Major Theoretical Principles of Thorndike’s theory of learning:

Major Theoretical Principles of Thorndike’s theory of learning:

1. Learning involves trial and error or selection & connection:

Cat  stamp in and stamp out for correct  responses. Example False  attempts  made by  cat.

Selection  &  connection of proper responses to  connect or  associate them with adequate stimuli. Example: subsequent trials, cat tried  to avoid the erroneous moves &  to repeat the correct manner manipulating the latch.

2. Learning is  the result of formation of connections:

Connection in nervous system between stimuli & responses. Mind is man’s connection system. Association between sense, impression, impulse & action. This association is named as bond or connection. Association may be strengthen or weaken results in making or breaking habits. This type of association is known as connectionism or bondpsychology.

3. Learning is incremental, not insightful:

Learning performance depends on number of trials or opportunities. Increase in number of trials or practice performance gradually improves known as incremental performance. Such type of learning is called incremental learning. Example: solution of a problem does not strike the mind of the animal at once & the time an animal needs to find a solution to a problem depends upon the number of trials it gets to solve it.

4. Learning is direct, not mediated by ideas:

Learning is direct not mediated by ideas reasoning or thinking. Learning is simple mechanical phenomenon a process of establishing a simple connection between sensory stimuli & appropriate responses. Example: the cat does not look over the situation, much less think it over, and then decide what to do. It bursts out  at once into the activities helped by instincts & experiences.

Thorndike's Theory of Learning

Thorndike’s Connectivism:

1.                  Connections in the nervous system between stimuli and response.

2.                  Connections illustrated by S-R

3.                  Word bond theory of learning

4.                  According to thorndike “Learning is connecting.

5.                  Learning by trial and error

6.                  No readymade solution for problem is available – trial & error method is used.

Trial & Error is based on random activities to reach the goal.

Random activities are block or hinderances, drive, goal, random movements, multiple response, chance, success, selection and fixation.

Thorndike’s Experiment on Cat:

Hungry cat is placed inside the box. Food kept outside the box work as a motive. Cat started doing random movements for getting food. Cat squeeze through opening, claws and bites at the bars of wires, thrust its paws through any opening. Out of any one random movement latch manipulated accidently. Hungry cat came out and got its reward i.e. food.

In another trial:

Hungry cat placed in a puzzle box. Food kept outside the box worked as a motive. To get out of the box cat again did random movements. But cat took less time to come out from the box. Gradually reduced and took less time on each succeeding trial. Manipulate the latch as soon as it was put in the box. Gradually cat learned the art of opening door.

Experiment sums up the following stages in the process of learning:

1.                  Drive: Hungry cat intensified by the sight of the food.

2.                  Goal: To get food by getting out of the box.

3.                  Block: The cat was confined in the box with a closed door.

4.                  Random movements: The cat persistently tried to come out of the box without knowing how.

5.                  Chance success: Striving and random movements the cat by chance succeeded in opening the door.

6.                  Selection: Gradually cat recognized the correct way to manipulate the latch.

7.                  Fixation: At last cat learned the proper way to open the door by eliminating all the incorrect responses & fixing only the right response.

Implications of Operant conditioning Theory

Implication of the theory of operant conditioning:

1.      Conditioning study behaviour

Teaching is the arrangement of contingencies of reinforcement which expedite learning. For effective teaching teacher should arranged effective contingencies of reinforcement. Example: For Self learning of a student teacher should reinforce student behaviour through variety of incentives such as prize, medal, smile, praise, affectionate pating on the back or by giving higher marks.

2.      Conditioning and classroom behaviour:

During learning process child acquire unpleasant experiences also. This unpleasantness becomes conditioned to the teacher subject and the classroom and learner dislike the subject and a teacher. Suitable behavioural contingencies, atmosphere of recognition, acceptance, affection and esteem helps child in approaching teacher and the subject. If student is not serious in study,  teacher make use of negative reinforcement like showing negligence,  criticising student etc. but if student is serious in study, teacher make use of positive reinforcement like prize, medal, praise and smile. Example: student having transistor in classroom neglected by the teacher induged in talking with others for longer time. After long time student asked teacher till now you are receiving assignments, I will also submit you. Thus behaviour is conditioned.

