Learning Process

UNIT 12 SELECTION OF LEARNING

ACTIVITIES
Structure
12.1 Introduction
12.2 Objectives
12.3 Learning Activities
12.4 Need and Importance of Learning Activities
12.5 Classification of Learning Activities
12.5.1 Learning Activities in the Classroom
12.5.2 Learning Activities Outside the Classroom
12.6 Criteria for the Selection of Learning Activities
12.7 Organizing the Learning Activities
12.8 Let Us Sum Up
12.9 Unit-end Exercises
12.10 Suggested Readings

12.1 INTRODUCTION
The purpose of education is harmonious development of the personality of the learner.
Harmonious development of the personality includes his physical development, menta1
development and other aspects of the personality. But if we look at a general classroom in
the Indian context, it appears that the whole effort of the teacher is directed towards
mental development of the learner. In order to complete the syllabus the process chosen by
the teacher is mainly lecture oriented in which the students remain passive listeners and
they do not participate actively in the teaching-learning activities in the classroom. For the
fuller development of the personality, the teacher has to organize a number of learning
activities such as questioning in the classroom, demonstration, dramatization etc:,
experimentation, observing the social processes and such other activities so that the right
type of democratic attitudes, scientific, social and moral values can be inculcated in the
students. In order to develop the personality of the child the teachers should choose the
learning activities carefully for the children so that the development can take place in right
direction. In this unit you will learn about the need and importance of learning activities,
their classification and selection along with their organisation.

12.2 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to:
l explain the meaning of learning activities;
l describe the need and importance of learning activities;
l identify the different sources of learning activities;
l describe in detail different learning activities;
l recall characteristics principles for the selection of and execution of these activities;
l describe the advantage/outcome of these activities; and
l identify the steps in the organization of these activities.
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 Selection of
12.3 LEARNING ACTIVITIES Learning Activities

Education is a long life process. The process of education starts from the birth of the
child. He learns laughing, weeping, speaking and muscular control and acquires many
habits/traits from the mother and other members of the family. Later on, when he comes in
contact with his peer group and other members of the community, he learns through various
organised and unorganised learning experiences in the form of seeking information (listening,
reading, writing, interviewing, observing, recording etc.), expressing thoughts (writing,
computing, reporting, discussing, singing, demonstrating discussing, etc.). expressing
(painting, drawing, dancing, photographing, dramatising, etc); creating (imagining,
visualising, constructing, designing, problem solving etc), and relating with others (sharing,
role playing, following, organising, leading a work group or team, etc.).
Keeping in view the process of education, the learning activities may be informal, formal
or non-formal.
At the primary stage, most of the experiences gained by the child are through informal
learning activities, which are incidental and or unplanned learning experiences. They can
occur at any time, any place and through any activity. The non-formal mode of activity
differs from the formal one in that it is an organised activity with. educational purpose
carried out outside the structured framework of the formal education system, not bound
by age restrictions, time schedule and sequences of the levels of academic standard. For
example, newspaper, T.V. (television) and other media experiences can be considered as
the examples of non-formal learning activities. The formal learning activities are designed,
planned and executed by the school for particular objectives guided by some pedagogical
principles: Formal learning activities organised by the school are of great concern in this
unit. The formal learning activities may be classified into the following categories:
– Activities organised by the teacher for the teaching of particular subject.
– The activities organised by the school but not directed towards classroom teaching.
– Activities organised by the school outside the school campus.

Check Your Progress

Notes: a) Write your answer in the space given below.
b) Compare your answer with the one given at the end of this unit.
1. List four informal learning activities which can be used by you while teaching
students at the primary level.
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2. List four formal and non-formal learning activities which can be used by you while
teaching students at the primary level.
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Learning Process
12.4 NEED AND IMPORTANCE OF LEARNING
ACTIVITIES
The all round development of the child is not possible merely through bookish knowledge.
Rather, teaching should be linked with real experiences through various learning activities.
The learning activities should be meaningful and be organized as an integral part of teaching-
learning process resulting in effective learning on the part of children. For this purpose, it
is necessary to give the details of all such activities so that these can be performed
meaningfully and effectively. These activities prove meaningful when they are related to
the needs and problems of the learner and of the society.
Psychologists say that if the child wants to do something, he tries to imitate the behaviour
pattern of language, and habits from his environment. But the present system of education
hardly provides any such opportunity because the learning experiences are mostly provided
through books, The learning activities which are selected on the basis of age, attitudes,
interests and needs of the students satisfy their inherent curiosity and thus they get the
feeling of success. Learning activities cannot be viewed in isolation. Rather they are an
integral part of the teaching learning process. They provide a useful channel to utilise the
surplus energy of the students. Besides, these contribute immensely to the normal academic
growth and development of students. Learning activities fulfil many psychological needs
of the students and consequently facilitate learning. Moreover, these activities provide
opportunities for practical experience through active participation and consequently children
enjoy learning.
Children learn more in minimum time through learning activities. The teacher becomes
more conscious about the content while using such activities.

