Editing Learning theory (education) (section)

====Gestalt theory====
[[Cognitive]] theories grew out of [[Gestalt psychology]]. Gestalt psychology was developed in [[Germany]] in the early 1900s by Wolfgang Kohler<ref>{{cite book|last1=Soltis|first1=Jonas|title=Perspectives on Learning|date=2004|publisher=Teachers College Press|location=New York|isbn=978-0-8077-4447-5|page=34|edition=Fourth}}</ref> and was brought to [[United States|America]] in the 1920s. The German word ''Gestalt'' is roughly equivalent to the English "[[emergence]] (of a form-as in the game [[pictionary]], when all of a sudden one recognises what the person is trying to convey - the form and meaning "emerge")", ''configuration'' or ''organization'' and emphasizes the whole of human experience.<ref>{{cite book|last=Yount|first=William R.|title=Created to Learn|year=1996|publisher=Broadman & Holman|location=Nashville|page=192}}</ref> Over the years, the Gestalt psychologists provided demonstrations and described principles to explain the way we organize our sensations into perceptions.<ref>{{cite book|last=Myers|first=David G.|title=Exploring Psychology|year=2008|publisher=Worth|location=New York, New York|page=163}}</ref> Max Wertheimer, one of the founding fathers of Gestalt Theory, observed that sometimes we interpret motion when there is no motion at all.<ref name="Gestalt Psychology">{{cite web|last1=Boeree|first1=George|title=Gestalt Psychology|url=http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/gestalt.html}}</ref> For example: a powered sign used at a convenience store to indicate that the store is open or closed might be seen as a sign with "constant light". However, the lights are actually flashing. Each light has been programmed to blink rapidly at their own individual pace. Perceived as a whole however, the sign appears fully lit without flashes. If perceived individually, the lights turn off and on at designated times. Another example of this would be a brick house: As a whole, it is viewed as a standing structure. However, it is actually composed of many smaller parts, which are individual bricks. People tend to see things from a holistic point of view rather than breaking it down into sub units.

In Gestalt theory, psychologists say that instead of obtaining [[knowledge]] from what's in front of us, we often learn by making sense of the relationship between what's new and old.<ref name="Gestalt Psychology"/> Because we have a unique perspective of the world, humans have the ability to generate their own [[learning]] experiences and interpret information that may or may not be the same for someone else.

Gestalt psychologists criticize behaviorists for being too dependent on overt behavior to explain learning. They propose looking at the patterns rather than isolated events.<ref>{{cite book|last=Merriam, Sharan B.|author-link=Merriam, Sharan B.|title=Learning In Adulthood|year=2007|publisher=Jossey-Bass|location=San Francisco}}</ref> Gestalt views of learning have been incorporated into what have come to be labeled ''cognitive theories''. Two key assumptions underlie this cognitive approach: that the memory system is an active organized processor of information and that prior knowledge plays an important role in learning. Gestalt theorists believe that for learning to occur, prior knowledge must exist on the topic. When the learner applies their prior knowledge to the advanced topic, the learner can understand the meaning in the advanced topic, and learning can occur. Cognitive theories look beyond behavior to consider how human memory works to promote learning, and an understanding of [[short-term memory]] and [[long-term memory]] is important to educators influenced by cognitive theory. They view learning as an internal mental process (including [[insight]], information processing, memory and [[perception]]) where the educator focuses on building intelligence and cognitive development.<ref name="Smith 1999" /> The individual learner is more important than the environment.