UNIT 1

Psychological Foundations

MODULE 5
THE LEARNING PROCESS

OBJECTIVE: Ascertain and find out the nature of how the learner learns and the nature of learning process.

There are many different learning types and approaches to learning. To learn effectively it is important to tailor your
study habits to your own needs and approach, this often means choosing techniques that work for you and evaluating them
from time to time to determine if you need to try something new.

Learning takes time and patience. It is a process — a journey. A self - directed learning process is arguably the
most powerful model for facilitating and inspiring individual, group and organizational learning and development.

THE NATURE OF THE LEARNING PROCESS

Formal education is based on the premise that the learning process can be directed and facilitated. Such direction
and facilitation of learning, however, is not a simple task. Unless a teacher has a clear knowledge and understanding of
this process, he will find it difficult to set the conditions that will facilitate learning success on the part of the learners. Thus,
to place teaching upon a firmer foundation, the teacher should understand the nature of the learning process and the facts
relating to the conditions under which learning takes place. A teacher needs to understand also the psychological principles,
theories, and laws relating to learning.

DEFINITION OF LEARNING

1. Learning is purposeful
2. Learning is the result of experience
3. Learning is multifaceted
4. Learning is an active process

TYPES OF LEARNING

There are different types of learning and each type requires different teaching and study techniques. Though there
are many modes and some overlap and interplay, the three general types seen are:

1. Sensory-motor learning – involves understanding the external world through the senses and muscles. The chief
outcome is the development of movement as reaction to stimuli resulting in speed and precision in performance. It may
vary from large muscular to fine motor skills.

2. Cognitive learning – is concerned with the development of ideas and concepts. It covers much of what academic
learning demands.
a. Associative learning (involves the development of associative patterns b which ideas and experiences are stored
in memory)
b. Problem-solving learning (involves a process of overcoming difficulties that appear to interfere with the attainment
of a goal)

3. Affective learning – involves experiences within which emotions and affect take precedence. It involves the assimilation
of values, mental understanding, emotional reactions, the sense of pleasure, and satisfaction. The process essentially
revolves around the acquisition of attitudes, ideas, judgment, and knowledge from participating in two types of
appreciative experiences:
a. Aesthetic appreciative experiences (art, music, literature)
b. Intellectual appreciative experiences (problem-solving situations that involve comprehension to its full extent)

TESTS OF LEARNING

How will the teacher know if learning has taken place? The following are the criteria to determine learning is
achieved:

1. Greater speed
2. Greater precision and accuracy
3. Reduced effort
4. Less expense, hence more saving

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

5. Greater knowledge, information, and ideas
6. Greater understanding
7. Greater facility of communication
8. More logical reasoning
9. Greater innovativeness and creativity
10. Greater chance of employment

OTHER KINDS OF LEARNING

Table 1
Other Kinds of Learning

KINDS OF LEARNING SAMPLE ACTIVITIES

Direct learning Learning how to swim
Indirect learning Viewing movies to gain information
Congenital learning Reflex actions
Temporary learning Memorizing lines of a play, then forgetting it after the performance
Permanent learning Learning mathematical operations
Sensory learning Learning to read Braille for the blind learners
Motor learning Learning to type
Verbal learning Memorizing a principle
Ideational learning Writing a story
Attitudinal learning Learning values

OTHER THEORIES OF LEARNING

There are several learning theories which have been the results of various researches in the field of psychology.
Two broad classifications into which the various learning are groups are:

1. Association theories – emphasize the establishment and strengthening of relationships between the stimulus (S) and
the response (R) and emphasize the role of reinforcement in the learning process.
2. Cognitive field theories – these focus on the cognitive structure of man as a basis for learning.

ASSOCIATION OR STIMULUS-RESPONSE THEORIES

I. Edward Thorndike’s Theory on Connectionism/Associationism

The basic premise of this theory is that human activity is based on association between stimulus and response.
Any activity is seen as: (1) a situation which influences or affects the individual; (2) a response which the individual
makes to the situation; and (3) a connection between the situation and the response by means of which the former is
enabled to produce the latter. This connection is called the S-R BOND. This term signifies a predisposition to respond
in a particular manner to a given stimulus.