12.5 CLASSIFICATION OF LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Learning activities vary from situation to situation. Activities in the classroom situation
will not be same as the activities outside the classroom situation. Activities can be classified
on the demand of teaching learning situation.
The activity which a child does inside the classroom can be extended to the outside
environment and vice-versa. For example, children are asked to collect different types of
leaves and flowers from outside and classified according to the size, shapes, colour etc.
inside the classroom/laboratory for display.

12.5.1 Learning Activities in the Classroom

A child performs many activities in the classroom. He performs his activity as an active
listener, does reading and writing in the classroom, maintains the class notes, observes the
experimental items taught in the class, participates in teacher/taught interaction i.e. he is
asked to answer the question by the teacher, does the blackboard work etc. Sometimes
students engage themselves in doing experimental work in the science laboratory and
work etc. Besides these activities, they also perform many other activities which include
l recall, l recognize the things, l discriminate between objects, l interpret, l generalize,

l formulate hypothesis, l analyse and evaluate.

12.5.2 Learning Activities Outside the Classroom

Children participate in many productive activities like flower plantation, school gardening.
Sometime they are asked to clean the play ground. Children engage themselves in many
other creative activities performed outside the classroom e.g. singing, painting, puppet
show and dramatisation etc.

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Children take interest in many activities outside the school. For example, they go on Selection of
excursions, take interest in exhibitions, do social work, campaign for the welfare and Learning Activities
awareness of society. It helps them to learn a lot of things from outside the school.
The teacher can take the students to a nearby post office so as to learn about its functioning.
This kind of activity needs to be organised in different steps:
1. Teacher preparation
2. Pupil preparation
3. Execution of the activity
4. Evaluation

Check Your Progress

Notes: a) Write your answer in the space given below.
b) Compare your answer with the one given at the end of this unit.
1. List four learning activities which can be performed inside the classroom and outside
classroom.
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12.6 CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF LEARNING

ACTIVITIES
Nowadays emphasis is being laid on using learning activities as an effective teaching
strategy because of their multifarious values in making the teaching learning process
more interesting and effective. However, wrong selection and use of these activities may
the learning affect outcome of children. Hence, following precautions must be taken while
selecting and using these activities:
l Activity should be integrated with learning. It should be an integral part of learning
process and appropriate to the curriculum of the class.
l The activity should not be merely recreational but should achieve the objective and
ensure significant co-ordination with the day-to-day lesson. For example, while
teaching about the type of soils, the actual soil collection from different places may
be shown in the classroom. This will provide the life like situation and will arouse
the interest of the students.
l The activity should be chosen according to the age, interest, ability level and use
experiences of the students. It should neither be to simple nor too complex. It should
meet the physical, psychological, intellectual and social needs and development of
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Learning Process l The activity should be truthful, accurate and realistic and should be, more or less, a
substitute for reality. For example, the teacher may organise ‘local self government’
‘mock parliament,’ ‘plantation of trees’, ‘cleanliness of the school’ etc.
l It should increase the motivation of the students and should be highly informative.
l The activity should attract and capture the attention of the students.
l The activity should be feasible and should be chosen from the content of primary
education.
l The activity should have the desirable utility and should be according to the local
conditions and needs. The activity selected should satisfy the purpose with which it
was selected.
l The teacher should have full knowledge, understanding and required skills before
organising the activity. While executing the activity, active participation of students
should be sought. There should be adequate preparation on the part of the teacher as
well as students. Students should be clear about what they have to do and what they
have to observe before the activity is executed. There should be a question so all the
doubts of the students are discussed in detail.
l The availability of physical as well as human resources should be kept in mind while
selecting learning activity.
l The activity should be adjusted within the time-table and working of the school.

