives attention to:
 Primary presentation forms-expository presentation of both a
generality(a rule)and an instance(an example), inquisitory generality
(recall), and inquisitory instance (practice)
 Secondary presentation forms-prerequisite material, attention-
focusing help, mnemonics and feedback.

7.  In teaching a procedure, the most simple and
representative applications is taught first. Subsequent
lessons add further conditions and details to the
original presentation until the degree of complexity
required by the objective is attained. Furthermore,
elaborations that relate to more than a single idea or
concept of new knowledge are more effective in
enhancing learning. Also, at each step in this
elaboration process the learner is reminded of the
procedure as a whole.

8.  The mental processes whereby human beings perceive,
organize, and remember the great amount of
information receive daily have been the subject of
information-processing research (Norman).a basic
premise of this work is that the human brain is a
complex , active organ for processing information . It
follows that how an individual selects, encodes, and
stores information relates to one’s learning ability.

9.  In social learning theory, attention is given to
personality factors and the interactions among people
(Bandura). This theory explains that certain learning
takes place through the ability of individuals to
observe the behaviors of other persons (serving as
models). This allows them to make choices among
these behaviors, which they adapt for themselves
(modelling) to emulate.

10. Attribution learning theory seeks to identify ways by which
individuals seek understandings for events taking place in their
world(Weiner). It is built on cognitive processes –
meaningfulness, understanding, and organizational abilities-
considered to be fundamental characteristics of human behavior.
The term attribution refers to an inference made by a person
about the causes of an event or of a particular outcomes. Major
attributions:
 Ability- feelings of confidence or incompetence , or of pride or
shame
 Effort- feelings of pride for success
 Luck- no change in success expectancy
 Task difficulty- no enhancement of self-esteem for success
outcomes.

11.  Finally, as an aspect of learning theory, we consider the topic of
motivation. Motivation has both direction and magnitude
components, and its level is evidenced by the intensity of performance
toward completion of a learning task.
Keller (1983)has identified four conditions for successful motivation :
 Interest-arousing and sustaining the learner’s curiosity and attention.
 Relevance-relating the instruction to how a learner can satisfy personal
needs or a highly desired goal.
 Expectancy (confidence)-perceiving the likelihood of successes in
learning and the extent to which success is under learning control.
 Satisfactory-combining extrinsic reward and intrinsic motivation to
influence the accomplishment of the instructional goal and provide
further motivation to continue pursuing similar goal.