3.      Managing Problem Behaviour:

Two types of behaviour is seen in the classroom viz undesired behaviour and problematic behaviour. Operant conditioning is a behaviour therapy technique that shape students behaviour. For this teacher should admit positive contingencies like praise, encouragement etc. for learning. One should not admit negative contingencies. Example punishment (student will run away from the dull and dreary classes – escape stimulation.

4.      Dealing with anxieties through conditioning:

Through conditioning fear, anxieties, prejudices, attitudes, perceptual meaning develops. Example of anxiety:

Signals on the road

Siren blown during war time

Child receiving painful injection from a doctor

            Anxiety is a generalized fear response. To break the habits of fear, desensitization techniques should be used by a teacher. Initially teacher should provide very weak form of conditioned stimulus. Gradually the strength of stimulus should be increased.

5.       Conditioning group behaviour:

Conditioning makes entire group learn and complete change in behaviour is seen due to reinforcement. It breaks undesired and unsocial behaviour too.

Example: Putting questions or telling lie to teachers will make teachers annoyed in such circumstances students learn to keep mum in the class.

Asking questions, active participation in class discussion will make the teacher feel happy – interaction will increase and teaching learning process becomes more effective.

6.      Conditioning and Cognitive Processes:

Reinforcement is given in different form, for the progress of knowledge and in the feedback form. When response is correct positive reinforcement is given.

Example: A student who stands first in the class in the month of January is rewarded in the month of December. To overcome this Programme instruction is used. In this subject matter is broken down into steps. Organizing in logical sequence helps in learning. Each step is build upon the preceding step. Progress is seen in the process of learning. Immediate reinforcement is given at each step.

7.      Shaping Complex Behaviour:

Complex behaviour exists in form of a chain of small behaviour. Control is required for such kind of behaviour. This extended form of learning is shaping technique. Smallest Behaviour is controlled at initial stage. On behalf of different contingencies next order of chain of behaviours is controlled.

Example: Vocabulary in English. Teaching spelling is mainly a process of  shaping complex form of behaviour.

Mechanism of operant conditioning

Mechanism of Operant Conditioning:

Operant conditioning is correlated with operant behaviour. Operant is a set of acts that constitutes some action of an organism.

Process of operant conditioning response natural as well as random.

Desired response reinforced through a suitable reinforcer in primary or secondary, positive or negative.

1.      Shaping:

      It Provides guidance and direction for behaviour change program & help in assessing effectiveness. It assist in setting goals for the behaviour of a certain student. Complex behaviour is shaped and helps in learning difficult skills.

      Example: Pigeon to dance in a particular manner.

            Child learning foreign language

            Child learning table manners

      For desired responses efforts are directed at eliciting the appropriate responses. Building a chain of responses through a step by step process is called shaping.

      Shaping used as a successful technique for training individuals to learn difficult and complex behaviuors. Introducing desirable modifications in their behaviour.

2.      Chaining:

      Chaining is the process in shaping of behaviuor broken down into small steps for effective learning of a given task by providing subsequent reinforcement.

      It is a sort of chain reaction. One object sparks the other object and so on. Chaining starts when one response brings the organism into contact with stimuli that both reward the last response and cause the next response, causes the organism to experience stimuli that both reward the response and cause the next response and so on. The new behaviour you want to build may be a series or chain of behaviour. A behaviuor chain is a series of related behaviours each of which provide the use for the next and last that produces a reinforcers

3.      Discrimination & cueing:

      It is a process of using cues and signals. Information to determine when behaviour is likely to be reinforces or punished. cues or signals may reinforce behaviour or may behaviour may puinished.

