1. LIB 601 Learning and Libraries
Fall 2012
What is Learning?

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What is Learning?
So what is „Learning‟?
A fairly standard consensual definition is “a
relatively permanent change in behavior (sic.; it‟s
American of course) that results from practise.”
(Atkinson et al 1993).
It is however an important criterion that “learned”
behaviour is not pre-programmed or wholly
instinctive . . .
Whatever the case, there has to be interaction
with the environment.
• ATHERTON J S (2005) Learning and Teaching: What is learning? [On-line] UK: Available:
http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/whatlearn.htm Accessed: 29 August 2005
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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More definition
What is “learning”?
“In its broadest sense, learning can be defined as
a process of progressive change from ignorance to
knowledge, from inability to competence, and
from indifference to understanding. . . . In much
the same manner, instruction—or education—can
be defined as the means by which we systematize
the situations, conditions, tasks materials, and
opportunities by which learners acquire new or
different ways of thinking, feeling, and doing.”
• Cameron Fincher, “Learning Theory and Research,” in Teaching and
Learning in the College Classroom
Quoted in Quotations on Teaching, Learning, and Education
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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A definition that considers information
What is learning?
“Most models [of learning] assume that the purpose
of learning is to incorporate new information or
skills into the learner's existing knowledge structure
and to make that knowledge accessible. . . .
This processing requires active involvement. The
learner must verify an understanding of the
structure by receiving feedback, from the internal
and external environments, on the encoding choices
made.”
• Marilla Svinicki, Anastasia Hagen and Debra Meyer,
“How Research on Learning Strengthens Instruction," in
Teaching on Solid Ground. Quoted in Quotations on Teaching,
Learning, and Education
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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Major Theories of Learning
B. F. Skinner Carl Rogers
Behaviorism Humanism
Jerome Bruner
Jean Piaget Lev Vygotsky Constructivism
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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A less well-known constructivist
George Kelly: “Sense-making Makes Sense”
Throughout his theory Kelly continually
emphasizes that the person’s highest
endeavor is that of sense-making. He sees us
seeking, as scientists, for ever more complex and
comprehensive theories (collections of constructs)
which correspond increasingly well with the
changing flux of experience. In developing these
construct systems we are not merely seeking
certainty. We are not anticipating purely for the
sake of anticipating our future events, but rather
through accurate anticipation of future events we
will be able to relate ourselves to them effectively.
• An Introduction to the Personal Construct Psychology of George A. Kelly
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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A different kind of
constructivist
In “Conversation, Cognition and
Learning” (1975), [Gordon] Pask offered
a cybernetic and dialectic model for the construction
of knowledge. It involved the interaction between
two cognitive systems (e.g. a teacher and student).
The two would engage in a dialog over a given
concept, recognizing their differences in perception
about the concept. After multiple iterations of this
process, their differences would be reduced until
agreement is reached between them.
• Gordon Pask’s “Conversation Theory”
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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Another sense-maker
Brenda Dervin
Sense-Making is based on the concept that
humans generally seek information when they
encounter an obstacle, or gap, of some kind
that they see as a block in their life path. To
bridge that gap, the individual seeks or revises
information, methods, and new approaches
that they find helpful.
Sense-Making approaches this theoretic of the
gap by circling attention among key points:
the situation involved, the gap
encountered, the bridge constructed to
traverse the gap, and the helps/utilities that
resulted in bridging the gap.
• Sense-Making Methodology
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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What does Dervin‟s theory mean?
We solve problems by finding help
On the road of life, we encounter something that
stops us
In order to
continue, we must
find something that
helps us bridge the
gap, remove or get
over the obstacle, to
make sense of the
situation
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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Carol Kuhlthau on Constructivism
Constructivism builds understanding
Constructivist theory focuses on the
process of thinking that builds
understanding by engaging students in stimulating
encounters with information and ideas. Students
learn by constructing their own understandings of
these experiences and by building on what they
already know to form a personal perspective of the
world. The process of construction is an active
ongoing process of learning that continues throughout
life.
• Rethinking libraries for the information age school:
Vital roles in inquiry learning Keynote Address
International Association of School Librarianship Conference &
International Research Forum on Research in School Librarianship
July 9, 2001 Auckland, New Zealand
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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Kuhlthau on constructivism and
schools
“. . . a particularly useful theoretical
foundation for reforming schools”
Primary concepts:
• Children learn by being actively engaged and reflecting on
that experience. (Dewey)
• Children learn by building on what they already know.
(Dewey)
• Children develop higher-order thinking through guidance
at critical points in the learning process. (Vygotsky)
• Children's development occurs in a sequence of stages.
(Piaget)
• Children have different ways of learning. (Gardner)
• Children learn through social interaction with others.
• Rethinking libraries for the information age school:
Vital roles in inquiry learning
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

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All right, what is learning?
It is a process
A change in behavior resulting from some
interaction with the environment
A progressive change from inability to competence
Active involvement with the
environment, incorporating new information into
the existing knowledge structure
A way of making sense of experience
A way of bridging the gaps we experience on life’s
way
A way of constructing an understanding of reality
August 26, 2012 What is learning?

13. So what?
What‟s that got to do with us as teachers
and librarians?

14. Graphics from
www.animationfactory.com