Cognitivism Learning Theories: A teachers guide

What Is Cognitivism in Learning?

Cognitivism is a theory of learning that focuses on the internal processes of the mind—how information is received, organised, stored, and retrieved. Unlike behaviourist theories that focus on observable actions, cognitivism sees learning as an active, mental process shaped by experience, memory, and prior knowledge. It views the mind as an information processor, similar to a computer, where new information is constantly compared with existing knowledge and adapted accordingly.

In the classroom, a cognitivist approach supports environments that promote thinking, reflection, and problem-solving. Rather than relying on repetition or rote memorisation, this model encourages students to engage in activities that help them make sense of ideas, connect concepts, and apply knowledge to new situations. For example, asking learners to explore open-ended questions or analyse a real-world problem helps them move beyond surface understanding to deeper comprehension.

Cognitive learning theory assumes that knowledge is constructed, not simply absorbed. Learning happens when students are challenged to apply their own reasoning, draw on existing frameworks, and revise their thinking in light of new information. This is why strategies such as questioning, concept mapping, and retrieval practice are so effective—they support the mental work of learning.

You may recognise the influence of cognitivism in the work of theorists such as Jean Piaget, David Ausubel, Albert Bandura, and David Kolb. If you're interested in how these perspectives have shaped our understanding of thinking and learning, and how they differ from behaviourist or constructivist models, this article will explore the key principles, classroom strategies, and practical applications of cognitive theory in education.

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Designing Instruction with the Principles of Cognitivism

Cognitivist learning theory offers practical principles that help educators support how students absorb, organise, and apply new information. At its core, cognitivism views learning not as a passive transfer of facts but as a process of building and refining internal knowledge structures. This means instruction should be purposefully designed to enhance understanding, make connections to prior learning, and strengthen long-term memory.

One of the key ideas in cognitivism is that new knowledge is most effective when it builds on what learners already know. By activating prior knowledge, helping students see patterns, and supporting them to mentally organise content, teachers can make learning more meaningful and easier to retain.

Here are several guiding principles that underpin a cognitive approach to instruction:

• Learning should be intentional and focused, with clear goals and relevant tasks.
• Students benefit from being self-directed, taking ownership of how and what they learn.
• Learning happens through a process of analysis, questioning, and discovery, not passive consumption.
• Organising information into schemas helps students construct mental models that support understanding.
• Encoding information into long-term memory is strengthened when content is chunked, revisited, and connected across lessons.
• Curriculum should be well-sequenced and structured to show how each part fits into the wider learning journey.

These principles provide a foundation for designing learning environments that nurture deeper understanding and cognitive growth.

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What Does Cognitive Learning Look Like in Practice?

Cognitive learning is more than absorbing facts—it’s about helping students think better. It involves guiding learners to become aware of how they learn, connect ideas meaningfully, and actively process information rather than memorising it. In the classroom, cognitive learning strategies promote long-term understanding, encourage self-reflection, and deepen student engagement with content.

Unlike passive learning, which centres on repetition, cognitive learning focuses on mental effort. Learners are encouraged to explore, interpret, and reframe ideas. It’s about developing metacognitive awareness—helping students think about their thinking—and using that awareness to improve how they approach new learning tasks.

Some effective strategies that reflect cognitive learning principles include:

• Using visual aids such as diagrams or concept maps to clarify abstract ideas and support recall.
• Encouraging learners to explain their thinking, justify choices, or teach a concept to a peer.
• Facilitating connections between concepts, past knowledge, and real-life contexts.
• Engaging in deeper discussions to uncover layers of meaning and challenge surface-level understanding.
• Prompting reflection, asking students what they’ve learned, what surprised them, or what remains unclear.
• Creating opportunities for discovery, where learners generate solutions rather than receive them.

By embedding these strategies into daily teaching, educators can promote more meaningful learning experiences and equip students with the cognitive tools they need to learn independently and flexibly.

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What is the main goal of instruction in Cognitivism?

Cognitivist learning theories explain that the primary goal of instruction is to achieve academic achievement through the Acquisition Of Knowledge in the most effective way. To achieve the main goal of instruction students are encouraged to use the most beneficial cognitive strategies to gain knowledge.

Self-regulated learning is the process of monitoring, controlling and managing student behaviours, thoughts, emotions, and interactions with the environment, including social interactions and task performance. Due to its large scope, self-regulated learning gives opportunities for learners to know how responses can be organized across a wide range of coping strategies and skills (E.G., Self-Planning cognitive restructuring, self-talk, etc.). With such a broad focus, self-regulated learning enables an individual to explain the loss of control which may occur due to engaging in a wide range of less desirable behaviours such as excessive drinking.

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What is the difference between Cognitivist and Behavioral Theories of learning?

Cognitivist Theories and Behavioral Theories of learning are both these instructional theories that have a dominant position in educational psychology. Cognitive development theory was proposed by psychologist Jean Piaget in response to behaviorism proposed by B. F. Skinner and John B. Watson during the early 20th century. There is a major difference between cognitive learning theories and behavioral theories of education. The cognitive learning theories focus on cognitive development or cognitive processes involving internal mental processes and the primary approach of behaviorism is focused on external factors or external observable behaviours. The behavioural theory believes that a student is a passive blank slate shaped by external forces or both negative and positive reinforcement.

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What is the Two-store Model of cognitivism?

The Two-store Model or dual memory model is an early model of cognitivism. This specific approach to learning assumes that there is a connection between long-term memory and working memory. The two-store model of cognitive theory is now considered incomplete and simplistic but seen as a beginning point to understanding cognitive learning theories. The expansion in the field of developmental psychology has led to the development of more theories of cognitivism. Hence, in Educational Psychology there is no universally accepted theory or cognitive model.

