A student learns a complex laboratory procedure by watching an expert perform it but does not receive any direct reward. Bandura’s theory predicts learning because:
Observational learning can occur without direct reinforcement.
A student first learns fractions using physical objects, then diagrams, and finally mathematical notation. The final stage represents:
Symbolic representation uses language and symbols.
A learner understands a concept after physically manipulating objects before representing it through diagrams and language. Bruner’s sequence is best represented as:
Bruner's sequence is enactive, iconic, then symbolic.
A teacher presents students with an unfamiliar problem and allows them to investigate patterns until they infer the underlying principle. This best represents:
Discovery learning involves inferring principles through exploration.
Which feature most clearly distinguishes reinforcement from punishment?
Reinforcement strengthens behavior; punishment weakens behavior.
A parent removes a child’s gaming privileges following repeated misbehavior, and the misbehavior decreases. This is:
Removing a pleasant consequence to decrease behavior is negative punishment.
A student repeatedly talks during class, so the teacher assigns detention and talking decreases. This is:
Adding an unpleasant consequence to decrease behavior is positive punishment.
A teacher removes an unpleasant classroom duty when a student completes assigned work, increasing the student’s work completion. This is:
Removing an unpleasant consequence to increase behavior is negative reinforcement.
A teacher gives a student a certificate after consistent homework completion, increasing homework behavior. This is:
Adding a pleasant consequence to increase behavior is positive reinforcement.
Little Albert’s fear of the white rat after repeated pairings with a loud noise demonstrates:
Classical conditioning involves pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus.
In Pavlovian conditioning, food naturally producing salivation is best classified as the:
An unconditioned stimulus naturally elicits an unconditioned response.
A dog begins salivating when it hears a sound previously associated with food. The sound has become a:
A previously neutral stimulus that elicits a response after pairing is the conditioned stimulus.
A learner performs poorly because he is neither prepared nor motivated to engage with the task. Thorndike’s principle most directly implicated is:
The law of readiness concerns preparedness and motivation to learn.
A student becomes increasingly proficient at a task primarily because repeated practice strengthens the stimulus-response connection. This illustrates the:
The law of exercise emphasizes practice strengthening connections.
A cat repeatedly performs random actions in a puzzle box until one action produces escape, after which that response becomes more frequent. This best illustrates Thorndike’s:
The law of effect states that satisfying consequences strengthen responses.
A child experiences developmental changes following a major historical event or parental divorce. Bronfenbrenner would emphasize the:
The chronosystem involves time and life transitions.
A child’s development is shaped by prevailing cultural values, socioeconomic conditions and societal expectations. This most directly represents the:
The macrosystem includes cultural and societal values.
A parent’s workplace policy changes the amount of time the parent can spend with the child. The workplace is part of the child’s:
The exosystem includes settings that indirectly affect the child.
A child’s academic performance changes after the parents and teacher develop a significantly better relationship. This is primarily a:
The mesosystem involves interactions among microsystems.
A child is directly influenced by parents, siblings and teachers. Bronfenbrenner would place these influences primarily in the:
The microsystem includes immediate settings and people.
A person supports an action because it protects human dignity even though it conflicts with an existing law. This reasoning most closely reflects:
Stage 6 uses universal ethical principles.
An individual argues that an unjust law should be changed because laws are social agreements intended to protect rights. This reasoning reflects:
Stage 5 is social contract and individual rights reasoning.
A person obeys a law primarily because laws maintain social order and prevent chaos. This is characteristic of:
Stage 4 emphasizes maintaining social order.
A student follows a school rule mainly because doing so earns the approval of teachers and friends. This most closely reflects Kohlberg’s:
Stage 3 emphasizes gaining approval and maintaining relationships.
A child justifies helping a classmate because the classmate may later return the favor. This reasoning best represents:
Stage 2 reasoning is based on exchange and personal benefit.