The Greatest Learning

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9 / KJV)

Does it sound like a good advice from a fairy godmother? Maybe.

These advice or instructions were given by God to Moses who was tasked to impart them to the ancient Israelites. These were the verses which Moses wrote – by tradition – and they were part of the teachings found in the Book of Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book was written in 15 B.C.; specifically, it was written around 1406 B.C. just before Moses died.

The instructions are quite interesting. They require the process of repetition. If one is to master a skill or a set of information, one has to practice the skill or memorize the data over and over again. Athletes do a lot of practice and mothers do a lot of memorizing about family matters. They do it because it has a very practical value. Once the skill or information is learned, it becomes easy to perform the skill or to remember the information when needed or demanded by a situation. You surely have experienced memorizing telephone or cellphone numbers. You did memorize them over and over again, didn’t you? And you did remember them! Yes, that is the outcome of repetition.

In psychology and education, this is called the law of exercise. This is the principle of learning propounded by Edward Thorndike, and it has been applied in modern education. Simply put, the law of exercise states that skills or educational materials that are often repeated are best learned or remembered. What happens is this: the skill or educational material that is first stored in our short-term memory is transferred to our long-term memory. Yes, we have two types of memory, and the process of repetition helps the learner retain the skill or information in the long-term memory. When it has been stored in the long-term memory, the learned skill or information becomes a part of the individual’s repertoire of responses or behaviors. Does the process of repetition look like a method for forming habits? Yes. One develops a habit over time. A habit is formed when the behavior is repeated many times until it becomes an “automatic” response.

The instructions given by God to Moses require a real, quality bonding between parents and the child or between a significant adult and the child, and I quote this verse again: “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” (Deuteronomy 6:7 / KJV) What does it mean to teach your children diligently? That means you are there when the child needs to learn or to be taught, or when the child needs assistance. In plain words, you spend time with the child regularly. Just the very presence of a parent or a significant adult can have a powerful, positive impact on the child who is trying to learn. By being there with him or her, the child, naturally, knows he or she is safe. The child feels secure in your presence! Then, there is the communication aspect which makes the learning process more meaningful. The child is given a praise for a job well done. The child is given guidance when he or she is in the process of learning. The child is given a correction when a mistake is committed. The child accomplishes his or her academic tasks. More importantly, the child begins to recognize that learning a particular skill or information is an enjoyable endeavor and a process that is not to be feared. The whole act of studying itself becomes an incentive to learn and do schoolwork. The child learns to trust you, knowing that you got his or her back covered, and when the child trusts you, he or she begins to express what he or she thinks and feels. Honest feedback is given by the child, and that helps, tremendously, the learning process. Do these things often, and you will enhance child learning and foster a loving parent-child relationship or a significant adult-child relationship.

These real-life situations are called by various names in psychology and education. Attention and being there with the child are called reinforcements, and they are powerful reinforcements. According to learning theorists, reinforcement refers to an event that will increase the likelihood that the desired behavior will occur. It means that learning is strengthened and will most likely take place. Simply put, the skill is acquired or the information is retained and it is put into good use. As mentioned earlier, attention and being there with the child are powerful reinforcements, and they are also called positive reinforcements. Praising the child for accomplishing a task is positive reinforcement. Providing guidance and encouragement is another form of positive reinforcement. Telling a child that he has committed a mistake while giving him or her the correct answer is called punishment, and it is a good kind of punishment which, like positive reinforcement, enhances learning. The child stops from committing the same mistake while he or she performs the correct response. In addition, the interaction between the child and the parent or significant adult minimizes distraction. When alone, the child’s attention may be focused on such things as the cellphone or television instead on the task that needs to be accomplished. Minimizing or removing a distraction from the learning situation is called negative reinforcement and, like positive reinforcement, it is an event that increases the likelihood that the desired behavior will occur. Take away the distraction and the child’s attention is fully directed to the task at hand.

These are all positive outcomes. Learning and the good skill or the valuable information learned become enjoyable events. They propel the child to further learning and to exhibit the desired behavior more often and, in some cases, in a creative manner. Thorndike calls this as the law of effect, which states that behavior that results in a positive outcome tend to be repeated. Of course. And then, there is this additional dimension in the interaction between the child and the parent or the significant adult. The child has a model to follow, and we all know that children like to imitate the person they like. If you consider your child’s education as important, the child is likely to consider it as important, too. If you ignore the child’s education, the child is quite likely to ignore his or her school-works. Remember this: learning one’s native language is all about imitation.

Finally, the instructions given by God to Moses require the use of reminders, and I quote these verses again: “And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:8-9 / KJV) Reminders help us remember things. In psychology and education, this is called cueing. It serves to remind the child what he or she has to do during the day or to prompt the child to remember what he or she has already learned. By associating certain things such photos, simple artworks, notes, cards with images or words, familiar places or objects with the child’s schoolwork, learning is facilitated. But the best cue of all is the parent or a significant adult.  When the child sees the parent or the significant adult, the child knows that it is time to study. When the child sees the parent or the significant adult, the child knows that he or she is about to accomplish something good or important. When the child sees the parent or the significant adult, the child knows he or she is going to participate in an enjoyable event. When the child sees the parent or the significant adult, the child knows he or she has someone who will champion his or her cause. The child knows he or she is supported and loved. When these things happen, we can assume or we can expect that in the future the child will champion the cause of someone who is in need.