Fundamentals of Instructing and Ground Instruction Techniques
Learning theory applied to a classroom
Ground instruction questions ask you to match a scenario to a concept. Know the domains: cognitive (knowledge), affective (attitudes), psychomotor (physical skill). Know the levels of learning in order - rote, understanding, application, correlation. Correlation is the highest: the learner relates this lesson to other knowledge and to real flying.
The laws of learning (readiness, exercise, effect, primacy, recency, intensity) explain why a pleasant, well-practiced, recent, vivid lesson sticks. Maslow's hierarchy explains why a tired, hungry, or worried learner does not learn; defense mechanisms such as rationalization and flight explain why a student denies a problem.
The teaching method should match the objective: lecture for new material, guided discussion for drawing out judgment, demonstration-performance for skills, and scenario-based training for risk management. The four steps of instruction are preparation, presentation, application, and review/evaluation. A critique should be objective and emphasize strengths before corrections.
Trap: labeling a student at the "application" level when they can perform but cannot explain why - that is still understanding; true application transfers to a new situation.
Worked example: A learner recites the V-speed definitions (rote), explains why Vx rises with altitude (understanding), computes a takeoff distance from a chart (application), and predicts how a soft field changes the technique (correlation).