Replying to LO28949 --
At said:
> In the case of the support system the prevailing model is
> . instruction-information(input) => system => learned-response(output)
>
> As for myself, I desire the former case which I might symbolise as
> . environment => LEARNER => knowledge
> . /\ ||
> . || \/
> . environment => teacher => knowledge
>"highly efficient ID" is nothing else than and external support system
>WHICH has a detrimental effect on both the necessary condition for
>learning (free energy dynamics) and the sufficiency condition (all 7Es).
>It is like pushing someone in a wheel chair who is capable self of
>walking. After a year that person will not be able to walk ten metres"
My comment:
Yes, so it seems that we are talking about the same issue. For me it is
easier to think of it from a behavioral viewpoint: behavioral patterns,
reinforcement, skills...
As for free energy dynamics; here I go out on a limb again.... The first
question becomes what is energy in learning? I propose the following
categories:
Spiritual and physiological. I am not going to discuss the latter, as it
is obvious you can't learn without e.g. sufficient oxygen or
carbohydrates.
Spiritual can be split into structural and motivational.
Structural is both external and internal. Externally it is all information
we can percieve. Internally it is the knowledge one already possesses, a
complex network of concepts and sensory experiences. It is energy in the
sense that ones existing knowledge is related to what one is able to learn
at a particular point in time. It gives the power to ask the right
questions and understand the answer.
Motivational is both internal and external as well. Internally
motivational energy comes from the pleasure of making progress in ones
learning. Externally it comes from various functional contingencies
related to social attention, money, career etc. Motivational energy gives
the desire to know the answers to questions.
All categories are needed, but the more learning is continuously feeding
on external energy, the closer it becomes to rote.
Emergent events are needed to sustain absorbing information into the inner
knowledge structure (thus transforming information to knowledge,) but also
to provide the pleasure of discovery that gives motivational drive. But
between emergences one needs to absorb information so that other
emergences can occur. Rapidly occuring emergences are not sustainable
because the inner knowledge structure needs to grow in order to attain
them. In more mundane terms, one needs to become knowledgeable enough
before another emergent event can occur. The motivation for this digestive
stage comes from the hoped for pleasure of discovery and from the progress
in absorbtion.
So in more detail we have:
Emergent learning:
Motivationally: (study --> emergence --> pleasure of discovery) as a
behavioral contingency.
Structurally: (study --> emergence --> increased number and magnitude of
questions)
Where digestive stages are needed for emergences to continue occuring.
Digestive motivation:
Motivationally: (study --> absorbing information into knowledge
structure --> pleasure of rapid knowledge growth)
Structurally: (study --> knowledge growth of currect structure --> increased
number of answers)
Where the digestive motivational contingency is not sustainable in the
long run, because the existing structure runs out of carrying capacity.
I.e. the structure is unable to generate questions perceived as
significant by the learner thus decreasing the motivational drive of
digestive learning. As the motivational energy provided by the last
emergence also starts to fade, the learner becomes unable to generate
questions of perceived significance that are coupled with a strong desire
to know.
This is where instructional design comes in with highly structured
information. By providing artificial network structures of ideas, such as
concept maps, one is able to sustain an artificial learning process if
provided with external motivation. It is rote memorization disguised by an
apparent complexity because there will be much lack of understanding
(since both questions and answers were provided,) and because maintaining
the structure is almost entirely externally motivated; it is not
maintained in the hope of another (study --> emergence --> pleasure of
discovery). Moreover, the learner becomes less and less capable of dealing
directly with an ambiguous environment on his own. This makes him less
capable of learning, etc. This is a destructive cycle.
There is one caveat, however, regarding learning driven authentically,
i.e. by cycles of emergent and digestive learning. This type of learning
is not sustainable without external motivational and structural energy.
The latter is obvious; we need information input from the environment to
learn. The second is more subtle: internal motivational energy can, as
discussed in the last letter, be destroyed by external contingencies that
engages the learner in non-learning activities or punishes emergences.
