Meaning and Concept of Learning MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Meaning and Concept of Learning - Download Free PDF

The humanistic approach to learning emphasizes personal growth, self-direction, motivation, and the development of the whole person. It views learners as inherently capable, responsible, and active participants in their own education. 

Key Points

• Carl Rogers is most closely associated with the humanistic approach to learning. He believed that learning should be student-centered and that emotional safety is crucial for genuine learning to occur.
• Rogers emphasized  self-actualization, where learners strive to reach their full potential.
• He advocated for open communication, respect for students’ feelings, and the idea that learning is most effective when it is self-initiated and personally meaningful.

Hint

• Jean Piaget is known for his cognitive development theory, focusing on how children actively construct knowledge through stages.
• Lev Vygotsky emphasized the sociocultural context of learning and the importance of social interaction.
• B.F. Skinner developed the behaviorist approach, focusing on reinforcement and observable behavior, which contrasts sharply with the humanistic view.

Hence, the correct answer is Carl Rogers.

Learning is commonly understood as a process because it unfolds over time, involving a sequence of experiences, interactions, and internal transformations. It is not a one-time event but a continuous development in which learners acquire knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes through study, observation, reflection, and practice. 

Key Points

•  It involves gradual change and development, which highlights the essential nature of learning as a process.
• Learners evolve through stages, improving their understanding and abilities incrementally. For example, a child learning to write begins with scribbles, gradually progressing to letters, then sentences.
• This progression reflects both cognitive and behavioral changes that build over time through consistent effort and guidance. Such a process cannot be rushed and requires patience, support, and a structured learning environment.

Hint

•  Saying that learning ends with exams is incorrect, as assessments are only checkpoints in the broader journey of learning.
• Limiting learning to schools ignores the fact that it continues informally in everyday life.
• Describing learning as mere memorization misses the deeper understanding, application, and transformation involved in meaningful learning.

Hence, the correct answer is it involves gradual change and development.

Contemporary learning theories, particularly those grounded in social constructivism, emphasize that learning is not merely the absorption of facts, but a dynamic process shaped by interaction and dialogue. Lev Vygotsky, a major theorist in this domain, emphasized that cognitive development is largely a result of social interactions, particularly with more knowledgeable peers and adults.

Key Points

• Statement A correctly states that learning is a social activity influenced by peer interaction. This means that students learn not just from textbooks or teachers, but by engaging with peers—discussing, questioning, and reflecting together. 
• Statement B builds on this by stating that children construct knowledge through collaboration and dialogue. This is precisely how Vygotsky explained the development of higher-order thinking skills—through cooperative tasks and shared experiences, children internalize new knowledge.

Since both statements emphasize the role of social interaction in the learning process and align with key educational theories, they are both accurate.
Hence, the correct answer is that both A and B are true.

Learning is a continuous process that does not has an end. A continuous learner can construct a lot of knowledge that is needed for him in the future. Learning is based on personal and environmental factors. Learning takes place in a spiral manner. Key Points

• Errors committed by students play the role of the source of information for the teacher to understand the cognitive abilities and learning difficulties of students to design teaching strategies accordingly.
• Errors made by students are not only useful for assessment but also indicate the level of understanding of the children.
• Explaining the reason for errors in children and giving chance to them for rectifying the errors results in authentic learning.
• Misconceptions of students can be identified and cleared by the teacher based on errors made by the students.

Hence the statement errors and mistakes are irrelevant in the process of learning is wrong.

Learning is a continuous process that does not has an end. A continuous learner can construct a lot of knowledge that is needed for him in the future. Learning is based on personal and environmental factors. Learning takes place in a spiral manner. Key Points

• Errors committed by students play the role of the source of information for the teacher to understand the cognitive abilities and learning difficulties of students to design teaching strategies accordingly.
• Errors made by students are not only useful for assessment but also indicate the level of understanding of the children.
• Explaining the reason for errors in children and giving chance to them for rectifying the errors results in authentic learning.
• Misconceptions of students can be identified and cleared by the teacher based on errors made by the students.

Hence the statement errors and mistakes are irrelevant in the process of learning is wrong.

Learning curve is a graphic representation of how learning takes place in a particular situation. 

Key Points

• Progress in learning can be objectively measured and represented graphically which is known as the learning curve. The learning curve shows a subject's learnability.
• In all types of learning situations, the course of learning can be depicted and described graphically by drawing learning curves against the x and y-axis.