Major laws:
a. Law of Readiness – Individuals learn best when they are ready to learn, and they do not learn well if they see no
reason for learning. Getting students ready to learn is usually the instructor's responsibility. If students have a strong
purpose, a clear objective, and a definite reason for learning something, they make more progress than if they lack
motivation. Readiness implies a degree of single-mindedness and eagerness. When students are ready to learn,
they meet the instructor at least halfway, and this simplifies the instructor's job.

b. Law of Exercise – The principle of exercise states that those things most often repeated are best remembered. It
is the basis of drill and practice. The human memory is fallible. The mind can rarely retain, evaluate, and apply new
concepts or practices after a single exposure. Students do not learn to weld during one shop period or to perform
crosswise landings during one instructional flight. They learn by applying what they have been told and shown.

c. Law of Effect – The principle of effect is based on the emotional reaction of the student. It states that learning is
strengthened when accompanied by a pleasant or satisfying feeling, and that learning is weakened when associated
with an unpleasant feeling. Experiences that produce feelings of defeat, frustration, anger, confusion, or futility are
unpleasant for the student. If, for example, an instructor attempts to teach landings during the first flight, the student
is likely to feel inferior and be frustrated.

Other laws:
d. Law of Primacy – Primacy, the state of being first, often creates a strong, almost unshakable, impression. For the
instructor, this means that what is taught must be right the first time. For the student, it means that learning must

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

 be right. Unteaching is more difficult than teaching. If, for example, a maintenance student learns a faulty riveting
technique, the instructor will have a difficult task correcting bad habits and reteaching correct ones. Every student
should be started right.

e. Law of Intensity – A vivid, dramatic, or exciting learning experience teaches more than a routine or boring
experience. A student is likely to gain greater understanding of slow flight and stalls by performing them rather than
merely reading about them. The principle of intensity implies that a student will learn more from the real thing than
from a substitute. In contrast to flight instruction and shop instruction, the classroom imposes limitations on the
amount of realism that can be brought into teaching.

f. Law of Recency – The principle of recency states that things most recently learned are best remembered.
Conversely, the further a student is removed time-wise from a new fact or understanding, the more difficult it is to
remember. It is easy, for example, for a student to recall a torque value used a few minutes earlier, but it is usually
impossible to remember an unfamiliar one used a week earlier. Instructors recognize the principle of recency when
they carefully plan a summary for a ground school lesson, a shop period, or a postflight critique.

II. Conditioning Theory

There are two names which are closely associated with conditioning in learning:

1. Ivan Pavlov on Classical Conditioning

In essence, classical conditioning involves the formation or strengthening of an association between a

conditioned stimulus which elicited the original response. Pavlov’s experiment demonstrated the formation or
strengthening of an association between salivation in a dog (conditioned response) and the sound of a buzzer
(conditioned stimulus) through the repeated simultaneous presentation of the buzzer with the natural
(unconditioned) stimulus for salivation, namely food, serving to reinforce the association.

2. B.F. Skinner on Instrumental or Operant Conditioning

Derived from the theory of Thorndike, Skinner analyzed reinforcing stimuli based on the law of effect.
Skinner also emphasized the effects of the subject’s action among the causes of behavior. To illustrate, a baby lies
in his crib. When he happens to smile, the mother goes and plays with him. Later, his father does the same thing.
As this sequence is repeated, the baby learns that his behavior (smiling) can produce a desirable consequence
(loving attention from a parent); and so he keeps smiling to attract his parents’ attention. An originally accidental
behavior (smiling) has become a conditioned response.

This kind of learning is what we call operant conditioning because the individual learns from the
consequences of “operating” on the environment. Unlike classical conditioning, operant conditioning involves
voluntary behavior, such as Terrell’s smiling.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

 Skinner, who formulated the principles of operant conditioning, found that an organism will tend to repeat a
response that has been reinforced and will suppress a response that has been punished. Reinforcement is a
consequence of behavior that increases the likelihood that the behavior will be repeated – in the baby’s case, his
parents’ attention reinforces his smiling. Punishment is a consequence of behavior that decreases the likelihood
of repetition. If the baby’s parents frowned when he smiled, he would be less likely to smile again. Whether a
consequence is reinforcing or punishing depends on the person. What is reinforcing for one person may be
punishing for another. For example, a child who likes being alone, being sent to his or her room could be reinforcing
rather than punishing. Skinner proposed that in terms of effect, punishment is not the opposite of reinforcement.
For Skinner, punishment leads to 3 undesirable effects: (1) Punished responses only disappear temporarily; (2)
Emotional predisposition such as guilt or shame may be conditioned through the use of punishment; and (3) Any
behavior that reduces the aversive stimulation accompanying the punishment will be reinforced.

Reinforcement could either be positive or negative. Positive reinforcement consists of giving a reward, such
as food, gold stars, a bonus, or praise- or playing with a baby. Negative reinforcement consists of taking away
something the individual does not like (known as an aversive event), such as loud raspy noise. Negative
reinforcement is sometimes confused with punishment. However, they are different. Punishment suppresses a
behavior by bringing on an aversive event (such as spanking a child or giving an electric shock to an animal), or by
withdrawing a positive event (such as watching television. Negative reinforcement encourages repetition of a
behavior by removing an aversive event. When the toddler in the process of toilet training tells his parents he has
soiled his diaper, the removal of the smelly, sticky diaper may encourage the child to signal again the next time he
has an “accident”.

