Module 3

Classical Conditioning

(1) "Classical conditioning is a process by which new events or stimuli acquire the power to trigger responses." This methodology could be applied in the classroom to associate students’ early experiences with positive reactions. It is the teacher’s job to ensure the students have a positive experience at school rather than a negative one. To do this, certain steps must be taken to "condition" a positive response for students.

As an elementary teacher, on the first day of school, I would create a happy environment for students in which they will immediately feel welcome. I feel this requires making the classroom look like a fun place to be. The walls would be decorated with colorful pictures, the desks/ tables would be arranged for group work, and manipulatives would be placed around the classroom for activities. I would start the day by greeting the students and giving them nametags as they entered the classroom. This would allow me to learn their names quickly so I could refer to them by name.

I would then have many fun activities planned to get to know each other. For example, an art project in which they cut out pictures representing themselves and arrange them into a collage. They would share their project with another student and then later in a group they would introduce each other remembering whatever they could about their partner. This setting would be non-theatening because they would have the collage to help trigger their memory.

I would also do a read aloud and have the students sit on the floor on pillows creating a comfortable atmosphere in which to learn. They could then select a book they want to read for silent reading. I believe allowing the students’ choices, makes them feel grown up and in control. This will in turn make them more comfortable with their own learning. I would then do puzzles, word games, and songs incorporating information they already know so they would have positive emotional reactions to the activities.

The reason for having fun activities on the first day of school refers back to a strategy used in the classical conditioning theory, which explains that already established relationships elicit positive reactions. This means as a teacher, it would be better to select activities the children are comfortable with to make them feel comfortable. New and unfamiliar situations on the first day of school can cause anxiety for some children leading to negative reactions.

Therefore, by greeting the students warmly, learning their names, and planning activities in which they can have fun will reduce their fear and anxiety on the first day of school, thus allowing them to relax and enjoy themselves. Teachers who immediately teach new information on the first day make a big mistake because they may create negative responses to school that may continue for the entire year. I think it is ok to go over the rules of the classroom and housekeeping things, but keep it to a minimum and do not have them memorize the rules for the next day!

(2) As a high school teacher preparing to introduce trigonometry to the class, I must recognize that most students are probably deathly scared of trigonometry without even knowing anything about it. This creates anxiety and fear before even entering the classroom. Therefore, I must "uncondition" their negative reactions to advanced math to eliminate their fear.

I would begin the class by demonstrating trigonometry in real life situations explaining how it could be helpful in daily life. Then using the strategies of Mary Cover Jones, I would have students watch other students engage in trigonometry problems. Students would be separated into groups based on their basic understanding of trigonometry and would have problems for the group to work out. Each group would contain one or more students that understood the concept, so they could help the other students learn. Then the students who are fearful of learning the advanced math will see first hand that the work is not too difficult and will try to participate in the group work. The purpose of grouping the students is to eliminate the pressure and fear of having to work a problem individually or even answer a question they do not understand. Peer working in this situation would be beneficial to promote a positive attitude toward trigonometry.

The second strategy is to gradually present trigonometry during a favorite activity. For example, if the class really enjoys math contests, I would incorporate trigonometry questions with other math questions in which they are familiar and comfortable with their concepts. The class would be split into two groups and would each answer the same question. The group that came up with the answer first would receive a point. This activity would allow the students to work collectively using all of their knowledge to answer the question. Then over time I would eventually give all trigonometry questions when they showed or demonstrated acceptance of the new concepts.

In this situation it is important to realize that students already exhibit a negative response to trigonometry and as the teacher it is my job to change that unwanted behavior. I believe cooperative learning is an excellent way to reduce the anxiety that occurs or has already occurred in learning trigonometry and increase the students’ positive reactions.

(3) Clark Hull’s behavior system and Edwin Guthrie’s contiguity theory are both referred to as S-R theories because they define learning as a link between a stimulus and a response, but they differ in their identification of the factors believed to be of primary importance in establishing the S-R association.

Hull’s behavior system was considered to be rigorous, abstract, and complex. Included in this system was the hypothetico-deductive method, which was used for hypothesis testing. He emphasized the processes within the organism and the biological needs essential for the organism's survival. These needs thought of as "drives" was referred to as drive stimuli, which motivated behavior. He incorporated reinforcement into his theory demonstrating the satisfaction of this biological condition as drive reduction. Eventually his theory was disregarded by Skinner’s principles.

In contrast, Guthrie’s theory was thought to be informal and loosely organized. It emphasized that the relationship between the stimulus and the response was the most important factor in learning. Incorporated in this theory is the law of contiguity, which states "a combination of stimuli accompanied by a movement will tend to be followed by the same movement on its recurrence." Further demonstrating the relationship between the stimulus and response, he describes three methods for breaking habits. This is important because breaking habits requires breaking associations between the eliciting stimuli and the response. Guthrie found punishment to play an important role in learning, but did not consider reinforcement an essential factor. Unlike Hull, he offered advice to educators to apply his theory to practical use in the classroom.

Hull	Guthrie
Behavior system	Theory of contiguity
Method of hypothesis testing	Law of contiguity
Processes within the organism (Intervening variables)	Relationship between the stimulus and the response
Reinforcement as a factor	Reinforcement not a factor
Did not use punishment	Used punishment
Did not offer advice	Offered advice for educators
Theory development disregarded	Theory remains a major principle
Rigorous, abstract, complex	Informal, loosely organized
Stimulus - drive stimuli - Response	Stimulus -movement/acts- Response
Stimulus - drive reduction - Response	Stimulus - habit- Response
Stimulus - reinforcement – Response	Stimulus - punishment - Response