In B.F. Skinner’s (1971) book “Beyond Freedom and Dignity”, he introduced the concept that behavior is directly influenced by the environment. Skinner stated, “Young people drop out of school, refuse to get jobs, and associate only with others of their own age not because they feel alienated but because of defective social environments in homes, schools, factories and elsewhere.” This was a unique concept that environments would have an impact on behaviors.
This is the quote that caught my attention in terms of what we might be able to do as instructional technologists, “Behavior which operates upon the environment to produce consequences (“operant behavior) can be studied by arranging environments in which specific consequences are contingent upon it.” He then states, “… changes in the environment of the individual have quick and dramatic effects.” (Skinner, 1971). Consider as a thought experiment if you could wave the magic wand and change the environment of an inner city classroom. In a moment it is transformed into a rich hands on learning environment. It were the words “arranging environments” that caused me to reflect on what we are now doing in virtual learning environments.
In New York City, Mayor Rudy Giuliani decided to test the concept of changing the environment in order to reduce crime. It was a controversial concept but it appears to have worked. He changed a few small things in the environment and somehow crime went down. So this would suggest that if a child is living in a neighborhood with old battered buildings, and graffiti on the walls, bad odors, that his behavior will be impacted as a result. Take that same child and place them in a clean orderly neighborhood and the child’s behavior will change for the better.
At IDEO, an innovation company, Tom Kelley explains that they try to create an environment of creativity. Google seems to do the same thing. The environment has a direct impact on behavior in the workplace. Now I reflect on my workplace which has rows and columns of never ending fabric covered boxes in a drab beige color. This type of environment changes the behavior of workers.
So what does this have to do with cognitive technology? Training and education, according to Skinner, Gagne and Mager is about changing behavior. Instructional designers define measurable learning objectives, develop training programs and hope that they impact a positive change in behavior.
What if we could place people in a simulated virtual environment that takes them from the drab cubicle to a large spacious room with lots of plants and running water, maybe with the soft sound of birds singing in the background. Now within that environment, task them with learning a new concept or solving a complex business problem. Could we change the motivational level to learn in the same way that the child changes his or her behavior in the clean orderly neighborhood? It is really an unanswered question but in theory motivation should go up.
Have you ever gone to a dark, dreary library with the musty smell of books. It is so quiet you hear your own heart beat. Are you motivated to stay and peruse the books. I want to get what I need and then quickly get the heck out of there.
Consider the classrooms in most public schools. Take a look at the image below. This is the vantage point for most learning in public schools around the world. I can just smell the chalk dust when I look at this picture. And oh boy were those seats comfortable. No wonder we all have bad backs. No wonder Einstein stared out the window. He was bored. Environment changes our behaviors. Desire to learn is a behavior.
How about a classroom that looks like this? That’s my character in 2nd Life, sitting in a lounge chair gazing out at the stars. Now add a group of people to sit around and discuss what they are seeing. Get out of the chair and fly around the solar system. Rather then talk about Egypt, go there and explore the pyramids. Now in that environment challenge your students with a difficult question, while standing amoung the pyramids or sitting in chairs in front of the moons of Jupiter. I believe that the conversation will be much richer in this environment then the drab rows and gray cinder block of the typical classroom.
References
Skinner, B. F. (1971). Beyond freedom and dignity. New York: Bantam/Vintage Books
