FAA Fundamentals of Instructing (FOI)The Learning ProcessMedium
A CFI allows a student to repeat an incorrect radio phraseology several times before finally correcting it. The instructor is later concerned that the student may struggle to unlearn the mistake. This concern is best explained by which law of learning?
- ALaw of Primacy
- BLaw of Intensity
- CLaw of Recency
- DLaw of Effect
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Law of Primacy
The Law of Primacy holds that the state created by an individual's first learning experience is more likely to persist than one created by subsequent learning. Because the student practiced the error first, that incorrect impression may be difficult to change.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Intensity relates to vividness of experience, not the order in which something was learned.
- C. Recency relates to what was learned most recently, which is the opposite concern here.
- D. Effect relates to satisfaction, not the sequencing of learning.
Law of Primacy
States that things learned first often create a strong, almost unshakable impression, making first impressions in teaching critically important.
- Instructors must ensure correct info/skills are taught first
- Unteaching wrong habits is harder than teaching correctly initially
- Closely tied to habit formation
Memory trick: REEPIR: Readiness, Exercise, Effect, Primacy, Intensity, Recency