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I personally think people learn through an unconscious process called experiential learning.  They hypothesize about how the world should work, collect data, compare the data they have collected to see if it fits in their theory, and then revise their theory if they feel enough evidence has been found.  In this theory, as described by Kolb (1984), people construct an understanding of the world around them using what they know as a basis.

I'm working on my personal learning theory again, as a reflective activity in my Masters degree.  I created a very short summary of my personal learning theory before, and am now updating it to include vocabulary and ideas from the semester long course I just finished about learning theories.  I hope most teaching colleges offer this kind of course as part of their teacher training, it has been incredibly valuable to me.

Here is what I have so far:

Personal Learning Theory

The focus of ETEC 512 is the theory behind learning.  We've spent the past 12 weeks looking at different learning theories, and discussing how these learning theories are applicable to our students and our lives.  It's been a pretty interesting overview for me, and one I'm surprised more teachers don't have to go through.  Although I suspect many of these theories feel far removed from the daily part of a classroom, really they embody the very essence of why we teach, and what our best practices are.

Would Vygotsky agree that young children are essentially egocentric?

I think Vygotsky would disagree with Piaget when the latter suggests that young children are essentially egocentric. First, Vygotsky's work was often opposed to Piaget (Miller, 2002, p370), so it was clear that Vygotsky had a negative opinion of Piaget's work.

Beyond the programmed learning examples provided in Unit 2, are there other ways that a behaviourist approach is or can be utilized in an online learning context?

I personally think people learn through an unconscious process very much like the scientific method.  They hypothesize about how the world should work, collect data, compare the data they have collected to see if it fits in their theory, and then revise their theory if they feel enough evidence has been found.  In this way, people construct an understanding of the world around them using what they know as a