      Example:

1.   Animal press the lever when the light is on and not to press it when the light is off. Light is a cue or signal for the operant behaviour (lever press respone).

      Pick up your telephone. Hear the dial tone. Certain responses to the dial tone. Makes you advance to pushing the buttons for dialing a number or stop making use of the telephone. Responses to the dial tone is a cues or signals for the operant behaviour (performed or omitted).

4.      Generalization:

      Generalization is ability of an organism dealing with the perception. Response to similar stimuli. Example: child successfully subtracts four apples from nine apples after learning to subtract four oranges from nine oranges.

Nature of Operant conditioning

Nature of Operant or Instrumental Conditioning:

Operant conditioning is based on

1.Certain operations or actions.

2.Stimuli or cause for evoking a response is not always essential.

3. Subject performed acts or carried out operations were active. Example A dog or child or an individual does something behaves in some manner which operates on the environment which in turn responds to the activity.

4. Response is made more probable or more frequent by reinforcement.

5. Helps in learning of operant behaviour not necessarily associated with a known stimulus.

Skinners Experiment:

Skinners Box which includes:

1. Modified form of puzzle box
2. Box is darkened and sound proof
3. Grid floor
4. System of light or sound
5. Lever and food cup

Arrangement of Box:

Box with hungry rat. Rat presses the lever feeder mechanism is activated. A light or sound is produces. A small pellet of food is released into the food cup. To record observations lever is connected to a recording system.

Procedure of an experiment:

Skinner called this operant conditioning as instrumental since the behaviour of organism is instrumental in accomplishing the purpose. Hungry Rat is inside the box. Rat wander over and push bar down. Bar could be depressed occasionally. After a while this action is reinforce by permitting a food pellets to fall into the tray when the bar was depressed by the rat.

Modified Experiment:

Food pellets supplied under certain conditions (bar pushed down for instance when a tone was sounded)

1.                   Frequent pressing of bar by rat. (Behaviuor was reinforced by a food pellet)

2.                   Extinction occurred when there is no reinforce.

Rat generalized and pushed the bar down at the same rate when the tone was sounded. After selective reinforcement had been repeated it discriminated and pushed the bar only when the tone was sounded.

Schedules of Reinforcement:

1. Continuous Reinforcement Schedule:

To reinforce or reward every correct response. Example: student may be rewarded for every correct answer he gives to the questions or problems put forth by his teacher.

2. Fixed Interval Reinforcement Schedule:

Organism is rewarded for a response made only after a set interval of time. It is only at the expiry of the fixed interval that he is presented with some reinforcement. Given correct responses during this fixed interval of time does not matter. Example: 3 minutes or 5 minutes.

3. Fixed Ratio Reinforcement Schedule:

Reinforcement is given after fixed number of responses. Example: A student may be properly rewarded after he answers a f fixed number of questions say 3 or 5. Casual workers / labourers working in factory are paid wages on a piece work.

4. Variable Reinforcement Schedule:

Reinforcement is given at varying intervals of time or after a varying number of responses. Reinforcement is irregular. Hope of reinforcement Example: Reinforcement operation schedules of gambling devices.

Skinners Operant Conditioning

Skinners Operant Conditioning:

            Definition of Operant Conditioning:

Operant conditioning refers to a kind of learning process where a response is made more probable or more frequent by reinforcement. It helps in the learning of operant behaviour, the behaviour that is not necessarily associated with a known stimulus.

Definition of Operant:

Skinner considers an operant as an act which constitutes an organisms doing something.

Example: Raising the head, Walking about, pushing  a lever etc.

According to the skinner most of the responses could not be attributed to the known stimuli.

Types of Responses:

1.                  Elicited by known stimuli:

Respondent behaviour which includes all reflexes.

Examples are jerking one’s hand when jabbed with a pin, construction of the pupils on account of bright light, salivation in the presence of food.

Stimulus preceeding the response is responsible for causing the behaviour.

2.                  Emitted by the unknown stimuli:

Operant behaviour which includes the arbitary movements.