Stages of Learning Curve: 

• Stage 1: In this stage, the learner slowly increases the speed to understand the concept of learning. This is the beginning stage of learning, in which the learner is motivated to gain new information. 
• Stage 2: In this stage, the learner steeps accelerating in learning the concepts. After some time the learner gains a total understanding of the concept and reaches the boom stage of learning.
• Stage 3: In this stage, a learning plateau occurs, after gaining mastery on the concept, the learner feels bored and want to learn new thing. So the teacher should always introduce the same concept with innovative methods, this will overcome the boredom.

Hence, it could be concluded that Learning curves are indicator of Progress in learning.

Learning is a comprehensive process that refers to a change in behavior, knowledge, and skill as a result of practice and experience.

Modification of behavior is the appropriate purpose of learning as learning modifies the behavior and personality of an individual. It includes all the experiences an individual receives throughout life.

Other Purposes of Learning:

• Developing skills.
• Social adjustment.
• Acquiring knowledge.
• Improving effectiveness.
• Increasing competencies.

Additional Information

Characteristics of learning:

• Learning leads to a change in behavior.
• Learning is the growth of organisms.
• Learning is purposeful and goal-oriented.
• Learning starts with birth and proceeds to upto death.
• Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior.
• Learning is the relationship between stimulus and response.

Hence, it could be concluded that 'modification of behavior' is the most appropriate purpose of learning.

Conceptually, 'learning' in the conventional sense is the process of assimilation of knowledge resulting from the interaction between the teacher and the taught. It means a relatively permanent change in behaviour that occurs as a result of experience with the environment.  

As individuals grow and develop, they pick up ideas about themselves - their talents, potentialities, weaknesses, and strengths. Self-concept is a very important issue since our behaviour, choices, interpersonal relationships, and worldview are affected by it and that is why it is occurring again in almost all the units. An individual's beliefs about himself always colour his actions. 

Self-concept is very important in matters of learning because it influences individual differences in learners, in their, learning orientations, cognitive styles, and the self-learning strategies which they use. 

Essential for learning:

• Self-experience- Experience is the foundation of, and the stimulus for learning.  Through it, learners actively construct their experiences. Learning is socially and culturally constructed.
• Self-thinking- It means 
  • forming their own opinions, and not taking or acquiring ready-made thoughts from others,
  • following prevalent fashions of thought of independent judgment.
  thinking for one's self
• Self-activity- It is characterized by certain learner-centred features of learning. It facilitates learners to learn:
  • when they want (according to their own time, frequency, and duration convenient to them);
  • how they want(according to modes of learning suitable to them); and
  • what they want (learning objectives and content).

From the above, we can conclude that all of the points are essential for learning.

Key Points

Robert Mills Gange, an American educational psychologist. He had written a book named 'The Conditions of Learning'. 

• In this book, he has proposed a hierarchy of learning in which learning tasks are organized in a hierarchy based on their complexity level.

This learning hierarchy is divided into eight intellectual levels and nine events of instruction. It implies the idea that:

• there are different kinds of levels of learning which require different kinds of instruction.

• an individual has to first master a lower intellectual level in order to acquire higher intellectual level skills.

Hence, it could be concluded that 'The Conditions of Learning' book is written by R.M. Gagne.

Additional Information

‘Plateaus’ are often seen in the pattern of development, indicating periods of no apparent improvement. Learning plateau is arrested growth in learning as it is a long flat and horizontal stretch in the learning curve which:

• represents a stationary stage, where apparently no progress in learning is recorded.
• represents a period in the learning process where no improvement occurs even with any number of practices. 

Key Points

According to Lee Ross, "Plateaus of learning is a characteristic feature of the learning process indicating a period where no improvement in performance is made". Ross spoke about the learning capability of humans.

• He stated that after someone starts learning about something, the advantage of knowledge is sharp which is much like the edges of the plateau.
• Also after learning a tremendous amount, the quantity of learning becomes unchanged.
• Here the advantage of knowledge is insignificant just like the tabletop of the plateau.

Hence, it could be concluded that the above-mentioned statement was stated by Ross.

Learning is a comprehensive process that refers to a change in behavior, knowledge, and skill as a result of practice and experience.

Key Points

Modification of behavior is the appropriate purpose of learning as learning modifies the behavior and personality of an individual. It includes all the experiences an individual receives throughout life.

Other Purposes of Learning:

• Developing skills.
• Social adjustment.
• Acquiring knowledge.
• Improving effectiveness.
• Increasing competencies.

Additional Information

Characteristics of learning:

• Learning leads to a change in behavior.
• Learning is the growth of organisms.
• Learning is purposeful and goal-oriented.
• Learning starts with birth and proceeds to upto death.
• Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior.
• Learning is the relationship between stimulus and response.

Hence, it could be concluded that 'modification of behavior' is the most appropriate purpose of learning.

