Native Tendencies Running Head: NATIVE TENDENCIES AND INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS

Native Tendencies and Contemporary Instructional Methods Pat Veleno and (Name Withheld) University of Calgary

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Native Tendencies and Contemporary Instructional Methods In his Talks to Teachers lectures, William James provided insight into the relationship between the student, the environmental and physiological factors that drive behaviour and influence learning. His physiological training helped shape his views on the nature of the learner, and he listed the most elemental instincts or impulses, which he referred to as native reactions, inherent to human learning and behaviour. James believed that native reactions are present from birth, and play a significant role in the acquisition of knowledge. These native reactions would be viewed today as innate drives, impulses or motivations. He considered that individuals are essentially creatures of habit that learn and behave by reacting to impressions (Pajares, 2003). So, in order to achieve learning, a child would require success in consistently making controlled reactions to appropriate stimuli. Therefore, the child would benefit from continuous rote learning, by frequent exposure to the required demands of the classroom or by frequent engagement in desired tasks (http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2134/James-William-18421910.html ). Parjares (2003) stipulated, "As an empiricist, James believed that individuals learn and behave by reacting to impressions. A child's mind is there to help determine those reactions, and a critical essence of learning is a child's success in making reactions numerous and perfect" (p.53). Essentially then, learning requires the habitual presentation of the appropriate response to the presentation of stimuli. Moreover, James proposed that in order for a

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teacher to facilitate successful learning, the intent of the teacher should be to pair the native reactions to newly acquired information, and help the child acquire new reactions. The teacher's task, therefore, would be to understand the role of native tendencies in childhood, and further, to enable learning by making mundane or dull material more interesting by pairing it with material that captures the student's interests (James, 1899). According to Parjares (2003), "The difference between interesting and dull teachers is simply the inventiveness with which they go about the process of mediating the associations and connections necessary to learning" (p.54). Doing so would entail making the material personally relevant for the child. This, James indicated, would encompass the art of teaching and would fulfill the primary role of the teacher. Over a hundred years later, Talks to Teachers, continues to provide practical information and counsel on both teaching and educational psychology. This influential document affords exceptional opportunities into understanding the development of teacher education in conjunction with the management of students and classrooms. James (1899) wrote he [the teacher] must start with the native tendencies, and enlarge the pupils entire passive and active experience (p. 62). James considered the special characteristics of the child and he addressed how the native reactions of children could be connected to novel academic material to help the child acquire new reactions, by way of association, to prompt continued interest in learning. The intention of this paper is to review and relate James ten native

Native Tendencies reactions to the environment of contemporary classrooms and teaching practices of today. The Native Tendencies James identified ten instinctive tendencies that he believed to be most important for the teacher. These instinctive tendencies encompass James' beliefs about the intrinsic motivational forces that serve to initiate and direct student behaviour. The first instinctive tendency, fear, he considered to be "the great weapon of the teacher, (which) will always, of course, retain some place in the conditions of the schoolroom" (James, p. 45). While James found this basic instinct to be so familiar and inherent within the classroom environment that he did not even consider it necessary to discuss if further, the notion of using fear as a primary motivator would not be received so

readily today. The behavioural perspective, a commonly used approach within the modern educational system that grew out of James' functionalism roots, places emphasis on external rewards, dependent upon meeting behavioural criteria, to motivate appropriate student behaviour and promote skill acquisition (Santrock, p.451). This approach turns the emphasis from an introspective, theorizing model, to a practical, observational model (Alberto & Troutman, p. 27). In this way, focus is placed on observable behaviour rather than mental processes and biological drives. The behavioural approach emphasizes the reinforcement of socially desirable behaviour, at the expense of undesirable, socially inappropriate behaviour. Less emphasis is placed on the use of aversive procedures, or punishment, as a means of managing

Native Tendencies student behaviour. Furthermore, the use of reinforcement strategies to increase desirable behaviours has the tendency to promote positive feelings toward the teacher who administers the reinforcement. In his Talks to Teachers, James also suggests that the "teacher who succeeds in getting herself loved by the pupils will obtain results which one of a more forbidding temperament finds it impossible to secure" (p. 45). While this may initially seem contradictory when considering his thoughts on the use of fear as a motivational tool, the behavioural approach lends itself nicely to this notion insofar as the teacher who consistently utilizes positive methods to reinforce desired student behaviour tends to become the discriminative stimulus for behaviours associated with love. Using Pavlov's principles of classical conditioning, the unconditioned stimulus, i.e., the eliciting stimulus, such as

the specific presentation of reinforcement, is paired with the neutral stimulus, i.e., the teacher, to become the conditioned stimulus, which thereby produces the conditioned response. In other words, when a teacher is consistently associated with positive or desired outcomes, the teacher per se, becomes well liked as a result. This contributes to student approval, affection and/or respect for the teacher as classroom leader. As a result of this, James postulates that students who find themselves in these conditions are primed to succeed. A modern interpretation of the aforementioned concepts of fear and love within the classroom can be examined using Baumrind's theory of parenting styles. Baumrind introduced three parenting styles, with varying