Examples are Movement of one’s hand, arms or legs, A child abandoning  one toy in favour of another, eating a meal, writing a letter standing up and walking about, similar other everyday activities.

Stimulus is unknown & knowledge of the cause of the behaviour is not important.

Definition of Reinforcer:

A reinforcer is the stimulus the presentation or removal of which increases the probability of a response being repeated.

Kinds of reinforcers:

1.       Positive Reinforcers::

Positive rein forcer is any stimulus the introduction or presentation of which increases the likelihood of a particular behaviuor. General Examples are food, water. Educational context examples are Praise, Grades, Medals, Other prizes awarded to the students.

2.       Negative Reinforcers:

Negative reinforcer is any stimulus the removal or withdrawl of which increases the likelihood of a particular behaviour. Genreal Examples are Electric shock, A loud noise. Educational context example is Teachers’ saying to the students that whoever does drill work properly in the class would be exempted from homework, Scolding students

Reinforcement:

The concept of reinforcement is identical to the presentation of a reward.

Punishment:

Consequences which are not reinforcing or do not strengthen behaviour and aims at reducing behaviours by imposing unwelcome consequences.

Example: students who feels pleased about being outside the class instead of feeling bad to turn him out of the class.

Environmental Factors Affecting Learning

1.      Heredity:

Children of bright parents tend to be bright and the children of very inferior parents are often inferior. Though, heredity follows the principle of regression that says that traits when passing form parents to children tend to move towards the average. The genius son of a genius father is as very rare thing. Again, there is a tendency among the off-spring to be higher in the traits in which their parents are low and lower in which their parents are high. They move towards the average that is they regress. The reason for not showing consistency in the attainment is due to the complex nature of heredity, as heredity of a child is not solely determined by his immediate parents but from all his forefathers and ancestors. Apart from this heredity plays an important role in motivating and deciding the future course of learning according to the status of the family and heredity characteristics.

Example: Well known cricketers Yuvraj sing and Mohammad Kaif got full support from their family. Kaif’s Father had been a good cricketer and he made tremendous efforts to get his son place in Indian squad. Yuvraj got coaching in the early days from his father itself. His father prepared pitch at his home for this purpose.

2.                                Environment:

Our environment is our habitation in the fullest sense. Not only our physical surrounding but also the people around us, social customs and traditions, culture, education and training all constitute our environment. A number of studies conducted show that environment has remarkable influence on the learning of the individuals.

Example : I.Q. of the fathers corresponds to their occupational status and that the intelligence of the   children would correspond to the occupation of the fathers.

3.                                Freedom and Self-discipline:

Until recently, school discipline was regarded narrowly as merely a means of restraining pupils from creating disorder. So that learning activities may be carried effectively. Restrain commonly took the form of stern teacher imposed authority involving the extensive use pf punishments. It was based on the assumption that the child is a bundle of evil qualities and that he should be corrected and molded into shape by the iron rod of authority. Thus no child could escape beating. But now gone are the days of such beliefs and no truly progressive education or school can tolerate this authoritarian method of life. The education in every child centered school is carried on in an atmosphere of freedom. Freedom means that the child is given opportunity to think for him, to feel for himself and to get for himself. Opportunities are provided for using and developing all his powers. The child is given the chance to develop his own personality, to learn to discipline himself, build up his own character.

4.                                 Recognition of Teachers’ Authority:

One should not accrue that the teacher has lost its importance in the modern time. Rather, modern school situations demand a more carefully selected and well prepared teacher than was necessary for the traditional schools. Infact education on an atmosphere of freedom demands on teacher than does education guided by the old ideas of authority imposed. It demands a new atmosphere in the school and a new attitude in the teacher. It also demands new methods which advocate free activity of body, mind and soul of the pupils. The teacher instead of being a slave driver forcing the unwilling pupils to learn becomes a guide, makes himself one of the group, brings to the help of the group his larger experiences and thus helps the group in the search for truth, encourages them in every way to think, feel and work for themselves. Hence the teacher should be given a key place in the modern times. His authority of course is not that of an autocrat but of a leader, friend and a guide.

