Authors - Rangith B. Kuriakose Abstract - Learning is a complex process shaped by psychological and social factors. Psychological theories examine mental processes like memory and problem-solving, while sociological theories analyze how culture and societal structures influence education. Key psychological perspectives include behaviorism, which emphasizes reinforcement, and cognitivism focusing on knowledge construction and active learning. Vygotsky’s constructivism highlights social inter-action and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), where guidance enhances learning. Sociologically, functionalism (Parsons) sees education as promoting social cohesion, whereas conflict theory (Marx, Freire) critiques its role in perpetuating inequality. Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed advocates for empowering, reflective education. This paper explores cognitivism’s application in higher education, using an Electrical Engineering module as a case study. It identifies learning challenges ("learning knots") and proposes chunking, a cognitivist strategy, as an intervention. A comparative study (control vs. test groups over five tutorials) evaluates the method’s effectiveness in fostering meaningful, sustained learning. The paper bridges theory and practice, offering insights into curriculum design and findings suggest structured knowledge segmentation improves comprehension, demonstrating cognitivism’s practical relevance in technical education.
