Exciting Real-World Zoo Experience for A Level Psychology Students

For the second year in a row the psychology lecturers at New College Swindon took their, first year A Level Psychology students to Cotswold Wildlife Park to study how the conservationists use conditioning techniques (operant and classical conditioning) to train animals.

Students visited the meercats, otters, and monkeys to learn about each of these species specific training. For example, the otters know to sit on a log before being fed. This is an example of classical conditioning. Operant conditioning refers to when an animal is positively rewarded for their behaviour.

The Animals are trained to do things such as:

• Tolerate an injection
• Apes to open mouths to have teeth checked
• Giraffe to lift a leg onto a box so that it can be bandaged
• Animals to leave an enclosure so that it can be cleaned

A Level Psychology student, Phoebe Taylor said “It was a great day out and I found it very useful. It gave some great examples of conditioning within the zoo and it was lovely to see the otters demonstrating it.”

Students then enjoyed the rest of the afternoon wandering around the park. During this time, students observed the different species and noted examples of each behaviour; operant or classical. The group who had the best examples won a prize.

Psychology Lecturer, Martha Ramsden said “These types of trips are crucial for students that are often studying in a classroom-based environment. It offers extensive insight in to how the mind works and offers great practical experience that they will be ale to draw upon through out their course.”

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