Ausubel’s Meaningful Verbal

1. The most important factor influencing learning is the

Learning/Subsumption Theory quantity, clarity, and organization of the learner’s
present knowledge. This present knowledge consists of
facts, concepts, propositions, theories and perpetual data
INTRODUCTION that the learner has available to him/her at any point in
time. This comprises his/her cognitive structure.
Many educational psychology theories often criticize the
expository or presentational manner of teaching. They 2. Ausubel believed that before new material can be
say that teachers assume such a major role in learning as presented effectively, the student’s cognitive structure
providers of information, while students remain as should be strengthened. When this done, acquisition and
passive receivers of information. David Ausubel, instead retention of new information is facilitated. The way to
of criticizing this manner of teaching, proposed ways of strengthen the student’s cognitive structure is by
improving it. He suggested the use of advance using advance organizers that allow students to
organizers. His ideas are contained in his theory of already have a bird’s eye view or to see the ‘’bid
Meaningful Verbal Learning. picture’’ of the topic to be learned even before going
to the details.
Ausubel’s belief of the use of advance organizers is
AUSUBEL’S SUBSUMPTION anchored on the principle of subsumption. He thought
THEORY that the primary way of learning was subsumption.
Subsumption – a process by which new material is
related to relevant ideas in the existing cognitive
structure.
Meaningful Reception Four Processes of Advance Organizers Meaningful Learning can take place through
of Information Meaningful Learning
four processes:

Learner’s Cognitive
Derivative
Expository 1. D erivati ve sub su m pti on
subsumption
Structure

2. Co rrelati ve su bsum pti o n

Correlative
Use of Advance Narrative
subsumption
Graphic organizer
3. Su perordinan te learn ing
Superordinate Skimming
Subsumption learning 4. Co m binato rial learning

Combinatorial
Graphic Organizers
learning

 The main theme of Ausubel’s thoery is that Derivative subsumption.

knowlegde is hierachically organized; that new
This describes the situation in which the new
information is meaningful to the extent that it can be
information you learn is an example of the concept that
related (attached, anchored) to what is already know.
you have already learned.
It is about how individuals learn large amounts of
meaningful material from verbal/textual Correlative subsumption.
presentations in a school setting. He proposed the
use of advance organizers as a tool for learning. In order to accommodate this new information, you have
to change or expand your concept of bird to include the
possibility of being big and having legs.
Focus of Ausubel’s Theory
Superordinate learning. details and specificity. He called this progressive
differentiation. According to Ausubel, the purpose of
In this case, the child already knew a lot of examples of progressive differentiation is to increase the stability and
the concept, but did not know the concept itself until it clarity of anchoring ideas.
was taught to her. This is superordinate learning.
2. Instructional materials should attempt to integrate new
Combinatorial learning. material with previously presented information through
comparisons and cross- referencing of new and old
This is when newly acquired knowledge combines with ideas.
prior knowledge to enrich the understanding of the both
concepts.

Advance Organizers
The advance organizer is a major instructional tool
proposed by Ausubel. The advance organizer, gives
you two benefits:
(1) You will find it easier to connect new
information with what you already know about
the topic.
(2) you can readily see how the concepts in a certain
topic are related to each other.
As you go about learning about the topic and go through
the four learning processes, the advance organizer helps
you link the new learning to your existing scheme. As
such, advance organizers facilitate learning by helping
you organize and strengthen your cognitive structure.

Types of Advance Organizers

1. Expository - describes the new content.
2. Narrative - present the new information in the form
of story to students.
3. Skimming - is done by looking over the new material
to gain a basic overview.
4. Graphic organizer - visuals to step up or outline the
new information. This may include pictographs,
descriptive patterns, concept patterns, concept maps.

