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The Use of Cognitive Learning Theory

May 16, 2023

The 1920s were the time when Swiss educational psychologist, Jean Piaget, worked at the Binet Institute where he was in charge of translating English intelligence-related questions into French. While at the Binet Institute, Piaget became fascinated by the reasons why certain children answered logically incorrectly, while others answered the answers right.

Behaviorism was the dominant theory behind that; psychologists assessed children's ability to answer these questions from the interactions they had with their environment.

The year 1936 was the time that Piaget argued for a different theory -- he posited that the internal workings of a child's brain determine how they perform with logical questions. The assumptions of Piaget on intelligence were:

  • The brain development of children develops through stages and their behaviours alter to reflect these mental developments.
  • The intelligence of children differs from that of adults' quality-wise (not quantity). The reason for this is that children perceive the world in different ways than adults.
  • Children aren't the only ones to interact with the world; they also store details about their world and how they respond to issues that require logic.

Jean Piaget termed his line of thinking as "cognitive theories of learning". Over the years, educators across the globe have employed methods of cognitive learning to help their students to become better learners.

Read on to find out:

What is Cognitive Learning?

"Cognitive learning" originates from cognition that refers to the method of taking in and keeping information through senses, thought, and experience. The process of learning through cognition, by itself is a method of learning that involves effectively making the most of your brain's abilities.

Reminisce about your days in high school. Was there a subject that you simply loved? It was one that you were able to understand because it just clicked for you? How about a concept or topic that you were hard to comprehend regardless of how hard you did?

According to Piaget's cognitive learning theory, your capacity to understand (or not comprehend the subject will depend on how your brain process information related to that topic. However, with the help of techniques for cognitive learning, you'll be able to deal with topics that are naturally' difficult for you to grasp. These strategies help you create connections between the new information and pre-existing ideas, which increases your capacity to remember and recall knowledge.

In the present, cognitive learning theory is broken into two parts:

  • Social cognitive theory is the belief that the things people see around them as well as the behavior they observe impact how their behavior and the speed at which their brains grow cognitionally. A student's behavior can be affected when they observe their teachers and peers. This is why teachers are urged to set the example.
  • Cognitive behavioral theory: This is the belief that how a person thinks, feels and behaves is all interconnected, and could influence their capacity to comprehend. For example, if the student is convinced that they are not good with Physics and believes they'll never grasp the concept no matter how it's explained the lesson, they'll be likely to feel angry and irritated during an Physics lesson -- this can result in low results.

Strategies for cognitive learning aim at removing obstacles to learning and offer alternative (and more personalized) methods for students to learn. Understanding the concepts can make you a more effective (and more efficient) student and improve your chance of success in everything you commit your brain to.

What is the elements of cognitive Learning?

If you are a person looking to master something (or two), here are some important components of cognitive learning to be aware of:

Comprehension

Memory

Learning by cramming to remember it is an ineffective way of learning and cognition techniques for learning hinder this. In the process of learning through cognitive processes, your goal is to get a thorough grasp of the subject in order that you are able to connect concepts that are new to you with previous knowledge.

Application

The cognitive learning methods encourage you to think about the course/lesson material and figure out ways to apply the material to actual situations. This helps develop sophisticated critical thinking abilities, problem-solving skills, and qualities of leadership that you can use at school and in work.

What is the difference between cognitivism and constructivism?

Jean Piaget's research in cognition was based on two distinct notions: cognitivism and constructivism. Both concepts are related in that they both focus on the mental processes which are associated with learning as opposed to only being observable in the external world. But cognitivism and constructivism are different.

Through cognitivism, we are viewed as beings who can mentally analyze and evaluate new information without having to actively participate in it. Therefore, instead of simply responding to external stimuli and absorbing them via training, students can analyze the information and save it.

One of the best examples of cognitivist learning is lectures. In lectures, all students need to do is sit in their seats (or behind their computers) and pay attention to teachers explain ideas. While note-taking can be beneficial, students can merely process the information the teacher imparts to them without taking notes.

