I am a Teacher/Coach

Often when reading blogs (and articles and books) by other people, I find myself wishing that I could get to know the writer as a person – so that I would find more depth and meaning in her offering. Following my own wishes, we will be sharing who we are, what we have done, and what we believe in our blogs.

This is also an invitation for you to share your thoughts, feelings, and experiences with us.

My father and mother came to the United States as young adults. Our siblings and I, four boys and one girl, were taught to be devoted learners, students, and seekers with great lives and futures before us.

Early in my college career, I decided to become a Teacher. Along the way with a solid background of playing several sports, I also decided to become a Coach. I was not surprised while taking an early college course in psychology that Coaching and Teaching are exactly the same in one essential area; they have to do with Learning and How People Learn.

While I taught middle-grade, junior high school, and high school classes, I continued my master’s and doctoral college programs in classes based on Education and on Psychology and I learned about another area of study; Educational Psychology. This area really intrigued me. During my studies, I have been introduced to several different theories of psychology each designed to help me understand human behavior and thought.

Behavioral Psychology The theory of behavioral psychology; behaviorism; is that your behavior is directly shaped by your environment. By studying an individual's environment and controlling it, behavior can be modified and measured. This was first developed by John B. Watson. B. F. Skinner later developed the theory of operant conditioning. Achievement testing of children is based on this theory. Ivan Pavlov's work extended the concept into classical conditioning. In his famous work with dogs, he developed the Stimulus-Response (S –R) concept.

The Humanistic Theory

The humanistic theory of psychology developed by Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers primarily regards the humanity of the individual and the different factors which contribute to their feelings, their actions, and their self-image. Each of us is unique in our own way and we are capable of considering change if we so choose. Each of us has rights and accepts the related responsibilities for being happy and functional. Arthur Combs and Earl C. Kelley introduced the use of this theory into our public schools with a great deal of success in the mid-and late 1900s.

Gestalt Psychology In the early 1900s, the German psychologists Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, and Wolfgang Köhler introduced the principle that when the human mind (perceptual system) forms a percept or "gestalt", the whole has a reality of its own, independent of the parts. We experience things as a unified whole. Instead of breaking down thoughts and behavior to their smallest elements, you must look at the whole of experience - the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. We can think of our volleyball team as being a whole entity working together as a unit while seeing each individual player as a learning, growing person.

The Constructivism Theory

John Dewey, Jean Piaget, and Jerome Bruner were leaders in the Constructivism school of psychology that began in the 1930-1904s and came back in the 1970-80s. It studies mental processes including how people think, perceive, remember, and learn. Children take an active role in the learning process, acting much like little scientists as they perform experiments, make observations, and learn about themselves and the world around them. The teacher serves as a guide to the learner rather than being the source of what is to be learned. As kids interact with the world, they continually add new knowledge, build upon existing knowledge, and adapt previously held ideas to accommodate new information. Real “Learning by Doing.”

Which Theory of Psychology Do I Prefer?

So, you may ask me, “Are you a Behaviorist?” or “Are you a Gestaltist?” or “Are you a Humanist?” or “Are you a . . . .?”

Long ago in my life in Educational Psychology, I chose to be a Generalist, dealing with all kinds of theories and beliefs. I did not become a Specialist in Behaviorism, for example. I select and operate using a set of theories that work together rather than accepting and using one theory. I do use Constructivism as my operational interaction with my learners. The content of the courses and lessons lean toward humanistic theory.