Towards A Standard Integrated Information Processing/ Cognitive Model of Learning

Kuhn (1965) and others have pointed out that when a major paradigm shift is occurring in an area, there tends to be a large number of new, competing, and most often partial models generated by the "new view" of "old" phenomena. The overgeneration of models leads to several major problems that cause great confusions, which in turn stagnates the new emerging paradigm. One strategy to prevent emerging paradigm "blight" is to have professionals in an area develop and employ a Standard Model of the phenomena in question. This paper presents an attempt at formulating a Standard Integrated Information Processing Model of learning based on an analysis of the many competing models proposed and the empirical literature in this area for the past 25 years. The importance of as well as the need for an explicit and formal standard model of learning now and in science education in particular is discussed.