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Research Paper:

Nature vs. Nurture in Education

Laura Pantoja

Pacific Oaks

HD 300

Sheree' M. Bielecki
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Education for early childhood can be influenced by how we are raised within our family

and the traits we inherit but it can also be influenced by the environment and things that surround

us. The big question is; is nature or nurture more important in a child’s education or do they

share equal rights? While some people think nature is more important because it focuses on

genetic and biological inheritance, others say nurture is more important because it focuses on the

experience and learning from others. Both of these are important in children’s learning

development and I will explain how both nature and nurture go hand in hand when it comes to a

child’s learning development.

Nature comes from the genetic background everyone inherits. Humans are thought to

have approximately 35,000 genes. Genes are nucleotides within the DNA that transfer biological

information from cell to cell. These pieces of DNA occupy a unique location on a specific

chromosome, and most genes control the production of proteins. The information encoded on

genes determines how different cells in the body will function and, to some degree, the physical

and functional characteristics that develop throughout an organism's life. (Sage 2009) Our brain

is structured to have different compartments for the genetic codes. This is where we inherit genes

from our parents. The coding of genes and traits do not always show right away. Sometimes

physical features and characteristics take more time to develop and show rather than others.

Genes such as eye color, facial feature, hair texture and color are shown at birth. Almost all

children have the capacity to learn to walk, understand language, imitate others, use simple tools,

and draw inferences about how other people view the world. Thus all children have a set of

universal human genes that, when coupled with a reasonable environment, permit them to

develop as reasonably capable members of the human species. (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010)

Personality characteristics are also reflected upon nature such as temperament, emotions, and
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impulses. Diseases are also brought upon these genetic genes. The way children are developed

come from the coding in their genes inherited from their parents. From the children’s looks to

how they interact in the beginning stages all comes from their genes.

Nature is also an important factor when it comes to some mental health conditions.

Conditions such as bipolar, depression, and schizophrenia are more likely to develop when there

is a family history of that condition. (“Nature vs. Nurture,” 2012) Another area where

researchers may place more emphasis on nature than on nurture is that of addictions. Addictions

can recur in families and that certain gene may have an influence over the way the addictions

taste and the way it affects the body. (“Nature vs. Nurture,” 2012)

Arnold Gesell believed that Nature was more effective than nurture when it came to

learning. He believed children developed in an orderly sequence which is set by heredity or

nature. He believed no development would take place until the child was ready for it to happen.

He observed many children including animals using a one-way mirror shaped as a dome in order

to observe a child’s behavior and actions. (Kdg psychology en ontwikkeling, 2014) He observed

a child named Kamala, who they called the wolf girl. This girl was found in a cave of wolves and

acted just like one. She walked on all fours, ate raw meat, could see perfectly in the dark, and

even howled like a wolf. Gesell and other theorists observed the behavior and even tried to

change it but she could not be changed. This proved how nature overruled nurture, the theorists

tried to change Kamala to act like a normal child exposing her to human experiences but nothing

to affect. She was born in the nature of these wolves and that was how she was raised and

learned to be. (Revolvy, n.d.)

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Children who learn through nature learn from the genetic traits they inherit. The people

they are around influencing their learning. The brain and body mature with age and they learn

different things. The culture they live in also affects children’s learning. For example of a child

is exposed with doctors at home and all the child hears about is doctor things the child will most

likely grow up to want to be a doctor because that is all the child has been exposed too.

Most believers of the nurture theory say that genes don’t have much to do with the

learning of children. They believe nurture is the environmental part that shapes the learning

development. How children are raised, the culture they grow up in and the surround people. All

that children experience them help them with their health and with the curiosity of learning.

Nurture affects children’s development through multiple channels: physically through nutrition,

activity, and stress; intellectually through informal experiences and formal instruction; and

socially through adult role models and peer relationships. (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010) Children

learn to be physical through seeing others and learning about the proper nutrition. They learn to

be social by interacting with others who are around them.

American psychologist John Watson once stated: “ Give me a dozen healthy infants,

well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one

at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select...regardless of his talents,

penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors.”(Powell 2016) He believed

that everyone could be trained to be anything and anyone no matter what their genetic heritage

was.

Classical conditioning is one of the three types of learning that had a major influence on

the school of thought in psychology known as behaviorism. Discovered by Russian

physiologist Ivan Pavlov, classical conditioning is a learning process that occurs through
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associations between an environmental stimulus and a naturally occurring stimulus. (Cherry

2016) In a study done by behaviorist John B. Watson and graduate student Rosalie Rayner, they

showed how a nine-month infant learned to be afraid of a rat and things looking similar to it. The

study started with them showing the child a rat, rabbit, monkey, masks, and burning newspapers.

