1. Social Cognitive Views of Learning and Motivation
Cluster 10
Modules 27 – 28

2. Focus Questions
What is triadic reciprocal causality and what role does it play in social cognitive theory?
What is self-efficacy and how does it affect learning in school?
What are the sources of self-efficacy?
What is teachers’ sense of efficacy?
How does self-regulated learning work—what are the phases?
How can teachers support the development of self-efficacy and self-regulated learning?

3. Overview of Cluster 10 I. Social Cognitive Theory
II. Applying Social Cognitive Theory
III. Self-Regulated Learning
IV. Teaching Toward Self-Efficacy and Self-Regulated Learning
V. Diversity and Convergences in Theories of Learning

4. What Would You Do? Review “What would you do?” on p. 421
What organizational skills do students need for your subject or class?
What could you do to teach these skills, while still covering the material that will be on the proficiency or achievement tests the students will have to take in the spring?

5. I. Social Cognitive Theory
Albert Bandura
“beyond” behaviorism
Triarchic reciprocal causality
Key concepts: Self-efficacy & self-regulated learning

6. Albert Bandura
Had to become a self-regulated learner to overcome a lack of educational resources
On faculty at Stanford (since age 28)
Most of what we know about social cognitive theory is based on his work

7. Social Cognitive Theory: Beyond Behaviorism
Behavioral views of learning provide inadequate explanation of learning language and culture
Social Cognitive Theory includes learning from modeling (the social) as well as thoughts, beliefs, expectations, judgments (the cognitive)
Can you think of some types of learning that are difficult to explain using behaviorist theory?

8. Triarchic Reciprocal Causality
Dynamic interplay between personal, environmental, and behavioral influences
Personal factors: beliefs, expectations, attitudes, knowledge
Environmental factors: resources, other people, physical settings
Behavioral factors: actions, choices, verbal statements

10. Triarchic Reciprocal Causality: An Example from the Classroom
Julia has to care for siblings because her mother has to work late (social influence) and can't study for test resulting in a poor grade (behavioral outcome). The teacher then lowers his expectations and, in turn, his behavior towards Julia (social influence). Julia begins to doubt her ability and lowers the goals she has for the class (personal factor) which then impacts the effort she puts forth toward studying for the next test (behavior).
What are some ways to reverse this cycle?

11. Self-Efficacy & Agency
Self-efficacy: Beliefs about personal competence in a given area
Human agency: Ability to make intentional choices, design and execute plans and actions
What are the implications? How may teachers change their practices to support student agency?

12. Self-Efficacy, Self-Concept, Self-Esteem
Context specific
Strong predictor of behavior
“I can do this problem in math”
Self-Concept
Description of self based on comparison to a reference (self or others)
Weaker predictor of behavior
“I am good at math”
Self-Esteem
Judgment of self worth
“I feel good about myself because I am good at math”

13. Sources of Self-Efficacy
Mastery Experiences
Direct success increases efficacy; failure lowers it
Strongest source in adults
Physiological & Emotional Arousal
One’s interpretation of arousal is key
Anxious & worried or excited & “psyched”?

14. Sources of Self-Efficacy cont’d
Vicarious Experiences
Watching someone successfully complete the task increases efficacy—especially if we think we are similar the model
Strong source of self-efficacy in children
Social Persuasion
“pep talk”
Influenced by credibility & expertise of persuader

15. Modeling: Learning from Others
Characteristics of successful models
Developmental status of observer: students need to be able to attend to the model and utilize the strategies they observe
Model prestige & competence: More attention paid to competent, high-status models
Vicarious consequences: Valued consequences are important—”yes, my classmate was able to diagram that sentence, but do I care?”

16. Modeling: Learning from Others
Characteristics of successful models cont’d
Outcome expectancy: “Did the model perform behavior that produced a favorable outcome?”
Goal setting: “Does the model’s behavior help me obtain my goals?”
Self-efficacy: ”My classmate was able to do it, maybe I can too!”

17. II. Applying Social Cognitive Theory
Fundamental questions:
How to best use observational learning?
How can teachers increase students’ sense of efficacy?
What is teacher’s sense of efficacy, and what does it mean for me?

18. Observational Learning in Teaching: Guidelines
Show enthusiasm for what you are teaching!
Demonstrate the task
Model good problem solving: Invite students into your thinking process
Explicitly point out consequences for good (and bad) behavior
Be fair in passing out rewards

19. Self-Efficacy in Learning and Teaching: Guidelines
Teach students specific learning strategies
Reward students for achievement when it signals increased competence
Emphasize progress:
Encourage the adoption of short-term goals that make it easier to see progress
highlight earlier work students have done to show development
encourage students to improve projects in when they have learned more

20. Self-Efficacy Guidelines cont’d…
Model mastery:
Set goals that help students recognize improvement
Share examples of how you or others have developed abilities in a given area
Don’t excuse failure due to problems outside of school, but help students succeed in school
Make specific suggestions for improvement and adjust grades accordingly:
Write comments on work that note what was correct, incorrect, and why mistakes may have been made
Experiment with peer editing
Show how the higher grade reflects greater competence

21. Self-Efficacy Guidelines cont’d…
Connect past efforts and accomplishments:
Ask students to reflect on how they solved difficult problems
Confront self-defeating, failure-avoiding strategies
How might the adoption of failure-avoiding strategies undermine a strong sense of self-efficacy?