Native Tendencies levels of emphasis placed on the components of fear, love, and permissiveness. The authoritarian classroom management style is restrictive and punitive, with a focus on maintaining order within the classroom. These

teachers use firm limits to control student and classroom behaviour, while less emphasis is placed on instruction and learning. Students in these situations tend to be passive learners, with reduced levels of initiation, and higher levels of anxiety (Santrock, 2008). The permissive classroom management style, on the other hand, offers students increased levels of autonomy, however, these students tend to have reduced levels of support as it pertains to academic, social and behavioural learning tasks. Students in the permissive classroom environment tend to under-perform, academically, and have poor self-control (Santrock, 2008). Finally, the authoritative classroom management style, which appears to encompass a balance between James' concepts of fear and love, tends to produce students who are independent, socially adept and mature. Teachers employing this teaching style tend to provide negotiated liberties, provided pre-approved behavioural conditions are met. Limits are firmly enforced, however, care and respect is reciprocated between teacher and student in an environment that encourages high levels of interaction, negotiation, and mutual respect (Santrock, 2008). The child's desire to learn and acquire information is the impulse that James refers to as curiosity. In The Principles of Psychology, James claims, "At certain ages the sensitiveness to particular gaps and the pleasure of resolving particular puzzles reach their maximum, and then it is that stores of scientific

Native Tendencies knowledge are easiest and most naturally laid in" (1890). He suggests that the curiosity of the child could be heightened, hence facilitating the learning process, by introducing interesting, novel objects, preferably ordained with bright and vivid colours which captures their fleeting attention. Furthermore, the ability to hold and manipulate moving parts or to observe and account for human behaviour helps drive the curiosity impulse and promote sustained attention. In this way, James advocates for the use of concrete examples in the application of teaching young children. By making the learning process dynamic, interesting and relevant to the child, the teacher stimulates the

intellectual appetite of the child, and furthers the educational process. Today, many of these same concepts apply. It can be argued that Bloom's (1956) instructional taxonomy, which classifies educational objectives into the cognitive, affective or psychomotor domains, is at least partially derived from the essential ideas and components of James Talks to Teachers. Modern day instructors use Bloom's taxonomies as a tool to plan effective instruction, which consider the importance of emotional and psychomotor variables, in conjunction to cognitive and behavioural goals. By considering these variables, teachers are fulfilling James' vision of capturing the student's attention and promoting intellectual curiosity. James considered the Ambitious Impulses to be: imitation, emulation, ambition, pugnacity and pride. Successful, effective teachers have a good understanding of these native reactions and skillfully use them to their advantage within the classroom. Imitation is a natural tendency of all learners,

Native Tendencies which lends itself to emulation. Students often imitate others so as not to appear different or even inferior. In the schoolroom, imitation and emulation play absolutely vital parts (James, 1899). Students imitate and emulate their teachers and peers. It is often an expectation of older students to aid in

setting the tone and atmosphere of a school. They are held up as role models for younger students, hopefully inspiring them to imitate and emulate their positive behaviours and attitudes. When it comes to imitation and emulation, James cautions teachers that they should never try to make the pupils do a thing which [they] cannot do [themselves] (James, p. 50). In modern terms, these concepts continue to be very applicable to the classroom environment. Behaviorists refer to this as 'modeling'. By demonstrating or performing behaviour, one is more likely to prompt its imitation. Sulzer-Azaroff & Mayer (1991) outlined five characteristics that increase a models' effectiveness. These include: the models' similarity to the student; the perceived competence of the model; the student's previous experience with the model; the models' prestige; and, the use of multiple models. Therefore, by relating to the student, creating a positive, structured atmosphere whereby learning is further facilitated by way of the creation of an interesting, even fun, learning environment, the teacher, enhances his/her own effectiveness, desirability and suitability to act as a model for the students within the class. This remains consistent with James' teachings. "As imitation slides into emulation, so emulation slides into ambition; and ambition connects itself closely with pugnacity and pride" (p. 54). James

Native Tendencies writes that although some of these interconnected characteristics could be considered less than respectable, in their more refined and noble forms they play a great part in the schoolroom and in education (p. 54). He suggests that that pugnacity can be seen as an unwillingness to be defeated by challenges in the classroom, to be determined and put forth effort. Furthermore, James claims, the fighting impulse must often be appealed to (p. 55). Yet, many educators today would criticize that the fighting impulse can only be aroused by making the pupil feel ashamed of being scared at fractions, of being downed by the law of falling bodies and that these feelings will provoke the child into doing better (p. 55). Malouff, Rooke, Schutte, et al. (2008) caution that it is important not to de-motivate students and avoid any harsh or insulting criticism (p. 5). They have established a

number of methods to encourage students to try hard and put effort into their learning. White-McNulty, Patrikakou, and Weissberg (2005) also affirm students need to feel capable, connected and in control in order to foster motivation within the classroom. It is important, therefore, for the teacher to create a safe environment that allows for the setting of academic goals that are challenging, yet achievable, and where healthy competition amongst peers is encouraged, in order to foster the pugnacity, ambition and pride that James refers to. James referred to the ownership native reaction in his Talks to Teachers as the "antagonist to imitation" (p. 56). The sense of ownership is a natural impulse that has developed long before the child enters school. In education,

