Learning success

Successful learning is the epitome of acquiring and changing the declarative and procedural knowledge of a person. The term is a combination of the words learning and success and stands for the demonstrable acquisition of skills and knowledge . Only the definition of a learning objective enables a learning control and the recording of data for binding statements. A distinction must be made between personal learning success (independently set goals) and the achievement of specified learning goals (externally determined learning).

The components of prior knowledge, motivation , sources and instructions are decisive for learning success . If there are several learners, the composition of the group can also influence individual learning success.

Measurement

The following statements about success can be distinguished:

Distinction yes / no
Partial successes
comparison
Accurate measurement ( e.g. percentage ). In the instructional design models of behaviorism , which was particularly influenced by John B. Carroll , the learning success of a student is defined as the function of the ratio of actually used active learning time and required learning time.

Learning success can be shown graphically in learning curves .

When measuring the learning success, a distinction can be made between result-oriented and process-oriented methods. In adult education in particular, written and oral tests are used as a result-oriented control tool. Another instrument here is the practical product creation, as is done, for example, in computer courses. Since process-oriented methods such as the learning diary and portfolio are associated with greater effort, they are used less often in advanced training.

The question of learning success can only be assessed by reflecting on the learning objectives. The definition of the goals of an educational process must therefore be based on a definition of successful learning. The defined success can also be recorded statically (performance at a certain point in time) or dynamically (performance increase).

Hermann Ebbinghaus carried out the first systematic experimental studies on learning success . To this end, he learned meaningless syllables by heart in a standardized self-experiment and presented the learning success as a characteristic forgetting curve. As a dependent variable , he recorded the time saved when repeating the syllables compared to the first learning cycle.

Reinforcing factors

The learning success can be influenced by reinforcing factors (a gain in the negative is also conceivable). These are present in the motivation of the learner himself, but also in the influence of teachers and tutors . At this point, reference is made to the conditioning by BF Skinner (1904–1990). More recent research results, for example, show relatively consistently that the clarity of the content of the lesson, which is determined, among other things, by its linguistic conciseness and comprehensibility, has positive effects on learning success. This also depends on the current physical, emotional and cognitive aspects. These can hardly be reliably recorded and / or controlled externally. Another factor that influences learning success is the composition of the student group. While weaker students apparently benefit from heterogeneous groups, the results of classroom research suggest that members with average performance tend to achieve greater learning success in homogeneous groups. For high-performing students, the results on the influence of group composition are inconsistent.

The term in the English language

Compound words are less common in English. Here one speaks of learning success or study outcomes (study results). Learning goals are translated with learning goals .

criticism

Since learning is a very individual process , it can sometimes be difficult to obtain reproducible and comparable results; especially when evaluating groups. The main difficulty lies in the variety of influencing factors (see graphic). Caution is also advised when interpreting the results. "The problem with the evaluation is not that it is used to measure the success of certain measures, it is problematic that the results are interpreted as success or failure of the measure per se." The comparability of different forms of learning is also questioned. " Does e-learning achieve higher learning success than traditional learning? Many studies aim precisely at this comparison of online versus face-to-face learning . That is why learning objectives should be formulated as precisely as possible.

With regard to educational equity, it is criticized that learning success cannot be achieved solely on the basis of one's own drive, but also on the basis of inherited characteristics.

Web links

Wiktionary: Learning success - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

↑ Franz Emanuel Weinert : Psychology of learning and instruction . Göttingen 1996, p. 9.
↑ Christoph Müller and Duit Reinders : Journal for Didaktik der Naturwissenschaften . Kiel 2004, p. 147.
^ Robert Frank Mager : Motivation and Success in Learning . Basel 1971, p. 43.
^ Bernhard Bonz : Methods of vocational training . Stuttgart, 2009.
^ Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 72.
^ Ruth Kaiser: Informal learning - informal learners . In: Arnim Kaiser: Learner types - learning environment - learning success: adults in the learning field . W. Bertelsmann Verlag, Bielefeld 2007, ISBN 978-3-7639-3560-4 , p. 148f.
↑ ^a ^b Katia Tödt: Learner-oriented quality testing for educational events (LQBT) . Bertelsmann Verlag, 2008, p. 83.
↑ Kati Förster: Personalized e-learning in companies: Requirements for the design of web-based learning units with regard to the effectiveness and efficiency of the learning process: Theoretical conception and experimental investigation . Cuvillier, 2004, p. 86.
↑ Rainer Engelken, Kathleen Hildebrand, Nikolaus Schmitz, Silke Wagenhäuser: Forgetting as a basis of human thought . In: Dirk Evers: Cognition and Behavior: Theory of Mind, Time, Imagination, Forgetting, Altruism . LIT Verlag, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-8258-1826-5 , p. 141.
^ Walter Edelmann and Simone Wittmann : Lernpsychologie . Weinheim 2000, p. 77ff
^ Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 81.
^ Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 86.
↑ Successful learning: Education is hereditary. In: Spiegel Online. October 7, 2014, accessed February 1, 2015 .

[1] Franz Emanuel Weinert : Psychology of learning and instruction . Göttingen 1996, p. 9.

[2] Christoph Müller and Duit Reinders : Journal for Didaktik der Naturwissenschaften . Kiel 2004, p. 147.

[3] Robert Frank Mager : Motivation and Success in Learning . Basel 1971, p. 43.

[4] Bernhard Bonz : Methods of vocational training . Stuttgart, 2009.

[5] Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 72.

[6] Ruth Kaiser: Informal learning - informal learners . In: Arnim Kaiser: Learner types - learning environment - learning success: adults in the learning field . W. Bertelsmann Verlag, Bielefeld 2007, ISBN 978-3-7639-3560-4 , p. 148f.

[tödt-7] Katia Tödt: Learner-oriented quality testing for educational events (LQBT) . Bertelsmann Verlag, 2008, p. 83.

[8] Kati Förster: Personalized e-learning in companies: Requirements for the design of web-based learning units with regard to the effectiveness and efficiency of the learning process: Theoretical conception and experimental investigation . Cuvillier, 2004, p. 86.

[9] Rainer Engelken, Kathleen Hildebrand, Nikolaus Schmitz, Silke Wagenhäuser: Forgetting as a basis of human thought . In: Dirk Evers: Cognition and Behavior: Theory of Mind, Time, Imagination, Forgetting, Altruism . LIT Verlag, Berlin 2008, ISBN 978-3-8258-1826-5 , p. 141.

[10] Walter Edelmann and Simone Wittmann : Lernpsychologie . Weinheim 2000, p. 77ff

[11] Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 81.

[12] Frank Lipowsky: Lessons . In: Elke Wild, Jens Möller (Ed.): Pedagogical Psychology (2nd edition). Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg 2014, ISBN 978-3-6424-1291-2 , p. 86.

[13] Successful learning: Education is hereditary. In: Spiegel Online. October 7, 2014, accessed February 1, 2015 .