Module in Facilitating

Learner-Centered Teaching
 Chapter 1

UNDERSTANDING LEARNING

Lesson 3 Declarative Procedural, and Functional Knowledge

This chapter deals with identifying the three types of learning and differentiating one from the
other. One of the outcomes of the learning process is the acquisition of knowledge. As will be seen
later, acquired knowledge comes in different levels depending on the kind of learning experiences
learners are exposed to.

Intended Learning Outcome (ILO) Categorize knowledge according to type: declarative, procedural, and
functional knowledge.

ENGAGE
ENGAGE

LEARNING POINT: CATEGORIES OF

KNOWLEDGE

One of the outcomes of the learning process is the acquisition of knowledge. The other outcomes
are concerned with the acquisition and development of skills, attitudes, values, and a variety of other factors.
Knowledge, on the other hand, is fundamental. Before one can develop specific attitudes or skills, one must
first have knowledge.

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 Experts and researchers identify and define information in a variety of ways, according to the
literature. For the purposes of this chapter, knowledge will be classified into three categories: declarative,
procedural, and functional knowledge. Other classifications, on the other hand, will be offered, presumably
to better and more specific the distinctions. Other types of knowledge, as classified by other authors, are
considered to be classified under one of these three.

Declarative knowledge is the information acquired that

one can speak about. It is that which we know (Declarative
Learning" n. d). It is the information that one can "declare”. The
capital of a country is a declarative piece of information. They
are facts and events that can be explicitly stored and consciously
recalled or declared (Zimmerman, 2014).
Declarative knowledge is a product of declarative
learning. It is that skill that we use to acquire new information.
Declarative learning is associated with tasks that require greater
amount of attention as what happens in school.
Declarative learning is the means through which much new information is acquired, both in
education and for personal improvement. Declarative knowledge strategies are those that help the learner
construct meaning (Harris, n. d.) by linking new learning with existing knowledge.

It refers to what one can perform and what one is able to do, as opposed to declarative
knowledge. Knowing how to ride a bike is an example of procedural knowledge. Automatic or
habitual learning, often known as motor learning and/or procedural learning, are two further
notions connected to procedural learning ("Declarative Learning" n. d.). Procedural knowledge,
unlike declarative knowledge, may or may not have a linguistic component; it can be executed
without conscious thinking or attention; and it is sometimes acquired implicitly rather than
formally ("Declarative Learning" n. d.). When opposed to declarative learning, it is typically less
conscious.

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 Declarative learning can develop into procedural knowledge over time. This is information
that a person has gained from doing something better than explaining it in words. Riding a bike or
dancing the tinikling are the best examples of this type of learning. The mother's repeated repetition
of "Look left, look right; If free, cross the street" is an example.

It is any piece of stored information that may

be changed and used to a variety of contexts or
moved to a range of circumstances. The key is the
value of such knowledge. Functional learning is
the process through which people acquire and
categorize facts, which cognitive theorists refer to
as "schema." If knowledge is gained through a
variety of contexts and situations, and then
recalled in a range of circumstances, the schema
becomes resilient and easily adaptable, and the knowledge becomes useful. Rather than being
abstract and theoretical, this learning is concrete and usable. (Source: www.philau.edu.).

Following are other ways of classifying knowledge.

a. Episodic Knowledge –
Biological memory is a type of memory that records
not only what happened, but also where and when
it happened. Childhood recollections or a girl's first
day of school are examples of episodic memory
b. Semantic Knowledge –
Deals with memories and information but not tied
to personal biographies. It is organized knowledge
about facts, concepts, generalizations, and their
associations.

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Anderson & Krathwohl (2001) claim that there are three subtypes of
semantic knowledge.
a. Declarative. Statement of truth that deals with what we know
about the world
b. Procedural Knowledge of about how things are done.
c. Conditional. If declarative knowledge accounts for what, if
procedural knowledge accounts for how, conditional knowledge
accounts for knowing when.

Declarative knowledge is organized according to various levels:

a. Descriptions
b. Time elements
c. Process
d. Causal relationship
e. Episodes
f. Generalization
g. Principles
h. Concepts

Dimensions of Knowledge

Following are the dimensions of knowledge as identified by Anderson & Krathwohl (2001).

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 a. Conceptual Knowledge. Knowledge of classification, principles, generalizations, theories,
models, situations pertinent to a particular discipline. One may be able to know and explain the
theory of multiple intelligences.
b. Metacognitive Knowledge. Awareness of one's own cognition and particular cognitive
processes.
c. Factual. Knowledge basic to specific disciplines like science or math.

Acquisition of knowledge is a continuum from gathering and putting together basic content
to being able to discriminate when to use or apply content and process. The level or quality of the
knowledge acquired expectedly will improve with experience and with appropriate interventions,
according to experts.

