Puzzle Image 1
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on the image
for the solution
Puzzle Image 2
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for the solution
The point of these rather silly examples is to note the usual
reaction when you work them out: there is, however trivial,
a release of tension because it has been possible to assimilate
a previously non-sensical image into a frame of reference. Gestalt
emphasises that the mind abhors non-sense.
The importance of the theory for real-world learning is the
attention which it draws to wholes (and incidentally
to problem-solving as a part
of learning). Whereas behaviourism concentrates on breaking
down a task into parts and how each is learned individually,
Gestalt acknowledges the “knack” element. It thus underpins
all the cognitivist theories.
Experimental work on Gestalt learning is
primarily about the problem-solving capacities
of animals: chimps spontaneously pile up boxes
in order to climb on them to reach bananas,
for example (Köhler, 1925). The learning
element is shown by their ability to repeat
the action later, without apparently having
to pause and think about it as they did the
first time. However, recent experiments have
shown Betty the crow doing something
just as ingenious and remarkable. See
this link.
It also contributes to an account of some of the difficulties
people have with learning: Gestalts (similar to schemata, in
a different discourse), once formed, are not easily dislodged
or replaced: see
[ Cognitive
dissonance ][
Resistance to
Learning ]
A "knack" is a
psychomotor
equivalent of cognitive "insight":
the best example is probably learning to ride
a bicycle. The learning
"curve"
(where x=time and y=competence) is more like
a single step. The learning happens in a few
moments, and is permanent—although it may have
taken a long time to get to that step with little
seeming progress.
Original content updated and hosted at
www.learningandteaching.info/learning/
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