Ivan Pavlov
Classical Conditioning
Pavlov's Dogs
Ivan Pavlov discovered classical conditioning by mistake. He understood that his dogs would begin to salivate at the site of food. The food was known as the unconditioned stimulus, and the saliva was the unconditioned response. However, he began to notice his dogs would salivate whenever he walked in the room. He knew that this type of behavior had to have been learned by the dogs since they did not do it before his experiment. So, he decided to do the experiment using a bell as the neutral stimulus. When he fed his dogs, he would ring a bell. The bell became a conditioned stimulus because the dogs learned to associate it with food. Their salivation became the conditioned response because Pavlov was able to ring a bell and make his dogs salivate. Therefore, classical conditioning is about learning how to make the same response come out of a conditioned stimulus as well as the unconditioned stimulus that is not learned.
Classical Conditioning Today
Pros and Cons
Pros
-The conditioned stimulus can be learned easily through repetition
-Humans can teach their kids to have certain behaviors
-The conditioned response begins to feel natural
-Conditioned stimuli can be interchangeable
Cons
-People can forget what they've learned
-Need silence to have the best conditioning
-A disturbance can ruin the conditioning
-It is considered brainwashing
Applying Classical Conditioning to the Classroom
-Build positive associations between teaching and lessons
-Try to pull out emotional responses through neutral stimuli
-Assisting students makes them feel successful
-Relate lessons to emotional events
How It Exists Today
Classical conditioning exists through behavioral therapy today. By associating pain with bad behaviors, therapists can reduce the undesired behaviors in their clients. Since pain is often associated with behavioral therapy, it is not used in education. However, associating positive feelings with lessons is a good way to apply the theory to education.
About Pavlov
-Born September 14, 1849 in Russia
-Left his religious career for science
-He was inspired by the evolutionary beliefs of Charles Darwin
-Awarded a gold medal for his work in pancreatic nerves
-Awarded for his work with conditioned reflexes
-His behavioral theory is still used to explain human behavior today
-He died in Leningrad on February 27, 1936