By: Fawzan Hussain
- Share a story about your best learning experience (could be a formal course or something more personal). Why did you enjoy it?
- Describe an example from your life of when you were taught using each method described in this article: behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism.
My best learning experience was learning how to live a healthier lifestyle. A year ago, I went through a rough time and felt lost. I knew something had to change but did not know how.
My journey began with an inventory of where I was. At that point, I wasn’t living healthily – I was slightly overweight, did not exercise, and did not feel too great. That’s when I decided to start journaling and documenting my progress.
In my first journal entry, I outlined my current situation and feelings. In addition, I made a list of what I wanted to do to help me become a better version of myself, with various activities such as reading books, going to the gym, and journaling.
[COGNITIVISM]
In May 2022, I started reading self-help, psychology, and personal development books. Every day, I aim to read ten pages and make notes to outline key points from each section. These self-help books showcase different ways of resolving problems and the mindset shifts we can make in our thinking patterns. Through learning about these strategies, I incorporated these ways of thinking to improve the quality of my life, build a resilient mindset, and better understand the world.
[BEHAVIOURISM]
In June 2022, I started going to my local gym. Since I did not know much about the gym, I decided to work on an exercise plan with a personal trainer – where I would come into the gym four times a week and dedicate each day to exercising a different muscle group. Through consistently showing up to the gym and completing the exercises on my own, I have become more confident in how my body looks, able to carry heavier loads, and received lots of support for my progress.
[CONSTRUCTIVISM]
Over the past year, I have found happiness, peace, and healing by documenting my journey in my journal and self-reflecting. Each journal entry has helped me understand my life better and construe my own meaning of growth from the various self-help books I read, balanced lifestyle, and exercise from the gym.
I enjoy continually working on myself because I feel happier about life, love solving problems, and have a story I am proud to share with those around me. Since starting my personal development journey in May 2022, I have lost over 35 pounds, read 14 books, and created a new identity – Fawzan Hussain, a lifelong learner.
Thanks for sharing your exprience about self learning Fawzan and congrats on your personal growth! If you’re looking for some more books to read I found “Atomic Habits” by James Clear(https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits) was pretty good and helped me look at motivation a little differently.
Hello Fawzan! Your journey toward self-improvement is genuinely inspiring. I can relate to it as I also went through a phase where I felt the urge to improve myself, and hitting the gym was my initial step. Devoting time to oneself enhances self-esteem and contributes to overall improvement.
Thank you for sharing such a personal experience! It’s so inspiring! In fact, working on ourselves is the most difficult. It takes a lot of courage to confront our weaknesses and strive for self-improvement. But the rewards are immeasurable. Keep up the great work!
As for the learning theories, I really like your examples! Great work connecting them with the learning theories. It could be helpful if you could elaborate a bit more on each theory’s key features, benefits, challenges, teaching/learning methods, etc., and then illustrate with your examples.
For example, the behaviourist theory emphasizes the role of reinforcement and punishment in shaping behaviour. The benefits of this approach are that it’s easy to measure and can quickly produce desired outcomes. The cognitive theory, on the other hand, focuses on how people process and store information. It emphasizes the importance of attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. The benefits of this approach include a deeper understanding of how people learn and the ability to apply this knowledge to different contexts.
Using quotes from the readings or any other additional resource can also make your blog post stronger.
I hope this provides some helpful insights into blog post expectations! Let me know if you have any further questions or if there’s anything else I can help you with.
Hi Fawzan,
I love to hear that you are enjoying a healthier lifestyle and all the positive changes it has brought to your life. I also love taking a break and getting some exercise as well as eating good food. Self-improvement is so important and it is definetly a challenge to get in the mindset to stay consistent.
Thanks for sharing,
Kevin Song
Hello Fawzan! I think your story is great. I’m also now trying to figure out how to live a healthier lifestyle. I’ve never been to a gym before, but I’ve been doing it for 3 months now. I can feel my body and mood improving. I hope you stick with it too!
Thanks for sharing.
Hi Fawzan,
I’m happy to hear that your self-improving by adding positive changes to your lifestyle. I’ve been going to the gym for a year now and not only am I physically healthier but mentally too. Going to the gym makes me feel more energetic throughout the day and helps me sleep better at night. It also helps improve your self-discipline which will help in other areas of your life.
Thanks for sharing,
Mumen Ismail.