8 Principles of Humanistic Theory of Learning

Humanistic theory is a principle based on the appreciation of other human beings, unconditionally, for their self-fulfillment in life. Humanistic learning theory came into effect after the behaviorist and psychoanalytic theories. Hence, it is the duty of this article to discuss the Humanistic learning theory by looking at what it is, key principles, and its influence on education.

The Humanistic learning theory as already alluded to, is one that came after the Behaviourist and Psychoanalysis theories where the later sought to understand human beings by analysing the deep unobservable unconscious processes and the former sought to understand human beings by looking at the changes in the outward observable behaviour. Humanism is a paradigm, a philosophy and pedagogical approach that believes learning is viewed as a personal act to fulfill one’s potential. The Humanistic learning theory’s birth is traceable from the likes of Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. It is worth noting that this theory took a different approach in the study of human beings.

Humanistic is understood in the principles of humanism; a belief in human based morality which is a system of thought that is based on the values, characteristics and behaviour that are believed to be best in human beings rather than on any super natural authority, a concern with the needs, wellbeing, and interest of the people.

It is also known as the ‘Third Force Psychology’ as represented in the work of American psychologist Carl Rogers, which views personal growth and mental health as the natural condition of human life. The humanistic school view every human being to possess a drive toward self-actualisation which is the fulfilment of a person’s greatest potential.

The works of Maslow (1970) and Santrock (2008) attest to the fact that human beings have the potential to attain or move toward self-actualisation. It is this inner propensity to grow and develop in every person that makes humanistic psychology to remain with no option apart from it embracing a positive or optimistic view of all people. As a result of people’s ability to move towards self-actualisation humanistic psychology, therefore, attaches a lot of emphasis on having an unconditional positive regard toward all people.

The Humanistic theory as already alluded to, is one that came after the Behaviourist and Psychoanalysis theories where the later sought to understand human beings by analysing the deep unobservable unconscious processes and the former sought to understand human beings by looking at the changes in the outward observable behaviour. The Humanistic learning theory’s birth is traceable from the likes of Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. It is worth noting that this theory took a different approach in the study of human beings.

 MAIN CONCEPTION OF THE HUMANISTIC THEORY OF LEARNING

Humanism is the school of thought that lays emphasis on human behaviour and human centred education. It is concerned with the individual’s feelings, perceptions, beliefs and purposes. Humanist psychologists believe that human beings determine their own behaviour. One of the main proponents of this theory was Carl Rogers.

CARL ROGERS HUMANISTIC LEARNING PRINCIPLES

1. The desire to learn

Human beings have a natural desire to learn. Therefore, failure to learn is not due to the person’s inability to learn, but rather it is due to problems with the learning situation or environment. In the humanistic classroom, learners are given the freedom to satisfy their curiosity, to pursue their interests and to discover for themselves what is important and meaningful about their environment.

2. Significant learning

Significant or meaningful learning takes place when it is perceived by learners as being relevant to their own needs and purposes. The humanists regard learning as a dual process that involves both the acquisition of new information and the personalization of this information. Students learn best when learning is personally significant.

3. Learning without threat

Rogers argued that learning is best acquired and retained in an environment that is free from threats. The learning process is enhanced when students test their abilities, try new experiences or even when they make mistakes without experiencing any criticism.

4. Self-initiated learning

Learning makes sense when it is self-initiated and when it involves both the feelings and mind of the learners. Choosing one’s own learning is highly motivating and provides the student opportunity to “learn how to learn” and a sense of independence.

5. Whole-person learning

Learning must involve all aspects of the person: the cognitive, practical and affective aspects. This creates a feeling of total accomplishment or all –round development.

6. Learning and change

Learning must be suitable to the changing environment. Since knowledge is in a constant state of change every day and that yesterday’s learning may not enable a person to function successfully in the modern world, an individual must be capable of learning in a changing environment.

Carl Rogers identified two categories of learning, namely, meaningless (cognitive) and meaningful (experiential) learning.

7. Meaningless or cognitive learning

It involves academic knowledge and there is no personal learning for the individual. Since it only involves the mind, this type of learning has no relevance for the whole person.

8. Meaningful or Significant or Experiential Learning

This learning involves applied knowledge, such as how to repair something (e.g. a car). It is the learning that addresses the needs and wants of the learner, and thus has the qualities of personal involvement, self-initiation, self-evaluation and long –last9ing effects.

To Rogers, experiential learning is equivalent to personal development. In his view, all human beings have the natural propensity to learn. And so it is the teachers role to facilitate that learning by encouraging, clarifying and organizing learning resources, but not to impose their own view of knowledge on their students. Rogers suggested that learning is facilitated: –

1. When the student participates in the learning process, having control over its nature and direction;
2. When learning is primarily based on confrontation with real problems, whether they are social, personal, scientific or practical problems;
3. When learners are required to use self-evaluation to assess their progress.

Experiential education, or “learning by doing” is the process of actively engaging learners in an authentic experience that has benefits and consequences. Learners make discoveries and experiment with knowledge themselves, instead of hearing or reading about the experiences of others. Learners also reflect on their experiences, thus developing new skills, attitudes and ways of thinking. Experiential education also empowers learners to take responsibility for their own learning.

Instructional implications of humanistic theory

Learning should be person centred. The curriculum, content and teaching methods should be responsive to the learners’ feelings and personal development. There must be good interaction between the learners and teachers during teaching and learning. In order to further promote humanistic learning, the following instructional strategies and methods may be used:

• Provide learners with a variety of resources that can support and guide their learning experiences.
• Make use of peer tutoring. This involves learners teaching one another for the mutual benefit of the student tutor and student tutee.
• Use discovery learning to allow learners to seek answers to real questions, make their own discoveries and become involved in self – directed learning.