Nothing triggered the child’s fear until they decided to bang a metal pipe with a hammer while

showing the child the rat. The noise triggered his fear and he started to cry and crawl away. After

a few weeks with the banging, the child becomes afraid of the rat even without the noise. He

even became afraid of things similar to the rat. This study showed how this child learned from

different experiences to become afraid of something when he was born not afraid of things.

The second type of theory is called Operant Conditioning this is when someone rewards a

behavior; the chances of that behavior happening again are high. When a behavior is punished it

is unlikely to reoccur again. These are learning techniques that utilize the reinforcement and

punishment to increase or decrease a response. (Cherry 2016) In learning, this technique is

effective because it helps children with behavior. It will teach children to do the right things and

stay away from doing things that they are not supposed to do. Children want positive accolades

for everything they do so when a behavior is punished they will learn to not do it again. This is

something we want to teach children on an everyday status; for them to do positive things not

negative.

The third type of theory based on learning is called Observational learning. Children

learn a lot from parents, peers, and other siblings. Even media has an effect on their learning,

television, video games, and the internet can change their thoughts and actions. Since

observational learning is so powerful, it is important that children are watching and retrieving the

right information. (Cherry 2016) By being modeled good behavior parents can be sure that their
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children are learning proper things and behaving correctly. Keeping them away from electronics

as much as possible or monitoring their online activates will help with this behavior exposing

them to outdoors and other things will help their experiences.

Nurture also has an effect on mental health just like nature does. Nurture has the probability

that a child can develop an illness depending on the environment they are in. Researchers at the

University of Liverpool recently found that while a family history of mental health conditions

was the second strongest predictor of mental illness, the strongest predictor was in fact life

events and experiences, such as childhood bullying, abuse, or other trauma, supporting the idea

of nurture’s significant role in the development of mental health issues. (“Nature vs. Nurture,”

2012) Mental health affects learning because it distrusts the way children learn. Being bullied or

having a trauma in their life ruins how they learn and how they grasp on to new experiences.

In the Scholastic Magazine, there is an article that talks about how nature and Nurture go

hand in hand. It states how both nature and nurture influence a child’s learning development.

Parents as educators have an important role when it comes to both nurture and nature. They are

the key role to intellectual development. Researchers have found that the more the parents are

involved the smarter their children are, the more they learn and grow. Nurturing has a profound

effect on intelligence. A child's intelligence is shaped and influenced by their cumulative

experiences over time. (Press, 1999)

Height is another example of a trait that is influenced by nature and nurture interaction. A

child might come from a family where everyone is tall, and he may have inherited these genes

for height. However, if he grows up in a deprived environment where he does not receive proper

nourishment, he might never attain the height he might have had he grown up in a healthier
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environment. (Cherry, 2016) Examples like this one show how both nature and nurture are both

part of the learning and human development. If a child is not properly developed it can affect the

changes in the genes that were originally inherited.

Are children born to be what they are as adults or are they taught to be what they are by

having those experiences around them frequently? Is it the genes or is it the environment? This

question has yet not been determined. There are many experiments that have been done and are

being done in order to see if nature or nurture has a greater influence in learning but so far

according to what I have researched I believe that both nature and nurture are important in

learning. Genetics may influence how a child's brain is wired from birth, but learning and

experience will help shape how that child's brain grows and develops. (Cherry 2016) The nature

vs. nurture debate is an ongoing one. The modern debate often centers around the effect genes

have on human personalities as opposed to the influences that early environment and

development might have. (“Nature vs. Nurture,” 2012) Both nature and nurture are important in

the learning development but there are many theorists who believe one is better than the other.

The study of nature vs. nurture is yet to be determined there a lot more studies to take place in

order to really prove is one is better than the other.

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References

Cherry, K. (2016, January 09). How Experience Influences Child Development. Retrieved from
https://www.verywell.com/an-introduction-to-child-development-2795115

Kdg psychologie en ontwikkeling (2014, November 24). 2009 child development theorists

from Freud to Erikson to Spock and beyond 1 Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5WsK7Sy4Xs

McDevitt, T. M., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010, July 20). Nature and nurture. Retrieved December

5, 2016, from http://www.education.com/reference/article/nature-nurture/

McLeod, S. (2007). Nature vs. nurture in psychology. Retrieved December 5, 2016, from

http://www.simplypsychology.org/naturevsnurture.html

Nature vs. Nurture. (2012, August 31). Retrieved December 5, 2016, from

http://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/nature-versus-nurture

Powell, K. (2016, August 1). Nature vs. nurture - the nurture theory how much of who we are

comes from our environment? Retrieved December 5, 2016, from Parenting,

http://genealogy.about.com/cs/geneticgenealogy/a/nature_nurture_2.htm

Press, G. (1999). Nature vs. Nurture. Retrieved December 5, 2016, from

http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=1044

Revolvy, L. “Amala and Kamala” on Revolvy.Com. Retrieved December 6, 2016, from

Revolvy, https://www.revolvy.com/topic/Amala%20and%20Kamala&item_type=topic