1. Behaviorism: Its all in the action
Created by:
Jen, Linda, Melissa, Moriah, Pam

2. Participant Directions
s In order to learn about the behaviorist
theory you will follow this PowerPoint
presentation, answering the questions
with 100% accuracy.
s Answer the questions as you go,and
take the quiz at the end.

3. Behaviorist Theory
s Definition
s Scientists who studied the
behaviorist theory
s Key concepts
s Classroom examples
s Advantages/disadvantages

4. Advantages and Disadvantages
of the behaviorist theory
Advantages Disadvantages
s Shapes behavior s Internalized reasoning
quickly (example 1A) may not be an outcome
(example 1D)
s The learner adapts s The learner adapts to a
to the environment poor environment
( example 2A) (example 2D)
s Behavior can be s Behavior measured may
measured (example 3A) not be a true picture of
understanding(example 3D)

5. Example of Advantage and
Disadvantage 1
Shapes behavior quickly:
s Every time a student would arrive to class on time the teacher would
give the student (on time points.) These points could be used to
purchase a watch from the school store.
Behavior is not internalized:
s A student may act respectful but not feel respect towards a teacher.

6. Example of Advantage and
Disadvantage 2
The learner adapts to the environment
s The class has been trained to write a half page every day. They are
reinforced with a smiley sticker
The learner adapts to a poor environment
s A student adapts to a classroom where the other students’ behaviors
are negative and destructive to the learning environment.

7. Example Advantage and
Disadvantage 3
Behavior can be measured
s Students can take tests to measure whether they can answer the
questions correctly.
Behavior measured may not be a true
picture of understanding
s Taking a true or false test with the assurance of retaking it until the
student gets it right can lead to guessing for the correct answers.

8. Quiz
Advantages/Disadvantages
s A disadvantage to the behaviorist
theory is that students can learn
behaviors quickly.
True / False
s An advantage to the behaviorist theory
is: All students learn the best using this
theory.
True / False

9. Wrong try again

10. Correct move on to the next
question

11. Correct!
Ready to learn more?

12. Who are the Behaviorists?
s Ivan Pavlov Click on picture
s John Watson
s B.F. Skinner

13. You too can be trained!
Back to
Behaviorists

14. Who are these Behaviorists?
s Ivan Pavlov s In 1903 he published his
results calling this a
– 1849-1936 "conditioned reflex,"different
s Pavlov wanted to see if from an innate reflex, such
external stimuli could as yanking a hand back from
affect the salivation process a flame, in that it had to be
– he rang a bell at the same time he learned.
gave the experimental dogs food.
– After a while, the dogs -- which
s Pavlov called this learning
before only salivated when they saw process “conditioning”
and ate their food -- would begin to
salivate when the bell rang, even if s He thought that conditioned
no food were present. reflexes could explain the
behavior of people.
Quiz Back to
yourself
http://llanes.panam.edu/edul6300/Behaviorists.html Behaviorists

15. Who are these Behaviorists?
s John Watson s All animals, he believed,
were extremely
– 1878 - 1958 complex machines that
s Watson was inspired by responded to situations
Pavlov according to their "wiring," or
s He studied the behavior of nerve pathways that were
children and concluded that conditioned by experience.
humans were simply more s In 1913, he published an
complicated than animals article outlining his ideas
but operated on the same – disagreed with Freud
– dismissed heredity as a significant
principles. factor in shaping human behavior.
Quiz Back to
yourself
http://llanes.panam.edu/edul6300/Behaviorists.html Behaviorists

16. Who are these Behaviorists?
s He used operant
s B.F. Skinner conditioning
– 1904 - 1990 – the rewarding of a partial
s Skinner developed behavior or a random act
that approaches the desired
behavioral studies of rats
behavior.
that automatically reward
behavior.
s Skinner believed other all
complicated tasks could be
s He wrote The Behavior of
broken down and taught.
Organisms and began his
novel Walden II, about a
s He developed machines so
commune where behaviorist students could learn bit by
principles created a new kind bit, uncovering answers for
of utopia. an immediate "reward."
Quiz Back to
yourself
http://llanes.panam.edu/edul6300/Behaviorists.html Behaviorists