Check Your Progress

Notes: a) Write your answer in the space given below.
b) Compare your answer with the one given at the end of this unit.
4. List four criteria which you would like to keep in mind in the selection of learning
activities for your class.
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12.7 ORGANISING THE LEARNING ACTIVITIES

The organising of learning activities consists chiefly of providing learning experiences
through an activity which may be carried on in the school or outside the school. The
essence of the organisation of activity is to carry out a useful activity in a group in which
all the students work co-operatively. The curriculum, content and techniques are considered
from the point of view the children and demand that they should think and select their
learning activities. in consultation with teachers. Learning by doing and learning by living
are two co-ordinal principles for organising the activity. Children learn through association,
co-operation and action. The organisation of activity should be purposeful and should be
planned to achieve that purpose in the real social and natural situations created by the
teacher.
The following steps are involved in completing a learning activity.
i) Providing a situation : The teacher should provide such a situation to the students
which creates some problems for them and in which they feel interested in participating.
The nature of the child, his past experiences, home and social environment, language,
customs, food habits, and ability level should be taken into consideration while
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providing a situation for learning activity.
ii) Choosing and Proposing : The children should be permitted to choose the activity. Selection of
The teacher should stimulate discussion by suggestion. While choosing the activity Learning Activities
the teacher should bear in mind that it should be according to the age, interest, ability
level of the students. The purpose of the activity should be clearly defined and well
understood by the students. The activity should be common and acceptable to all. In
case of wrong selection of activity by the students, the teacher should tactfully guide
them to see that their activity is not good and should allow them to choose another
activity. The student should be asked to write down the reasons for their selection.
iii) Planning : Planning the activity is very important for the success of the students
which should be done under the guidance of the teacher. The teacher should prepare
2 to 3 alternative plans and guide the students according to these plans. Participation
of each student needs to be ensured in the process of planning. Students may be
asked to write down the plan.
iv) Execution : The teacher should assign duties and responsibilities according to the
interest and ability level of the students. It should be ensured that each student should
contribute actively towards the execution of the activity.
v) Evaluation : The activity needs to be monitored continuously with the help of students
and be reviewed to suggest the mid course corrections. The teacher should see to it
continuously that the objectives of the activities are achieved.
vi) Recall : A complete record of the activities needs to be kept by all the students and
should be supervised by the teacher.

Check Your Progress

Notes: a) Write your answer in the space given below.
b) Compare your answer with the one given at the end of this unit.
5. List the steps which should be followed in organising a learning activity for your
students in the school.
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12.8 LET US SUM UP

Learning activities make teaching effective and meaningful. These activities include
organised and unorganised learning experiences like listening, reading, writings, observing,
recording, discussing, questioning, singing, dancing, demonstrations, dramatising,
constructing, problem solving etc. Learning activities make learning enjoyable and sustain
the interest and attention of students. At the primary stage, most of the experiences gained
by children are through informal learning activities. The formal and non-formal activities
are organised activities undertaken inside and outside the classroom. The preparation of
the teacher and students planning and execution of the activity and evaluation are essential
components in the organisation of a learning activity. The activity should not be merely
recreational but should accomplish the instructional objectives. It should be chosen keeping
in view the age, needs, interest and ability level of children. The activity should take into
consideration the local needs, availability of physical as well as human resources, and
adjusted within the timetable and working of school. The steps involved, for completing a
learning activity include i) Providing a situation; ii) choosing and proposing (iii) planning;
iv) execution; v) evaluation and vi) recall.
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Learning Process
12.9 UNIT-END EXERCISE
I. Suppose you are involved in teaching student of fourth grade of a primary school.
Select a unit for teaching from any subject of your interest and prepare a list of learning
activities which you would like to undertake while teaching this unit along with the procedure
which you would use in organising these activities.

12.10 SUGGESTED READINGS

Davis, R.K. (1971) : The Management of Learning: London: McGraw Hill.
Hebron, M.E (1966) : Motivating Learning. London: Methuen.
Kulkarni, S.S. (l 986) : Introduction to Educational Technology, New Delhi: Oxford
IBH Publishing Co.

ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

I. a) singing b) dancing
c) drawing d) playing
2. Formal
a) Reading b) Writing
c) Reciting a poem d) Sketching a map
Non-formal
a) Reading a Newspaper
b) Watching a Quiz on T.V.
c) Listening News on Radio
d) Participating in a religious discourse
3. Inside Classroom
a) Writing on the black board
b) Solving a mathematical sum
c) Responding to the question asked by the teacher
d) Reading a paragraph from the Textbook of Hindi
Outside Classroom
a) Collecting specimen of flowers b) Playing footbal1
c) Cleaning school campus d) Participating in a drama
4. a) The activity should be an integral part of learning process and appropriate to
the curriculum.
b) The activity should be chosen keeping in view the age, needs, interest and
ability level of the students.
c) The activity should have desirable utility and should be according to the local
conditions and needs of the community.
d) The availability of physical as well as human resources should be kept in mind
while selecting a learning activity.
5. a) Providing a situation b) Choosing and proposing
c) Planning d) Execution
e) Evaluation f) Re- call and recoding

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