Nuts and Bolts: Learner Beliefs About Learning

We spend alot of time in our business talking about learner “attitudes,” like Vacationer,Learner, Prisoner, and the outcomes we typically get from each. We talk aboutwhat learners find engaging and what motivates them to learn. Another area Ithink worth discussing comes from work done by Wichita State’s Marlene Schommer-Aikins:What do learners believe about learning? And how does that affect what and howthey learn?

Schommer-Aikinsoutlines four belief areas. Think about your own beliefs in each space. Whatare your inclinations? In each area, is your belief all-or-nothing? If not,what percentages or proportions would you assign to each choice? And think pastyour gut-reaction academic, “correct” answer: What are your own beliefs,really, when you are trying to learn something new?

1. How much control do you believe you have over your own learning? Is thatinherited or acquired, or both?
2. What do you believe about the speed of learning? Do you think learningis a slow process requiring practice and reflection, or is it something thatshould happen quickly if it is to happen at all?
3. How is learning organized in your brain? Do you believe it exists incompartmentalized chunks, or in complex networks?
4. How stable is knowledge? Do you believe information is fixed andunchanging, or does knowledge evolve and change over time?

So how mightbeliefs play out? Well, a person who believes that knowledge primarily existsas discrete pieces or chunks would probably see recall as “learning,” would seememorizing as a good study strategy, and would likely do well on tests but strugglewith application. You don’t have to look far to find an instructor who believesknowledge, being simple and fixed, is easily handed down by authorities: Intheir view—and their practice—recall = comprehension = learning. On the otherhand, those who see knowledge as something contained in interrelated networkswould define “knowing” as being able to apply, and studying as integrating andelaborating new information. They’d probably do well on application but havetrouble with testing on facts. People (like, ahem, me) who believe, or want tobelieve, that learning should happen quickly are likely to have trouble with patienceand persistence. Those who believe they weren’t “born smart” will have littlefaith that instruction will help them improve. They’d likely ascribe mistakesto an innate lack of ability rather than see them as an opportunity to learn.

So what?

There are ofcourse differing ideas around all this (if you care to go down that rabbithole, start with “epistemological beliefs”). I offer Schommer-Aikins’s ideas hereas one more way of thinking about the people for whom we create all theselearning experiences. Apart from understanding, as we do, ideas aroundstructuring and organizing instruction, we can also bring our understanding oflearner beliefs about learning to bear on our work. Can we find newexplanations for why learners misinterpret information or fail to connect it tosomething else when we feel that connection should be evident? Can it help usexplain to stakeholders why passing a multiple-choice test won’t necessarilyguarantee improved work performance? To take that a step further: Can we craftbetter assessments and tests of application?

Can wedesign in such a way as to help learners understand that learning can begradual, and may become easier with experience and time? Can we find moreopportunities to encourage and state the value of reflection? Are there thingswe can do to help offset the problems caused by self-defeating beliefs? Schommer-Aikinssays: “When you’re frustrated with the adult learner who refuses to learn touse [technology], or doctors who quickly prescribe a drug without thinkingthrough your unique medical history, or your mother who insists that child careis a simple black-and-white issue, think about the role that epistemologicalbeliefs play in your dilemma.”

Want more?

The primarytext for this column is: Schommer, Marlene. “The Role of Adults’ Beliefs AboutKnowledge in School, Work, and Everyday Life.” In Adult Learning and Development, edited by M. Cecil Smith and ThomasPourchot. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1998.