Defining what is learning: Understanding Learning and Knowledge Acquisition

Definition of learning- is the acquisition and development of memories and behaviors, including skills, knowledge,
understanding, values and wisdom. It is the goal of education, and the product of experience. It is therefore a relatively
permanent change in behavior.
Other Definitions:
1. A process inferred from relatively stable changes in behavior that result through practice of interaction with and adaptation to
the environment (Goodwin and Klausmeier)
2. The development of new associations as a result of experience ( Good and Grophy).
3. The modification of an organism’s behavior as a result of maturation and environmental experience.
Metaphors for Learning
Using the above clean questions, we elicited a metaphor for learning from ten adult students:
1. Planting flowers -- A seed is planted in my mind which I nurture with water and sun in the faith that it will sprout and grow.
2. Playing cards -- I divide things into four categories and look for patterns across the suits until the logic and meaning emerges
and I know which card to play.
3. Savings account -- I invest the time to accumulate data and information until there is enough interest that I can roll it over into
the next idea.
4. Switching on a light bulb -- It's not until the light switches on that I have an insight or an 'ah ha'.
5. Eating -- You need to take in the basic meat and potatoes before you get to the mouth-watering dessert.
6. Being a detective -- It's all about uncovering the facts, looking for clues and asking the right questions until the whole mystery
makes sense.
7. Peeling an onion -- I peel off a layer which reveals the next layer to be peeled off. Each time something teIls me I'm get
closer to the core of the matter.
8. A quest -- I'm searching for that illusive something and every step I take brings me closer to what I need to know, but I never
get there ... it's a continuous journey.
9. Sculpting -- You start with the raw material and shape it into a form that's pleasing to the eye.
10. Wrestling -- I struggle with the ideas until they're pinned down and I've captured them.
Inspiring Metaphors for Learning
1. A journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step. 5. Learning is like a search for hidden treasure.
2. Learning is like building a house. 6. Learning is like collecting seashells.
3. A new idea is the spark that lights an eternal flame. 7. Learning is like making new friends.
4. Learning is like climbing a mountain. 8. Learning is a Gift
Metaphors about the Struggles of Learning
9.
Learning is a roller coaster: it’s full of highs and lows. 17. Learning is like wearing a sweater on a hot day.
10. Learning is like housework: It’s never done! 18. Learning is like carrying a stone on your back up a hill.
11. Learning is like walking through a maze. 19. Learning is like setting across an open ocean.
12. Learning is like cracking a code. 20. Learning is like swimming through mud.
13. Learning is like drowning in too much information. 21. Learning is like being tossed by the currents in the sea.
14. Learning is like wrestling a lion. 22. Learning is like walking in the dark.
15. Learning is like eating an elephant: it’s hard to digest 23. That class was like being hit by a truck.
the information. 24. Learning is like pulling teeth.
16. Learning is like solving a puzzle.
Metaphors for Theories of Learning
25. Learning is scaffolded by great teachers. 28. A classroom is a walled garden.
26. Knowledge is constructed in the mind. 29. The Lightbulb Moment.
27. Children are blank slates / empty vessels.

Theories of Learning

A. Edward Thorndike’s Connectionism,/Associatianism Theory: Human activity is based on association between stimulus
and response.
a. Law of effec
b. Law of exercise
c. Law of readiness
B. Classical conditioning (Ivan Pavlov): It is based on ADHESIVE principle which means that a response is attached to a
stimulus through the stimulus occurring just prior to he response so that the recurrence of the stimulus will evoke or cause the
response. (ex. Dog’s salivation experiment)
C. Operant Conditioning (BF Skinner): Organism has to do something in order to get reward that is, it must operate on its
environment.
 Reinforcement: is any behavioral consequence that strengthens behavior. It increases the likelihood of the recurrent of a
particular type of response.
 Types of reinforcement:
-Positive Reinforcement: These reinforces increase frequency.
-Negative Reinforcement: Strengthens behavior by their removal.
-Primary Reinforcement: food, water, sleep
-Secondary Reinforcement: money, grades, starts, tokens etc.
D. Social Learning Theory ( Albert Bandura) –plus emphasis on OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING.
E. Wolfgang Kohler’s Insight Theory- Gaining insight is a gradual processes of exploring analyzing and restructuring
perceptions until a solution is arrived at.
F. Gestalt Theoru (Kohlerm Wertheimer and Koffka)- The primary focus of this theory is on PERCEPTION and how people
assign meanings to visual stimuli,”The whole is more than the sum of all its parts”
G. Kurt Lewin’s Topological and Vector Theory (Field Theory)- the behavior of an individual at a given moment is the
result of existing forces operating simultaneously in his life space. (Internal and External forces).
H. Jerome Bruner’s Theory- Also known as Instrumental Conceptualism. Learning involves 3 simultaneously processes:
acquisition transformation and evaluation.
I. Information processing Theory- The theory describes the psychological events in terms of transformations of information
form input to output. It stresses the value of perception, attention and memory in the learning process.

Type of Learning:
a. Cognitive Learning- is concerned with the development of ideas and concepts.
b. Affective Learning- Involves assimilation of values, emotional reactions and acquisition of attitudes
c. Psychomotor Learning- understanding the external world through the senses and muscles.

Analogical Process
    Analogical process or thinking refers to our ability to perceive and use relational similarity. Reasoning and problem solving
have one thing in common- they involve metacognitive tasks and structures. An analogue is a referent or equivalent cognitive
information in the brain that can easily be accessed or mapped when needed.
          Analogical reasoning is a method of information processing that requires the comparison of related features between the
old and new concepts.
Analogical processes include the following:   Abstraction
  Retrieval   Representation
  Mapping   Evaluation
  Access
Transfer of Learning (Is the effect of prior learning)
            Positive transfer occurs when students ability to harness strong associations for some recall in the future.
            Negative transfer occurs when students find two events or items in similar when in fact they are not.

