Role of Environment in Learning - Research Paper Example

Role of Environment in LearningIt has been believed by those who have concepts related to the constructivism theory of learning that the human beings learn by picturing everything new that they see in the terms of what they already know (Gopnik And Schulz, 2007). This is very important for them, otherwise they fail to register it in their learning and then later have difficulty recalling things. People who believe in the above mentioned theory are of the opinion that assimilation and accommodation is the process by which children learn.

Accommodation is the process by which children learn things through the process of failure. It changes the mental representation of the things through new experiences. On the other hand, assimilation is the process through which children get to absorb new things and experiences into their already present framework. Environment is one factor that cannot be ignored in any way as through the presence of the environment, people gain newer experiences and they also learn things that they were never aware of.

Learning styles are different from culture to culture and from country to country. It has been seen that people from some country are very good in numbers or very quick to comprehend things that they are not aware of, while some people have very good oratory skills and are very fluent in languages and can even learn them easily. Learning methods that are used in Asia and Africa are very strict and controlled as children are not allow questioning the teacher or their teacher’s views. While in European countries people tend to be freer in knowledge sharing and questioning teachers.

This is in serious contrast with the methods that are used in Asian countries. The environments in US and other counter parts are all quite less controlled and thus children are freer in their decision making and questioning. The methods of learning are far more interactive in the European countries and the teacher and student are all quiet confident in interacting with each other. In Asian countries the process of learning is very less interactive and children tend to be more quiet and the teachers are the ones who only talk and share the knowledge.

The children hardly interact with their mentors or teachers.The kinds of environment that people belong to also play a very crucial role. If the people belong to an environment where learning is preferred and newer knowledge encouraged then people from such environments are very willing to learn newer things and impart it as well. However, in environments where learning is not an encouraged process and where learned people are treated as aliens or as people who should be avoided, then people are less receptive of such knowledge.

It’s a common understanding that children who come from developed countries are more willing to learn newer things and adopt them while children coming from less developed countries are shy and not keen in learning new things as they might be in clash with their own traditions and culture. A major factor that affects learning is the facilitation that is present in the environment. If the environment is helpful and promotes learning then people tend to learn quickly.The other factors that are present in the environment are distractions that affect the learning process of the people.

The most disastrous distraction that can be there in a child’s life and that can affect the learning process is that of family life. If a child grows in a negative environment then he will be very distracted and will never be able to learn properly. On the contrary, if he grows up in a family that has a positive environment then the child will be able to grasp things easily and will also be able to apply them positively in his life. Also, if a child has some kind of physical disability then the child will be a bit slow in learning but again a positive environment can help such a child to develop into a better learned person.

Wrong groupings and gatherings can affect the child in a very negative way and make him develop wrong habits. Environments that contain people who are very learned and educated will have a positive impact on the environment and people living in such environment can help develop and inculcate an environment that is positive and will make the learning process an easier one. Hence, it can be concluded that the environment plays a very crucial role in the kind of learning process that are being implemented.

REFERENCESTop of FormGopnik, A., & Schulz, L. E. (2007). Causal learning: Psychology, philosophy, and computation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Bottom of Form