Learning and its Characteristics

“You can teach a student a lesson for a day; but if you can teach him to learn by creating curiosity, he will continue the learning process as long as he lives.” – Clay P. Bedford

Meaning of Learning

As we hear the word “learning”, so many questions arise in our mind, such as, what is learning? What are the different factors that affect learning? How can we learn and how can we increase the rate of learning?

In Layman’s language, learning takes place only in a formal school setup. But it is not true, as learning is not confined to one’s schooling. Learning occurs throughout one’s life, right from the birth and proceeds until death. All the human beings are always engaged in the process of learning through the environment, either intentionally or unintentionally. During learning, an individual’s feelings and experiences also influence a lot. Learning is modification of behaviour in the individual. It can be considered as the process, by which cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills are acquired, understood, and interpreted in a new situation. Let’s understand the meaning of all the three skills:

(i) Cognitive skills (Head): Development of cognitive skills are demonstrated when a learner is able to recognize, recall and interpret information and is able to apply principles in new situations.

(ii) Affective skills (Heart): Development of affective skill is demonstrated when learner is able to utilize his/her emotions, feelings, sentiments in positive direction.

(iii) Psychomotor skills (Hand): Motor efficiency in the learner is obvious, when a task is done with ease, speed and accuracy.

It is easy to measure the changes that are expressed by intellectual efficiency and motor skills, rather than to measure learning efficiency, that is related with interest, attitude and appreciations. Hence, learning is the lifelong process of transmuting information and experiences into knowledge, skill, behaviour and attitude.

Elements of Learning

Following are the three elements which are highlighted in the process of learning :

(i) The learning material: Material selected and organized well for presentation in front of the child.

(ii) Process of learning: It is procedure in-between presenting the learning material and learner’s response.

(iii) Response: It is the response given by the child to the learning material, which can be measured through the behavioural change in the learner.

Definitions of Learning

Following are some definitions of learning :

1. According to Skinner, “Learning is not acquiring knowledge or skill; by mere mechanical repetitions. It is a process in which the learner organizes different elements and experiences to reach a particular goal”.

2. According to Garret, “Learning is an organization of behaviour, it is the activity by virtue, of which we organize our responses with new habits.”

3. According to Murphy, “Learning is a modification of both, behaviour and the way of perceiving.”

4. According to the Harvard Business School psychologist Chris Argyris, “Learning is detection and correction of error where an error means any mismatch between our intentions and what actually happens.”

5. According to Burns (1995), “Learning is as a relatively permanent change in behaviour, which includes both, observable activity and internal processes, such as thinking, attitudes and emotions.”

6. According to Birkenholz (1999), “Learning is often defined as a change in behaviour which is demonstrated by people, implementing knowledge, skills, or practices derived from education.”

7. According to Atkinson et al (1993) “A relatively permanent change in behaviour that results from practice.”

8. According to Robert M. Gagne, “Learning is a change in human disposition or capabilities, which can be retained, and which is not simply attributed to the process of growth.”

9. According to Bernhardt, “Learning is more or less permanent modification of an individual’s activity in a given situation, due to the practice in attempts to achieve some goals or solve some problems.”

10. According to Columbia Encyclopedia, “Learning is the process by which a relatively lasting change in potential behaviour occurs as a result of practice or experience, Learning occurs throughout life, and learned behaviour accounts for a large proportion of all behaviour in humans.”

11. Webster’s Dictionary defines learning as “The act or experience of one that learns; knowledge of skill acquired by instruction or study; modification of a behavioural tendency by experience.”

Learning and its Characteristics
Learning and its Characteristics

Characteristics of Learning

Learning is a change in behaviour, as a result of experiences. Following are the characteristics, which show general nature of learning:

1. Life long process: Learning occurs right from ‘womb to tomb’. Evidences from Indian mythology reveal that learning starts when child is in the mother’s womb. (Abhimanu learned the technique of going inside the chakravyuh in his mother’s womb.) During his lifetime, an individual learns through various formal and informal sources, i.e. parents, community, religious institutions, etc.