LEARNING POINT: EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF KNOWLEDGE ACQUISITION

Santrock (2011) claimed that mental processes of experts can help the teachers guide the
students into becoming more effective learners.
Studies have shown that experts are better than novices along the following
a. Detecting features and meaningful patterns of information
b. Accumulating more content knowledge and organizing it in a manner that indicates
understanding of the topic
c. Retrieving important aspects of knowledge with little effort situations
d. Adapting an approach to new e. Using effective strategies
Knowing the above approaches that experts use in dealing with knowledge or information,
teachers would be able to determine appropriate strategies to help students also apply these
approaches that experts use.
a. Detecting Features and Meaningful Patterns of
Organization. Experts are better able to detect
important features of problems and context not
noticed by novices. When confronted with
information or data, experts engage in
chunking of information where, they deduce
hierarchical structures, making them recall the
more important information therein.

b. Organization and Depth of Information.

Experts' knowledge is organized around the important ideas or concepts. Thus they
have a deeper understanding of knowledge than novices. Usually, experts have more

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 elaborate networks of information about an area. As such the curriculum should be
designed in a way that it is easy for the students to organize information.

c. Fluent Retrieval. Experts along a certain area,

are able to retrieve information fluently or
without much effort. The advantage of
effortless retrieval is that it places less burden
on the conscious effort of retrieving the
information. For example, expert readers can
readily read the written word with less effort
than novices, thus, making them pay attention as well to comprehending and deriving
meaning from the written word. Novice readers spend more time retrieving information
from the written word, thus there is less time spent given to comprehension.
d. Adaptive Expertise. Experts are able to approach unique or new situations in a flexible
manner and are not limited to the "old" approach they usually use. They are flexible and can adapt
equally well, even to new situations, rather than always responding in a rigid or fixed way.
e. Strategies. Experts use effective strategies in understanding information in their area of
expertise and in advancing it. Acclimation is the initial stage of expertise in a particular domain
(science, mathematics). At this stage, students have limited and fragmented knowledge that limits
their ability to differentiate between accurate and inaccurate information, or between relevant and
irrelevant information Teachers should help students go beyond the acclimation stage, by guiding
them into differentiating between important and non-important, or what is accurate from
inaccurate. Teachers should also teach students strategies and practice them in relevant situations.
f. Spreading Out and Consolidating Learning. Teachers should always talk to students on
the importance of reviewing and monitoring regularly what they have learned; and that it is better
to distribute their learning over a period of time, rather than cramming at the last minute for review.
g. Asking Themselves Questions. Teachers should encourage students to ask themselves
questions. When students do this, they expand the number of associations with the information
they need to retrieve. Teachers should also encourage the students to periodically ask questions,
as for example, while listening to a lecture, watching a video, or even while reading. They can also
be encouraged to generate questions about their experiences, and this way, they can better
remember such experiences.

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 h. Taking Good Notes. This refers to taking
good notes while reading a text or from a lecture.
However, in taking down notes, they should be taught
strategies to organize their notes, so that they can get
the bigger picture of the material they are dealing with.
 Summarizing: Have children listen
first, then deduce the main idea.
 Outlining: This requires writing down
the main topic and then the sub-topics.
 Using concept maps: They visually portray information in spider-like format.
i. Using a Study System. This refers to a system that students should adapt for
studying. An established study system will help learners for more meaningful
learning.
Certain types of teaching methods or techniques are appropriate to best develop
particular types of knowledge and outcomes. It therefore requires the teacher to know
exactly what kind of learning students need to develop.
a. For developing declarative knowledge, the appropriate methods would be to
provide activities on organizing, listing, and elaborating to facilitate learning. This calls for
rehearsals, use of fact sheets, graphic organizers, use of thinking maps, recall and
remembrance strategies, and organizational concepts.
b. For developing concept learning, applications of learning is the most
appropriate. This does not involve memory or recall as in declarative learning but the use
of inquiry or expository approach is the more appropriate to use.
c. For learning procedures, the application of procedural methods to reach the
final product is a good approach. This entails the following: recognition, recall, application,
analysis and completion of steps. Simple procedures should be demonstrated and practiced
one at a time.
d. For learning of principles, cause and effect strategies are effective to teach
principles.

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 EXPLORE

Recall an experience in English class, then list down episodes where your teacher imparted or
developed among the students, the procedural knowledge and declarative knowledge.

Declarative Knowledge
Episodes Procedural Knowledge

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 APPLY

Suggest one strategy or method (apart from those mentioned in this chapter) to improve the quality
of knowledge that your have acquired.

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 Identify if the knowledge is declarative, procedural or
functional.
1. Putting together the parts of a microscope earlier
demonstrated by the teacher
2. Reciting a poem earlier memorized
3. Naming the parts of a flower correctly as read
from a science book
4. Reciting the table of multiplication –
5. Knowing how to ride a bicycle
6. Knowing how to drive
7. Applying first-aid procedure to a person who
drowned
8. The teacher gave different types of rewards to his
students who scored high
9. Knowing how to bake a chocolate cake
10. With knowledge of simple machines, Mario was
able to move a load in a cylindrical container

Reference: DALISAY G. BRAWNER. 2018. FACILITATING LEARNER-CENTERED TEACHING. Adriana

Publishing Co. INC.

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