INTRODUCTION: In this world, we learn everyday. The learning process might be a conscious one or in some instances, an unconscious one. For this reason, we need to try as much as possible to keep track of the information we acquire, learn to verify those informations and then try as much as possible to use the knowledge acquired to make our lives better. source LEARNING
Learning in the context of this post means, "gaining information that leads to a temporary or permanent change in behavior or reasoning". This means that without a change in a learner's original behavior, the learner cannot be said to have learnt. For example, a baby can only be said to have learnt how to walk if the baby can now walk whereas, the baby couldn't work before. In the same vein, a person who can't write before but can write now would be said to have learnt how to write.
DETERMINANTS OF LEARNING SPEED AND EFFICIENCY
There are many factors that would determine the speed and efficiency with which a learner would learn.
Willingness to learn: this is the most important determinant. You can't learn if you don't want to learn.
Teaching methods: the method used by the teacher or instructor in impacting knowledge matters. The teacher/instructor has to choose a method that simplified the learning process.
Individual differences: we all learn at different paces. For this reason, teachers and instructors should beware of generalization and try as much as possible to factor this individual learning capabilities into the way they teach.
Passion for the subject matter: more passion means more dedication to learning. It accelerates the teaching and learning process a lot.
IQ of the learner: most of the time, higher IQ means a quicker understanding of the task to be learnt. This does not however mean that IQ determines speed of task performance.
Talent: this natural ability to acquire and execute skills in certain fields speeds up the teaching and learning process.
Complexity of subject matter: the more complex the subject matter, the slower the teaching and learning process and vice versa.
Teacher/instructor's personality: the personality of the teacher/instructor will affect the way learners will react to his/her instructions. This will in turn affect the teaching and learning process, either positively or negatively. source
IMPROVING LEARNING SPEED AND EFFICIENCY
There are certain steps that can be taken to improve the efficiency of the teaching and learning process.
A teacher has to make the learners see a reason to learn.
Teachers must be qualified to teach. They must understand how the teaching and learning process works.
Since it has been established that we learn at different paces, teaching had to be tailored in such a way that it will still carry everyone along.
Instructions should be as simple as possible. Teachers should always remember that the only reason they are teaching is because it is assumed that the learners do not know what they are being taught.
Teachers should try as much as possible to be friendly to the learners. This does not however mean that discipline should be sacrificed.
A teacher should be knowledgeable about the subject topic. You can't teach what you don't know.
Teachers should try as much as possible not to alienate any learner. All learners have equal rights.
No information is useless. What matters is what we do with what we learn.
