What is learning? Answering this is no easy feat and to do so in one sentence is even more challenging. However, I do believe it is important to try and communicate one’s thoughts and ideas into concise phrasing. After reading the article on learning by Alexander, Schallert, and Reynolds’ I didn’t realize how naïve I was about this topic. To me it seems that learning can be viewed or described as polar opposites. To summarize, learning can be deliberate or unintentional, simplistic or challenging, it can be ignored (somewhat) or consuming, can be a negative or positive experience, a process or a product, and is inevitable. My one sentence definition is that learning is the way in which we acquire, how we incorporate and use, and what we do with new information and skills.
To me the five most intriguing principles that the authors put forth were principles 2 (learning is inevitable…), 3 (learning can be resisted), 4 (learning may be disadvantageous), 7 (learning is a process and a product), and 9 (learning is interactional). Below is my summary and personal connection for each principle.
Principle 2 (Learning Is Inevitable, Essential, and Ubiquitous). I specifically connected with the aspect of learning being inevitable and essential stemming from the evolutionary perspective on survival. That we cannot prevent learning from occurring, it’s instinctual as well as a natural form of trial and error in order to achieve a desired outcome. One of my favorite elements of this principle is the idea that some aspects of learning are easy (common sense) while others are cognitively overwhelming. The example I noted in connection to this was starting a new job. I say job rather than career because usually with one’s career they already bring in a certain skill set. However with starting a new job, for example when I became a peer academic advisor, it is usually from scratch. I knew nothing about academic plans, how to build a schedule, what classes work in which general education categories, and so on. It was cognitively overwhelming and I thought I would never learn it all. But with time and practice, “through maturity and experience”, I did learn it. Not only did I learn it but it also became a part of my career journey.
Principle 3 (Learning Can Be Resisted). What stuck out for me with this principle was the perception of the learner’s own abilities, their self-efficacy. True, resistance to learning could also be connected with minimal rewards or being too much work, but I find that many students (and people in general) push it away because they don’t think they have what it takes, they aren’t good enough at it. For example, spelling is not my husband’s strong suit and I also get the impression that it wasn’t highlighted in his early education. He relies heavily on Google, auto correct, and me when communicating something in written form. In the beginning I would automatically assist him because I love spelling and consider myself to be fairly good at it. After some time though I asked him why he doesn’t try to learn how to spell better? His response; “Why?” and “I’m just not good at it.” To me, spelling is not some talent that some of us are born better at than others, well for the most part anyways. It’s a skill, which can be expanded upon, but if the learner does not believe in their own ability then it will be met with resistance.
Principle 4 (Learning May Be Disadvantageous). This principle was eye opening to me. Not the idea itself per say, more to the fact that the learner isn’t aware of the undesirable behavior that they acquired. They don’t know any different because that behavior has been reinforced by their social surroundings. I wrote in the margins the example of my husband’s lack of skill in spelling which I mentioned above, as well as individuals who wear what I call ‘the victim shirt’ or are reinforcing the very stereotypes they hate. The examples used by the authors are similar to these as well. I think of people who grow up in lower income areas or in abusive relationships. If you were to ask a child growing up in these situations they would most likely say that much of the behavior is bad and they don’t like it. However, so many end up doing the very same thing in their adult life. It’s all they know, it was modeled to them, and they have no other experiences to draw from.
Principle 7 (Learning Refers to Both a Process and a Product). This is probably my favorite principle and although I am an educator I must admit that I have been focusing on the product more so than the process. I also find that my students do the same as well. The authors explain this reciprocal relationship by stating that “the process refers to the change as it is taking place and the product refers to the outcome of that process”. Much of our education system is built on product and less on process. I’ve realized now just how important the process is. In order to reach the desired outcome (product) one can’t just skip ahead. You can’t get a Master’s or PhD just by doing a thesis paper or dissertation. A person doesn’t just know what the answer is to a mathematical equation without having some idea on how they reached it. The same is true for learning.
Principle 9 (Learning is Interactional). This principle is the most brief in description but communicates a large component to learning, which is the environment or context. I specifically liked the last statement about what learners are influenced by and connected it with that of a buffet. The learner has more choices or options available than they think they do. Yes the environment does have some influence over what is being dictated in that given situation but it’s the learner that can change or control their reaction to what is being presented. For example, my students can’t necessarily say “Ms. Norris we’re tired of learning today so can you please stop your lecture”, but they can control how they are going to react to that situation. If they are experiencing cognitive overload then note taking is of higher necessity than usual, or even attempting to record the lecture so as to listen to it later. Many people don’t realize the various ways in which they can draw upon the environment to assist with their learning endeavors.
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