Constructivism, on the other hand, perpetuates the belief that individuals are able to process and interpret information based on prior knowledge and experience. In other words, people create their own information that shapes their perspective about reality. The constructivists think that for new knowledge to stick students must be able to participate in the learning process.

Therefore, instead of lecture classes instructors who are constructivist tend to prefer creating interactive group exercises and teaching students how to tackle problems and experiments to carry out, and real-life situations to make use of their learning.

Cognitive learning examples

There are different types of cognitive learning. Below are ten of them.

Learning implicitly

Have you ever learnt something new without actually meaning to? If so, you've experienced implicit learning. When you learn implicitly, you're usually not conscious of the entire process until you suddenly realize that you possess the ability or know-how was not there before.

Some of the things you could easily learn include walking, talking, and even typing fast even without having to glance at your keyboard.

Explicit learning

Learning is explicit when you actively seek out knowledge. In contrast to implicit learning, explicit learning requires you to continually pay attention and put in the time to be proficient when it comes to the subject you're studying. Examples of learning that is explicit would be taking an online course to master content marketing, or re-entering the college you attended to earn a new qualification.

Learning cooperatively or collaboratively

This form of learning comprises four components, including:

  • Responsibility for each individual: Although people collaborate in an organization, every person is expected to have their own responsibilities. personally responsible for.
  • Simultaneous interaction: All members of the group should be able engage in discussion on the subject they're studying and how they're each utilizing their knowledge.
  • Positive interdependence Each person in the group should have each their own responsibility but they must also be able to get assistance from each other when they need it.
  • The equal participation in collaboration learning, everyone in the group is equally. There is no one who has more power or ranks above other members.

Discovery the learning

If you are constantly seeking for new information by conducting research on new concepts, ideas or subjects, you're engaged in learning through discovery. For example, if you're writing an essay and need tools such as Hemingway Editor to edit and proofread it, you'll be understanding more about the editor by observing.

Meaningful learning

Learning that is meaningful occurs when a person can relate new information to past experiences. This often leads to abilities that are transferable and are applicable to other aspects of life, such as education and job. A good example of a meaningful education can be when you are working in the field of marketing, and you enroll in a marketing strategy course to deepen your understanding of this subject.

Learning through emotion

Learning to manage emotions involves learning how to control their emotions, understand other people's emotions and increase their ability to deal with emotions. No matter what you do for work, high emotional intelligence is a key part in the way you display the ability to communicate, show empathy, and handle interpersonal and professional relationships.

For example, emotional learning will help you communicate effectively with people who are both extroverts or introverts whatever situation you're in. In the case of customer service, learning how to handle your emotions and recognize the emotions of other customers will help you navigate customer interactions.

Experiential learning

Experience, they say, is the greatest teacher. The lessons you learn through experience allow the person to discern and learn valuable life lessons from your interactions with people. But, the information you gain through those interactions depends on your interpretation of them.

It means that two individuals may have the identical experience but take distinct lessons from the experience. If, for instance, you shadow your CEO on the job, you might learn the importance of leading by the example of your boss. However, someone within your role could be taught how to conduct a productive board meeting instead.

The value of your experiences is contingent on how you analyze the event and connect it with the present or past events.

Learning by observation

Learning through observation involves mimicking people who have skills and traits you wish to acquire. This type of learning typically occurs among children (as they emulate adults) but adults utilize it in specific contexts. As an example, you could enhance your leadership skills by imitating your boss at the workplace. You can also learn to be a better team member by imitating the behavior of successful teammates you work with.

Learner receptive

If you learn during lectures where a teacher is in center of the room and explains a topic while you are able to listen, you're doing receptive learning. Learning this way requires participants to be active in making inquiries and recording notes.

Receptive learning can be when your institution or job invites experts to instruct your students or team in a class room, hall or workshop in a workshop.

Non-associative Learning

Learning that is not associative involves adapting to an unfamiliar situation or thing through repeated exposure. This type of learning is divided into two categories of habituation and sensibilization.

