This document discusses several key concepts from Gestalt psychology as they relate to perception and learning: - The Law of Good Continuation states that humans perceive intersecting objects as continuous singular forms rather than separate pieces. - The Law of Good Pragmatizm and Figure/Ground principles describe how the brain organizes ambiguous stimuli into simple, clearly defined figures and backgrounds. - Insight learning involves suddenly understanding relationships between problem parts rather than trial and error. It occurs in stages of preparation, incubation, insight, and verification. - Kurt Lewin's theory examines how inner motivations and outer social forces interact to impact an individual's perceptions and learning. - Gestalt principles are relevant to

1. Gestalt psychology
CEEJEE

2. LAW OF GOOD CONTINUATION
The principle of good
continuity holds that
humans tend to perceive
each of two or more
objects as different,
singular, and uninterrupted
object even when they
intersect. In other words,
individuals tend to group
together as well as
organize curves, lines and
other forms that are found
in similar directions. People
POSITIV
E NEGATIVE

3. LAW OF GOOD PRAGNANZ
The stimulus will be
organized into as good as
figure as possible. This law
holds that when you're
presented with a set of
ambiguous or complex
objects, your brain will make
them appear as simple as
possible. Based on our
experiences with perception,

4. LAW OF FIGURE/GROUND
The figure-ground principle states that
people instinctively perceive objects as
either being in the foreground or the
background. They either stand out
prominently in the front (the figure) or
recede into the back (the ground). We tend
to pay attention and perceive things in the
foreground first. A stimulus will be
perceived as separate from its ground.
2 MAIN FACTORS: SIZE and CONTRAST
3 CATEGORIES:
STABLE: figure will be clearly identifiable
from the background.
REVERSIBLE: figure and background have
RUBIN VASE

5. INSIGHT LEARNING
The idea of insight learning was
first developed by Wolfgang
Kohler in which he describes
experiments with apes where
the apes could use boxes and
sticks as tools to solve
problems.
A type of learning or problem
solving that happens all-of-a-
sudden through understanding
the relationships various parts
of a problem rather than
through trial and error.

6. 4 STAGES OF INSIGHT LEARNING
Step 1: Preparation - Initially the learner feels helpless (‘I’m never going to figure
this out’) • The individual gathers information about the problem (trial & error).
Step 2: Incubation - The problem is consciously put aside, • But worked on at an
unconscious level.
Step 3: Insight – Some mental event bridges the gap between the problem & the
solution • Unconsciously the learner has reassembled the elements of the problem
into a meaningful whole.
Step 4: Verification - Solution (arrived at mentally) is now tested out (physically)
• This will now help with future problem solving (in a sense the learner is learning
how to learn).
KEY POINTS • The learning appears suddenly • The 1st time the solution is
tried, it is generally done correctly (few/no errors) despite the lack of

7. GESTALT PRINCIPLES AND THE
TEACHING LEARNING PROCESS
Kurt Zadek Lewin (September
9, 1890 – February 12, 1947).
He was a German American
psychologist, known as one of
the modern pioneers of social,
organizational, and applied
psychology in the United
States. Lewin is often
recognized as the "founder of
social psychology" and was
one of the first to study group

8. KURT LEWIN’S THEORY
An individual has inner and outer forces that affect his
perceptions.
Inner forces include his own motivation, attitudes, and
feelings.
Outer forces may include the attitude and behavior of
the teacher and classmates.
All these forces interact and impact on the person’s
learning. It takes complexity of experience , without
neglecting anything, but accepting and amplifying all

9. RELEVANCE OF GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY TO
EDUCATION ACCORDING TO MARION POLITO.
 Gestalt psychology is focused on the experience of
contact that occurs in the here and now.
 It takes interest in the complexity of experience,
without neglecting anything, but accepting and
amplifying all that emerges.
 It stimulates learning as experience and the experience
as a source of learning.
 Knowledge is conceived as a continuous organization
and rearrangement of information according to needs,
purposes and meanings.
 Autonomy and freedom of the student is stimulated by

10. HOW TO APPLY GESTALT THEORY IN
TEACHING AND LEARNING
Gestalt is a theory of learning that focuses on the
minds perspective. It is useful as a behavioral tool
as it enables the teacher to channel the pupil’s
energy into thinking of an item or subject as parts
of a whole, e.g. a car, being metal, paint, wheels
etc. By thinking of components and breaking
down a situation it enables for a more
psychological process to take place and over time
will broaden a pupils mind into thinking of the