In what ways can human beings learn?
Learning types are categories that allow us to classify the different ways in which we adapt to the new based on what we know about the past.
This basic psychological process, which has different variants (as we shall see), occurs far beyond school and university: it takes place constantly, in any situation, even if we are not aware of it.
But what are these types of learningand what do they tell us about our ability to modify our behavior to face the challenges of everyday life? Let’s see.
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The most important types of learning
If there is one concept that has defined human nature, it is learning. All our ideas, feelings and abilities to adapt to the challenges posed by life exist because we have the ability to learn from the most varied experiences, consciously or unconsciously.
Sometimes we learn for good, allowing ourselves to live well and develop useful technologies, and sometimes we do it for the worse, producing psychological disorders and harmful ways of relating to others.
In the following lines we will see what are the most important types of learning, and what characterizes them. Of course, we must bear in mind that some of these categories overlap each other in some aspects, because they obey different criteria when differentiating the ways in which we learn.
1. Observational learning
This type of learning occurswhen the person learns from observing what another person, called a model, does or experiences. This way of internalizing knowledge is especially relevant during the first years of life, although it also takes place at any other stage of psychological development, from birth to old age.
In addition, it is a very relevant form of learning in technical and artistic knowledge, in which the coordination between ideas and movements is basic to achieve something with precision, although in the same way it can occur in other areas of life, such as the management of social relations, making purchasing decisions, etc.
2. Learning by discovery
Unlike what happens in the previous type of learning, in this the learner is an active subject of the learning process, and participates in the action that generates new knowledge, instead of just observing.
The clearest example of the context in which this psychological phenomenon occurs is found in the laboratory classes taught in many institutes, in which young people learn by creating chemical reactions themselves. However, as with the rest of types of learning, it occurs in many situations outside the scope of formal school education: for example, when using the home computer and understanding how it works.
3. Implicit learning
What characterizes implicit learning is that it occurs without the subject being aware of it, and often even without having set out to learn. It is, in fact, the most common mode of learning, and makes our memory collect verbal and non-verbal information spontaneously. On the other hand, it is also one of the most common processes by which psychological disorders arise.
For example, the fact of learning to orient ourselves in a city where we had not been usually occurs through implicit learning, since we do not put effort into memorizing each and every one of the spatial references that we use to know at all times where we are. At the same time, psychological traumas are the result of implicit learning, because they cause us to associate certain stimuli with a series of painful thoughts and memories.
4. Explicit learning
As the name suggests, this type of learning is the opposite of the previous one, becauseit occurs voluntarily and consciously, in the moments in which we invest effort in memorizing something.
When we research to do a project for school or university, we are using this psychological ability. Now, in practice, whenever we use explicit learning, implicit learning is also taking place, even if it is to memorize the details that we consider less important and that we have them “in mind”.
5. Cooperative learning
When we learn cooperatively, we do so within the framework of a teamwork process in which there is usually a distribution of roles, so that wecan learn both from observation and from participation and discussionabout how to interpret the data we find.
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6. Rote learning
This type of learning is based on the repetition of situations and stimuli. The fact of being exposed again and again to the same information makes us able to memorize relatively long strings of data.
An example of rote learning is found in the memorization of multiplication tables, as well as in what we do many times when learning chronologies in which we have to study dates. In both cases, it is necessary to review many times so that everything is consolidated in the memory.
However, it should be borne in mind that almost all learning situations are based on repetition to a greater or lesser degree; In rote learning, however, the minimum number of repetitions to learn is higher. This is a quantitative rather than qualitative difference with most types of learning.
7. Meaningful learning
While rote learning is useful and necessary in many contexts, it has the disadvantage that it does not guarantee that we give meaning to the memorized information, beyond the data itself. That is, many times we memorize information that remains in our memory isolated from the rest, without being connected with significant external references for us.
For example, we can memorize that Greek philosophy began in the sixth century B.C. without understanding exactly what that entails, or how that changed history.
Meaningful learning, on the other hand, is based on the integration of new memorized information into a network of ideas and concepts that shapes our knowledge about the world, so that no part is entirely disconnected. In this way, through this formula to learn usually less frequent to forget things, becausenew knowledge is “fixed” to our memory through different points of connection with what we already knewand that endow a useful and “meaningful” meaning for our mind.
8. Relevant learning
This is a subtype of meaningful learning in which new information, in addition to being considered important enough to be incorporated into the network of concepts of what is known, can be applied to everyday life, so that it is put into practice regularly and is reinforced and enriched.
9. Responsive learning
Receptive learningtypically arises in formal education contextswhere teaching staff issue information and learners are expected to memorize it passively and unidirectionally.
For example, it is what happens when giving oral lessons of the subject of History that students must copy in their notebook. Therefore, it is usually very different from meaningful learning, among other things because in case of doubt it is not encouraged to ask to clarify concepts and thus allow a fit between the new and the old information.
10. Maintenance training
In this type of knowledge, rules and theoretical criteria are generated that allow to perform known tasks and thatmust be faced regularly. For example, developing study methods is, in itself, a way of learning.
11. Auditory learning
As its name makes evident, auditory learning uses auditory stimuli as raw material. It is fundamental in the development of the arts linked to music, but also allow learning patterns of prosody and use of the voice to express ideas and sensations.
12. Visual learning
In visual learning, visual patterns are recognized, whatever their shape. It can be applied in a wide range of situations, from the use of color schemes in the realization of audiovisual pieces, to the creation of schemes to study better or to design documents or web pages, through acting and dance.
13. Kinesthetic learning
In this form of learning, tactile stimuli and proprioception are the information from which one learns. It is applied, for example, to exercise and sport, and also in arts such as theater and dance.
References
- Arias Gómez, D.H. (2005) Teaching and Learning of Social Sciences: A didactic proposal. Bogota. Cooperativa Editorial Magisterio.
- Lachman, S.J. (1997). Learning is a process: Toward an im-proved definition of learning. Journal of Psychology. 131: 447 – 480.
- Pear, J. (2014). The Science of Learning. London: Psychology Press.
- Shanks, D.R., Green, R.E.A., Kolodny, J.A. (1994). A critical examination of the evidence for unconscious (implicit) learning, in Attention and Performance (Vol. 15) (Umiltà, C. and Moscovitch, M., eds). Cambridge: MIT Press. pp. 837 – 860.
- Smolen, P.; Zhang, Y.; Byrne, J.H. (2016). The right time to learn: mechanisms and optimization of spaced learning. Nature Reviews Neuroscience. 17 (2): 77 – 88.
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.