It's the process of learning that you do by habits. This means that your reaction to a stimulus (or the situation) diminishes as you are exposed to the stimulus. For example, if you're new to the vicinity of the train station, you might be disturbed by the sounds of trains passing on the other side initially. But the longer you live there, the sound isn't as bothersome as you'll be able to get used to the sound.

Sensitization is, however, means that your reaction to a stimulus (or situation) is enhanced with time exposure to it. In the case of a start a new job as a receptionist, then you may notice immediately when the office telephone starts to ring. But as you stay longer working in the job as a receptionist, your ears become more tuned to the sound of the phone.

Advantages of Cognitive Learning

If you want to try some cognitive learning techniques, here are a few benefits to consider:

Improved comprehension

Cognitive learning requires students to put what they learn into actions. An approach that is hands-on to learning can improve a student's understanding of the subject and their ability to apply it in real-life situations.

Skills for problem solving

Cognitive learning gives people the skills they need to tackle difficult issues swiftly and efficiently. This is essential for any position of leadership regardless of the context.

Habits of continuous learning

The process of cognitive learning encourages the enjoyment of learning and makes the process of learning new information enjoyable and stimulating. Instead of listening in silence to information that is new the cognitive process allows you to apply your learning, and link the knowledge you're acquiring and what you already are aware of.

Higher confidence

If you gain a greater comprehension of the new subject matter via cognitive learning, you'll enhance your capabilities and gain greater confidence when carrying out assignments.

Faster learning

While you learn new things by using cognitive learning techniques, you'll find some learning methods that work great for your needs. When you've figured out these techniques, you'll be able to master new skills much more quickly later on.

Cognitive Learning Strategies and how to apply it in the Education Industry

Repetition/spaced learning

The difference, however, is that the three learning sessions will be on the same subject matter, only in different methods. The first learning period might be the video of a professor giving an explanation of the subject. It could also be a test that tests students' knowledge of the explanations during the initial period. And the last period might involve applying new knowledge to complete a job.

The 10-minute breaks in between every learning session prevents the overload of information that can be a problem for learners. However, these breaks don't have to be a time for idleness; you can incorporate distractor activities like memorizing words or working out which isn't related to the subject you're teaching.

Studies show that spatial learning is an extremely efficient method of learning which results in excellent performance on tests and long-term memory retention.

Reflection

Reflection, in learning, is when students record what they've learned from the lesson, the things they did not understand, and how they think the teacher can help them better.

This learning process typically is done at the end of class it is possible to add a reflection exercise after each subtopic you teach within your online class. It will help students understand which areas they're excelling in and what they're falling short, so they'll have the opportunity to revisit challenging topics. The students will also make use of that moment to make links between the new knowledge as well as their previous understanding.

Let your students email their reflection activities to you via emails. This is important because they demonstrate to you:

  • How your students are comprehending the topic
  • How effective your instructing style(s) is
  • What topic(s) you couldn't explicate clearly

If you've got this data then you can modify your curriculum accordingly, as well as help students achieve more effective results.

Graphic organizers

Graphic organizers are diagrams that show the relationships between facts, concepts and concepts. Examples of graphic organizers include pie charts, bar charts, flow charts, mind maps, as well as spider diagrams.

These organizers permit learners to

  • Take a deep look at the subject
  • Visualize procedures and processes
  • Organise your ideas
  • Make connections between the latest information and what they've learnt in the past

You can use these cognitive techniques in your class for presenting information and helping learners improve their thinking processes. The ability to organize their thoughts into comprehensive structures can help students develop a deeper understanding of the topic.

Note-taking

Note-taking is among the most efficient strategies for students to develop their listening abilities as well as their comprehension of the subject and retention of information. So encourage your students to make notes of important points while they progress through your course.

Not only does writing down the purpose and meaning of concepts help them to stick better, but note-takers have a source that they are able to revisit anytime if they do not remember something.

Integrate cognitive-learning strategies into your online course