PEDAGOGY AND ICT INTEGRATION ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

UNIT I: PEDAGOGY – CONCEPTIONS AND PERSPECTIVES

1.1 LEARNER, LEARNING, KNOWLEDGE, CURRICULUM, SCHOOLING: INTER-LINKAGES AND

RELATIONSHIPS; WHY AND WHAT OF TEACHING LEARNING

Meaning of Learning:
Learning is the acquisition of habits, knowledge and aptitudes. It involves new ways of doing things, it operates in an
individual’s attempts to overcome obstacles or to re- adjust to new situation. It represents progressive changes in
behaviour. It enables an individual to satisfy his interest to attain goals.

In general way it may be stated that learning should enable the child to make the best use of his/her potentialities to get
the best of the things in the world around him/her. So, the acquisition of abilities which enable the child to adjust
himself in an effective manner to the environment may be said to the aim of learning.

Characteristics of Learning:
 Learning is growth
 Learning is adjustment
 Learning is to organize experience
 Learning is purposeful
 Learning is intelligent
 Learning is active
 Learning is both individual development and social development
 Learning is a product of environment
 Learning is the affecting of the conduct of the learner

Factors affecting Learning:

Learning is influenced by various conditions of life and school. Our attempts should be to create such conditions
conducive to effective e learning and which helps students to make the most satisfactory adjustment to life.
 The Hereditary Factor: Neither we can change nor increase our hereditary endowment. Of course, we can use it and
develop it. This differs in different individuals. Some are very rich in the matters of hereditary endowments while
others are very poor. The native intelligent is different in individuals. The intelligent children can establish and see
relationship very easily and more quickly. Our ability to learn and the rate of learning are conditioned by our heredity.
Maximum use should be made of the hereditary endowment.
 Physical Conditions of children: The physical conditions of children also affect learning. Bodily weakness, chronic
illness, malnutrition, fatigue and bad health are a great hindrance in learning. The home conditions – bad ventilation,
unhygienic living, bad light, overcrowding affects the rate of learning and the general response of the child.
 Stimulations: Best learning takes place when the teacher is successful in arousing the interest of the students. “The
guidance of the teacher is mainly a matter of giving the right kind of stimulus to help them to learn the right things in
the right way”, writes Ryburn.
 Goals set before the Pupils: A definite goal should be set before each child according to the standard expected of
him. Immediate goals should be set before small children and distant goals for older ones. It must be remembered that
the goals should be very clear and the children must understand these goals.
 Guidance and instruction: Suitable guidance should be given to the students in selecting the best response to their
environment. Demonstration is very helpful to teach various skills.
 Emotional Conditions: Children should be praised when they show good results. This gives them encouragement to
show all the better results and they develop confidence, hope, self-reliance and self-respect. Sympathetic attitude on

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the part of the teachers gives stimulus and a sense of security to the students. We should discard our habit of fault-
finding. This develops fear and feelings and insecurity and of inferiority in children.

Three Levels of Learning: Bigge, a renowned authority on teaching learning classifies teaching learning situations
into the following three levels:
 Memory Level: In memory level presentation, drills and exercises occupy a very important role for promotion of
learning. Presentation is said to be the least thoughtful. Stress is laid on the presentation of information and facts in a
very systematic manner with a view to develop memory. Recall and recognition become very prominent. Students
mug up the essential contents of the subject matter and reproduce them without any error. The mind the learner is
considered as a container of information.
 Understanding Level: The dictionary meaning of understanding is to perceive the meaning of or to grasp the idea
of or to comprehend. Understanding occur when we come to see how to use productively in ways which we care
about, a pattern of general ideas and supporting facts. Herbart mentions three forms of mental reality which play
an important role in teaching learning the understanding level. They are sense impression, images and affective
elements of pleasure and pain. In his opinion the teacher is conceived as an architect and the builder of the minds of
the students by manipulating ideas to construct student’s circle of thought. He advocates five steps of teaching:
preparation, presentation, comparison, generalization and application. In step 5 students are expected to demonstrate
their understanding by applying it to a novel situation.
 Reflective Level: Every educational system cherishes this most covered goal of teaching of promoting reflection.
Reflective level teaching is a kind of problem – centered teaching. Two essential features of teaching at reflective
level are: Problem raising and Problem solving. Reflective level learning should result in students emerging with an
enlarged store of tested insights of a generalized character and an enhanced ability to develop and solve problems.
These two are essential ingredients in any reflective level teaching.