How can educational technology aid cognition for learning?

Cognitive Load Theory proposes that when the mind's cognitive abilities get overloaded it stops the learning process in the students. However, Cognitive Load Theorists believe that Educational Technology may help reduce cognitive abilities overload. The main goal of instruction is to use Educational technology to keep students focused on the learning process of the target lesson.

From an instructional design perspective, we can use technology to break down complex tasks and scaffold the learning experience. Advanced knowledge acquisition is dependent upon how well a student has thought about the curriculum content. Instructional design practices can be enhanced by providing learning tools that lessen the load on the working memory.

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Using Mobile Learning to Support Cognitive Development

As digital tools become more integrated into education, mobile learning offers new opportunities to support how students think, process, and apply information. When used with purpose, mobile applications and platforms can provide flexible, accessible ways for students to engage in active learning—both in and beyond the classroom.

Mobile learning supports the development of cognitive skills by creating environments where students can interact with content, revisit key concepts, and access real-time feedback. Many tools are designed to prompt reflection, support recall, and scaffold problem-solving—core elements of a cognitive approach.

Research suggests that mobile learning can enhance student motivation and engagement, which are key drivers of higher-order thinking. With the right tools and structure, students can develop essential 21st-century skills such as critical thinking, collaboration, and information management.

When thoughtfully implemented, mobile learning:

• Increases accessibility to learning materials and feedback.
• Allows students to learn at their own pace, supporting self-regulated learning.
• Encourages interactive, problem-based engagement that supports deeper understanding.

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Applying Cognitivist Strategies in Classroom Practice

In the classroom, a cognitive approach focuses on how students make sense of new content—not just whether they can recall it. Rather than prioritising repetition, cognitivist strategies encourage students to engage actively with ideas, organise information meaningfully, and reflect on their own thinking.

This means designing lessons that help learners make connections between prior knowledge and new material, as well as supporting them to retrieve, apply, and explain their understanding. It also involves teaching students how to manage their own learning—whether they prefer visual tools, auditory cues, or hands-on tasks.

Here’s how cognitive strategies support effective learning in practice:

• Helping learners choose strategies that suit their learning style and task (e.g., diagrams, note-taking, talk routines).
• Building skills for long-term retention of key ideas through repetition with variation and retrieval tasks.
• Encouraging learners to see how small concepts contribute to larger ideas—moving from detail to the ‘big picture’.

When applied consistently, these approaches help students think more clearly, learn more independently, and develop skills that support academic achievement.

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Cognitivist Thinking in Organisational Learning

Cognitive theory isn’t limited to schools—it also plays a role in workplace learning and decision-making. In professional settings, cognitive strategies help individuals solve unfamiliar problems by drawing on familiar frameworks. The emphasis is on recognising patterns, applying previous knowledge, and making reasoned decisions under new conditions.

For example, consider a workplace scenario where a training manager asks an intern to carry out a cost-benefit analysis. The intern may not have performed this task before, but if they’ve encountered similar structured thinking in another context—such as weighing options or mapping out outcomes—they can transfer that cognitive pattern to the new task.

This approach reflects the core principle of transferable thinking - the idea that cognitive strategies developed in one area can be adapted and applied elsewhere. It's a reminder that effective learning isn’t just about acquiring facts, but about developing the mental habits that support problem-solving in real-world situations.

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Further Reading and Critiques of Cognitivism

Together, these articles offer a critical examination of cognitivism, suggesting that while it has provided valuable insights into the cognitive processes, its scope may be too narrow, overlooking the importance of social context, nonrational processes, and the subjective experience of individuals.

This critique calls for a broader, more integrative approach to understanding cognition that encompasses both rational and nonrational elements, as well as the interplay between individual minds and their social and physical environments.

1. The extent of cognitivism by V. Arponen (2013). This article explores the critique of cognitivism, especially in the context of human action and social surroundings, inspired by Wittgenstein's philosophy. It discusses the concept of shared knowledge as a driving force behind human action, highlighting latent cognitivism within the critique itself. The study provides an insightful examination of cognitivism's scope and its implications for understanding human behavior and social interaction. 

2. The nature and plausibility of Cognitivism by John Haugeland (1978). Haugeland's paper delves into cognitivism's scientific underpinnings, differentiating it from mathematical physics and emphasizing its focus on interpreted states and processes. It argues for cognitivism's empirical rigor, despite its theoretical novelty, and discusses its stance on reductionism and the meaningfulness of cognitive processes. 

3. Where Did the Word 'Cognitive' Come From Anyway? by C. D. Green (1996). Green traces the philosophical history of the term "cognitive," showing its evolution from early 20th-century ethical theories through logical positivism. The paper argues that cognitivism, by focusing on truth-evaluable aspects of the mental, offers a scientific framework that excludes certain problematic aspects of mentalism, such as consciousness and emotion.

4. Escape From Cognitivism: Exercise as Hedonic Experience by P. Ekkekakis and Zachary Zenko (2016). This article critiques cognitivism's dominance in exercise psychology, arguing for a more nuanced understanding of exercise behavior that incorporates nonrational processes. It suggests a dual-process model that better accounts for the complex motivations behind exercise, proposing that hedonic experiences play a significant role. 

5. The holy grail of cognitivism: a response to Adams and Aizawa by Richard Menary (2010). Menary addresses Adams and Aizawa's definition of cognitivism, challenging their stance on cognitive representation and content determination. He advocates for cognitive integration, arguing against the strict dichotomy between derived and underived content and emphasizing the empirical research that blurs these distinctions. 

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