THE THORNDIKE’S THEORY OF CONNECTIONISM

 In this article, you will read the major three laws propounded by Thorndike on his theory of connectionism. He reveals that the foundation of learning is the association between sense impressions and impulses to action. The implications of the theory are also discussed.

According to Thorndike, the fundamental of learning is the association between sense impressions and impulses to action (stimuli and responses). These associations become strengthened, or weakened by the nature and frequency of the stimuli-responses pairings. This means that an organism will repeat the behaviour if it obtains a pleasant or satisfying stimulus after first demonstrating it. He therefore postulated that learning in an organism involves the act of selecting the most appropriate response and associating it with specific problems or stimuli. Thorndike then described this type of theory as learning by “trial and error” or “trial and success”.

In arriving at this theory, a cat was put in a puzzle box, with food outside it. The logic was that the cat has to escape before it could get the food. There was a release mechanism inside which the cat would operate before it could get outside. In the process, the cat made a series of effort to get outside. Eventually, it succeeded in operating the mechanism, which paved way for its escape and obtaining the food. On the subsequent attempt, the random movement was reduced, and the cat concentrated much on the direction of the release mechanism until it was able to escape again. The help of the “release mechanism” made it possible for the cat to succeed in its escape, hence this type of learning is also known as “instrumental conditioning”.

THE LAWS OF THORNDIKE

In line with the experiment performed above, Thorndike came up with a set of laws which are believed to be responsible for learning in organisms. These are the laws of readiness, exercises and effect.

1.   Law of Readiness: This law emphasizes the desire/zeal of an organism to perform an action. It is the physiological condition of an individual to embark on a task.  This implies that “Individuals learn best when they are physically, mentally, and emotionally ready to learn, and do not learn well if they see no reason for learning”. Since someone has been motivated to carry out an action, doing it at that point satisfies the actor and not discouraging him.

2.   Law of Exercises: This refers to strengthening or weakening of an event. Thorndike explained that repetition promotes learned associations, (Stimulus and response). This implies that “students learn best and retain information longer when they have meaningful practice and repetition” Constant practice is necessary if an action is to be strengthened. The practice here should be meaningful and followed by a feedback. Lack of practice may weaken an event for each time practice occurs, learning continues.

3.   Law of Effect: This refers to the consequence which an animal obtains for an action performed. It is the outcome of a response.

Thorndike believed that “any act that produces a satisfying effect will be repeated”. The principle of effect is that learning is strengthened when accompanied by an enjoyable or satisfying feeling and that learning is weakened when associated with an unpleasant feeling. The student will strive to continue doing what provides a pleasant effect to continue learning. Positive reinforcement is more apt to lead to success and motivate the learner, so the instructor should recognize and commend improvement.

CLASSROOM IMPLICATIONS OF THORNDIKE’S THEORY

1.    The teacher should know that the students learn better when their needs and interests are considered, hence the teacher should ensure that the learning activities revolve around the students.

2.    Readiness is a prerequisite for learning; the teacher is therefore advised to consider the mental or cognitive capability of the learners when planning the curriculum or instructional contents.

3.    The teacher should recognise the fact that the students will like to repeat the actions for which they received positive regards. Hence, the teacher should always use various motivational strategies to sustain the interest of the students in the classroom.

4.    The teacher should always present his/her materials in a logical and more coherent way. This is the major way of arresting and sustaining the interest of the learners in pedagogical activities.

5.    The teacher should consider the use of punishment as a last option in reducing the undesirable behaviour in his /her classroom. This is because the punishment cannot actually address the problem it rather makes the students to be more violent in the classroom.

6.    The teacher should recognise the importance of exercises or practice in the learning process. Learning may not occur unless practice is reinforced. This means that the teacher should engage his/her students in assignment or homework, if meaningful learning must be achieved.