Factors which may affect the Learning Process Essay

The nature of the learning process has been studied by psychologists and physiologists. Many experiments have been performed and the literature on the subject is voluminous. There has been continual process in exploring what is not known about learning. Each year sees new discoveries and new hypotheses. Some proposed hypotheses were proven wrong and some older discoveries were made eligible for major modification. Subjecting individuals and classes to scientific measurements has lifted certain phases of learning from the realm of speculation to the realm of science. At present, there is no comprehensive theory concerning all aspects of learning. There is considerable disagreement about the language to be used in describing learning. Different writers hold conflicting positions on the degree of specificity of generality appropriate in talking about learning. The science of psychology is of significance for the light that it throws upon the nature of the learning process and upon the conditions most favorable to learning. Many other sciences have contributed a great deal to an understanding of the nature of the learning process and to the principal issues involved in the education of boys and girls. For example, sociology, physiology, biology, and biochemistry have added much to the improvement of educational procedures. In order to understand the teaching process, the students or the teacher must first know something about the learning process concerns the teacher no less than the pupils. Although the teacher cannot do the actual learning for the pupil, he can facilitate learning through effective teaching. Effective teaching and learning demand mutual understanding between teacher and learner. Moreover, motivation of school learning is closely related to the law of readiness. Readiness does not connote the mere desire to learn, his self concept and self-confidence, his levels of aspiration, and his knowledge and appraisal of how well he is doing in relation to his goals. This paper intent to discuss factors which may affect the learning process. II. Discussion A. Factors which may affect the Learning Process It has been found that the pupil’s difficulty in leaning may be due to many factors within the child himself. Some of the important factors which may affect the learning process are as follows. Intellectual factor. The term refers to the individual mental level. Success in school is generally closely related to the level of the intellect. Pupils with low intelligence often encounter serious difficulty in mastering schoolwork. Sometimes pupils do not learn because of special intellectual disabilities. A low score in one subject and his scores in other subjects indicate the possible presence of a special deficiency. Psychology reveals to us that an individual possesses different kind of intelligence. Knowledge of the nature of the pupils’ intellect is of considerable value in the guidance and the diagnosis of disability. The native capacity of the individual is of prime importance in determining the effectiveness of the learning process. Learning factors. Factors owing to lack of mastery of what has been taught, faulty methods of work or study, and narrowness of experimental background may affect the leaning process of any pupil. If the school proceeds too rapidly and does not constantly check up on the extent to which the pupil is mastering what is being taught, the pupil accumulates a number of deficiencies that interfere with successful progress. In arithmetic, for instance, knowledge of basic addition is essential to successful work in multiplication. Weakness in addition will contribute directly to the deficiency in multiplication. Likewise, failure in history may be due to low reading ability or weakness in English. Similarly, because of faulty instruction, the pupil may have learned inefficient methods of study. Many other kinds of difficulty which are directly related to learning factors may interfere with progress. Physical factors. Under this group are included such factors as health, physical development, nutrition, visual and physical defects, and glandular abnormality. It is generally recognized that ill health retards physical and motor development, and malnutrition interfere with learning and physical growth. Children suffering from visual, auditory, and other physical defects are seriously handicapped in developing skills such as reading and spelling. It has been demonstrated that various glands of internal secretion, such as thyroid and pituitary glands, affect behavior. The health of the learner will likely affect his ability to learn and his power to concentrate. Mental factors. Attitude falls under mental factors. Attitudes are made up of organic and kinesthetic elements. They are not to be confused with emotions that are characterized by internal visceral disturbance. Attitudes are more or less of definite sort. They play a large part in the mental organization and general behavior of the individual. Attitudes are also important in the development of personality. Among these attitudes are interest, cheerfulness, affection, prejudice, open-mindedness, and loyalty. Attitudes exercise a stimulating effect upon the rate of learning and teaching and upon the progress in school. The efficiency of the work from day to day and the rapidity with which it is achieved are influenced by the attitude of the learner. A favorable mental attitude facilitates learning. The factor of interest is very closely related in nature to that symbolic drive and reward. Emotional and social factors. Personal factors, such as instincts and emotions, and social factors, such as cooperation and rivalry, are directly related to a complex psychology of motivation. It is a recognized fact that the various responses of the individual to various kinds of stimuli are determined by a wide variety of tendencies. Some of these innate tendencies are constructive and others are harmful. For some reason a pupil may have developed a dislike for some subject because he may fail to see its value, or may lack foundation. This dislike results in a bad emotional state. Some pupils are in continuing state of unhappiness because f their fear of being victims of the disapproval of their teachers and classmates. This is an unwholesome attitude and affects the learning process to a considerable degree. This is oftentimes the result of bad training. Social discontent springs from the knowledge or delusion that one is below others in welfare. Teacher’s personality. The teacher as an individual personality is an important element in the learning environment or in the failures and success of the learner. The way in which his personality interacts with the personalities of the pupils being taught helps to determine the kind of behavior which emerges from the learning situation. The supreme value of a teacher is not in the regular performance of routine duties, but in his power to lead and to inspire his pupils through the influence of his personality and example. Effective teaching and learning are the results of an integrated personality of the teacher. Generally speaking, pupils do not like a grouchy teacher who cannot control his temper before the class. It is impossible for a teacher with a temper to create enthusiasm and to radiate light and sunshine to those about him. Pupils love a happy, sympathetic, enthusiastic, and cheerful teacher. Environmental factor. Physical conditions needed for learning is under the environmental factor. One of the factors that affect the efficiency of learning is the condition in which learning takes place. This includes the classroom, textbooks, equipment, school supplies, and other instructional materials. In the school and at the home, the conditions for learning must be favorable and adequate if teaching is to produce the desired instructional materials and equipment play an important part in the instructional efficiency of the school. It is difficult to do a good job of teaching in poor type of building and without adequate and instructional materials. A school building or a classroom has no merit when built without due to regard to its educational objectives and functions. III. Conclusion In conclusion, our knowledge concerning learning and the teaching process has thus undergone profound development in the last twenty-five years. Once it seemed sufficient for the educational psychologist to formulate a set of principles of learning around fairly simple concepts of exercise and effect. The teacher applied these principles through the techniques of drill, reward, and punishment. But with the development of theory and research, the psychologist has found it necessary to expand and to refine his understanding of learning with consequent important implication for learning. Reference: 1. â€Å"The Learning Process. † (Nov. 11, 2003). http://www. dynamicflight. com/avcfibook/learning_process/