LEARNING

Concept of Learning

Wood Worth - (1945). Any activity can be called learning so far as it develops individual and makes his behaviour and experience.

Hilgard- (1958) Learning is the process by which an activity originates /is changed through reaching to an encountered situation.

Guthrie – Learning is to respond differently to a situation because of past experience to the situation.

Crow and Crow – Learning is the acquisition of habits, knowledge and attitudes.

Henry P Smith - Learning is the acquisition of new behaviour or the strengthening or weaking of old behaviour as the result of experience.

Characteristics of Learning

Learning is growth                                            Learning is adjustment

Learning is organizing experience                    Learning is development

Learning as behaviour changes                         Learning and maturation

Learning is intelligent process                          Learning is active process

Learning is the product of the environment      Learning and nervous system

Learning is continuous                                      Learning as improvement

Process of Learning

Factors influencing Learning

Learner Variable    Motivation, Attitude, Interest, Age, Sex, Intelligence  level,

                               Aptitude, Physical Status, Anxiety Levels, Past Experience, ect.

Task Variable         Length of the task, Difficulty level of the task, Meaningfulness

                               Of the task, Organization of the task.

Method Variable    Spaced Vs Mass, Whole Vs Part, Immediate revision, Knowledge

                               Of Results, Active Vs Passive, Method of Loci, Other

                                Idiosyncratic strategies (Highly individualistic ways of learning.)

Learning Curves: Positive, Negative and Combination or ‘S’ Type Learning Curves.

Plateau’s in Learning Curves: Causes and Elimination of these Plateaus

Behaviourist Theories: Thorndike, Pavlov, Skinner….

Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning or Respondent Conditioning

(Ivan Petrovich Pavlov)(1849-1936)

A Russian psychologist, The Nobel Prize Winner Pavlov, during his experimental work on dog’s digestive process, accidentally notices the secretion of saliva in the dog on the sight of food or hearing the footsteps of the caretaker.” Classical Conditioning may be defined as a process in which the neutral stimulus by pairing with a natural stimulus it acquires all the characteristics of the natural stimulus”. (So this other ways called as Substitutional Learning)( Acc. modern psychologist it as Signal Learning)

Pavlov made a little incision in the dog’s checks, fixed a rubber tube and connected it to a measuring jar to collect the saliva secreted in the dog’s mouth when food was kept in front. Pavlov kept a dog hungry for a period and then tied on the experimental table. The observer kept himself hidden from the view of the dog and able to view the experiment. Arrangement was made to give food to the dog through automatic devices. At the sight of food, his dog salivated. Then, a few second prior to the presentation of food Pavlov made a bell- sound (Buzzer Sound).This pairing was done a number of times. After some days, he rang the buzzer only but did not present food, the dog begin salivating up on hearing the bell sound. Neutral stimulus is one that does not lead to a definite, predictable response. But, in this experiment the neutral stimulus got changed into a meaningful stimulus by the process of association

The response of salivation during the sight of food (US) was now transferred to the sound of the bell.  Pavlov’s theory is called Classical Conditioning or Respondent Conditioning.

Schematic Representation

Before Conditioning

Buzzer (CS)                                         Listening (US)

Food (US)                                           Salivation (UR)

During Conditioning

Buzzer (CS) 

     ┼                                                    Salivation (UR)

Food (US)

After Conditioning

Buzzer (CS)                                         Salivation (CR)

Principles of Classical Conditioning

*Intensity – there is positive correlation between the intensity of the stimulus and magnitude of the response. ( If ‘cs’ is weak ,there may be no conditioning)

*Temporal relationship between ‘cs’ and ‘us’ -

An interval of half a second between ‘cs’ and ‘us’ produces the greatest amount of conditioning.

*Extinction – If ‘cs’ is not followed by ‘us’, there is no motivation so that the repetition causes the dog stops to salivate, this process is known as extinction.

*Spontaneous Recovery- When the dog is brought back to the experimental set up again after a lapse of time , the dog response to ‘cs’ by salivation.

*Stimulus Generalization- The process by which an organism learns to differentiate among stimuli, restricting its response to one in particular.

*Experimental Neurosis – When discrimination of ‘cs’ and’ us’ becomes impossible, the brain cell interaction leads to neurotic behaviour.

