Module 1

M1S1: Foundations of Learning

• Psychology of learningis central to the success of teaching;because it has the potential to

influence our academic decisions and activities.
• Therefore, let us skim on the three dimensions of psychology of learning, and overlay
these on the adult learners that we have come across.

• Psychology, as applied to academics can be broadly distributed over three dimensions –

behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism.
• Behaviourismasserts that learning has a stimulus – response equation, where response is
learning, and which can be either positively or negatively influenced by the stimulus.
• It must also be noted that the stimulus – response equation here is predictable.
• Cognitivismassumes that learning is an activity of mental processing with inputs that are
available as concrete facts or abstract ideas, and not merely a monotonous response to a
stimulus.
• Constructivismon the other hand, relies on a response that cannot always be predicted by
the stimulus.
• It is a complex and layered responsebuilt on personal experiences interacting with the
new inputs.
• The overall importance of educational psychology is that we the teachers get a background
of how to address learners’ needs. In this context, it would be apt to be aware that our
learners are adults or adolescents, and such a generational cohort has certain distinct
features of learning.
• Two features that moderate the way our students learn are
a. how adults learn or the principles of andragogy, and
b. the learning drive of Generation Y and Z.

• Malcolm Knowleswas an educational psychologist who refined the understanding of

adult learning principles.
• He proposed four assumptions on how adults learn.
1. Adult learners tend to accept responsibility for their learning, and therefore are also
self-directed for the time and pace of their learning. As teachers, we have to respect
their willingness to be responsible and support through motivation and feedback.
2. Adult learners carry significant experienceto build their further learning. Thus, they
learn by constructing new experiences unique to their situation and need.
3. Adult learners tend to focus on their professional requirement and learning
relevant to it. Therefore, we must highlight the relevance of their learning to their
future professional roles
4. Adult learners value developing competences that are required for their professional
roles to solve problems. These competences are holistic and comprehensive
learning, and not a piecemeal knowledge acquisition.
• Another important aspect of our students is that they are either Generation Y or Z, and who
are nurtured in a digital environment. These generations also have an attitude of being a
‘woke’, which might be sometimes felt as being not respectful, by some teachers.