Learning theories in childhood / Colette Gray and Sean MacBlain.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. An introduction to learning theories -- The organisation and structure of the book -- A brief synopsis of each chapter -- 2. The founding fathers and philosophies of learning -- Introduction to the philosophical and theoretical positions of -- John Locke and the empiricists -- Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the essence of being born `good' -- Friedrich Froebel and the emergence of the kindergarten -- John Dewey and the debate around child-centred education -- Maria Montessori and the nature of children -- Rudolf Steiner and Steiner Waldorf schools -- Rachel and Margaret McMillan and the founding of the Nursery School Movement -- 3. Classical and operant conditioning -- The early years experience -- Pavlov and classical conditioning -- Watson and behaviourism -- The Case of Little Albert -- Little Peter's case study -- Learning through trial and error -- operant conditioning -- Behaviour has consequences -- Reinforcement schedules -- Classical and operant conditioning -- Similarities and differences -- Behaviourism -- Time lines and biographies -- 4. Piaget, learning and cognitive constructivism -- Stages of development -- Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years) -- Pre-operational stage (2-7 years) -- Concrete operational stage (7-11 years) -- Formal operational stage (11-15 years) -- Schema formation -- Criticisms of Piaget's theory -- Piaget in the early years setting -- Piaget's theory in action -- The strengths and weaknesses of Piaget's theory -- Piaget and behaviourism -- Similarities and differences -- 5. Vygotsky: learning in a social matrix -- Vygotsky and social constructivism -- Culture and society -- Developing language and thought -- Play, creativity and thought -- The zone of proximal development -- Walking `a head taller' -- Peer collaboration -- Criticisms of Vygotsky -- Vygotsky in action -- Golden Key Schools -- The strengths and weaknesses of Vygotsky's theory -- Similarities in Vygotsky and Piaget's theoretical perspectives.

6. Bandura, Bronfenbrenner and social learning -- Bandura's social learning theory -- Interpretations of two case studies -- Imitation and Identification -- Self-efficacy and its relevance to individual development -- Development in context -- Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Model -- The importance of motivation -- 7. Bruner and discovery learning/constructivism -- Bruner in context -- Understanding and defining learning -- How children internally represent the world -- The importance of language -- Bruner's views on education -- Connecting Bruner to the twenty-first century -- 8. Developing a new perspective: the new social studies of childhood -- The evolution of the new social studies of childhood -- Methods and methodologies -- Criticisms of the new social studies of childhood -- strengths and weaknesses of the new social studies of childhood -- 9. Theory in practice: learning and the reflective practitioner -- Understanding critical reflection -- Professional conversations and their importance -- Becoming a reflective practitioner -- The importance of observation and listening -- Feuerstein and Social Interactionist Theory -- Developing young learners -- The changing nature of families and house-holds -- The influence of technology -- Creating effective learning environments -- Putting theory into practice.

This text presents the key learning theories and theoriests in children's learning with a balanced but critical review of each perspective.