17. Quiz Yourself on the
Behaviorists!
1. Pavlov began his studies by
a. Seeing if children liked cookies
b. Teaching dogs to salivate at the ring of a bell
c. Developing a theory on behaviorism
Back to
Behaviorists

18. Quiz Yourself on the
Behaviorists!
2. Watson felt that
a. Heredity was important in shaping human
behavior.
b. Animals responded to situations according to
their conditioned experience.
c. That Freud had all the answers
Back to
Behaviorists

19. Quiz Yourself on the
Behaviorists!
1. Skinner used _____ to teach a behavior
a. stimulous
b. pidgeons
c. operant conditioning
Back to
Behaviorists

20. Opps!
You need to go back and read
again!
Back to
Behaviorists

21. Great!
You get an “A”
Back to
Behaviorists

22. Key Concepts
s Classical Conditioning
– Stimulus-Response
– Action causes response
– The bell rings to start class and all students quiet
down and focus attention on the teacher.

23. Key Concepts cont.
s Operant Conditioning
– Stimulus-Response-Reinforcer :
– Specific action causes a desired response when
reinforced
– Students work very hard on mastering their times
tables and teacher gives free pass to skip the
math homework for that night.

24. Quiz Time!
s Pick the best answer to that describes
each term:
s Mrs. Smith flashes the lights to get her
students attention. The students
immediately stop what they are doing and
look her way
– A. Operant Conditioning
– B. Classical Conditioning

25. AWESOME!
Click the picture to go on.

26. OOPS! Try Again!
Click Here

27. QUIZ TIME!
s Mr. Lee gives his students a
free choice of how they will
complete their reading
assignment after they have
completed the read-aloud
portion as a whole class and
behaved very well.
– Classical Conditioning
– Operant Conditioning

28. WOW!
Click the picture to go on.

29. OH NO! Try Again!
Click Here

30. Behavior what?
s Think back to your
Language Arts
days--what is the
main word here in
behaviorism?

31. Choose the base word:
havior
behavior
ism
be

32. “behavior”
Great! You chose the part of the word of behaviorism
That sums up its definition. The concept of behaviorism
Is identifying, encouraging, and measuring behavior’s
Exhibited by a person or animal.
Want to see a
More detailed definition?
example

33. “ism”
This is not the part of the word you
Need to concentrate on. Choose again.

34. “be”
This part of the word behaviorism doesn’t quite get to the
Core of the word. Please choose again.

35. “Havior”
This is not what you want to focus on.
Choose again!

36. Internet Web Sites:
Click here if you like to take quizzes
To learn definitions.
Click here to read information about John Watson,
Who is believed to be the “Father of Behaviorism”
Click here to read a detailed definition of
Behaviorism from the Stanford Encyclopedia
Of Philosophy.

37. Behavior Modification
Here is a series of steps that a “behaviorist” might
Use to get a person to change their behavior.
1. Choose a behavior goal for a particular person.
2. Determine what motivates this particular person.
3. Break the behavior down into several small steps.
4. Implement these steps and record the results.
5. Evaluate the progress and revise the steps as needed.

38. Congratulations! You now have a preliminary
Understanding of what “behaviorism” means.
Please click here to read about key
Concepts of Behaviorism.
Please click here to learn about the people who
Promoted behaviorism.
Please click here to see examples of
Behaviorism used in a school classroom setting.
Please click here to read advantages and
Disadvantages of the behaviorist approach.

39. Examples of Behaviorism in the
Classroom
s The Computer Lab
s Reading
s Math
s Final Quiz

40. The Computer Lab
s Memorization of
computer terms and
parts
s Use of computer
programs with
automated
positive/negative
feedback

41. Math
s Recall facts for
immediate reward
(drill)
s Memorization by
repetition

42. Reading
s Using flash cards to
memorize sight
words
s Writing spelling
words repeatedly

43. Which of the following is NOT an example of
Behaviorism in the classroom?
s Use of computer programs with
automated positive/negative feedback
s Using phonics to sound out words
s Writing spelling words repeatedly
s Recall facts for immediate reward
(drill)

44. s Using phonics to
sound out words is
an application of
prior knowledge to
decode new
material. This is not
a conditioned
response.

45. s Behaviorism often
incorporates
conditioned
responses, which
may be learned
through
memorization,
repetition, or
automatic feedback.