Understanding a Constructivist Prior to beginning this assignment, please review all the required readings, videos, and any relevant Instructor Guidance. It is suggested that you review the recommended resources for this week as a number of them may assist you in creating this written assignment with links to applicable articles. Please note that for many of you, this might be the first time to write a paper about someone you have no current information about. Thus, it is very important that you know how to synthesize information so that it is your work, and not accidentally someone else’s. One suggestion as you begin to read about one of the researchers is to just jot down notes about them as you read. Be careful not to copy paste information into a document with intentions of re-writing it. Sometimes areas get forgotten and when your writing matches other sources, it can negatively affect not only your grade, but also your entire academic journey, so please heed this advice and ask for assistance from your instructor if you need it. Thus, we have included a link to a guide that could be very assistive in your success. Over the past weeks, you have been introduced to Behaviorism, Cognitivism, and Constructivism in relationship to learning psychology. To further expand your knowledge and understanding of Constructivism and its theoretical components/principles, in this paper you will research and write about one of the prominent constructivists listed below: John Dewey (1859–1952) To successfully accomplish this assignment: First, create the following headings and subheadings in your paper to indicate the organization of your information.  (Note: The bullets will not be included in your paper and are included here only for organizational purposes.) Introduction- The introduction is based on the principle of introducing the topic of the paper. A good introduction explains what you will be addressing. In this paper it will specifically, in a broad way, clarify each area (below) that you will be discussing. Often, writer’s write this last to make sure nothing is forgotten.  For more information please click here . Researcher’s Biography/Background (Vygotsky’s Biography) - Under this heading you will provide the important historical perspectives of your subject’s life and work and how these influenced his/her work in this field. Information on the subject’s personal and professional background should be logically presented. Researcher’s Theoretical Perspectives- Under this heading you will describe the theoretical perspectives and other major concepts pioneered or promoted by your subject. Experiments and Findings -Under this subheading you will provide a thorough summary of at least two empirical research projects your subject performed including the empirical findings of the research. Historical Trends - Under this subheading you will provide information on the trends which lead to your subject’s line of research. Notable Characteri.

1. Understanding a Constructivist
Prior to beginning this assignment, please review all the
required readings, videos, and any relevant Instructor Guidance.
It is suggested that you review the recommended resources for
this week as a number of them may assist you in creating this
written assignment with links to applicable articles.
Please note that for many of you, this might be the first time to
write a paper about someone you have no current information
about. Thus, it is very important that you know how to
synthesize information so that it is your work, and not
accidentally someone else’s. One suggestion as you begin to
read about one of the researchers is to just jot down notes about
them as you read. Be careful not to copy paste information into
a document with intentions of re-writing it. Sometimes areas get
forgotten and when your writing matches other sources, it can
negatively affect not only your grade, but also your entire
academic journey, so please heed this advice and ask for
assistance from your instructor if you need it. Thus, we have
included a link to a guide that could be very assistive in your
success.
Over the past weeks, you have been introduced to Behaviorism,
Cognitivism, and Constructivism in relationship to learning
psychology. To further expand your knowledge and
understanding of Constructivism and its theoretical
components/principles, in this paper you will research and write
about one of the prominent constructivists listed below:
John Dewey (1859–1952)
To successfully accomplish this assignment:
First, create the following headings and subheadings in your
paper to indicate the organization of your information. (Note:
The bullets will not be included in your paper and are included
here only for organizational purposes.)

