A Learners’ View (ALV) Is Of Choices On The Shortest And Fastest Path To Learning, The Oxygen Of Social Life.

Main Page: Terms that Describe Principles of Learning and their Uses

Theme: Descriptions of learning as reported by experimental empirical behavioral and social scientists.

Definition: 1. a The sequences of choices learners make while learning that are common across more than a century of experimental behavioral and social science research reports. b Learners learn in one step (other observable actions are trial-and-error) with two options (correct or incorrect) in three stages (beginning, middle and end of learning) at four orders (levels) with five generic response patterns that answer five questions (What is it? What is like it? What is not like it? What comes next? and What is missing?).

2. a Behavioral and other social patterns that scientists have observed learners use while resolving (decoding) a problem, such as whether to connect dots A and B, A and C, B and C, or A B C A. b Set of choices learners make at 15 choice points while completing a pattern (resolving a problem). c Represents the transliteration of observable social actions that result in people learning a system of symbols; others may use these social actions to adjust rates, amounts, and depth (RAD) of that learning. d Form, location and extent of elements of learning as symbols that represent learners attempting to adapt, adopt, and extend ways to complete a pattern.

3. a The capacity, while learners resolve a problem, to observe the fit among (a) choices learners make, (b) content of a lesson, and (c) instruction offered for the learner to increase that fit in order to resolve the problem. b The capacity to observe the efficiency for learning of the triple helix of learning.

4. a Questions a learner attempts to answer through trial-and-errors when confronting an unfamiliar problem (an incomplete pattern), such as Who was Aristotle? or Now what do I do? The dog is attacking. b Answering two primary questions in order to resolve a problem: What do I have to do? and What will it cost me to do it?

5. Completing patterns (resolving problems) with the least personal cost and the greatest personal gain.

6. The set of actions or results of converting observations of people learning into written descriptions in order to refine ways to increase learning more promptly in the next lesson.

7. Technical a Includes the triple-helix of learning. b The use of (user friendly version) of a Learning Efficiency Analysis Paradigm (aLEAP) to increase learning promptly and sometimes dramatically.

Synonyms: APPLICATION OF RESEARCH RESULTS features the conversion (direct use) of descriptions of behavior patterns that result from controlled behavioral science research into activities by a third party, such in as a teacher’s lesson. DECODING refers to using essential elements of learning to make choices that result in solving a problem. FINE ART OF TEACHING refers to the sophistication of blending choices learners make to learn, instruction, and content into lessons that increase learning rates promptly. INDIVIDUALIZED LEARNING gives priority to personal attributes of learners rather than to common choices learners make while learning. INFRASTRUCTURE OF LEARNING emphases the arrangement and relationships among elements of behavior patterns people use to learn. LEARNER CENTERED LESSONS emphasizes attributes of learners rather than behavior patterns learners use to learn. LEARNING CENTERED CONTENT gives priority to arranging the subject matter in a lesson to fit choices learners make in order for learning to occur promptly. LEARNING CENTERED INSTRUCTION refers to presenting content of lessons in ways that emphasize choices learners make to learn. LEARNING CENTERED LESSON features use of choices learners make to learn.

Dissimilarities: A TEACHERS’ VIEW gives priority to what teachers see, hear, and do to plan and instruct lessons over choices in behavior patterns learners use to learn; [Technically] teachers transliterate teachers’ views into directions that leave to chance learners using the set of behavior patterns scientists report necessary for learning to occur, that is to resolve problems; that is, directions do not necessarily addressing elements described in a Learning Efficiency Analysis Paradigm (aLEAP). EVERYONE’S DIFFERENT gives priority to the principle of human variation over essential choices people make to learn. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING emphasizes the generalization that people learn from doing something rather than identifying specific elements of social activities that result in learning. EXPERIENCE BASED PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY gives priority to expecting that repitition of whatever the teacher did before will meet or exceed an undefined criterion for success quicker than with less experience without acknowledging specific choices by learners. FOLKLORE ABOUT LEARNING emphasizes nonscientific discussions about learning, such as those based on belief, speculation, habits, and teacher shared ideas and practices. METAPHYSICS OF LEARNING addresses the origin, and other speculations about learning, such as mind-body-learning relationships that are as yet unanswerable by science, rather than describing what observers of learning have reported occurs. RESEARCH BASED TEACHING emphasizes a non-specific relationship between one or more studies and professional practice. STRATEGY FOR LEARNING gives priority to intent or motivation over scientific description of choices people make to learn.

Analogy: ALV is to learning as a Rosetta Stone is to translating Egyptian hieroglyphic scripts into Greek.

Highlights: The term a learners’ view (ALV) represents descriptions of social processes (choices learners have shown behavioral and social scientists that they make to learn, that is) to resolve problems by adapting, adopting, and extending their observable social actions. Results of studies conducted by behavioral and social scientists have been describing these choices for over 100 years. Other scientists have been using these descriptions to increase learning for almost as long. Learners hold a first hand view of their learning. Teachers and others can hold a similar view through self-reflection. Behavioral and social scientists have used controlled situations to overcome limitations that self-reflection, interpretations, and speculations (whether folklore or theories) impose. Differences in these views challenge the validity of premises and practices used from views and data sources other than ALV to increase learning. That challenge ranges through efforts with various names, such as “Best Practices,” to increase learning from changes in lesson planning practices to school/education reform policies.

Comment: A learners view (ALV) represents descriptions of patterns people use to adapt, adopt, and manage problems in order to survive unfamiliar situations, such as a problem in mathematics, science, or philosophy.

Premise. ALV rests on the premise that learners control what and how much they learn. It follows that teachers and others who try to increase that learning will match through lessons and instruction ways people control their own learning. Failure to match lessons and instruction to ALV leaves learning from a lesson to chance and imposes additional risks of failure on learners. These added risks will likely result in less learning than possible.

Evidence for this Premise. Empirical experimental behavioral and social scientists have observed, described, and assessed observable patterns people use to control learning for over a century. The term a learners’ view represents generic elements of these patterns. Observers may identify and count these patterns in order to predict when and how people will likely adapt. A learners’ view represents only what people observe with human senses. It is agnostic about the existence and relevance of topics such as cognition, emotions, mental abilities and disabilities, and other inferences frequently associated with discussions about education and learning.

Observable patterns start when learners try to answer two primary generic questions: What do I have to do to solve this problem? and What will it cost me to do it? These observable patterns end when learners answer or in another way demonstrate successful completion of one or more of five generic response patterns: (1) What is it? (2) What is like it? (3) What is not like it? (4) What comes next? (5) What is missing? From a learners’ view, learning (adapting, adopting or extending), however defined, does not occur when observers do not identify these generic elements in an observable social activity.

Related Resources

Applying Technical Scientific Descriptions of Learning and Teaching
Living in a Learners’ World
LPH (talk) 17:34, 29 June 2013 (PDT)

Last Edited: 12-22-14

A Learners’ View (ALV) Defined

Related Reading

Related Resources