1.                        Nature Neglect:

A teacher should have a complete knowledge of the biological laws. He should know how the whole organism works. He should realize that the whole child comes to school and not only his mind. The mind and the body are an entity. They connot exist without each other. Latin proverb says that “ Mens Sano in Carpore Sano” means “A sound mind in a sound body”. Mind lived in the body as in a clay cottage but it would be more true to say that the mind grows in the body as a plant grows in its soil. Poorer the soil, the more arrested the growth; richer the soil better the growth. Thus the mind and the body are independent, one influences the other. The body responds to various states of mind. Fear, joy, anger and all other emotions are reflected in the body. On the other hand mental activity uses up nervous energy which has to be replenished by the body. These considerations have natural bearing upon education and the teacher being conversant with these laws aims at the development of both, the body and the mind. In brief one should not neglect the laws of nature and should work accordingly.

6. Physical Environment of School:

    In general, the school environments present an educative atmosphere. The modern school site, building and equipments are adequate, safe, sanitary comfortable and attractive. It is only in the best environmental setting that the most effective learning takes place.

The improvement of the environment no doubt, lies in the hands of school authorities rather than teachers.  Yet, the requisitions, request and suggestions by the teacher can correct the environment to a considerable extent. The teacher can suggest about lighting arrangements in the class, as due to defective lighting and ventilation arrangements the crowded classrooms lead to overheated conditions which reduce working capacity and encourage the spread of respiratory infections. Further, it will amount to restlessness, inattention and unsatisfactory work. It is a well know fact that individuals work much better in a room with an attractive atmosphere. Although a teacher cannot completely recondition a dull and dilapidated room yet a better planning and efforts can work wonders to improve its condition. Actually it all depends upon the upkeep of the room. Careless disorder in the room, waste papers on the floor, and the untidy state of storage space, book shelves, teacher’s table and pupils desks definitely give a shabby look to a room.

Thus, the rooms should be attractively decorated. Neatness, cleanliness, orderliness and suitable decoration in a room will induce pupils to take a pride in their room and should largely eliminate scribbling on the wall and desks. This all will prove to be a boosting environment for learning.

7. Gap between School and Community

      The traditional schools are directed from social life and social activities. It has confined itself to book learning which has no utility for the child in his later life. But, the modern school represents the society in miniature. It has an intimate and organic relationship with the society. It incorporates such experiences which are intimately connected with actual living and enable the individual to lead a successful life is society. Secondary Education Commision  points out that there exists a “two way traffic” between the school and the larger community outside and  the problems that arise in the home and community life and the realistic experiences gained their should be brought into school so that education may be based on them and be intimately connected with real life and on the other hand the new knowledge, skills and values acquired in the school should be carried into home life, solve its problems, to raise its students and link up the teachers, parents and children in one compact and naturally helpful group.

8. Wholesome Experiences:

                            Real education is the acquirement of experiences which will help the pupil to adjust himself to his environments. Modern school, therefore, is an experience giving institution where pupils learn things through purposeful experiences. The old conception of the pupils mind as tabula rasa or clean slate, upon which the teacher is to write are gone. Now the school is an institution where learning takes place through experience. The importance of an experiences will be recognized by the child only when it responds to his needs and once the child feels its importance he will really be interested in it. Also the experience provided must have a clear objective. Actually we forget when we do not see clearly what we are supposed to be learning, because in that case we do not know what we are trying to be. We do not know over goal. Apart from this experience should have its value and meaning for use in daily life. We forget when we do not make use of what we have been asked to learn because we cannot make use of it in our daily living or in any other meaningful way.

Thus, wholesome experiences provide a  basis for better learning as most of the things common to our daily life situations need some sort of experience this way or that way significant to find a solution of the problems.