*Generalization – The conditioned response to a stimulus is generalized to similar category of stimuli.

Educational Implications

1) Develop good habits

2) Develop interest and sense of appreciation

3) Use in Psychotherapy-For eliminating undesirable habits, phobias, anxiety ect

4) Useful for language learning

5) Useful for animal training

6) Develop favorable and unfavorable attitude towards the teacher, institution, peers,

    Organizations ect.

7) Teacher must conscious about Experimental Neurosis.

Questions

Define Classical Conditioning

Distinguish between stimulus generalization and stimulus discrimination

How extinction differ from spontaneous recovery?      (2 marks)

Describe briefly the relevance of classical conditioning in education.      (4 marks)

Explain Pavlov’s experiment with classroom implications.          (10 marks)

THORNDIKE’S TRIAL  & ERROR / SUCCESS THEORY

Edward Lee Thorndike (1874-1949) was an American Psychologist.

Experiment with Cat:  A deprived cat in a puzzle box with a lever that would enable it to get out if pressed -, and a fish visible to it kept out side – random trails, progressive elimination of errors & successive approximation of learned response.

Principles of Learning based on Thorndike’s Experiment

* Learning involves trial and error.

* Learning is the result of formation of connection or bonds (S-R)

* Learning is incremental not insightful

* Learning is direct; not cognitive.

* The S-R connections are established in nervous system.

* The connection (bond) strength can be increased or decreased.

Laws of Learning based on Thorndike’s Experiment

All laws explain how to strengthen / weaken S-R Bonds

A.Law of Effect: When a modifiable connection between stimulus and response is made and is followed by satisfying state of affairs, that connections strength is increased. When made and accompanied by an annoying state of affairs, its strength is decreased. It emphasises the role of reward and punishment in education.

Revised law of Effect:  An unpleasant situation / punishment need not necessary decrease the strength of S-R connection.

B.Law of Exercise:

a.Law of Use –A modifiable connection is made between a stimulus and response, other things being equal and more frequently, that connection strength is increased.

b.Law of disuse:  Other things being equal when a modifiable connection not made between stimulus and response over a period of time, that connection strength is decreased.

C.Law of Readiness:

-When any conduction unit is ready to conduct for it to do so is satisfying.

-When any conduction unit is not ready to conduct, for it to conduct is annoying.

-When any conduction unit is ready to conduct for it not to conduct is annoying. 

Satisfaction strengthens the bond, but annoyance weakens.

Supplementary laws of Learning :

* Law of multiple response:- When an individual faces a problem, he responds in a variety of ways before arriving at correct response.

* Law of attitude:- Individual leans better if he develops a positive attitude.

 * Law of analogy:- When an individual faces a problem, the response he makes will resemble to an earlier response in a similar situation.

* Law of pre-potency of elements:- Learner  reacts to the learning  situation in a selective manner, due to the influence of past experience.

Why trial and error theory is included in B.Ed Curriculum ?

! Motivate the child before learning.

! Make use of the previous knowledge.

! Arrange task from simple to complex

! Strengthen S – R connections of those things to be remembered by regular use/ practice weaken others by disuse or by annoying consequences.

! Rote memory and mechanical repetition may be resorted judiciously.

! Punishment should be judiciously used.

! Provide maximum opportunity to review.

! Provide rewards, prize and praise.

Questions

1. Comment on revised Law of Effect.

2. Define Law of Readiness

3. How Law of Exercise is useful for teachers?                          [2 Marks]

1. Explain the principles of learning based on Thorndike’s experiment.

2. Describe briefly the supplementary laws of learning              [4 Marks]

1. Explain Thorndike’s theory of learning with special emphasis on classroom implication                                                                                   [10 Marks]

 

Skinner’s Operant conditioning or Instrumental conditioning

Prof. B.F. Skinner of Harvard University

He is a practical psychologist who conducted several experiments on different reflexes in rats and pigeons. Finally he selected eating as the subject of his experiments because of its simplicity and ease of collecting huge data in short period of time. He developed his own apparatus and method of observation to study and analyze behaviour in a systematic objective way.

The Operant Experiment

 A hungry rat was placed in a box called Skinner Box, which was designed by himself. The inside of the box is plain; except for a protruding bar with a food dish beneath it .A small light bulb above the bar can be lighted whenever needed.