Learning is the acquisition of new behaviour or the strengthening or weakening of old behaviour as a result of experience. It represents progressive changes in behaviour. It also involves the acquisition of knowledge, habits, and attitude.

Key Points

Characteristics of Learning:

• Learning is an active process:
  • Learning is an active process as it takes place in a better way when learners actively involved in it.
  • It refers to the modification of behavioral patterns as it modifies the behavior and personality of an individual. 
• Learning is a goal-directed process:
  • Every human being aspires to achieve some goals in his/her life. These goals may be achieved through learning.
  • If there is no goal to achieve, then there would be no necessity of learning.
• Learning is transferable: 
  • Learning in one situation can be used to solve problems in another situation.
  • Learning of mathematics, science, and language helps the child to perform different activities in their real life.
• Learning is individualistic: 
  • You might have observed that in a class there are some students who learn more quickly while others learn slowly.
  • In fact, the pace of learning differs from person to person.

Hence, it could be concluded that Learning generally refers to any changes in behaviour that result due to experience.

Learning is not acquired by birth, but it is the process of acquiring competence by using hereditary resources. School is representative of a society, which is made of a heterogeneous group of people.

• This entails that, in schools, children are placed in a different kind of environment than the one they belong to. They become members of a new society where the operating rules, norms, and interpersonal styles are different from the local environment.

Key Points

• Learning in schools should NOT be detached from the social context of children as effective learning takes place by interacting with others. Even they learn their first words from their parents.
• Whatever the parents speak in front of the child, he/she responds in the same manner. So it is very much important to keep the learning correlated with the social context for effective learning.
• A child who enters school is already an efficient language user of language for she can successfully communicate in her mother tongue or the language of home.
• She can ‘interpret, ask questions, negotiate, comment or wonder’ and every new experience is something of a wonder to her.
• This is a great potential, that a sensitive teacher can exploit in the L2 classroom. The teacher can encourage the child to share experiences of home or outside school. This will help the learner to reflect upon what she knows and this would lead to creative thinking.

Thus, it is concluded that (A) is false but (R) is true.

Meaningful learning is an active, constructive, and durable process. It implies understanding i.e a child must feel that the information is useful and not limit them to only memorizing it. It requires active learning techniques. It also implies linking new information to existing knowledge.

Key Points

• Co-operative learning: It is a teaching strategy where students of mixed levels of ability are arranged into groups to meet specific learning and interpersonal goals. "Each member of the group collectively contributes to achieving active and meaningful learning".
• Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation, commonly know as 'CCE' has been introduced as a school-based system of evaluation by the CBSE in 2009 with the enactment of the Right to Education Act.
• It refers to the all-round development of students which includes cognitive, psychomotor, and affective domains.

Following are the Objectives of CCE:

• To lay emphasis on thought processes and meaningful learning practices and to de-emphasize memorization.
• To the all-round development of students including cognitive, psychomotor, and affective domains.
• To emphasize continuity and regularity of assessment.
• To assess both scholastic and co-scholastic aspects of a child's growth.
• To make evaluation an integral part of learning through diagnostic and remedial teaching.

Hint

• Corporal punishment refers to the punishment that causes physical pain to the pupils for their unacceptable behavior.  It could lead to aggression, anxiety, and frustration in them. It may temporarily turn-off a child's negative behavior but be ineffective in the long run. It has a huge impact on a child's psyche and could take them away from studies.
• Due to constant comparison among students, weak students get demoralized and demotivated so this cannot be a good way. Every student has a different ability and understanding skill, so they cannot be compared with anyone or with anyone’s weaknesses and skills. 

Therefore, practices like providing a co-operative learning environment, continuous and comprehensive evaluation promote meaningful learning.

Learning: Learning is the total of an individual’s life experience acquitted through the socialization process. 

• Learning is the modification of behavior through experience and training.
• It synthesizing different types of information.
• It is an association between stimulus-response  (S-R) is based on the Law of contiguity (things occurring closer in time and space get associated).

Learning is a process of Meaning-making through experience:

• Learning is a process of behavior modification through experiences, exercise, and efforts.
• Learning is the acquisition of new behavior or the strengthening or weakening of old behavior as a result of experience.
• Experience, direct or indirect, plays a very important and dominating role in molding and shaping the behavior of the individual from the very beginning. 
• These experiences leave behind some effects in the mental structure and modify our behavior.
• Learning involves all those experiences of an individual (right from birth) which help her/him to produce changes in behavior. It is not a mere addition to knowledge or mere acquisition of facts.

NOTE: Memorization of facts is not a part of the learning process because memorization is temporary in nature whereas learning is permanent changes in behavior.

Hence, we can conclude that Learning is a process of Meaning-making through experience.