Knowledge
Meaning of Knowledge:
The term ‘knowledge’ is used in a variety of ways. Scheffler (1990) mentions three ways of using knowledge:
 Knowledge supported by psychological conviction
 Procedural knowledge
 Acquaintance Knowledge.
Knowledge can be an expression of a psychological conviction. For example, one may say, “I knew there would be a
dust storm and there was one”. Another kind is procedural knowledge, or “know how” or ability to do something.
For example, you know how to drive a car or you know the car route from Delhi to Meerut city. Another kind of
knowledge is acquaintance knowledge or familiarity. For example, you know Delhi is the capital of India or you
know the hotel manager of a five-star hotel.

Pre-requisites of Knowledge:
 Fact: The term has been defined by Russell (1992) as “everything that is in the world”. For example, the existence
of rivers is a fact, having a headache is a fact and making statements is also a fact. The meaning of fact is confined to
the minimum of what must be known so that the truth or falsehood of any statement may be analysed. According to
Russell, “The whole of our cognitive life is, biologically considered, part of the process of adaptation to facts”.
 Belief: Knowledge is considered as a kind of belief that exists in the mind. We can say belief is a mental state. If
one has no beliefs about a particular matter, then one can have no knowledge about it. For example, on seeing dark
clouds, you believe that there will be rain. The belief can be verbalized or not verbalized. If you are with someone
you may express the belief through words. But simpler beliefs, especially if they require action may be completely not
verbalized. For example, on sniffing a burning smell in the house, you may believe the house to be on fire. Some
beliefs that an individual actively entertains are called occurrent beliefs. Most of an individual’s beliefs and hence
knowledge are in the background and only a small amount of the knowledge are used at a particular time.
 Truth: The purpose of a belief to describe the way things actually are i.e. it helps to relate the mind with the world
around. But it must be true when the belief has to constitute knowledge. False beliefs do not constitute knowledge.
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Sometimes our beliefs do not describe the way things actually are and by believing those we actually deceive
ourselves. Hence as one acquires knowledge, one is increasing the body of true beliefs and simultaneously the stock
of false beliefs gets minimized. Her we are assuming that there is an ‘objective’ truth with which our beliefs will
either match or fail to match. There can be knowledge only if there is something that is true. According to John
Hospers, this is one requirement of knowledge, i.e. the proposition must be true. It is also the objective requirement.
The other requirement, the subjective one, is the belief in the proposition. For example, when you know that triangle
has three sides you believe in it. However, believing cannot be a defining character of the proposition being true,
because propositions can be true even if we do not believe them.

Forms of Knowledge: The manner in which knowledge is acquired can be broadly divided in two ways “a priori” and
“posteriori”.
 A prior knowledge: The foundation or bases upon which a proposition can be known are termed as “a priori” and
“posteriori’’. Knowledge gained independent of experience is “a priori” and an “a posterior” proposition is knowable
on the basis of experience. For example, the proposition stating that “All bachelors are unmarried” is a priori. In
contrast, a proposition stating that “It is windy outside” can be justified on the basis of experiencing the wind outside.
When the truth can be stated just by reflecting on the content of the claim then it is a priori. For example, ‘5x2=10’,
‘square has four sides’, ‘if today is Wednesday then tomorrow cannot be Friday’ are known independent of
experience. So, we can say that a priori justification is based on thought and reason. The condition of knowing a
proposition a priori is that the meaning of the terms used should be known.
 A posteriori knowledge: A posteriori knowledge, in contrast, emphasizes experience and is known as the scientific
method of gaining knowledge. It stresses on the accuracy of the processes involved i.e., observation, description.
Such propositions contain factual information whose truth or falsity can be determined only through experience. For
example, “Ice melts”, “Grass is green”, “Wood is an insulator of hear” are examples of “a posteriori knowledge” and
they are also known as “synthetic proposition”. A posteriori justification is based on perceptions, memorizations and
beliefs also of the natural sciences.

