10.1 Learning types

Types of Learning

• Attitudes: "....Disposition or tendency to respond positively or negatively towards a certain thing (idea, object, person, situation)." Also: Choose to behave this or that way according to opinions and beliefs.

• Factual Information (Memorization): Processing of factual information and remembering is tied to previous knowledge. Memory research has also a lot to say about processing constraints.

• Concepts (Discrimination): Concept learning encompasses learning how to discriminate and categorize things (with critical attributes). It also involves recall of instances, integration of new examples and sub-categorization. Concept formation is not related to simple recall, it must be constructed.

• Reasoning (Inference, Deduction): "Reasoning encompasses all thinking activities that involve making or testing inferences. This includes inductive reasoning (i.e., concept formation) and deductive reasoning (i.e., logical argument). Reasoning is also closely related to problem-solving and creative behaviors".

• Procedure Learning: Procedures refer to being able to solve a certain task by applying a procedure. Once a procedure is mastered its excused usually does not take much effort (e.g. ftp a file). Cognitive theories like Act or Soar are interested in this, because procedures are important in diminishing cognitive load.

• Problem-Solving: A good example is Newell & Simons information processing paradigm for the study of problem-solving and the concepts of "means-ends-analysis" and "problem space". According to their GPS framework, problem-solving involves the identification of subgoals and the use of methods (especially heuristics) to satisfy the subgoals. And important contribution was also the methodology of protocol analysis (of "thinking aloud methods" which has been extensively used by Anderson (87) to implement intelligent tutoring systems according to his Act* theory (Anderson 83).

• Learning Strategies: can be learned too to some extent. Very much dependant on what you want to learn

• Sensory-Motor:

• Searching for/receiving information (detects, observes, inspects, identifies, reads, surveys)

• Processing information (categorizes, calculates, codes, itemizes, tabulates, translates)

• Problem-solving (analyzes, formulates, estimates, plans)

• Decision-making (examines, chooses, compares, evaluates)

• Communication (advises, answers, directs, informs, instructs, requests, transmits)

• Sensory-motor processes (activates, adjusts, connects, regulates, tracks)