2. Learning is a permanent change: Learning is a relatively progressive and permanent change in behaviour, that occurs as a result of practice, training or experience. It is not a temporary modification of the learner’s behaviour, as temporary changes in the behaviour do not attribute towards learning. Temporary changes fail to represent any learning or behavioural changes caused by fatigue, drugs, disease or physical damages.

3. Change may good or bad: Learning does not always assure that the modified behaviour will be socially approvable. It may be socially desirable or undesirable. These changes may not be evident until a situation arises for an individual to demonstrate his/her newly modified behaviour. For example: If child learns to smoke, it is a bad change.

4. Learning is transferable : Learning is not limited only for a particular situation, it can be transferred to another similar situations also. The learner retains and applies knowledge learned in the classroom, for solving the challenging problems in his/her life. For example: Child learns addition and subtraction which she/he applies in his/her life. If a child knows how to ride a bicycle, this knowledge can be transferred to learn about riding a motorcycle.

5. Learning is the product of both, innate and environmental factors: Innate and environmental factors together play an important role in the learning process. Researches show that the individual having high intelligent quotient will have more capacity to learn. Similarly, the child who receives a respectable and conducive environment, generally shows good performance. On the other hand, unhealthy and vicious environment hampers the learning process.

6. Learning is social: Learning is a social activity. Learner’s mind is always consciously or unconsciously influenced by his/her peers, friends, family, relatives, parents, religious institutions, clubs, and many more. These social agencies immensely influence the concepts, feelings and attitudes of the individual, in some or other way.

7. Goal-oriented: Every person, in his/her life time, frames long, as well as short term goals. In the process of learning, these goals are of paramount significance. To achieve these goals, an individual learns from various activities and acts accordingly. The direction of learning is always towards accomplishing the goal. So, all kinds of learning are goal-oriented and purposive in nature.

8. Learning is adjustment: Many psychologists described learning as “a process of progressive adjustment to the ever changing conditions which one encounters.” The individual faces new problems throughout his/her life, and learning enables to solve the problems and adjust him/herself properly. It is through learning that one can achieve ability to do things in new ways and adjust effectively in this multifaceted and dynamic society.

9. Learning is active not passive: Learning by doing is an important principle of education. Learning is always active, and never passive. It is activity based and largely depends upon learner’s state of mind. Thus, without adequate self-motivation she/he cannot learn whole-heartedly.

10. Learning is intelligent and active process: An individual does not soak up knowledge, like a sponge absorbs water. Worthless efforts and activities, such as cramming, without proper understanding, do not produce an effective and permanent result in the process of learning. Any work, done mechanically and unwillingly, cannot produce satisfactory learning outcomes. Learning, therefore, must be through an intelligent activity, where the individual needs to react and respond, outwardly and inwardly, emotionally and intellectually.

11. Learning is individual experience: Human life is part and parcel of diverse experiences. The individual learns from personal experiences, since learning is an individual process. It is helpful to the learner in reorganizing the old experiences. All these experiences provide new knowledge, understanding, habits, skills and attitudes to the learner.

12. Learning may be both, vertical and horizontal: It is vertical or qualitative in nature when information is added and exactness is increased to the already learned information. It is horizontal, as what is learned is integrated and organized as a part of a functioning unit of expanding experience. Thus, it is quantitative in nature.

13. Learning as a process and product: Psychologists say that learning is always a process, but in layman’s language, learning is termed as a product. For example: A child can play guitar, that means she/he has learned. Here, playing of guitar is a product. The process of learning starts with the felt need, framing of goal, work done in the direction to achieve the goal and accomplishing it.

Felt need

Framing of goal

Work done in the direction to achieve the goal
(Activities performed, tackling hindrances, managing stress)

Accomplished goal

Process of learning

14. Learning is Multifaceted: Learning is multifaceted, creating a great impact on the total development of the learner. The learning process may include verbal, conceptual, perceptual, emotional and problem solving elements. Also, discrimination and generalization is an important feature of effective learning.

In short, Learning is a complex and dynamic process that involves the acquisition of knowledge, skills, behaviours, or attitudes through various experiences, study, and practice. Understanding these characteristics can help educators, learners, and researchers develop effective strategies for facilitating and optimizing the learning process.

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