I think that the cognitive theory is a very strong theory. It is a fact that children "go back to what they like". Pushing students to like something new and unknown is an issue all teachers face. However, when the novel item is tied to something well known that students are interested in and have a large knowledge base about, students are then able to make the connection and retain the information more readily. Students may stop looking at the information for a while, but when asked to recall the material, if students have made more of an emotional connection with the concept, they will not have issues bringing that information back out.
I agree with the idea of self-determination in the cognitive theory, especially in high school students. They are growing adolescents and want to have more control over their lives than they have. They are achieving new responsibilities and gaining higher level knowledge to prepare them to be on their own. So, why not allow them to make decisions about their education (to an extent)? If presented with options, the students are more likely to work harder on that activity or moreso connect with the information being presented. This is because students have made a decision and now that they have, it is a pride issue. They will make their option the best option no matter what because at that point, the choice was on them and there is no one else to blame for the success or failure. If you supply options to your students, they will also be able to possibly pick an option that pertains to their lives more than any of the other options, and therefore connect with that information more, or even the overall subject. This I would and do apply to my students. I allow them to give me input about how they would like to take a test (to reduce anxiety), and when they are creating something (like an experiment, contraption, etc) I let them use their own creativity and try to limit my guidelines to only help them maintain their ideas.
I disagree in the sense that operant conditioning can come into play to change the behavior from intrinsically motivating to extrinsically motivating through reward and punishment. Simply stating, you can change an internal response or feeling based on an external motivator- candy rewards, gold stars, no homework, etc. However, nothing can replace that intrinsic motivator, which I believe forces kids to not just complete an assignment, but to do their best and apply all they know to it.
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