PSYCHOLOGY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING :: INSIGHTFUL LEARNING THEORY AND EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS.

Dear all,

Thank you for all the support and encouragement. I am getting good responses from different parts of the world. I am so overwhelmed that felt to start today’s blog with a heartfelt reply.

 “Thank you for motivating me.”

Today’s blog is about a wonderful learning theory from psychology postulated by…... Wolfgang Kohler, a German Gestalt psychologist.

 In our day to day life we experience the various theories and the ways in which we try to learn things. Insight learning theory is very close to my heart as I believe a lot in the concept of subconscious mind….so let’s go ahead and discuss it in detail!

Max Wertheimer is the father of Gestalt Theory. Later, Wertheimer’s theory was further refined and developed by Kurt Koffka and Wolfgang Kohler. C. V. Good defines gestalt-configuration, total structure, form or shape, a term designating an undivided articulate as a whole that cannot be made by the more addition of independent elements, the nature of each element depending on its relationship to the whole. The term ‘gestalt’ means a whole, a total composition. According to this theory, an individual learns an object, a single entity, not in parts or bits. In other words, an individual’s understanding of an object comprehends the whole object, not merely parts or bits of the object. This theory can be summed up in the succinct statement: ‘The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.’

In the 1920s, German psychologist Wolfgang Kohler studied the behaviour of apes. He designed some simple experiments that led to the development of one of the first cognitive theories of learning, which he called insight learning. It is based upon the concept that whole is meaningful than sum of its parts. Insight in learning occurs in a flash and that involves the solving of a problem.

Kohler’s Experiment:

Kohler (1925) performed set of experiments with a chimpanzee name Sultan inside a cage. In the cage was a bunch of bananas hanging from the roof. A box was kept inside the cage. The chimpanzee tried to get the bananas but was unable to due to his height. Finally, he used the box, climbed on it to reach the bananas.

In another experiment, the chimpanzee required two or three boxes to reach the bananas. He succeeded in reaching the bananas by placing a box on the top of the other.

In another experiment, the banana bunch was kept outside the cage and two sticks were placed in the cage. After several trials the chimpanzee joined the sticks to reach the bananas.

Characteristics:

Insight is the sudden grasping of the solution of the problem.

It depends upon the intellectual ability of the learner.

It is facilitated by the previous experiences.

It involves understanding and reasoning about the problem.

Steps in Insight learning:

Kohler feels these steps are involved in learning-

Identifying the problem: Learner identifies the problems in goal attainment.

Understanding the problem: The learner analyses the situation and the nature of the problem.

Initial Efforts: Efforts in the form of simple trial and error mechanism.

Incubation of Ideas: A period of hesitation or pause from the problematic situation. During this period, mind keeps the task alive.

Insight Development: A flash of lightening comes in mind to solve the problematic situation.

Repetition and Generalisation: After obtaining an insightful solution for the problem the individual applies, this knowledge thus obtained in another situation which require similar type of solution.

Principles Involved in Insightful Learning:

There are principles involved in perceptual organization or insightful learning. Some of the basic laws propounded by Gestalt psychologists are as follows;

Law of figure ground:  This is a type of perceptual grouping which is a vital necessity for recognizing objects through vision. Everything is perceived in the context of its background.  This law examines how the eye can separate shapes in a design from the background of that design. This law is also called law of closure.

Law of pragnanz: An organism is motivated to learn when there is tension or disequilibrium of forces in the psychological field. Learning is the removal of this tension. When we perceive an object, we find some gaps in our perceptions. These gaps are filled by the perceiver and a whole figure is prepared.

Law of continuity: Objects having continuity are learnt easily because they can easily make a whole.

Law of similarity: This law makes the individual to grasp things which are similar. They are picked out as they were from the total context. Similar ideas and experiences get associated. An object revives another object which resembles or looks like it. For example, seeing a man and remembering an intimate friend by some resemblance though never saw them together in the past.

Law of proximity: This law states the proximate or near together things are picked up first and learnt easily than distant things. In other words, perceptual grounds are favoured according to the nearness of their respective parts. Items tend to form groups if they are spaced together. For instance, a triangle or a circle is understood in this way.

Educational Implications:

1. The teacher should present the concept as a whole to facilitate the insight learning.

2. The theory also focuses on the motivational part. Motivation is very important for learning.

3. The theory believes on the fact that understanding is very much essential for solving the problem. The teacher should encourage the students to understand the task.

4. The intellectual capacity of the learners also contributes to the insightful learning.

5. The theory takes into consideration the individual differences in learning.

6. The teacher should develop the reasoning power and capacity to discover new facts rather than spoon feeding and providing bookish knowledge.

7. The theory advocates the child-centered approach to teaching-learning.