This is only half of the story. Authentic learning also needs external
motivation drives, only less so. For example, if a learner was learning
something nobody seemed to care about other than him, he will probably run
out of steam quickly. In other words the learning needs to be in something
valued to the learner. This value is highly contigent upon the
environment, and is not driven by
(study --> emergence --> pleasure of discovery) alone. One can see now,
for example, the importance of praising and encouraging children in their
learning.
OK so raw learning energy comes in the raw forms above, i.e. spiritual
(structural and motivational) and physiological. Once there is structual
and motivational energy, how does one sustain sustain the discontinuous
phases of authentic learning (emergent and digestive)? This question is
related to liveness (here as learning - knowledge). The function of
learning becomes to build a knowledge structure that continues to emerge
and digest. This means that the information absorbed from the environment
and the knowledge on the inside needs to be treated in the right way, i.e.
with the right form of motivational or structural energy. The form is
reflected in the 7Es.
In the digestive phase this means that one has to get an answer for the
questions that arise after an emergence. Right after an emergence there
are many questions, i.e. a discovery raises new questions, this is what is
meant by a "high level of entropy" after an emergence. So in the digestive
stage information needs are relatively specific and related to the new
discovery. One can ensure a proper balance of questions by reflecting on
the 7Es and relating them to the new discovery.
In other words, decreasing entropy production in the digestive phase means
increased stability in the present knowledge structure. Fewer and fewer
questions are generated.
As entropy is reduced by answering questions, again entropy starts to
increase, not in terms of questions related to the current structure, but
rather the relative increase of other motivational forces than the desire
to digest, as progress will now be slow. At this point, if an emergence
does not occur, the learner can easily be distracted into other
activities.
In other words, increasing entropy production at the end of the digestive
phase means a felt increased variety of motivational forces due to a
decrease in the motivational force of the learning at hand.
This is why it is important for learners and teachers to have specific
knowledge of the 7Es, so that an emergence can occur at this stage.
Moreover, it is important that the emergence is clearly related to the
digestion that took place, otherwise the (study --> emergence --> pleasure
of discovery) contingency will be weakened as a drive of behavior,
gradually opening the door to rote learning.
I may become tempting, as the entropy of boredom increases, to simply a
shift into another field of learning (before any emergence.) One can
probalby keep on learning authentically for some time by simply changeing
the field of study (i.e. giving into the motional pull of studying
something new,) but eventually one will run out of areas that have a
strong motivational pull, and the existing structures in previously
studied areas will be low on entropy, as they were abandoned before an
emergence occured, and thus have deteriorated even in richness through
forgetting. At this point, one will not have motivational energy from
(study --> emergence --> pleasure of discovery) for learning in general
and no entropy in the structure to motivate digestive learning.
While not achieving an emergence is entirely possible even for an
authentic learner, he may need to give up and shift into other fields at
times, but he will still have enough (study --> emergence --> pleasure of
discovery) conditioning to keep going.
At said:
>The problem exists because of wasting resources and time on
> teaching&learning which does not improve knowledge, seen as the
> capacity to act in any particular environment. If I would be allowed
> to make an estimate, which might not be far off because I have often
> contemplated this waste (formal-public and informal-private), but
> not actually tried to make an audit of it, I would say that here in
> South Africa it is in the order of 4/5ths (80%). I would be surprised
> should it be less than 2/5ths (40%) in any other country.
My comment:
How did you calculate these figures?
At said:
> >But why is there pleasure in discovery? One part of it
> >could be genetic, but there is also the element of feeling
> >of accomplishment.
> A deep question which I will answer to next time. I now have
> to rush.
My comment:
I'll be at the edge of my seat for this one... By the way, you once
mentioned that you have empirical support for your theory. It seems to me
that it should be possible to measure emergences as well as entropy
precisely through a combination of behavioral/ physiological signs?
Terje
--"Terje A. Tonsberg" <tatonsberg@hotmail.com>
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