Table 1
Examples of Positive and Negative Reinforcement

Discriminative Response Consequence Type of Consequence Type of

Stimulus Reinforcement
Vendo machine Aileen puts change in Aileen receives Aileen’s behavior Positive
the machine and pushes candy produces new stimulus
the button
Father nags Andrew Andrew studies his Nagging stops Andrew’s behavior has negative
to study for his lessons for 2 weeks been followed by the
lessons to get good everyday withdrawal of a stimulus
grades

FURTHER READINGS: [Link]

[Link]
[Link]

III. Vygotsky’s Socio-Cultural Theory of Cognitive Development

Lev S. Vygotsky’s theory emphasizes that social interaction plays a vital role in cognitive development. His theory
basically means that development depends on interaction with people and the tools that the culture provides to help
form their own view of the world (Gallagher, 1999).

These cultural tools can be transmitted to three ways. These are:

1. Imitative Learning- a person tries to imitate or copy another person.
2. Instructed Learning- a person remembers the instructions of the teacher and then uses them to self-regulate.
3. Collaborative Learning- a group of person who strive to understand each other and they work together to learn a
specific skills.

He believed that children are born with elementary mental abilities such as perception, attention and memory. These
innate abilities transforms into higher mental functions as children interact with their culture and society (Meece, 2002).
His theory also states that language plays a vital role in cognitive development.

Within his theory, he identified three stages in children’s use of language:

1. Social speech – speech used by children for purpose of communication to other people.
2. Egocentric speech – speech that is more intellectual and children use this by verbalizing their ideas.
3. Inner speech – speech used by children to think in their minds about their problem or task, instead of verbalizing
their ideas in order to solve their problem or to decide what to do next.

His Socio-Cultural Theory also refers to the difference between what a learner can do independently and what can be
done with other’s guidance. He called this as Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). He assumed that interactions with
adults or peers in the zone of proximal development help children move to higher levels of mental functioning within the
classroom (Meece, 2002).

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

 The implications of Vygotsky’s theory to education are to encourage cooperative learning exercises and to engage
student in the discovery process with guidance from knowledgeable source. He suggests that teachers use cooperative
learning exercises where less competent children develop with the aid from more adept peers within the zone of
proximal development. He believed that when a student is at the ZPD for a particular task, providing the appropriate
assistance, will give the student enough of a “boost” to achieve his goal or to complete the task (McLeod, 2012).

ZPD is associated with scaffolding. The concept of scaffolding was introduced by Wood and Middleton. It is defined as
a learner to concentrate on those elements of the task that are initially beyond his capacity and complete only those
elements that are within his range of competence. According to Wood and Middleton, scaffolding becomes most
effective when the assistance is correlated to the needs of the learner (McLeod, 2012).

Meece has provided some of the major contributions of Vygotsky’s theories to education. His theory gives insight to role
of private speech and peer interactions in cognitive development and explains the significance of guided participation
and scaffolding (Meece, 2002).

Furthermore, he also emphasized in his theory that three factors that shape children’s behavior, and these are called
ecological contexts.
1. Cultural Contexts- He said that one’s culture comprises the environment that humans have created and continue to
perpetuate in their caregiving practice. Culture consists of human designs for living, which are embodied in beliefs,
values, customs, and activities.

2. Social Contexts- He believed that learning occurs through interpersonal, social context. Thinking, as he defined, is a
process of social interaction between children and more experienced and knowledgeable members of community.
This social interaction helps them to master culture-specific skills and develop their behaviors that will enable them to
successfully adapt to their particular community.

3. Historical contexts- His viewpoint, the child’s environment which he is reared and his own developmental history in
terms of his experiences in that society are both significant in identifying the ways in which the child will think. Conceptual
thinking must be transmitted to children through words, thus language becomes a crucial cognitive tool for deciding how
children learn to think (Owens, 2006).

FURTHER READINGS [Link]

[Link]
[Link]

IV. Bronfrenbrenner’s Ecological Theory

American psychologist, Urie Bronfenbrenner, formulated the Ecological Systems Theory to explain how the inherent
qualities of children and their environments interact to influence how they grow and develop. The Bronfenbrenner theory
emphasizes the importance of studying children in multiple environments, also known as ecological systems, in the
attempt to understand their development.

According to Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory, children typically find themselves enmeshed in various
ecosystems, from the most intimate home ecological system to the larger school system, and then to the most expansive
system which includes society and culture. Each of these ecological systems inevitably interact with and influence each
other in all aspects of the children’s lives.

Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model organizes contexts of development into five levels of external influence. These levels
are categorized from the most intimate level to the broadest.