It is important for a teacher to have a basic idea of the different ways of knowing or acquiring knowledge. This has
important implications for curriculum planning and designing learning experiences.

Curriculum

Definition of Curriculum: Curriculum is the base on which the subjects, activities and experiences of the children are
based. It is, therefore, very necessary to have a comprehensive view of curriculum. For this purpose, following
definitions are given:

Alberty A. and Alberty E. (1959) define curriculum “as the sum total of student activities which the school sponsors
for the purpose of achieving its objectives.”

In the words of H. Robert Beck and W. Walter Cook, “Curriculum is the sum of the educational experiences that
children have in school.”

According to Cunningham, it is a tool in the hands of the artist (the teacher) to mold his material (the pupil) in
accordance with his ideal in his studio (the school).

So, Curriculum is the sum total of the school’s efforts to influence learning and behaviour of the child whether in the
class-room, on the playground or out of school. In fact, curriculum has been described as “the environment in
motion”.

Importance, significance and need for the Curriculum: The child of today is the builder of tomorrow. It is only
through a well-designed and effectively implemented curriculum that the child could be equipped to realize his inner

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potential and to contribute meaningfully to nation building. Curriculum is basic to the aesthetic, emotional, ethical,
intellectual, physical, social, spiritual and vocational development of the child.

As observed by William J. Bennet, (1984), “If the teacher is the guide, the curriculum is the path. A good curriculum
marks the points of significance so that the student does not wander aimlessly over the terrain, dependent solely on
chance to discover the landmarks of human achievement.”

Fundamental Principles of Curriculum Construction:

Curriculum is a tool in the hands of the teachers to bring about the harmonious development of children. It is the sum
total of school activities. It is, therefore, very essential that the curriculum should be constructed on sound principles.
The following principles should be kept in view in this regard.
 The Conservative Principle: It has been stated that ‘nations live in the present, on the past and for the future.’ This
means that the present, the past and the future needs of the community should be taken into consideration. The past is
a great guide for the present as it helps us to decide what has been useful to those to those who have gone before and
what will be useful to those who are living today.
 The Forward – looking Principle: Children of today are the future citizens of tomorrow. Therefore, their
education should be such as it enables them to be progressive minded persons. Education should give them a
foundation of knowledge, feeling and that will enable them to change the environment where change is needed.
 The creative Principle: In the curriculum those activities should be included which enable the child to exercise his
creative and constructive powers. The objective of education is to discover and to develop special interest, tastes and
aptitudes. None of the child’s native gifts should escape our notice.
 The Activity Principle: The curriculum should be thought in terms of activity and experience, rather than of
knowledge to be acquired and facts to be stored. Growth and learning take place only where there is activity.
‘Experience’ rather than ‘instruction’ is to meet the needs of the various stages of growth. Play grounds, shops,
workrooms and laboratories not only direct the natural active tendencies of youth, but they also involve intercourse,
communication and co-operation. The curriculum must ensure the activity of body and mind. It should be the centre
of the curriculum.
 Principle of individual differences: Individuals differ in taste, temperament, skill, experience, aptitude, innate
ability and in sex. Therefore, the curriculum should be adapted to individual differences. It should not be rigid.

Schooling
Formal education starts in schools and students learn under the supervision of teachers. It is a place where a course of
study followed is/are prescribed or recognized by law or by any other agency authorized by the Central/State
government and which meets the requirements with regard to its standard of efficiency of one or more of the
authorities, eg. Directorate of Education, Municipal Corporation/Committee, Board etc.

School education is institutionalized teaching and learning in relation to a curriculum, which itself is established
according to pre-determined objectives. It focuses on the development of mental faculties and personality of an
individual as a result of which she becomes capable of leading a successful life. Thus, the primary aim of schooling is
to develop the basic competencies in an individual in order to enable him/her to lead to a successful life.

It basically includes twelve years to formal education starting from primary/ elementary school to secondary school,
and higher secondary/ senior secondary school. Age-wise classification of school education is done as follows:
 Lower Primary-06-11 years
 Upper Primary-12-14 years
 Secondary-15-16 years
 Higher Secondary/Senior Secondary-17-18 years
(Please refer NCF 2005 CHAPTER 2: LEARNING AND KNOWLEDGE for additional material.)