LAWS OF
LEARNING
Thorndike Introduction
Laws of learning
LIST OF Primary Laws
Primary Laws Advantages
CONTENTS Secondary Laws
Secondary Laws Advantages
Edward Lee Thorndike
Introduction
Edward Lee Thorndike was an American
psychologist who spent nearly his entire
career at Teachers College Columbia.
Edward introduces his famous set of
principles, known as "Thorndike's laws".
According to these laws Learning is
achieved when an individual is able to
form associations between a particular
stimulus and a response. These
associations are known as "habits" and
can either be encouraged or discourage
by external parameters
LAWS OF LEARNING
There are two laws of learning by Thorndike
Primary Laws Secondary Laws
Law of Readiness Law of Primacy
Law of Exercise Law of Recency
Law of Effect Law of Intensity
PRIMARY
LAWS
Law of Readiness
When any conduction unit is ready
to conduct (an individual ready to
learn something), for it to do so is
satisfying.
Readiness implies a degree of
concentration and eagerness:
Individuals learn best when they are
physically, mentally, and emotionally ready
to learn, and do not learn well if they see no
reason for learning.
LAW OF EXERCISE
The Law of Exercise is a principle in
psychology that suggests the
more we practice or repeat a
behavior, the stronger it becomes.
Skills and development
Improving habits
Drill and practice
ADVANTAGES OF
PRIMARY LAWS
Enhances engagement as learners are more prepared.
Increases motivation and attention in learning activities.
Improves retention of information due to better focus and receptivity.
Reduces frustration and anxiety, leading to a more pleasant learning
experience.
Reinforces knowledge through repetition, strengthening memory and
skill proficiency.
Helps form positive study habits and routines through consistent
exercise.
Achieves greater fluency and automaticity in responses and actions
Encourages continuous learning and improvement through positive
reinforcement.
Law of Effect
The Law of Effect states that behaviors that lead to positive
outcomes are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors that
lead to negative outcomes are less likely to be repeated. It's all
about the consequences influencing our behavior.
Negative
emotions and
learning
Positive Optimal learning
emotions and environment
learning
SECONDARY
LAWS
Law of Primacy
The law of primacy, a concept in psychology and education,
states that things learned first are
remembered best. This means that information presented
at the beginning of a learning session tends to be better
retained than information presented later.
Make a first Start strong
impression
Use visualization
LAW OF RECENCY
DEFINITION:
The Law of Recency states that the most
recently presented items or information in
a series are more likely to be remembered
than those presented earlier.
LAW OF INTENSITY
The Law of Intensity is a fundamental principle of learning
that states that the intensity of a
stimulus or experience has a direct impact on the
effectiveness of learning and retention.
STRATEGIES
Hands on activities Interactive discussion Multimedia presentation
ADVANTAGES OF
SECONDARY LAWS
Creates strong first impressions, making information more likely to be
retained.
Establishes a foundation for future learning.
Helps prevent the learning of incorrect information.
Information learned most recently is more easily recalled.
Enhances retention of new material.
Facilitates quick recall during assessments or real-life applications.
Intense and vivid experiences are more memorable.
Engages learners more deeply, increasing interest and motivation.
THANK
YOU!