The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Model: Microsystem

The Bronfenbrenner theory suggests that the microsystem is the smallest and most immediate environment in which
children live. As such, the microsystem comprises the daily home, school or daycare, peer group and community
environment of the children.

Interactions within the microsystem typically involve personal relationships with family members, classmates, teachers and
caregivers. How these groups or individuals interact with the children will affect how they grow.

Similarly, how children react to people in their microsystem will also influence how they treat the children in return. More
nurturing and more supportive interactions and relationships will understandably foster they children’s improved
development. One of the most significant findings that Urie Bronfenbrenner unearthed in his study of ecological systems is
that it is possible for siblings who find themselves in the same ecological system to experience very different environments.

Therefore, given two siblings experiencing the same microsystem, it is not impossible for the development of them to
progress in different manners. Each child’s particular personality traits, such as temperament, which is influenced by unique
genetic and biological factors, ultimately have a hand in how he/she is treated by others.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

 The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Model:
Mesosystem

The mesosystem encompasses the interaction of

the different microsystems which children find
themselves in. It is, in essence, a system of
microsystems and as such, involves linkages
between home and school, between peer group
and family, and between family and community.

According to Bronfenbrenner’s theory, if a child’s

parents are actively involved in the friendships of
their child, for example they invite their child’s
friends over to their house from time to time and
spend time with them, then the child’s
development is affected positively through
harmony and like-mindedness.

However, if the child’s parents dislike their child’s

peers and openly criticize them, then the child
experiences disequilibrium and conflicting
emotions, which will likely lead to negative
development.

The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Model: Exosystem

The exosystem pertains to the linkages that may exist between two or more settings, one of which may not contain the
developing children but affect them indirectly nonetheless.

Based on the findings of Bronfenbrenner, people and places that children may not directly interact with may still have an
impact on their lives. Such places and people may include the parents’ workplaces, extended family members, and the
neighborhood the children live in.

For example, a father who is continually passed up for promotion by an indifferent boss at the workplace may take it out on
his children and mistreat them at home.

The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Model: Macrosystem

The macrosystem is the largest and most distant collection of people and places to the children that still have significant
influences on them. This ecological system is composed of the children’s cultural patterns and values, specifically their
dominant beliefs and ideas, as well as political and economic systems.

For example, children in war-torn areas will experience a different kind of development than children in peaceful
environments.

The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Model: Chronosystem

The Bronfenbrenner theory suggests that the chronosystem adds the useful dimension of time, which demonstrates the
influence of both change and constancy in the children’s environments. The chronosystem may include a change in family
structure, address, parents’ employment status, as well as immense society changes such as economic cycles and wars.

By studying the various ecological systems, Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory is able to demonstrate the
diversity of interrelated influences on children’s development. Awareness of the contexts that children are in can sensitize
us to variations in the way children may act in different settings.

For example, a child who frequently bullies smaller children at school may portray the role of a terrified victim at home. Due
to these variations, adults who are concerned with the care of a particular child should pay close attention to his/her behavior
in different settings, as well as to the quality and type of connections that exist between these settings.

References:

Borobado, Heidi Grace L., Corpus, Brenda B., Lucas, M. Rita D., & Lucido, Paz I. (2018). The Child and Adolescent Learners
and Learning Principles. Quezon City: Lorimar Publishing, Inc.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5

Bustos, Alicia S. and Espiritu, Socorro G. (1996). Psychological, Anthropological, and Sociological Foundations of Education
(Foundations of Education I). Quezon City: Katha Publishing Co., Inc.

Calderon, Jose F. (1998). Foundations of Education (Psychological, Sociological, Anthropological, Historical, Philosophical
and Legal Foundations of Education). Quezon City: Rex Printing Company, Inc.

Demiguin. Cognitive Learning According to Kohler and Tolman. Retreived from [Link]

Encarta Encyclopedia. (2009). Classical Conditioning. Microsoft Corp.

Gallagher, C., (1999). Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky. Retrieved from

[Link]

Gandhi, Dipali B. (2010, October 19). Gestalt’s Laws of Learning. Retreived from
[Link]

McLeod, S. (2012). Zone of Proximal Development. Retrieved from [Link]

[Link]

Meece, J. L. (2002). Child and Adolescent Development for Educators. 2nd ed. New York : McGraw-Hill.

Owens, K. B. (2006). Child and Adolescent Development: An Integrated Approach. Singapore: Thomson - Wadsworth.

Zulueta, Francisco M. & Elda M. Maglaya. (2000). Foundations of Education. (Psychological, Sociological, Anthropological,
Historical, Philosophical and Legal Foundations of Education). Mandaluyong: National Bookstore.

[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]/brofenbrenner’s-ecological-theory/

PSYCHOLOGICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION: MODULE 5