Notes: Learner's Characteristics | Teaching Aptitude for Teaching Exam - B.Ed Entrance PDF Download

Meaning and Definitions of Learning

Learning is the assimilation of knowledge resulting from the interaction between a teacher and a learner. It is a continuous process rooted in experience, involving the creation of knowledge. Learning is a natural process of growth or change in a person, leading to new modes or patterns of behaviour. It is studied in fields such as educational psychology, neuropsychology, experimental psychology, and pedagogy.

Definitions of Learning

Learning can occur consciously or unconsciously, resulting in a relatively permanent change in behaviour through reinforced practice.
Various thinkers have provided definitions:

• Skinner: "Learning is a process of progressive behavior through experience and training."
• Crow and Crow: "Learning involves the acquisition of knowledge, habits, and attitudes."
• Gardner Murphy: "Learning is the acquisition of new behavior or the strengthening/weakening of old behavior due to experience."
• Blair Jones and Simon: "Any change in behavior resulting from experience, causing individuals to face future situations differently, can be termed learning."

Basic Conditions of Learning

• Contiguity: Contiguity means that learning happens when a stimulus and a response occur almost at the same time. For example, if you touch a hot stove (stimulus) and immediately feel pain (response), you quickly learn to avoid touching the stove. This principle also applies to teaching, where presenting information and practicing responses closely together helps reinforce learning.
• Practice: Practice involves repeating a response multiple times. In different types of learning, such as classical conditioning (like Pavlov's dogs learning to associate a bell with food), operant conditioning (like learning behaviors through rewards and punishments), and skill learning (like playing a musical instrument), repeated practice is essential. The more you practice, the better you get.
• Reinforcement: Reinforcement is using rewards or consequences to strengthen certain behaviors. Depending on how it's used, reinforcement can produce various effects. For example, giving praise or a treat for a correct answer can encourage that behavior to continue.
• Feedback: Feedback involves providing information about whether a response is correct or needs improvement. This feedback acts like reinforcement by helping learners understand what they did right or wrong, which increases learning efficiency. For example, a teacher's comments on homework help students know what they need to work on.
• Generalization and Discrimination: Generalization and discrimination are ways in which learners apply what they've learned to new situations. Generalization is when a response learned in one context is applied to similar contexts (e.g., learning that all dogs bark, not just your dog). Discrimination is the ability to distinguish between different stimuli (e.g., recognizing that a red light means stop, but a green light means go). These are more like learning phenomena rather than specific conditions of learning.

Principles of Learning

To teach effectively, teachers need to understand the following basic principles of learning:

• Principle of Association: Teachers should be aware of their students' current knowledge and abilities. Since learning is a continuous process, teaching should begin at the students' level to facilitate better understanding and retention.
• Principle of Practice: Learning should lead to a functional understanding of facts. Regular practice is essential to reinforce knowledge and skills, making the learning practical and useful.
• Principle of Rewards: Learning should be both challenging and satisfying. Rewards, whether they are praise, good grades, or other incentives, help motivate students to engage and succeed in their learning tasks.
• Principle of Clarity: Teaching practices should be regularly evaluated and adjusted as needed. Both teachers and students need to have clear objectives to ensure that the learning process is focused and effective.
• Principle of Multiple Exposure: Learning often requires multiple practice sessions. Using a variety of teaching methods can have a cumulative effect, increasing the likelihood that students will understand and retain the material. The more ways students are exposed to information, the better they learn and adopt new concepts.
• Principle of Varying Learning Ability: This principle acknowledges individual differences among students. Some students learn more quickly, while others take more time. Effective learning depends on recognizing these differences and adapting communication and instructional methods accordingly.
• Principle of Theory and Practice: Understanding both the 'why' (theory) and the 'how' (practice) of an idea is crucial. Teachers should balance theoretical explanations with practical applications to enhance students' comprehension and skills.
• Principle of Effective Communication: Integrating appropriate audio-visual aids into the teaching process can significantly improve learning. Clear and engaging communication helps students grasp and retain information more effectively.

These principles guide teachers in creating a more effective and supportive learning environment, ensuring that students can learn efficiently and effectively.

Learning Characteristics

• Learning is Unitary: The learner responds as a whole person to the entire situation simultaneously, encompassing intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual aspects. This holistic approach aids in achieving educational objectives.
• Learning is a Complex Whole: Learning involves various dimensions like knowledge, skills, insights, values, attitudes, and habits, forming a comprehensive structure.
• Learning may be planned or unplanned.
• Learning can be active or passive.
• Learning is typically individual but can also be group-generated.
• Learning is viewed as both a process and an outcome, constituting a lifelong endeavor.
• Learning may be incremental, building upon prior knowledge.
• Learning can be stimulated by various experiences, both positive and negative.
• Learning outcomes may have ethical dimensions and can be transferable.
• Learning is multifaceted, self-active, creative, and transferable.

Emotional Intelligence and Multiple Intelligence

Daniel Goleman's book "Emotional Intelligence" introduced the concept of emotional intelligence as crucial for predicting human performance. It emphasizes the ability to identify, assess, and control one's emotions, as well as those of others and groups.

The theory of multiple intelligences, proposed by Howard Gardner, categorizes human intelligence into specific modalities rather than a single general ability, highlighting diverse intellectual capabilities.

Development of Knowledge

• Knowledge is structured systematically, with key concepts forming the basis of each discipline.
• Expository methods aid in better understanding through logical organization, critical thinking, and higher cognitive abilities.

Development of Skills

• Cognitive Stage: Involves declarative knowledge acquisition.
• Associative Stage: Combining individual steps into larger units.
• Automated Stage: The ability to perform tasks reflexively without much attention.