Role of the humanistic teacher

Carl Rogers made significant contributions to the field of education with his theory of experiential learning. Experiential learning’s key idea involves engaging student voice in active roles for the purpose of learning. The experiential learning mindset changes the way the teachers and students view knowledge. Knowledge is no longer just some information on paper. It becomes active, something that is dealt with in real life situations. It starts to make teachers become experience providers, and not just transmitters of the written word. Students become knowledge creators as well as knowledge gatherers.

Besides changing the roles of students, experiential education requires a change in the role of teachers. Teachers become active learners too, experimenting together with their students, reflecting upon the learning activities they have designed, and responding to their student’s reactions to the activities.

In humanistic education, the teacher’s role is mainly that of the facilitator. Teachers have to create a conducive learning atmosphere by encouraging students, clarifying issues and organizing learning resources. They also have to have to demonstrate realness or genuineness, i.e., to be honest in their relationship with learners.

Teachers also need to be trustworthy so that learners can feel free to explore with support from teachers. Teachers need to be empathetic to the learners, i.e., to put themselves in the place of learners and experience the learners’ perceptions and feelings.

To conclude, it should be noted that the humanistic theory of learning emphasizes democratic and discovery methods of teaching and learning. It encourages the involvement of pupils in the learning process. There should be unconditional positive regard because people function well when accepted as they are. Therefore, positive attitudes like love, respect, tolerance and acceptance are important in the learning-teaching process.

How does learning comes about;

There are three main divergent views among psychologist on how learning comes about: these are categorised as:

(i)                 behaviourism

(ii)               Social constructivism

(iii)             cognitivism

The field of humanistic psychology was intentionally formulated as a comprehensive theoretical framework aimed at elucidating the innate capacities that can be harnessed by all individuals, regardless of their individual characteristics or circumstances. The essence of this theory lies in its recognition of the inherent potential of humanity and its steadfast commitment to facilitating self-actualization—the pinnacle of human development. Notably, according to Maslow (1970), humanistic psychology places paramount emphasis on the “self,” underscoring individuals’ subjective interpretations of their experiences and highlighting their autonomy in selecting actions, rather than mere reactions to external stimuli or reinforcement.

It is crucial to grasp that humanistic theory specifically addresses the cultivation of individuals’ complete capabilities and aims to foster holistic growth. In alignment with Woolfolk’s perspective (2010), humanistic psychology is concerned not only with intellectual maturation but also with emotional well-being, psychological equilibrium, creative expression, social integration, physical development, and spiritual fulfillment.

Consequently, the theory encompasses the fulfillment of diverse needs, encompassing physiological, psychological, spiritual, social, creative, and emotional aspects. It is the responsibility of educators to comprehend that limitations in any of these fundamental human needs can result in hindered learning experiences. Therefore, by adopting the principles of humanistic learning theory, educators can guide learners towards achieving their full potential by creating an inclusive and supportive environment that accommodates the unique requirements of all students, including those who may face adversity or disadvantage.

In essence, humanistic theory stands apart from other educational theories by virtue of its three foundational principles, as astutely delineated by Munsaka (2011:53-54):

–          Humanistic psychology unlike other theories takes a positive or optimistic view of all people.

–          Humanistic psychology views each human being as a unique whole.

–          Humanistic psychology believes each person’s perspective or point of view should be respected. It places a lot of emphasis on having an unconditional positive regard toward, all people…

In this, it is learnt that every child has the potential to learn; hence the teacher should not judge negatively or positively depending on the outward appearance. They should instead strive to motivate learners into complete use of their full potentials.

Principles of Humanistic Education

There are five basic principles of humanistic education:

1. Students should be able to choose what they want to learn. Humanistic teachers believe that students will be motivated to learn a subject if it is something they need and want to know.
2. The goal of education should be to foster students’ desire to learn and teach them how to learn. Students should be self-motivated in their studies and desire to learn on their own.
3. Humanistic educators believe that grades are irrelevant and that only self-evaluation is meaningful. Grading encourages students to work for a grade and not for personal satisfaction. In addition, humanistic educators are opposed to objective tests because they test a student’s ability to memorize and do not provide sufficient educational feedback to the teacher and student.
4. Humanistic educators believe that both feelings and knowledge are important to the learning process. Unlike traditional educators, humanistic teachers do not separate the cognitive and affective domains.
5. Humanistic educators insist that schools need to provide students with nonthreatening environment so that they will feel secure to learn. Once students feel secure, learning becomes easier and more meaningful.

APPLICATION OF HUMANISTIC THEORY TO EDUCATION SYSTEM

Appreciating the fact that the Humanistic theory was designed as a general theory to explain how human beings’ full potential can be tapped to acknowledge the importance of the theory in the classroom:

Facilitator helps to establish the climate of the class attitude towards learning.

(1)    The facilitator unconditionally helps the class or individuals classify their purposes.

(2)    The facilitator helps each student utilise her/his own drives and purposes as the driving force in learning.

(3)    The facilitator provides a wide range of resources for learning.

(4)    The facilitator provides students with content which is relevant to the learner’s needs and interests, to give them control over their own learning and to equip them for the future by teaching them how to learn and how to solve problems.

In addition to the abovementioned application of humanistic theory to the learning environment, educators who embrace humanistic theory of learning should not condemn learners based on their past mistakes or behavior, but instead focus on the present state of the learners and see how best to help them progress. After all, humanistic psychology holds the belief that the present is the most important aspect of the person, thereby focusing on the here and now rather than looking at the past or trying to predict the future.

Furthermore, teachers should create a learning environment that will enable pupils to become psychologically healthy. At the same time, educators should train learners to take responsibility for their own achievements. This is due to the fact that humanistic theory is reality-based, where learners should be responsible for their actions whether those actions are positive or negative.

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