MODULE 4: Intro, Lessons 1 and 2
July 12
TODAY'S MESSAGE
The Grace Period for Module 5 also starts today. This ends on Friday, 7/14 at 11:59 p.m. Remember that 10 points are deducted for each day an assignment is late.
TODAY'S ASSIGNMENTS:
1. Complete the Module 6 Pre-Test. Take the pre-assessment quiz to establish how much about our topic you already know. You are required to take this pre-assessment, but don't worry. It does not impact your grade!
2. Review the Module 6 Glossary and any vocabulary practice. You will be required to know the terms included for the post assessment at the end of the module.
3. Review Lesson 1 Notes to learn about Classical Conditioning.
4. Complete the Lesson 1 Practice Activity.
5. Complete the Lesson 1 Assignment.
6. Review Lesson 2 Notes on Operant Conditioning.
7. Complete the Lesson 2 Practice Activity.
8. Complete the Lesson 2 Assignment.
TEACHER TALK 1
Learning can be defined as the process leading to a permanent behavioral change or potential behavioral change. In other words, as we learn, we alter the way we interpret, perceive, and interact with our environment.
Theories about human learning can be grouped into four general "perspectives" (listed below). However, in our study of learning, we will primarily focus on behavioral and social learning.
- Behaviorism - focus on observable behavior → Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, and Observational Learning (could also fall under social)
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Cognitive - learning as purely a mental/ neurological process
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Humanistic - emotions and affect play a role in learning
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Social - humans learn behavior best in social situations --> Observational learning is an example of both social and behavioral
(adapted from http://www.lifecircles-inc.com/Learningtheories/learningmap.html)
John B. Watson (1878-1958) was the first to study how the process of learning affects our behavior, and he formed the school of thought known as Behaviorism. The central idea behind behaviorism is that only observable behaviors are worthy of research since a person’s mood or thoughts are too subjective.
Behavioral Psychologists study how our behavior results from stimuli both in the environment and within ourselves. The results of these studies have helped us learn a great deal about our behaviors, the effect our environment has on us, how we learn new behaviors, and what motivates us to change or remain the same.
(adapted from http://allpsych.com/psychology101/learning.html)
For visual learners, use the image below to help you organize and conceptualize learning theories. Pay close attention to behavioral and social.TEACHER TALK 2
We have all heard about Pavlov's dog. We know it had something to do with a drooling dog and food. This lesson helps explain what it means. Pavlov started from the idea that there are some things that a dog does not need to learn. For example, dogs don’t learn to salivate whenever they see food. This reflex has always been present in the dog and is referred to as the unconditioned response.
Pavlov showed the existence of this response by presenting a dog with a bowl of food and the measuring its saliva. Yuck! However, when Pavlov discovered that any object the dogs learns to associate with food would trigger the same response, he realized that he had made an important scientific discovery.
The bell was originally a neutral stimulus. It is called neutral because it produces no response. What had happened was that the neutral stimulus had become associated with an unconditioned stimulus (food). Whenever he gave food to his dogs, he also rang a bell. After a number of repeats of this procedure, he tried the bell on its own. As you might expect, the bell on its own now caused an increase in salivation.So the dog had learned an association between the bell and the food and a new behavior had been learnt. Because this response was learned (or conditioned), it is called a conditioned response. The neutral stimulus has become a conditioned stimulus.
Don't get too confused with the labeling here. Classical conditioning is "classical" in that it is the first systematic study of basic laws of learning / conditioning.
For more information about classical conditioning, click below and then watch the video that has actual footage of Pavlov's dogs:
Jim feigns exasperation with his PC and says he must "restart... again." He then offers an Altoid to an enthusiastic Dwight. In a re-creation of Pavlov's experiment, Jim has spent several weeks conditioning Dwight to desire a mint when he hears the default Windows "unlock workstation" sound. When Jim restarts the final time, Dwight places his hand out ready to accept a mint. Jim asks Dwight what he is doing, which he responds "I don't know" and states his mouth tastes so bad all of a sudden.
This experiment is similar to the one Pavlov did with his salivating dogs and the bell.
TEACHER TALK 3
We can find examples of operant conditioning at work all around us. Consider the case of children completing homework to earn a reward from a parent or teacher, or employees finishing projects to receive praise or promotions.
In these examples, the promise or possibility of rewards causes an increase in behavior, but operant conditioning can also be used to decrease a behavior. The removal of a desirable outcome or negative outcome application can be used to decrease or prevent undesirable behaviors. For example, a child may be told they will lose recess privileges if they talk out of turn in class. This potential for punishment may lead to a decrease in disruptive behaviors.
Do we have any Big Bang fans in here? If so, you will love the following clip. It shows the cast of characters involved in this operant conditioning we have been studying today. Sheldon wants to change how Penny laughs and uses some of the operant conditioning techniques that we have learned about. Is he using positive/negative reinforcement or positive/negative punishment. How do you know?
IMPORTANT DATES THIS WEEK
7/13: End of Module 6: Take Module 6 Test and Honors Summative
7/14: Start of Module 6 Grace Period; End of Module 5 Grace Period
CONTACT ME
Text/Call: 919.602.5075
E-mail: christopher.watson@ncpublicschools.gov
Text anytime between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.
NCVPS Psychology
CITATIONS
Today's Assignments (Book Icon Orange, David Peters, Wikpedia Education Program Case Studies.pdf, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license
Teacher Talk (Red Silhouette - Teacher, Ben from Openclipart, Openclipart, Creative Commons CCO 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication license)
Shout Out (callout-quote-bull-speaking-bubble, Pixabay, Pixabay, CCO Public Domain license)
Important Dates This Week (Blank Calendar Page Icon, Jackaranga, Jackaranga, GNU Free Documentation License)
Contact Me (Smart phone mobile phone, Pixabay, Pizabay, CCO Public Domain)