Left in the box, the rat moved about restlessly and sometimes pressed the bar. This apparatus was devised to study a lot of behaviour in short time in an objective way. A simple response of pressing a lever was chosen as a unit of behaviour. Every time the bar is pressed, a pellet of food falls in to the dish. The rat eats the food and presses the bar again. The food reinforces bar pressing. If the food is disconnecting, the rate of bar pressing falls off, because, the operant response becomes extinct with non-reinforcement. (The movements of the rat were electrically recorded.)

The food is then presented only if the bar is pressed while the light is on. Thus the response is reinforced if the light is on and not reinforced if the response is made in the dark. This selective discrimination made the rat press the bar only when the light was on.

Skinner made a distinction between two kinds of behaviour that he called Respondent (‘S’ conditioning) and Operant behaviour (‘R’ Conditioning). Respondent behaviour is directly under the control of the stimulus .So Respondent behaviour is elicited from the organism. Operant behaviour is emitted and spontaneous (due to unknown stimuli) by the organism.

Here the Operant behaviour is more concerned with responses(R) than with the stimulus(S). Skinner calls it the R-type conditioning and he changing the usual formula of S-R in to R-S formula. The reinforcement should come after the response has been made and not before it. So Operant conditioning can then be defined as the strengthening by following the response with a reinforcing stimulus.

Several operations are involved in the process of Operant conditioning .Some are:

(i)Shaping (involves chaining, habit competition, and generalization)

Shaping refers to the judicious use of selective reinforcement to bring certain desirable changes in the behaviour of the organism.

# Chaining- Cues produced by one response must be linked with the next response.

# Habit competition – At each point of the chain, the correct habit must attain dominance over competing habits.

#Generalization – Human beings and to some extent animals are capable of generalizing experiences and knowledge acquired in one learning situation to other situations.

(ii) Extinction - Suppose in the Skinner box the rat presses the bar does not get pellet of food. If this is repeatedly done, the bar pressing behaviour of the rat will be extinguished.

(iii) Spontaneous Recovery – If an organism is removed from the situation for a while after extinction and then returned and again food presented, it shows same performance as before (The rat presses the bar and eat the food)

(iv)  The concept of Reinforcement:

 The reinforcement is identical to the presentation of a reward. A reinforcer is the   stimulus the presentation or removal of which increases the probability of a response being repeated. They are of three types:

a)Positive reinforcement b)Negative reinforcement and c) punishment.

In positive rein.a pleasant experience is given as a reinforcer. A positive rein. serves to strengthen or maintain the response. Ex. Food, money, prize, prestige, teacher’s smile, recognition ect.

In negative rein. an unpleasant experience is withdrawn from the situation and this increases the probability of the occurrence of the response. OR It is any stimulus which when removed from the situation, increases the likelihood of the desirable behaviour. Ex. electric shock, loud voice

In educational context teacher saying to the students that whoever does drill work properly in the class would be exempted from impositions` in order to make them systematic in drill sessions.

Punishment involves presentation of an unpleasant experience. Punishment has consequences which do not strengthen behaviour and aims at reducing behaviors by imposing unwelcome after effects. Punishment is also produce undesirable emotional effects, and when the aversive stimulus is removed, the punished behaviour may reappear.

Primary reinforcer- which directly satisfies physiological needs  ex. food , water.

Secondary reinforcer – Reinforcer that satisfies acquired need rather than inborn ones. Ex. money.

Educational Implications

*Learning process should be so designed as to create minimum frustration and maximum satisfaction,

*Useful for behaviour modification

*The complex learning task to be presented in simple units with provision for reinforcement after each unit.

*Help to develop good personality

*Reinforcement should be given at proper time

* Avoid punishment

*The theory has contributed a lot to the development of teaching machines and programmed learning.

Questions

1. Defined Operant Conditioning.

2. Distinguish between negative reinforcement and punishment.    (2marks)

1. Discuss how Operant Conditioning is useful for PSI.

2. Explaining shaping with an example.

3. Suggest an instructional programme based on Operant Conditioning. (4marks)

1. Explain Instructional Conditioning theory of B.F.Skinner with special emphasis on class room instruction. (10marks)