2. Introduction-
The introduction is based on the principle of introducing the
topic of the paper. A good introduction explains what you will
be addressing. In this paper it will specifically, in a broad way,
clarify each area (below) that you will be discussing. Often,
writer’s write this last to make sure nothing is forgotten. For
more information please
click here
.
Researcher’s Biography/Background (Vygotsky’s Biography)
- Under this heading you will provide the important historical
perspectives of your subject’s life and work and how these
influenced his/her work in this field. Information on the
subject’s personal and professional background should be
logically presented.
Researcher’s Theoretical Perspectives-
Under this heading you will describe the theoretical
perspectives and other major concepts pioneered or promoted by
your subject.
Experiments and Findings
-Under this subheading you will provide a thorough summary
of at least two empirical research projects your subject
performed including the empirical findings of the research.
Historical Trends
- Under this subheading you will provide information on the
trends which lead to your subject’s line of research.
Notable Characteristics
- Under this subheading you will provide information about the
cognitivist and his/her line of research and how it exemplifies
the cognitivist constructs.
Conclusion
- This can be hard to write because the writer thinks everything
has already been said. However, this is where the writer leaves
behind an impression about the writer and what he/she wrote
about. The reader often remembers the last part of what has
been read, so consider how you want someone reading your

3. paper to remember about what you wrote. For more information
please
click here
.
Next, apply basic research methods in psychology to your paper
by accessing the Ashford University Library and researching at
least three appropriate peer-reviewed articles about your
assigned researcher. Write key words under each heading to
help you remember what you have read. Be sure to use these
sources to support your statements within the paper. Cite your
sources according to APA style, but do not directly quote them
within your paper. If you have apprehensions about synthesizing
the material you read and plan on including in your writing,
please
click here
for additional assistance.
Now you will put it all together, by using the key words to help
you write about what you learned. Try not to, at first, use the
sources directly. Try to remember what you can and just write
about what you learned to avoid plagiarism issues.
After you have accomplished this, go back to your sources
adding in the citations of where you learned the information and
clarifying points. Read your paper aloud to make sure it makes
sense. It is not unusual after writing a paper that our mind will
actually fill in the blanks of missed information, but the reader
cannot do this, so reading it aloud is helpful.
Make corrections and continue to edit and clean up your paper.
Add your references. Make sure what you include is applied
within your paper as well. Do not use quotes if possible.
Use this opportunity to develop your writing skills by
submitting to Grammarly (see below).

4. Writing the “Understanding a Constructivist” Paper
The paper:
Must be three to four double-spaced pages in length and
formatted according to APA style.
Must include a title page with the following:
·
Title of paper
·
Student’s name
·
Course name and number
·
Instructor’s name
·
Date submitted
·
Note
: Please do not use a template
Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct
thesis statement.
Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought. For
assistance with the critical thinking portion of the written
assignment, please see the information included on the
Critical Thinking Community website
Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.
Must use at least three scholarly sources.
Must not use quoted material. Please synthesize what you learn
about the researcher. For tips on how to do this please

5. click here
.
Must document all sources in APA style.
Must include a separate reference page that is formatted
according to APA style.
Must be submitted to the Grammarly tool within the course
prior to submission.
Assignment: Read the articles regarding the Constructivist
theory and write a 3 to 4-page paper regarding one renowned
constructivist
Last name begins with A-C:
John Dewey (1859–1952)
Be sure to include biographical information and describe your
constructivist’s theoretical perspective. This should include
information regarding experimental research and findings. Your
paper must be based on 3 scholarly articles. Be sure to review
the guidelines about this assignment and review the grading
rubric for a breakdown of the expectations of components that
will be graded. Your paper must be written in APA format and
use section headings. For assistance, the APA website provides
a number of resources for learning APA format, including tips,
tutorials, and examples. You can access the APA style resources
by selecting this link:
http://www.apastyle.org/manual/index.aspx
NOTES
that might help....
Operant Learning
Chapters 5 - 8 discuss the principles of operant conditioning.
As discussed last week, in classical conditioning, the person or
animal’s response is generally involuntary. In operant
conditioning, the response is active and voluntary. For
example, if your friends laugh and smile when you tell a joke,

