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Task B

The Learning Process
Task B
Task B : The Learning Process

Objective : The student will be introduced to the learning process.

Completion Standards : the student will be about to explain the learning theory as well as what the laws of learning are. The student will also be able the eplain memory and forgetting. And anything else in the overview.

Overview:

  1. Learning theory.

  2. Perceptions and insight.

  3. Acquiring knowledge.

  4. The laws of learning.

  5. Domains of learning.

  6. Characteristics of learning.

  7. Acquiring skill knowledge.

  8. Types of practice.

  9. Scenario-based training.

  10. Errors.

  11. Memory and forgetting.

  12. Retention of learning.

  13. Transfer of learning.


What is learning?

  • A change in the behavior of the learner as a result of experience.

Learning theory

  1. Learning theory is the body of principles that explain how people acquire skills, knowledge, and attitudes.

  2. Psychological Theories

    1. Classical Conditioning

      1. learning based on an association made between a neutral environmental stimulus and a natural stimulus

      2. Example

        1. Ivan Pavlov

        2. A dog could be trained to associate the sound of a beating metronome with being fed

    2. Operant conditioning

      1. Similar to classical

      2. Association is made between behavior and the consequences of that behavior

        1. Positive behavior = Positive Consequence

        2. Negative behavior  = Negative Consequence

    3. Social learning 

      1. Learning by observation

        1. Imitations

        2. Learn from our peers (Instructor)

      2. Stages

        1. Attention

          1. The ability of the observer to pay attention to others around him or her in order to learn

        2. Retention

          1. The ability to remember an observed behavior to later repeat that behavior

        3. Reproduction

          1. The act of producing a previously observed behavior. 

          2. This may require additional skills beyond what was initially observed

        4. Motivation 

          1. The reason to reproduce an observed behavior

  3. Learning Theories

    1. Behaviorism

      1. Terms of observable and measurable responses to stimuli

      2. Similar to operant conditioning

    2. Information Processing Theory

      1. Uses a computer system as a model for human learning

      2. Input => output

        1. The human unconscious takes charge, leaving conscious thought processes free to deal with issues that are not habitual

    3. Cognitive Theory

      1. Focuses on what is going on inside the mind

      2. The process of thinking and learning

    4. Constructivism Theory

      1. Learning by experience

        1. Burning hands on a stove

      2. HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills)

        1. Similar to ADM

        2. Critical thinking

        3. Problem based learning

      3. SBT (Scenario Based Training)

        1. Provides more realistic learning experience

        2. Real world

Perceptions and insight

  1. Perception -  which are directed to the brain by one or more of the five senses 

    1. Factors of perception

      1. Physical Organism

        1. Provides individuals with the perceptual apparatus for sensing the world around them

        2. Senses

      2. Goals and Values

        1. Things that are more highly valued and cherished are pursued

        2. Those accorded less value and importance are not sought after

      3. Self-Concept

        1. Described in such terms as “confident” or “insecure,” has a great influence on the total perceptual process

          1. If a learner’s experiences tend to support a favorable self-image, the learner tends to remain receptive to subsequent experiences. 

          2. If a learner has negative experiences, which tend to contradict self-concept, there is a tendency to reject additional training.

      4. Time and Opportunity

        1. It takes time and opportunity to perceive

        2. Stalls

          1. Recovery on first attempt with out prior knowledge

          2. Practice is needed

      5. Element of Threat

        1. Fear adversely affects perception by narrowing the perceptual field

        2. Steep turns

          1. Hyper focused on altimeter

          2. Anything else makes nervousness

  2. Insight – Grouping perceptions into a whole

    1. As things change the perception of what moving gives insight to what happening


Acquiring knowledge

  1. Memorization

    1. First attempt to acquire knowledge about a new topic amounts to memorizing facts about steps in a procedure

    2. To solve a problem or provide an explanation of something that is not covered by the newly acquired knowledge

      1. Might be unable to

  2. Understanding

    1. Develops when learners begin to organize known facts and steps into coherent groups that come together to form an understanding of how a thing or a process works

