Guiding Principles

Concerning the Nature of the

Learner

Guiding Principles Concerning the Nature

of the Learner

• To make teaching and learning effective and productive, the following guiding principles concerning the nature of the learner must be taken into consideration:

• 1.The teacher must regard the learner not as passive recipient of the wisdom do the ages but as an active, thinking, feeling human being who needs to be stimulated, directed, and guided toward the realization of all his inherent potentialities thereby becoming a worthy member of a democratic society. Educational aims and techniques must be geared to the ability, needs, and interests of the learner.

2. The must make the nature of the learner the basis of the science of teaching and the principles of learning. The learner's original nature must be made the starting point in his education. Teaching is effective when it based on the psychology of learning, making the learner as the center of educative process.

• 3. The teacher must consider that the growth and development of the child is orderly and unified. He must work with the whole child, not just on his mental or emotional development alone. Growth is intellectual in nature as well as physical and emotional. Rather than mastery of subject-matter, emphasis must be made on child growth and development.

• 4. The teacher must keep in mind that mental growth and development do not follow a similar pattern for all learners or students. The classroom teachers, supervisors, and administrators must keep this fact in mind as they plan the courses of study; devise methods and techniques of instruction, and other instructional materials and devices.

• 5. The teacher needs to understand the distinctive growth patterns and developmental characteristics of each learner and their effect upon his behavior. The teacher should be conscious of the fact that each pupil is the product of his own peculiar heredity and environment, and he must realize that pupils frequently respond in different ways to the same stimulus. Each learner must thus be provided for in special ways, not only as to single, immediate needs, but as to total future needs.

• 7. The teacher must know the learner as an individual and as a member of the group. This understanding helps the teachers, supervisors, and administrators in planning nag implementing growth programs, and in evaluating the outcomes. Some pupils can be stimulated to move along at a more rapid rate than others, since there are variations in all-around maturity from pupil to pupil.

• The teacher must utilize the innate tendencies as drives or powers for schoolwork and as stimuli to learning. Some innate tendencies can also be utilized to stimulate group activities and to establish a sound spirit of true sportsmanship and fair play.

• 9. The teacher must utilize and direct the useful innate tendencies in such a way that they will produce activities that will lead to further activities. The teacher, likewise, must redirect or modify all tendencies to action which would result in undesirable activities.

• 10. The teacher must select and organize the subject-matter, methods or procedures, stages of education, and means of guidance to anticipate the natural growth and development of the inborn tendencies of the learner so that he may progress along desirable lines.

• 11. The teacher must utilize the natural tendencies of the learner in developing or building new habits. Habit makes the process more effective in its results and thus it same time. Habit is the basis of progress and a source of great economy in life.

 • 12. The teacher must consider

the nature of the pupils in the formulation of ultimate and immediate aims of education. If the aim of education is to let the learner grow in terms of knowledge, abilities, habits, skills, and attitudes, his original nature should be the starting point in the endeavor to accomplish his growth.

• 13. The teacher must bear in mind that the nature of the learner rather than the nature of subject matter should determine the nature of teaching. Likewise, the type of teaching to be used is also determined box the type of learning involved. Different types of learning call for different methods of teaching.

• 14. The teacher must consider that each pupil each differs greatly within himself in his potentiality to learn. This psychological concept is based on the principle of trait differences. The teacher should not expect the learner to achieve equally in all school subjects and activities. Ability group as practiced in some schools is a violation of the principle of trait differences, unless such grouping is done separately for each subject.

• 15. The teacher must keep in mind that the learner is endowed with the tendency to create; hence, capable of creativeness in his expression. All pupils possess creative ability, but to different degrees. Creativeness can be developed among the pupils if freedom is present in the classroom. Pupils can be creative if they are free from preconceived standards or criteria. The school curriculum must be so organized to encourage creativeness.