The Humanist approach developed from the Cognitive but focuses on experiential learning and the assumption that the individual is ever seeking greater personal adequacy, self-esteem and self-actualisation.
Humanists emphasise the individual’s innate need to achieve personal worth, dignity and creativity and believe a better society will evolve by nurturing these qualities.
Humanist teachers can create a positive classroom climate and encourage the psychological growth towards the creation of self-actualising people.
Humanists believe that learners respond to their environments as they experience it – part of that is the person themselves – the self.
Feeling and emotions play an important part in learning.
What effect might e-Learning contexts have for the Humanist approach?
There could be some obstacles present within e-learning contexts for the humanist approach, whereby the positive classroom environment, feels and emotions, and encouraging atmosphere are not present in online sources as much as in face-to-face contexts. This has a constraining effect on the core values of humanistic approach, therefore various tools would need to be employed to overcome the barriers and create the self-actualization that is the important facet of humanism.
Principles emphasised by Humanist theory:
§ People learn by relating the world to their previous experience – they learn by doing
§ People learn in a free environment that permits and encourages development of potential, self-expression and self-determination
§ People learn co-operatively, which includes constructive feedback in a non-competitive environment
§ The learning that has most meaning for people is that which is contructed by individuals out of their experience
Burns, R. 1995, The Adult Learner at Work, Business & Professional Publishing, Sydney.
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