How Learning Works

Estimated time to complete: 15 minutes

Module Learning Objectives

Learning Defined

Learning is the acquisition and integration of new information that we can then apply and use in new circumstances. Referring back to our Framework for Inclusive learning, we find that learning is influenced by five dimensions: instructors, pedagogy, students, curriculum, and climate.

Let’s drill down on the student dimension a bit more. At a cellular and molecular level, learning requires adapting existing connections or creating new connections between neurons. Each learner’s brain contains approximately 86 billion neurons. Each neuron connects to many other neurons, creating a vast and unique network of 100 trillion neural connections within each brain (Kuan et al., 2020). Reinforcing specific connections between neurons leads to long-lasting synaptic pathways that determine neurotransmitter release, receptor number and binding properties (Bassett and Sporns, 2017). These new pathways lead to new behaviors and knowledge use. The storage of this information is what we think of as memory.

Learning is also influenced by individual motivations and brain composition; disciplinary content, values, and approaches; and sociocultural environments. In fact, how well students can use what is in their memories depends on the accessibility of that information, which in turn is influenced by its salience, recency, and value. Sometimes easily retrieved information is also easily forgotten, because it has not been consolidated and stored (Bjork et al., 2011).

All of these components are important to consider when designing and facilitating a learning experience.

Why Learning?

Learning is the point. By leveraging the five dimensions of inclusive learning, we create opportunities for learning to happen.

A Framework for Learning

The theory of constructivism explains how people construct their own understanding of the world through experiences and social interactions. It recognizes that learners bring prior knowledge and experiences to learning, and that learning is influenced by sociocultural factors.

Metacognition refers to thinking about thinking, when the learner evaluates the extent to which they understand the material and use that information to decide what to do next. Metacognition has been described as one of three components of cognition: cognition (understanding), epistemic cognition (the nature of how we know), and metacognition (knowledge of and reflection on cognition) (Kitchner, 1983). When students reflect on their learning, they learn to plan strategies, monitor their progress, and evaluate their success at achieving a goal (Schraw and Moshman, 1995). When students use metacognitive regulatory practices, such as checking their answers or explaining to themselves why they answered something incorrectly, they often improve both understanding and performance (McDonnell and Mullally, 2016; Kalyuga et al., 2010). Although most of us do not naturally engage in metacognitive practices, there is ample evidence that students can learn to do so when encouraged and facilitated by their instructional environment (Stanton et al., 2015; Knight, 2022).

Many elements contribute to learning, including our prior experiences, stress, situational factors, and motivation. Each of these can create different conditions that either favor learning in general or favor learning a particular aspect of a situation (for example, a familiar smell from childhood can bring back specific and strong associations) (Newman et al., 2017). Significant learning experiences commonly involve an important event or relationship to real events, a level of interest or value in the experience, and an opportunity to apply and integrate new knowledge (Fink, 2006).

The Difference between Novices and Experts

Experts not only understand many concepts, but can relate them to each other, transfer principles across concepts, and easily add new knowledge to their framework. Novices are still acquiring and connecting information, and as a result, need guidance and practice in constructing their own frameworks. Experts have a conceptual framework that they use to identify concepts or patterns in various contexts so that they can transfer/apply their understanding to solve problems in novel contexts.

It is important to remember that everyone, even the most experienced scientist, was a novice at some point (for example, think about the first time you learned how to enter data into a spreadsheet, collect soil samples, or isolate DNA). When we are novice, we are in the middle of learning, growing and exploring new ideas while building our framework for conceptualizing knowledge. We can use the principles of learning to design courses that help our students transition from novice towards expert.

Seven Principles for Learning

This brings us to summarize how people learn into seven main principles (Ambrose, 2010). Keeping these in mind while designing instructional materials and environments supports a research-informed and inclusive approach to learning.

1. Prior knowledge can help or hinder learning. As described above, students bring prior knowledge to everything they do; thus, it is critical to discover whether this knowledge is moving them forward, or preventing them from constructing new knowledge.
2. How students organize knowledge influences how they learn and apply what they know. Both this principle and the next highlight that students move from novice to more expert by learning how to organize their knowledge, connect principles, and engage in lots of practice!
3. Expertise requires skills, practice, and application.
4. Motivation determines, directs, and sustains what students do to learn. We have not explicitly discussed motivation yet, but few would argue the importance of motivation in learning. We are all motivated by different factors; helping students uncover what most motivates them is critical.
5. Goal-directed practice and targeted feedback enhances the quality of learning. Related to principles 2 and 3 above, this principle highlights the intersection of goals and motivations with practice, feedback and reflection: all required for a robust learning experience.
6. Students’ level of development interacts with the social, emotional, and intellectual climate to impact learning. Learning does not occur in a vacuum. It is a social endeavor, impacted by one’s environment. As the designers of curricula, we must be sensitive and responsive to students’ whole experience as learners.
7. To become self-directed learners, students must learn to monitor and adjust their approaches to learning. This principle ties back to one of the frameworks for learning, metacognition. Metacognition is at the core of self-regulated learning, in which students are aware of their knowledge, able to seek new resources or study strategies when necessary, and ultimately evaluate the depth of their own knowledge.

Learning in Practice

Tapping into these frameworks requires a shift from thinking about students as having deficits toward thinking about the learning environment as having deficits (Griffin et al., 2010). A model of learning-environment deficit strives to change the classroom and use supportive strategies that benefit all students (Handelsman et al., 2022). Emphasizing what students will learn, rather than what content will be covered, requires instructors to have a growth mindset that focuses on improving the learning environment.

The upcoming modules will provide opportunities to create effective learning experiences through your course design.

Summary of Learning

• An inclusive learning environment accounts for learners’ prior knowledge and motivations, learning objectives, and sociocultural influences.
• An effective learning experience challenges existing worldviews, then scaffolds opportunities to practice and reinforce the new knowledge, skills, and beliefs.
• Metacognition, or thinking about thinking, helps students become self-directed learners.