Vygotsky: Social Cognitive Analysis

What is learning? This is the age-old question that many people—psychologists, philosophers, teachers—have all asked themselves. The answer to this question will differ depending on the viewpoint of whose asking it. Based upon my personal viewpoint, along with the viewpoints of various psychologists, the following paragraphs will analyze various aspects of learning—what it is, how it is obtained, and how a teacher can facilitate it.
Depending on their area of study, psychologists have different views on how learning is obtained. My personal definition of learning stems from Lev Semenovich Vygotsky’s study of Cognitive Development and his views on Constructivism. There is also a reference to Albert Bandura’s contribution to the Social Cognitive Theory. My personal definition of learning is: Learning is the combined use of various sources that allow for growth in multiple areas; it comes mainly from the learner, but can have aid from outside aspects; not contained to just education (for the purpose of this essay, learning is focused in an education environment). Vygotsky factors into this definition through the notion that learning is obtained through various sources, that learning is obtained mainly from the learner, and that outside aspects …show more content…
Building a student’s self-efficacy comes through the idea of modeling, which stems from Albert Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory. Modeling can be accomplished through a teacher, or a peer, which are all outside aides of learning. However, these qualities cannot be utilized effectively if a teacher doesn’t have a strong sense of teachers’ efficacy. By having a strong sense of teachers’ efficacy, a teacher believes they are able to teach the most difficult students. Overall, these four qualities allow for a teacher to effectively facilitate learning in a classroom