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the instinct of ownership is fundamental and the teacher who can work this impulse into the school tasks is fortunate (James, p.56). James spoke to the collection of books, neatness, and order, as a means of highlighting the ownership impulse. Stefanou, Perencevich, DiCintio and Turner (2004), on the other hand, examined other ways of encouraging student ownership in the classroom by suggesting, The characteristics of ownership and justification of ideas, the construction of meaning and the intentional self-reliance used in critical thinking are at the heart of learning and motivation in the classroom (p.109). Through the promotion of ownership, students develop skills in organization, learn procedures and are given opportunities to discuss, justify and problem solve. The concept of ownership provides impetus for the child to engage in otherwise uninteresting activities if the participation in such activities is deemed a requirement for a larger, more complex goal. This primarily involves the action of collecting seemingly insignificant individual items for the purposes of completing a larger series, because the attainment of the individual items serves the purposes of fills a gap in information. Promoting and developing ownership in learning was considered by James to be a difficult, but necessary task for teachers to impart upon students. It continues to be necessary therefore for teachers to challenge, motivate and encourage their students to take ownership of their learning, since this is seen as a fundamental component to the educational process. James described the final native reaction, constructiveness, as the instinctive tendencies to explore, handle, build and even tear down. Engaging

Native Tendencies and interactive learning, employed by skillful teachers, allows children to develop confidence in themselves, their handiness and competence to

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produce change. The more different kinds of things a child thus gets to know by treating and handling them, the more confident grows his sense of kinship with the world in which he lives (James, p. 59). Korn (2003) acknowledged that James anticipated both active learning and critical thinking since James himself was the embodiment of critical thinking (p. 44). Constructiveness refers to the handling of manipulatives and materials in math or science as well as to the active and engaged process of learning, participating in activities through collaboration and exploration with their peers. Constructiveness has a powerful impact on students' learning because they become engaged in higher-order thinking tasks such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation. These are valuable components of cognition that remain important to the learning process today. Furthermore, these higher-order thinking tasks have been incorporated and extended within Bloom's taxonomies, thereby providing further evidence of the relevance of James' contributions to educational psychology today. Summary In his Talks to Teachers, William James acknowledged the importance and complex nature of the role of the teacher and provided his audience with the tools necessary for effective teaching and classroom management. Furthermore, James emphasized the importance of individual impulses that must be managed in order to facilitate successful learning and behavioural

Native Tendencies outcomes. In so doing, James advocated for a child-centered manner of teaching, which stressed rote learning, teacher imagination, and effective

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manipulation of environmental factors. He provided the blueprint for effective teaching: be aware of the childs native interests, bring forth the childs existing knowledge, present material clearly, logically and systematically, and connect the new knowledge to existing knowledge in a manner which is meaningful to the child (Parjarves, 2003). James urged his audience to place the needs and interests of the children above all else so as to facilitate the necessary associations to promote learning. In so doing, he influenced the field of educational psychology during his lifetime, and for many years to come.

Native Tendencies References

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Alberto, P.A. & Troutman, A.C. (2003). Applied Behavior Analysis for Teachers (6th ed.) Merrill Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey Brewer, C.L. (2003). William James talks about teaching. Teaching of Psychology, 30(1), 34-38. Korn, J.H. (2003). The teaching spirit of William James. Teaching of Psychology, 30(1), 44-45. James, William. (1890). Principles in Psychology [Electronic Version]. Retrieved August 2, 2009, from: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/James/Principles/prin24.htm James, William. (1899). Talks to Teachers [Electronic Version]. Retrieved July 15, 2009, from University of Calgary APSY 693 Blackboard site: https://blackboard.ucalgary.ca/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab _id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher %3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_67168_1%26url%3d Malouff, J.M., Rooke, S. E. & Schutte, N.S. (2008). Methods of motivational teaching. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved July 31, 2009 from: http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/ 0000019b/80/3b/6d/49.pdf

Native Tendencies Parjares, F. (2003). William James: Our father who begat us. In B.J. Zimmerman & D.H. Schunk (Eds.) Educational Psychology: A Century of Contributions (pp. 41-64). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Mahwah, New Jersey.

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Santrock, J.W. (2008). Educational Psychology (3rd ed.) McGraw-Hill, New York, NY. Stefanou, C.R., Perencevich, K.C., DiCinto, M., Turner, J.C. (2004). Supporting autonomy in the classroom: Ways teachers encourage student decision making and ownership. Educational Psychologist, 39(2), 97-110.

Sulzer-Azaroff, B. & Mayer, G.R. (1991). Behavior Analysis for Lasting Change. Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, Belmont, CA. William James (1842-1910). (2009). Retrieved August 2, 2009 from http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2134/James-William-18421910.html White-McNulty, L., Patrikakou, E.N., & Weissberg, R.P. (2005). Fostering childrens to learn. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved July 31, 2009 from: http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/ 0000019b/80/2a/50/0c.pdf .

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