Lesson 1: The Principles of Learning
2 - Learning Begins With Me – Self-concept, Motivation, and Attitudes
Self-concept
How well we learn depends a great deal on our self-concept. We evaluate the world and its meaning in terms of how we see ourselves. We try to behave in a manner that is consistent with the way we view ourselves. Studies have shown that students who receive good grades and are successful all-round students have confidence in their overall abilities and in their abilities as students. Such students have positive self-concept. They require fewer favourable evaluations from others because they know their own worth as individual human beings.
Unsuccessful students have negative attitudes about themselves. They see themselves as less able, less adequate and less self-reliant than their successful peers. Many young people are handicapped throughout their lives by feelings of inferiority that they picked up in their learning experiences. This negative self-concept can strongly influence everything they ever attempt. Thus our capacity for learning is affected by our knowledge of our personalities, our abilities, and our limitations.
We can appreciate that humans are greatly influenced by the emotional tone of the learning situation, but so are animals! An experiment conducted on a group of rats brought some startling results. All rats in the experiment were of average intelligence and ability. First the rats were randomly divided into two groups. The experimenters were told that one group of rats were exceptionally intelligent and superior. They were instructed that the other rats were dull and stupid. The rats labelled superior were handled and responded to as if they were special. These rats showed superior ability in the tests that were conducted. In contrast, the rats labelled stupid did very poorly. The manner in which the rats were handled made a difference in the amount of learning accomplished in each group. Thus, the process of labelling established far different expectations for the two groups with correspondingly different results. What implications does this have for parents, teachers, bosses, and anyone else who guides, directs, and inspires the actions of others?
Motivation
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Motivation is concerned with the why of behaviour. It is a complex topic, but the key question relating to motivation is, “What’s in it for me?” Educators are especially interested in the motivational aspect of learning. If a teacher understands why students learn, he or she can use this knowledge to motivate the students toward greater learning. Generally speaking, we learn best when • we are interested |
Attitudes
When you are faced with the challenge of learning new information, your most valuable asset for success is a positive attitude. The attitudes acquired through childhood experiences have strong effects on behaviours throughout life. Early experiences influence and determine how later experiences are interpreted. The direct or subtle messages we get from our family about what we can and cannot accomplish are the foundation for attitudes.
When we enter school, we formally learn subject matter. However, the attitudes that we have learned informally have a far more lasting influence. The biggest barrier to progress is fear of failure, embarrassment, and rejection.
Thinking like a winner makes a person a winner. You can overcome many barriers by providing yourself with positive messages. Self-talk (which means silently coaching yourself) can help you accomplish many tasks that you thought were impossible. Before you were three years old, you succeeded in learning two of the most difficult tasks you will ever face—walking and talking. If you watch young children tackle both of those tasks, you will see that small failures, such as falling down, do not stop them for long.
We may not have control over every learning situation we enter, but we can make conscious decisions about whether we are going to think positively or negatively. Those decisions determine the outcome more than almost any factor.
