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Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Chapter Two in Learning and Cognition - Conditioning Theories

Educational Conditioning Theories make up the back bone of many teaching styles and educational outlooks. Conditional learning is one of the basic forms of associative learning or making a new association between events in the environment. Ivan Pavlov is a famous scientist who discovered and documented the principles governing how animals and humans learn. His example of the bell ringing and the dog's response for food is one of the most used examples of how conditioning works.

In a classroom environment, this example reminds me of my high school students. When the school year first starts, my high school students would automatically jumped out of their seats and head for the door when the bell rang to signify the end of class. However, I had to condition them and make it a habit to where instead they would sit quietly in their seats and wait for me to tell them "Have a great day." If a student was standing or talking, the other students would police themselves and tell that student to sit down and get quiet so that I would dismiss them. This became a habit for them and what they knew I expected of them. It soon became second nature for them to wait for dismissal in my class before leaving.

Have you experienced this or have made this happen in your classroom or home? I look forward to more examples of how this works in everyday life.

Extra research done at: http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=9712&cn=353

9 comments:

  1. Same thing happened with my 3rd grade students when it was time to go to lunch, they would run to the door. I also had to work with them on making it a habit for them to sit quietly and then get in line, they soon realized that if they sat down quietly it would take less time for them to line up and we'd be on our way to the cafeteria sooner than if they ran to get in line, sit down again, then wait for me to tell them to line up. They would also tell each other to be quite or sit down.

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  2. Personal experience with conditioning is what I will have to pull from since I do teach in a classroom. My daughter has been conditioned to know when mommy puts on her shoes this means we are going…somewhere. She grabs her shoes looks up at me and says, “Ready go”. I see it as adorably cute but after our reading I understand that I have conditioned my daughter to equate shoes with leaving. My feet could just be cold or I could be running to work but in her mind she is going somewhere, anywhere.

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  3. There are places where conditioning students to behave in specific ways is a MUST. Because my school is very small, I teach all high School Science. That means I will have the same students from year to year. By the time they are Sophomores, they know the procedures for bhavior, safety and clean-up in the Lab without having to think about them. These procedures must be second nature to them to ensure their safety.

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  4. I like the example of the bell ringing and the dog's response for food. It is one of the most used examples of how conditioning works.These things amaze me on just how similar both animals and people are when speaking of conditioning Theories and other concepts.

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  5. Nina - I think as teachers, we don't realize how much conditioning we do to our student's behaviors. Some behaviors are very positive and help with the daily routine as Sheri noted above. Is make me wonder: As educators, are we conditioned to condition?

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  6. Candice - I personally hope that when I have children they are as cute as your daughter! You're right in that we condition others outside of the classroom, also. Our little one hasn't been born yet so I don't have experience as a mother, yet. However, my favorite local Starbucks not only knows my voice, but also what I will order! :)

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  7. Sheri, I absolutely agree that conditioning is a must in certain environments. As a computer teacher, I have a similar experience as yours but not to the degree that deals with physical safety. Mine normally deal with internet safety and computer procedures. Great example!

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  8. Elizabeth - I agree with you. I think it is amazing what we can learn about human nature by researching animals. I also find it fascinating that the sound of a bell could actually make the dog salivate.

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  9. I agree with the idea of students being conditioned to certain sounds. My students always wanted to leave at the end of the day as soon as they heard the bell. It took me awhile to retrain them to stay seated and quiet to be dismissed. They then learned the cue that if the bell rang, they needed to be packed up, and sitting quietly and they would be allowed to leave. Now only if I could have trained them that the ringing of the bell meant it was time to go home and get their homework done.

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