Human Behavior

As indicated in Chapter 1, learning is a change of behavior resulting from experience. To successfully accomplish the task of helping to bring about this change, the instructor must know why people act the way they do. A knowledge of basic human needs and defense mechanisms is essential for organizing student activities and promoting a productive learning experience.

Control of Human Behavior

The relationship between the instructor and the students has a profound impact on how much the students learn. To students, the instructor usually is a symbol of authority. Students expect the instructor to exercise certain controls, and they tend to recognize and submit to authority as a valid means of control. The instructor's challenge is to know what controls are best for the existing circumstances. The instructor should create an atmosphere that enables and encourages students to help themselves.

Every student works toward a goal of some kind. It may be success itself; it may simply be a grade or other form of personal recognition. The successful instructor directs and controls the behavior of the students and guides them toward a goal. This is a part of the process of directing the students' actions to modify their behavior. Without the instructor's active intervention, the students may become passive and perhaps resistant to learning. The controls the instructor exercises-how much, how far, to what degree-should be based on more than trial and error.

Some interesting generalizations have been made about motivation and human nature. While these assumptions are typically applied to industrial management, they have implications for the aviation instructor as well.

- The expenditure of physical and mental effort in work is as natural as play and rest. The average person does not inherently dislike work. Depending on conditions, work may be a source of satisfaction and, if so, it will be performed voluntarily. On the other hand, when work is a form of...