Oftentimes, the term 'significative learning' may result confusing in discussion between educators. Some may refer to the fact that the learning object is interesting or directly connected with the closer realm of the child within its environment. Some other educators will refer to Ausubel's theory, the idea that the new learning object will be meaningful for the students under the condition that there is a relation is established with the previous learning of the child. In fact, both propositions of the term are right, and what we should understand by significative (or meaningful learning, the term preferred by Ausubel) is a series of theories from neuroscience and education that different authors have developed. The sum of these theories and intellectuals' ideas conform that determine significative learning to occur. These key aspects are (Zabala and Arnau, 2014):
1) Connection between previous learning and new learning. It refers to the theory what was first introduced by Ausubel in 1968, which stated that in order for the new material or block of knowledge presented to be meaningful for the students, it is required to connect and establish connections with the previous knowledge of the students purposefully.
2) Significance and function of the object of learning. It is important for the child to understand the usefulness and possible functions of the object of learning when the new material is presented.
3) Stimulate a positive disposition toward the learning. This is intrinsically embedded with students' motivation. To motivate the cognitive effort that we demand the students, it will be again useful to show implicitly or explicitly the usefulness of the learning object and promote a student profile that trust own's abilities to cope with the challenge.
4) Self-esteem, self-concept and expectations. In close connection with the last point, it will be important to strengthen self-perceptions of the students, self control and abilities to overcome failure and stand against adversities. It will be equally important to evaluate and enhance the self-concept of the child as a pupil, which refers to the representation that child has as a pupil and the representations the child has of his own skills and abilities.
5) Depart from previous knowledge and knowledge frameworks of students. The point of departure of any block of knowledge should be the previous existing knowledge of the students, that should be bind together with the new pieces of information.
6) Situate the knowledge in the level of the students. New pieces of information cannot be beyond a frame of what the students can possibly acquire, maybe due to the fact that it is beyond their capability of comprehension or because it may provoke a big instability of previous schemes of knowledge.
7) Place knowledge in the Zone of Proximal Development. Points six and seven are axioms of the theory of Zone of Proximal Development developed by Vygotsky (1978). The author proposed a series of zones of what the actual position of knowledge the child possesses, what it can learn with the support of others and what the student cannot possibly learn. The ZPD specifically constitutes the space between what a learner can do without assistance and what a learner can do with adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers.
Source: https://www.healthline.com/health/zone-of-proximal-development
8) Facilitate the cognitive activity. Teachers are to provide the proper environment, conditions and activities that make the acquisition of the new knowledge easier, for example through activities that unfold a wide variety of cognitive processes: recognise, classify, categorise, compare, implement, verify, judge and generate.
9) Guide and stimulate the reflection of students' learning process. Students should carry out processes of metacognition throughout the formative instruction. The guidance should focus on what it has been learned and how it has been learned.
It can be appreciated that what conforms significative learning is a series of proven studies from different areas of psychology: child psychopedagogy, psychology of development, cognitive psychology and neuroscience. It will be wonderful to hear other people's perspectives and points to add to the list.
References (APA Style but adding full first names)
Ausubel, David. (1968). Educational Psychology: A cognitive view.
Vygotsky, Lev. (1978). Interaction between Learning and Development. Mind and society, 79-91. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Zabala, Antoni and Arnau, Laia. (2014). Método para la enseñanza de las competencias. Graó: Barcelona.