    2. Altitude and mixture leaning

  3. Concept learning

    1. Assumes that humans tend to group objects, events, ideas, people, etc., that share one or more major attributes that set them apart

    2. Enhances understanding when individuals formulate generalized concepts from particular facts or steps

    3. Patterns 


The laws of learning

  • Readiness

    • Basic needs of the learner need to be satisfied before he or she is ready or capable of learning

    • Teachable moment

      • Relevant time to reach/ willingness

  • Effect

    • Behaviors that lead to satisfying outcomes are likely to be repeated whereas behaviors that lead to undesired outcomes are less likely to recur

    • learner needs to have success in order to have more success in the future.

      • same goes for bad experience

    • SBT (Scenario Based Training)

  • Exercise

    • Connections are strengthened with practice and weakened when practice is discontinued

    • “use it or lose it.”

  • Primacy

    • What is learned first, often creates a strong, almost unshakable impression

    • Undoing and correcting the job becomes much more difficult than doing it right the first time

  • Intensity

    • Immediate, exciting, or dramatic learning connected to a real situation teaches a learner more than a routine or boring experience

    • Scenarios

      • Switch things up

      • Up the Ante

  • Recency

    • States that things most recently learned are best remembered

    • Repeats, restates, or reemphasizes important points at the end of a lesson to help the learner remember them

Domains of learning

  1. Cognitive Domain


    2. Basic Levels

      1. Rote

      2. Understanding

      3. Application

      4. Correlation 

  2. Affective Domain


    2. Addresses a learner’s emotions toward the educational experience

  3. Psychomotor Domain

    1. Is skill based and includes physical movement, coordination, and use of the motor-skill areas

    2. Levels

      1. Observation

      2. Imitation

      3. Practice

      4. Habit



Characteristics of learning

  1. Purposeful

    1. Sees a learning situation from a different viewpoint

    2. Most people have fairly definite ideas about what they want to do and achieve

      1. To be effective, aviation instructors need to find ways to relate new learning to the learner’s goals.

  2. Result of Experience

    1. The learner can learn only from personal experiences

      1. Pilots in training learn to fly aircraft only if their experiences include flying an aircraft 

      2. AMTs in training learn to overhaul power plants only by actually performing that task

  3. Multifaceted

    1. Individuals learn much more than expected if they fully exercise their minds and feelings

    2. While learning the subject at hand, individuals may be learning other things as well.

      1. developing attitudes about aviation

      2. good or bad

  4. Active Process

    1. Learners do not soak up knowledge like a sponge absorbs water

    2. learners need to react and respond,

      1. Perhaps outwardly

      2. Perhaps only inwardly,

      3. Emotionally, 

      4. Intellectually


Acquiring skill knowledge

  • Stages of Skill Acquisition

    • Cognitive

      • The learner has no prior knowledge of flying, the instructor first introduces him or her to a basic skill

        • Memorizes the steps required to perform the skill

        • Step by step example

    • Associative

      • Practice is necessary in order for the learner to learn how to coordinate muscles with visual and tactile senses.

        • no longer performs a series of memorized steps

    • Automatic Response 

      • Procedures become automatic

      • Less attention is required to carry them out, so it is possible to do other things simultaneously, or at least do other things more comfortably

        • ACS Standards


Types of practice

  1. Deliberate

    1. The learner practices specific areas for improvement and receives specific feedback after practice

    2. The feedback points out discrepancies between the actual performance and the performance goal sought.

      1. To eliminate discrepancies 

  2. Blocked

    1. Is practicing the same drill until the movement becomes automatic

    2. While blocked practice enhances current performance,

      1. It does not improve either concept learning or retrieval from long-term memory

  3. Random

    1. Mixes up the skills to be acquired throughout the practice session

    2. Leads to better retention because by performing a series of separate skills in a random order

      1. The learner starts to recognize the similarities and differences of each skill which makes it more meaningful


Scenario-based training

What makes a good scenario? A good scenario:

  • Has a clear set of objectives.

