Social Learning Theory

Carissa Lewis
Educational Psychology

All teachers want to see each student succeed, but how can they contribute to his or her
future success? How can we, as teachers, help a seemingly dependent child with little motivation
become a self-regulated, resilient, and confident leader in society? Many believe the answers
come, in part, with the knowledge and application of the Social Cognitive Theory in the
classroom. The Social Cognitive Theory is one of several learning theories that explains how
people learnan important concept for all teachers to consider. The theory, developed in large
part by Albert Bandura, is grounded in the idea that people learn primarily from observing others
(Hurst). The multiple aspects of this theory can be divided, but not exclusively, into three
branches: environmental factors, personal factors, and the behavior that results from these
(Culatta). The purpose of this essay is to explore this theorys application in the classroom as it is
one that I can see myself using.
First of all, environmental factors are those that act extrinsically on a child. This is the
area that teachers can have an important role in. For instance, modeling is a powerful tool that
helps children learn desired outcomes. Simply put, a model is a person who demonstrates a
behavior for someone else (Ormrod. Learning in Context). Models can be live, such as
teachers or peers, or symbolic, such as fictional characters that a child likes. The principle of
modeling is that the demonstrated behavior can and will be learned by the observer if he or she
(i) pays attention to the behavior, (ii) remembers the behavior, (iii) reproduces the behavior, and
(iv) has motivation to act out the behavior. An example of a behavior that could be modeled by a
teacher in the classroom is the way he/she interacts with the white board. By observing his/her

actions, the children would see that the white board is used to write or draw on with a marker. If
asked to use the white board themselves, they would probably be capable of replicating the
behavior, especially if appropriate use of the whiteboard was praised or rewarded. Modeling is a
very effective way of teaching children desired behavior.
Praise and reward are examples of extrinsic motivations that are effective with young
children. Modeling appropriate behavior with a whiteboard is a very simple example, but the
same principle can be applied in more difficult tasks, such as modeling how to solve a math
problem or how to cooperate in a group. Sometimes it will take several observations and/or
several models before a child reproduces a behavior. With each observation, a teacher is able to
gradually withdraw instructional support from the child. This is a practice called scaffolding
(Ormrod. Cognitive Development). An example of scaffolding could be a teacher helping a
student with a division problem. The teacher would possibly start the problem out for the student
or give a hint or two at the hardest parts while still letting the child do most of the work. This
process allows students to accomplish things they could not do without assistance; thereby,
creating a great learning experience. Also, children can make important conclusions about
appropriate behavior by observing others. For example, if a little boy named Tony sees his
friend, Bill, being reprimanded for yelling in the classroom, he does not have to replicate the
behavior to know that it is not acceptable in class. Tony learns from observation that if he were to
yell, he would get in trouble, just as Bill had. This phenomenon is called vicarious learning. With
this in mind, it is important that a teacher reinforces appropriate behavior and uses punishment to
extinguish negative behavior. In doing so, students can learn, by observation or experience, what
is acceptable and what is not, and a good learning environment can be produced.

Also, personal factors contribute to the Social Cognitive Theory. For instance, selfefficacy is a major component of this theory. Self-efficacy is the belief in ones ability to succeed
in something. A child can have low self-efficacy in one area and high self-efficacy in another.
There are a few factors that attribute to self-efficacy. For example, a child is more likely to have
high self-efficacy if he or she has had success with the particular activity in the past. For
instance, if a child has been praised for answers she has given in class, she will probably feel
more confident in the future answering questions. A student will also have higher self-efficacy
when he or she sees someone else succeed in that activity. For instance, if Margaret hears her
friend say, The math quiz was a piece of cake, she will probably believe she can succeed in it
as well. This is why J.E. Ormrod, the author of Essentials of Educational Psychology: Big Ideas
to Guide Effective Teaching, suggests that teachers point out to students others like them that
have succeeded.
Also, Ormrod discusses several additional ways to enhance self-efficacy in students.
These ways include: teaching basic knowledge and skills to mastery, defining success in terms of
task accomplishment or improvement, assuring students of their capabilities, assigning complex
tasks as small-group activities, helping students track their progress, and presenting negative
feedback in a way that communicates competence and the ability to improve. To start, teaching
skills to mastery ensures that children will feel confident in the accomplishing the task. For
example, children should reach mastery of addition while they are in elementary school in order
to be successful for more complex math in middle school. Additionally, defining success in terms
of task accomplishment instead of in comparison with others is important because a child needs
to learn to monitor his or her own learning. In addition, teachers should keep telling students they
can be successful and build them up in their strengths because learners views of themselves are