6. you are likely to tell more jokes. However, if you are a bad
joke teller, your friends may frown or ridicule you, which
would result in your joking less.
A psychologist called Edward Thorndike (1874-1949) was one
of the pioneers of operant conditioning. He determined that the
frequency of a behavior is modified by its consequences. He
went on to develop the law of effect (1911). The law of effect
states that the probability of an action being repeated is
strengthened when followed by a pleasant or satisfying
consequence.
B.F Skinner extended Thorndike’s law of effect to more
complex behaviors. He emphasized that reinforcement and
punishment always occur after the behavior of interest has
occurred. Skinner also cautioned that the only way to know
how we have influenced someone’s behavior is to check whether
it increases or decreases. So, he emphasized objective
measurements or observations of behavior.
Reinforcers, which strengthen a response, can be grouped into
two types, primary and secondary. Primary reinforcers satisfy
an intrinsic, unlearned biological need, like food, water, or sex.
Secondary reinforcers are not intrinsic. They are valuable to us
based on experience or learning. These include things like
money, praise, or attention. Each type of reinforcer can
produce positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement
depending on whether certain stimuli are added or taken away.
It is easy to confuse negative reinforcement with punishment,
but the two concepts are actually completely opposite.
Reinforcement (either negative or positive) strengthens a
behavior, whereas punishment weakens a behavior. If the
terminology seems confusing, it might help to think of positive
and negative reinforcement in the mathematical sense—in terms
of something be added (+) or taken away (-)instead of in terms
of good and bad.
Positive reinforcement provides a reinforcer whenever a
behavior is performed in order to strengthen that behavior. For
example, children in grade school are often given gold stars for

7. good behavior. This increases the probability that the child will
continue to behave well in the future.
Negative reinforcement removes a reinforcer to strengthen
behavior. So for example, your baby is crying, so you hug him
and he stops crying. The “removal” of crying strengthens the
likelihood that you will hug him again. Another example is that
in newer automobiles, the car will make a loud beeping noise
until you fasten your seatbelt. As a result, you fasten your
seatbelt, which removes the irritating beeping noise. This
enhances the likelihood that you buckle your seatbelt again.
Depending on the outcome that is desired, several different
reinforcement schedules can be used. Schedules of
reinforcement are the rates or intervals at which responses are
reinforced. There are many different schedules, but the most
important distinction is whether they are continuous or partial.
Continuous reinforcement means that the desired response is
reinforced every time it occurs. When Skinner was training his
animals, he found that learning was most rapid if the response
was reinforced every time it occurred.In real life continuous
reinforcement rarely happens. However, behavior persists
because your efforts are occasionally rewarded. Most of our
everyday behavior is rewarded on a partial (or intermittent)
schedule of reinforcement, which involves reinforcing only
some responses, not all. Once a task is learned it’s important to
move to a partial schedule of reinforcement. This is because
under partial schedules, behavior is more resistant to extinction.
There are four partial schedule of reinforcement: fixed ratio
(FR), variable ratio (VR), fixed interval (FI) and variable
interval (VI).
The type of partial schedule that is used depends on the type of
behavior being studied and on the speed of learning desired. A
fixed ratio schedule leads to the highest overall response rate,
but each of the four types of partial schedules has different
advantages and disadvantages.
The fixed ratio scale is where reinforcement occurs after a

8. predetermined set of responses. This means that the ratio (the
number or amount) is fixed. This method produces a high
response rate, but there is also a brief drop just after
reinforcement. An example of this schedule might be if a car
wash employee earns $10 for every 3 cars washed. Or in the
lab, a rat may receive a food pellet when it presses the bar 7
times.
The next schedule is variable ratio. Here, reinforcers occur
unpredictably. The ratio varies. This method also has high
response rates. There is also no pause after reinforcement and
behaviors are very resistant to extinction. An example of the
variable ratio schedule includes slot machines. Different slot
machines have varying schedules of reinforcement. So any one
machine may pay out on the first response, the seventh, or even
the twentieth.
The two ratio schedules just discussed are response-based,
meaning reinforcement is based on the number of behaviors or
responses demonstrated.
Interval schedules are time based. In the fixed interval
schedule, reinforcement occurs after a predetermined amount of
time has passed. The interval of time is fixed. The responses
to this schedule tend to increase as the time for the next
reinforcer is near, but drop off after reinforcement and during
the interval.So, for example, you can get a monthly paycheck.
Just after being paid, your performance might improve, but then
will drop off to whatever your average is again.
Lastly, we have the variable interval schedule. Reinforcement
in this schedule occurs unpredictably. So, the interval of time
varies. This method has a relatively low response rate, but
responses are steady because the animal or person cannot
predict when the reward will come. An example of this method
is the use of pop-quizzes in the classroom. You may study at a
slow but steady rate because you can’t anticipate when the next
quiz will be.
When teaching new and complex behaviors, like learning a new
language or playing the piano, shaping is also a valuable tool.