  • Is tailored to the needs of the learner.

  • Capitalizes on the nuances of the local environment.


Errors

Everyone makes errors from student first starting out to professionals in the airline industry

  • Types of errors

    • Slip

      • Occurs when a person plans to do one thing, but then inadvertently does something else.

        • Errors of action

      • When people confuse two things that are similar

        • Runways 

      • Procedure in a different way

        • Expected brief and not receiving it

      • Hurried performance

    • Mistake

      • Occurs when a person plans to do the wrong thing and is successful.

        • Errors of thought

  • Reducing errors

    • Learning and practicing

      • The first line of defense against errors is learning and practice. 

      • Higher levels of knowledge and skill are associated with a lower frequency and magnitude of error.

    • Taking time

      • Errors can often be reduced by working deliberately at a comfortable pace. 

      • Hurrying does not achieve the same results as faster performance that is gained by increasing one’s skill through continued practice.

    • Checking for errors

      • Another way to help avoid errors is to look actively for evidence of them. 

      • Many tasks in aviation offer a means of checking work. Learners should be encouraged to look for new ways of checking their work.

    • Reminders

      • Errors are reduced when visible reminders are present and actively used. 

      • Checklists and other published procedures are examples of reminders

      • Bugs

    • Routines

      • The use of standardized procedures for routine tasks is widely known to help reduce error. 

      • Even when a checklist procedure is unavailable or impractical, learners can help reduce the occurrence of error by adopting standardized procedures

    • Raising awareness 

      • Another line of defense against errors is to raise one’s awareness when operating in conditions under which errors are known to happen

      • Changes in routine, time pressure


Memory and forgetting

  1. Memory

    1. Sensory

      1. Uses senses for impact

        1. More senses more impact

        2. Last a few seconds

      2. Scan for important information

      3. Precoding

    2. Short term memory / Working memory

      1. Stored for 30 seconds

        1. Rapidly fades

        2. Remember 7 things at a time

        3. Scratch pad memory

        4. Lotus model

      2. Coding

      3. Rehearsal

      4. Recoding

    3. Long term memory

      1. Lasts a lifetime

        1. Significance attached

      2. Process

      3. Recall

      4. Store

  2. Forgetting

    1. Retrieval Failure

      1. The inability to retrieve information

      2. Tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon when a person knows the meaning of a word, or the answer to a question, but cannot retrieve it

    2. Fading

      1. The theory of fading or decay suggests that a person forgets information that is not used for an extended period of time

      2. Memories locked away

    3. Interference

      1. Suggests that people forget something because a certain experience has overshadowed it

      2. New events displace many things that had been learned

    4. Repression or suppression 

      1. A memory is pushed out of reach because the individual does not want to remember the feelings associated with it. 

        1. Repression is an unconscious form of forgetting 

        2. suppression is a conscious form

Retention of learning

  • Each of the theories of forgetting implies that when a person forgets something,

    •  it is not actually lost. Rather, it is simply unavailable for recall

  • Praise

    • stimulates remembering; absence of praise or recognition discourages remembering

  • Association

    • recall is promoted by association

  • Attitudes

    • Favorable attitudes aid retention. 

    • people learn and remember only what they wish to know.

      • motivation

  • Senses

    • learning with all senses is most effective

      • a fuller understanding

  • Repetition 

    • meaningful repetition aids recall, but mere repetition does not guarantee retention.

  • Mnemonics

    • Acronyms

      • AIM

      • PHACK

    • Rhymes


Transfer of learning

Transfer of learning is defined as the ability to apply knowledge or procedures learned in one context to new contexts.

  1. Positive transfer 

    1.  Occurs if the learning of skill A helps to learn skill B. 

    2. Example: The practice of slow flight helps the student learn short-field landings (positive transfer).

  2. Negative transfer 

    1. Occurs if the learning of skill A hinders the learning of skill B

    2. Practice in making a landing approach in an airplane may hinder learning to make an approach in a helicopter (negative transfer).



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