Application of Principles
1. The most general ideas of subject should be presented
first and then progressively differentiated in terms of
 BRUNER’S CONSTRUCTIVIST
THEORY
Enactive Representation

Iconic Representation
Jerome Bruner was one of
the first proponents of
constructivism. A major Symbolic Representation
theme in the theory of Bruner
is that learning is an active
process in which learners
construct new ideas or ENACTIVE REPRESENTATION
concepts based upon their
current/past knowledge. At the earliest ages, children learn about the
world through actions on physical objects and the
outcomes of these actions. Children represent objects in
terms of their immediate sensation of them. They are
Advance Organizer:
represented in the muscles and involve motor responses,
or ways to manipulate the environment.
Bruner’s Constructivist
Spiral Curriculum
Theory
Discovery Learning ICONIC REPRESENTATION

This second stage is when learning can

be obtained through using modals and pictures. The
Representation of Theory of Instruction Categorization learner can now use mental images to stand for certain
Knowledge objects or events. Iconic representation allows one to
recognize objects when they are changed in minor way
Predisposition to (e.g. mountains with and without snow at the top.)
Enactive Learn

SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION
Structure of
Knowledge
Iconic In this third stage, the learner has developed the
ability to think in abstract terms. This uses symbol
Effective Sequencing system to encode knowlegde. The most common symbol
systems are language and mathematical notation.
Symbolic
Reinforcement Bruner advised that teacher utilize and bring
together concrete, pictorial then symbolic activities
Bruner’s Main Concepts to facilitate learning. Before children can
comprehend abstract mathematical operation,
Representation teacher can first have the numbers represented
Bruner suggested the ability to represent knowledge in enactively (with blocks) and then, iconically (in
three stages. These three stages also become the three pictures). Children can later on handle number
ways to represent knowledge. concept without concrete objects and only with
numbers and number signs (symbolic).

SPIRAL CURRICULUM
• Bruner stressed that teaching should always lead
to boosting cognitive development. Students
will not understand the concept if teachers plan
 to teach using only the teacher’s level of Rewards and punishment should be selected and placed
understanding. appropriately. He investigates motivation of learning.
• In spiral curriculum, teachers must revisit the CATEGORIZATION
curriculum by teaching the same content in
different ways depending on student’s Bruner gave much attention to categorization of
developmental levels. information in the construction of internal cognitive
maps. He believed that perception, conceptualization,
learning, decision making and making inferences all
Principles of Instruction stated by involved categorization.
Bruner:
Categories are “rules” that specify four thing about
1. Instruction must be concerned with the experiences objects. The four things are:
and contexts that make the student willing and able
to learn (readiness) 1. Criterial Attributes – required characteristics for
inclusion of an object in a category.
2. Instruction must be structured so that it can be easily
grasped by the student (spiral organization) 2. The second rule prescribes how the criterial
attributes are combined
3. Instruction should be designed to facilitate
extrapolation and or fill in the gaps (going beyond 3. The third rule assigns weight to various
the information) properties
4. The fourth rule sets acceptance limits on
attributes
DISCOVERY LEARNING
It refers to obtaining knowledge for oneself. The teacher These are several kinds of categories;
plan and arranges activities in a such a way that student 1. Identity categories - categories include objects based
search, manipulate, explore, and investigate. Students on their attributes or features.
learn new knowledge relevant to the domain and such
general problem-solving skills as formulating rules,
testing and gathering information.
2. Equivalent categories - (provide rules for combing
Bruner (1966) states that a theory of instruction categories). Equivalence can be determined by affective
should address four major aspects; criteria, which render objects equivalent by emotional
reaction, functional criteria, based on related function
1. Predisposition to learn (for example, “car”, “truck”, “van” could all be
combined in an inclusive category called “motor
He introduced ideas of “readiness for learning”. Bruner
vehicle” ) or by formal criteria, for example by science,
believed that any subject could be taught at any stage of
law or cultural agreement.
development in a way that fits the child’s cognitive
abilities.

2. Structure of Knowlegde. 3. Coding system are categories that serve to

recognize sensory input. They are major organizational
This refers to the ways in which a body of knowledge
variables in higher cognitive functioning. Going beyond
can be structured so that it can be most readily grasped
immediate sensory data involves making inferences on
by the learner. Bruner viewed categorization as a
the bias of related categories. Related categories form a
fundamental process in the structuring of knowledge.
“coding system”. These are hierarchical arrangement of
3.Effective sequencing related categories.

No one sequencing will fit every learner, but in general,

the lesson can be presented in increasing difficulty.
Sequencing, or lack of it, can make learning easier or
more difficult.

4. Reinforcement