22. Teacher’s Sense of Efficacy
Teacher’s belief that s/he can help even difficult students learn
One of the few personal characteristics associated with student learning
Promoted by supportive administrators with high expectations for student success
Teacher’s sense of efficacy is generally high during student teaching, but lowers the first year of teaching
What can you do keep your self-efficacy intact during the first year of teaching?

23. III. Self-Regulated Learning
‘Skills’ and ‘wills’ involved in analyzing tasks, setting goals, planning, applying, and making adjustments for learning
Goal of teaching: that students would learn independently throughout their lives

24. Factors Influencing Self-Regulation
I. Knowledge of
Self—preferred learning approaches, what is easy/hard, coping ability, interests, how to use strengths
Subject
Tasks for learning—different tasks require different approaches/strategies
Learning contexts

25. Factors Influencing Self-Regulation cont’d
II. Motivation
With self-regulated learners, learning is valued over ‘looking good’
Self-regulated learners see purpose in the task
III. Volition
Protecting opportunities to reach goals
Should I study in my dorm room knowing my roommates will return shortly to “coerce” me into going back out with them to have a good time?

26. The Cycle of Self-Regulated Learning

27. Cognitive Behavior Modification
Focus on self-talk to regulate behavior
Five steps:
Cognitive modeling: Adult performs task while ‘thinking out loud’
Overt, external guidance: Child performs task under adult’s instructions
Overt, self-guidance: Child performs task by instructing her/himself aloud
Faded, overt self-guidance: Child whispers instructions to self
Overt self-instruction: Child performs task while guiding performance with inner speech

28. Supporting Self-Regulation
Emphasize encouragement
Teach students to encourage one another
Inform parents of the areas where their children could use the most support
Model self-regulation
Target small steps for improving academic skill
Discuss with students how to set goals and monitor progress

29. Supporting Self-Regulation cont’d
Make families a source of good strategy ideas
Give students strategies they can use at home
Create a lending library of books on goal setting and strategies
Encourage families to help children focus on problem-solving processes
Provide self-evaluative guidelines
Develop rubrics for self-evaluation for students
Provide record-keeping sheets

30. Emotional Self-Regulation
Critical for academic and personal development
Essential emotional self-regulation skills:
Knowing self and others
Making responsible decisions
Caring for others
Knowing how to act

31. Encouraging Emotional Self-Regulation
Create a climate of trust
Avoid listening to ‘tattle tale’ stories
Avoid unnecessary comparisons
Follow through with fair consequences
Help students recognize & express feelings
Provide a vocabulary of emotions
Be descriptive about your own emotions
Encourage students to journal about their feelings

32. Encouraging Emotional Self-Regulation cont’d
Help students recognize feelings of others
Encourage perspective taking
Provide coping strategies
Discuss different ways to handle intense emotions
Model strategies—talk about how you handle intense emotions
Help students recognize cultural differences in emotional expression
Have students discuss how they show emotions in their family
Teach students to ask others how they are feeling

33. IV. Teaching Toward Self-Efficacy and Self-Regulated Learning
Assign complex tasks. The best are:
Achievable, yet challenging
Have multiple goals
Engage students and extend over long periods of time
Provide students w/ info on their progress
Share control with students
Choice results in increased motivation and responsibility for the task
Choice allows student to adjust level of challenge
Model good decision making for students

34. Teaching Toward Self-Efficacy and SRL cont’d
Assign tasks that are self-evaluative
Evaluation embedded within activities
Should emphasize process as well as products
Focus on personal progress
Often less anxiety than traditional assessment
Encourage collaboration
Effective collaboration reflects climate of community
Collaboration encourages co-regulation

35. V. Diversity and Convergences in Theories of Learning
Culture, social context, personal history, ethnicity, language, and racial identity all shape personal characteristics (beliefs, knowledge), environmental features, and behavioral actions and choices
How might being a member of an ethnic, racial, or linguistic group not representative of the majority affect one’s knowledge and beliefs? If you are a member of the majority culture, do you think your thinking would change were you to move to a region of the world where members of your race were in the minority or where your language was not commonly spoken? What are the implications for teachers?

36. Convergences of Theories of Learning
Four “pillars of teaching”
Constructivist: students must make sense of the material
Cognitive: Students must remember what they have understood
Behavioral: Students must practice and apply learning
Social Cognitive: Students must take charge of their own learning