To kickstart our new area of study of Learning and Memory, the Unit 3 Psychology students partook in a Wizz Fizz experiment. The experiment was to test Ivan Porlov’s theory of classical conditioning and reinforce our learning. Before the experiment was conducted, the students were first given a packet of Wizz Fizz each and were introduced to a bell sound which showed no significance at the time. The experiment began by the students doing regular class work while the teacher rang the bell throughout the lesson, with no instructions just to see the physiological responses that the students gave off; results were logged into a logbook. After 3 trials of only ringing the bell, the teacher told the students to take a mouthful of Wizz Fizz with no bell and log their physiological response. After 3 more trails of this, the teacher rang the bell and told the students to take a mouthful of Wizz Fizz, followed by writing down their physiological responses in the logbook. After 5 trails of ringing the bell and eating the Wizz Fizz, the teacher rang the bell and told students not to eat the Wizz Fizz. Students were then instructed to track their physiological responses from being conditioned to eat the Wizz Fizz after hearing the bell. A very common result that had been logged was that, there was an increase in salivation during the final 4 trails of hearing the bell and not eating any Wizz Fizz. This experiment was a great example to teach the students a first-hand experience into how the brain learns and gains the capability to develop behaviours.
Emma Marsh
Head of Science