            According to Bynes (2001) gives the following reasons why transfer does not work:
  
Some bits of knowledge are embedded in single contexts   Inaccurate conceptions of the mind
  Lack of conditional knowledge   Lack of metacognition
  Lack of conceptual knowledge
Ways to Promote Transfer
 Similarity  Degree of Original learning
 Association  Critical Attributes

Ways to Teach Critical Attributes

     Identify the attribute that describes something as what it is
     Provide simple and specific examples
     Move on to the complicated examples in a gradual manner
     Allow students to generate examples of their own
     Help students realize that there is a limit to various attributes

Biological and Environmental: Predispositions in Learning

Brain Lateralization
            The brain has left and right hemispheres, left hemisphere matches objects analytically and verbally. On the other hand,
right hemisphere matches objects that are the same to form a visual pattern or relationship.

Environmental Predisposition in Learning

          Environmental influence starts at the onset of conception of the child; the fetus in the womb is influenced by mother’s
mental, physical, and emotional conditions.
Some of the environmental factors or influence can be categorized as:
        Natural Setting          Social roles and expectation
         Social setting          Media Influence
         Cultural Demands
Module1: Metacognition

The theorist of metacognition is John Flavell

Flavell (1979, 1987) Metacognition is “thinking about thinking” or learning how to learn. It refers to higher order
thinking which involves active awareness and control over the cognitive processes engage in learning. Metacognitive of
knowledge it refers to acquired knowledge about cognitive process, knowledge that can be used
to control cognitive process. Flavell divided metacognitive into three:
 Person variables: How one views himself as a learner. It refers also knowledge about how human beings learn and process
information as well as individual knowledge of one’s own learning process.
 Task variables: Includes knowledge about the nature of the task as well as the type of the processing demands that it will
place upon the individual.
 Strategy variables: Involves the awareness of the strategy you are using to learn a topic and evaluating whether this strategy is
effective.
o Meta-attention – is the awareness of specific strategies so that you can keep your attention focused on the topic or task at
hand.
o Metamemory – is the awareness of memory strategies that work best for you.

MODULE 2: Learner- Centered Psychological Principles (LCP)

The 14 principles are divided into those referring to
1. Cognitive and metacognitive
a. Nature of the Learning Process - learner learns when the environment is conducive to learning.
b. Goals of the Learning Process - learning is always goal-oriented.
c. Construction of Knowledge – the successful learner can link new information with existing knowledge in meaningful ways.
d. Strategic thinking – the successful learner can create and use a repertoire of thinking and reasoning strategies to achieve
complex learning goals.
e. Thinking about thinking – higher order strategies for selecting and monitoring mental operations facilitate creative and critical
thinking.
f. Context Learning – learning is influenced by environmental factors, including culture, technology, and instruction practices.
2. Motivational and affective
a. Motivational and emotional influences on learning – motivation to learn in turn are influenced by the individual’s emotional
states, beliefs, interest and goals, and habits of thinking.
b. Intrinsic Motivation to learn – learning by oneself or internally.
c. Effects of motivation on effort.
3. Developmental and social factors
a. Development influences on learning
b. Social Influences – learning is influence by social interactions, interpersonal relation and communication with others.
4. Individual factors influencing learners and learning
a. Individual Differences in learning
b. Learning Diversity
c. Standards and Assessment
Alexander and Murphy gave a summary of the 14 principles and distilled them into 5 areas:
1. The knowledge base. One’s existing knowledge serves as the foundation of all future learning. The learner’s previous
knowledge will influence new learning specifically on how he represents new information make associations and filters new
experiences.
2. Strategic processing and control. Learner can develop skills to reflect and regulate their thoughts and behaviors in order to
learn more effectively (metacognition)
3. Motivation and affect. Factors such as intrinsic motivation, reasons for wanting to learn personal goals and enjoyment of
learning tasks all have a crucial role in the learning process.
4. Development and Individual Differences. Learning is a unique journey for each person because each learner has his own
unique combination of genetic and environmental factors that influence him.
5. Situation or Context. Learning happens at the context of a society as well as within an individual. The principal goal of
education is to create men who are capable of doing new things not simply repeating what other generation have done men who
are creative, essential and discovers.

MODULE 3: Piaget’s Stages of Development

Piaget, Jean cognitive Theory it focus is on how individuals construct knowledge.
Piaget’s stages of Cognitive Development
Stage 1: Sensory Motor stage – It focuses on the prominence of his senses and muscles movement through which the infant
were to learn about himself and the world.
Stage 2: Pre-operational stage – The pre-operational stage covers from about two to seven years old. Intelligence is intuitive in
nature. The child is closer to the use of symbols. He is egocentric.
Centration – tendency to focus on one aspect of a thing or event, and exclude other aspects. reversibility – ability to reverse their
thinking
Animism – tendency to attribute human like traits or characteristics to inanimate objects.
Transductive reasoning – reasoning from particular to particular(deductive nor inductive.)
Stage 3: Concrete-Operational Stage- The child think logically but only in terms of concrete objects.
Decentering – Ability of the child to perceive the different features of objects and situations.
Conservation – ability to know the properties of objects like volume, masses, etc.
Seriation – Ability to order, arrange things in series based on love dimension such as
volume etc.
Stage 4: Formal Operation Stage – age 12 and 15
Hypothetical reasoning – about a problem
Analogical reasoning – ability to perceive the relationship in one instance and the use that relationship to narrow down possible
answer in another similar situations or problem.
Deductive reasoning – ability to think logically by applying a spherical rule to a particular instance or situation.