Development of Attitudes

• Cognitive Dimension: Involves beliefs and rationalizations shaping attitudes.
• Affective Dimension: Includes emotional aspects such as preferences and aversions.
• Conative Dimension: Concerns the behavioral aspect of attitudes and the willingness to act on them.

Learner

A learner is an individual engaged in acquiring knowledge or skills through study, practice, or instruction.

Classification of Learners:

• Visual Learners: Visual learners comprehend information best when presented visually, such as through patterns and shapes. Teachers can cater to these learners by utilizing graphic organizers for teaching.
• Auditory Learners: These learners benefit from auditory stimuli. Educators can support them by posting audio recordings of lessons online or engaging students in group activities that involve explaining concepts. Understanding elements like pitch, volume, tempo, and rhythm is crucial for auditory learners.
• Motor Learners: Motor learners grasp information through physical activity. Factors like frequency, duration, intensity, and pressure play significant roles in their learning process.
• Kinesthetic Learners: Kinesthetic learners excel when engaged in tactile experiences and physical activities to apply new knowledge. They connect learning to real-world experiences, examples, or simulations.
• Logical Learners: Logical learners thrive on organization and making connections between different pieces of information. They are inclined towards subjects like mathematics, science, and logic-based topics.

Types of Learners

There are three main categories of learner characteristics: general characteristics, specific entry competencies, and learning styles. Understanding these can help in teaching more effectively.

1. Based on Personal and Social Attributes:

These attributes help plan instructional objectives and reveal important physical and social characteristics relevant to learning, such as:

• Age and maturity level
• Motivation and attitude toward the subject
• Expectations and career aspirations
• Special talents
• Mechanical skills
• Ability to work under different conditions
• Differences between adolescent and adult learners are also considered.

2. Field Independent vs. Field Dependent:

• Field Independent: These learners rely less on others and see things analytically. They prefer working alone with self-set goals.
• Field Dependent: These learners are influenced by their surroundings, work well in teams, and need externally set goals. Activities that connect different parts of a lesson are useful for them.

3. Reflectivity and Impulsivity:

• Impulsive Learners: Respond quickly and make more mistakes. They collect less data and are less systematic.
• Reflective Learners: Take more time to respond and make fewer mistakes. They gather and analyze information thoroughly before responding.

4. Classroom-Based Learning Styles:

• Visual Learners: Learn through sight. They focus on brightness, size, color, and images.
• Auditory Learners: Learn through sound, paying attention to pitch, volume, and rhythm.
• Motor Learners: Learn through physical activity, either using large muscles (kinesthetic) or fine motor skills (mechanical).

Other classroom learning styles include:

• Intuitive: Learn through insights and hunches.
• Inductive: Learn from specific facts to general principles.
• Deductive: Learn from theories to specific facts.
• Reflective: Learn through introspection.

5. Based on Listening Skills:

• Active Listening: Listening with a purpose.
• Empathic Listening: Understanding the other person.
• Evaluative (Critical) Listening: Assessing the accuracy and usefulness of the message.
• Appreciative Listening: Listening for enjoyment and emotional stimulation.

6. Based on Thinking Styles:

• Reflective Thinkers: Relate new information to past experiences and ask "why?"
• Creative Thinkers: Play with new information and create their own solutions.
• Practical Thinkers: Seek factual information and look for efficient ways to apply new skills.
• Conceptual Thinkers: Understand the big picture and how things work, not just the outcomes.

These various learner characteristics help teachers tailor their methods to better suit each student's needs.

Characteristics of Adolescence and Adult Learners

Let's delve into the detailed characteristics of Adolescent and Adult Learners concerning Academic, Social, Emotional, and Cognitive factors:

1. Adolescence Learner

Characteristics of Adolescence Learners: 

Academic or Intellectual Development

• Moving from concrete to abstract thinking.
• Preference for active over passive learning experiences.
• Achieving high results when challenged and engaged.
• Ability to be self-reflective.
• Demanding relevance in learning and teaching content.
• Intense curiosity and a broad range of intellectual pursuits, some sustained long-term.

Social Development

• Development of interpersonal skills leading to fluctuations between independence and seeking guidance.
• Desire for peer and other approval through attention-seeking behaviors.
• Experimentation with communication and behavior to establish social standing among peers.

Emotional and Psychological Development

• Desire for independence, adult identity, and acceptance.
• Mood swings with intense peaks and unpredictability.
• Self-consciousness and sensitivity to personal criticism.
• Concern regarding physical growth and development.

Moral Development

• Understanding moral complexity, questioning values, cultural expressions, etc.
• Being influenced by adult role models.
• Displaying compassion and advocacy for marginalized groups.
• Impatience regarding the pace of change.

2. Adult Learners

An adult learner, also known as a mature student, is an individual who is older and engaged in various forms of learning. They often do not possess a high school diploma and typically have more life experience. Many adult learners return to education to complete a degree they started earlier or to pursue a new one.

Characteristics of Adult Learners:

Academic Development:

• Adult learners are autonomous, self-directed, and goal-oriented.
• They find learning relevant and have reasons for learning, not relying on others for direction.
• They value organized educational programs with clearly defined elements.
• They assess learning based on results and how it can be applied to their lives.

Social Development:

• Adult learners are well-informed about their social environment.
• They engage with social customs, traditions, and rituals, offering their own critiques.
• They fulfill their social responsibilities efficiently and can engage in teaching roles.

Emotional Development:

• Adult learners make decisions based on reasoning rather than emotions.
• Learning aids in developing their emotional intelligence.

Cognitive Development:

• Adult learners focus on mental and psychological processes.
• They analyze perception and information processing.
• They are capable of making decisions considering various factors.

Differences Between the Adolescence and the Adults