9. These are behaviors that aren’t likely to occur naturally so
shaping helps to solidify these behaviors. Shaping is
reinforcement by a series of successively improved steps
leading to the desired response. For example, there is a female
monkey called Momoko in Japan who is famous for water-skiing
and other water activities. Animal trainers used several
principles of reinforcement to shape her behavior in many
successive steps.
First they reinforced Momoko with a small food treat for
standing or sitting on the water ski. Then they reinforced her
each time she put her hands on the pole. After that, they slowly
dragged the water ski on dry land and reinforced her for staying
upright and holding the pole. They continued reinforcing each
step until she was water skiing in the ocean.
Unlike reinforcement, punishment decreases the strength of a
response or behavior. Like reinforcement, there are two types
of punishment - positive and negative. Positive punishment is
the addition of a stimulus that decreases (or weakens) the
likelihood of a behavior occurring again. So for example, a
parent might give a child extra chores following a bad report
card. Negative punishment is the taking away of a reinforcing
stimulus, which decreases (or weakens) the likelihood of the
response occurring again. So here, a parent might take away a
teen’s cell phone following a bad report card.
Although punishment plays an unavoidable role in our social
world, it can be problematic. To be effective, punishment
should be immediate and consistent. However, in the real
world, this is really hard to do. Consider the behavior of
speeding while driving. Police officers can’t stop every driver
every time they speed. And when punishment is not immediate,
during the delay the behavior is likely to be reinforced on a
partial schedule, which makes it highly resistant to extinction.
Even if punishment immediately follows the misbehavior, the
recipient may learn what not to do but not necessarily what to

10. do instead. Punishment can also have serious side effects.
Some of these side effects include increased aggression, passive
aggressiveness (e.g., forgetting on purpose to mail a letter for
someone), avoidance behavior, and learned helplessness (e.g.,
after many failed attempts person acquires sense of
powerlessness and makes no further attempts to escape
situation).
In addition to classical and operant conditioning, we learn
many things through observational learning. This involves
learning a new behavior or information by watching others.
This is also known as social learning or modeling. Throughout
our lives we learn through observation. Watching others helps
us to avoid dangerous stimuli in our environments. We also
learn how to think and feel and observation shows us how to act
and interact socially.
Albert Bandura provided important examples of observational
learning in his research with children. In several experiments,
children watched an adult kick, punch, and shout at an inflate
clown doll called a Bobo doll. Later children who had seen the
aggressive adult were much more aggressive with the Bobo doll
than children who had not seen the aggression.
According to Bandura, observational learning requires at least
four separate processes: attention, retention, motor production,
and reinforcement.
Attention means that in order to learn we need to be paying
attention. Retention involves remembering and taking note of
what was demonstrated. Motor reproduction means that in order
to imitate a model we need to have the motor skills to carry out
the task. And reinforcement, as you have recently learned,
refers to the idea that we are more likely to repeat modeled
behavior if the model was reinforced for the behavior.
References
Carlson, N. R. (2013). Physiology of Behavior. (11
th
ed).
Pearson.

11. Meyers (2007). Psychology. (8
th
ed.). New York: Worth Publishers.
Wade. C. & Tavris, C. (2012). Invitation to Psychology (5
th
ed.). Boston: Prentice Hall.