often affected by the messages they hear from others. Also, having small-group activities allows
students to collaborate and learn from each other, and students who have little self-efficacy could
find the small group model to be less intimating than speaking up in front of the whole class.
Moreover, teachers should help students monitor their progress so that they can get into the habit
of setting goals for themselves. Finally, if a child has errors in his or her work, ideas, behavior,
etc., it is good to correct it but also to encourage him or her in the ability to do the better
alternative (Ormrod. Motivation and Affect). In all these ways, teachers can boost self-efficacy
in their students.
Last, but not least, behavior is a major component of the Social Cognitive Theory. In fact,
the goal of applying the theory is that several positive behaviors will be instilled in the students.
First of all, students should, as time progresses, become better at self-regulation. According to an
article written by an assistant professor of early childhood education at Arizona State University,
self-regulation refers to several complicated processes that allow children to appropriately
respond to their environment (Florez). Self-regulation has to do with the control of ones own
actions, thoughts, and feelings. An example of this would be a small child keeping himself from
hitting a fellow classmate when he did not get his way. By abstaining from the act of aggression,
the child is using self-regulation. When this child is older, he should be able to exert more selfcontrol, maybe choosing to stay inside and study instead of going out with friends. The goal is
for students to come to a place where they are monitoring their own progress, setting goals and
contingencies for themselves, and even given self-instruction. This will lead to their success in
and out of the classroom (Florez). As teachers, especially of young children, we must model
these behaviors and help them in making their own positive decisions. For instance, we can help
by giving cues and hints. An example Florez gave of cuing was suggesting to a boy that he sit on

his hands because he was having a hard time keeping his hands to himself. The goal would be
that, after a while, the teacher wouldnt have to remind the student to keep his hands to himself,
but that he would regulate his own behavior. In addition, it is important that teachers have
appropriate expectations for behavior from their students so that students can be successful. For
example, a teacher could not expect that a kindergarten class could sit still and listen to a lecture
for twenty minutes. As children develop cognitively, they can focus on one thing for a longer
period of time, but the amount of self-control needed to focus for twenty minutes is not
developed at the kindergarten age. If teachers want positive behavior to come from their
students, they should (i) model it, (ii) offer hints for students, and (iii) expect age-appropriate
behavior.
The Social Learning Theory, which is attributed to the psychologist Albert Bandura, is
based on the idea that people learn by observing others. Environmental factors, personal factors,
and behavior are all aspects of this theory and its application. By applying aspects of this theory
in the classroom, teachers can attribute to the success of their student in and out of the classroom.
Works Cited:
Ormrod, Jeanne Ellis. "Learning in Context." Essentials of Educational Psychology: Big Ideas to
Guide Effective Teaching. Third ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, 2012. 22-95. Print.
Ormrod, Jeanne Ellis. "Motivation and Affect." Essentials of Educational Psychology: Big Ideas
to Guide Effective Teaching. Third ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, 2012. 218220.
Print.
Ormrod, Jeanne Ellis. Cognitive Development. Essentials of Educational Psychology: Big
Ideas to Guide Effective Teaching. Third ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, 2012. 175
177. Print.
Culatta, Richard. "Social Learning Theory (Albert Bandura)." Instructional Design. Richard
Culatta, 1 Jan. 2013. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/social-learning.html>.

Hurst, Melissa. "Social-Cognitive Learning Theory: Definition and Examples." Education

Portal. Education Portal, 1 Jan. 2013. Web. 1 Nov. 2014. <http://education
portal.com/academy/lesson/social-cognitive-learning-theory-definition-and
.html#lesson>.
Florez, Ida Rose. "Developing Young Childrens Self-Regulation through Everyday
Experiences." NAEYC.
National Association for the Education of Young Children,
1 Jan. 2011. Web.
<http://www.naeyc.org/files/yc/file/201107/Self
Regulation_Florez_OnlineJuly2011.pdf>.