The term life space (LS) in topological psychology pioneered by Kurt Lewin is characterized by a holistic mode of thinking and attributes human behavior to the interaction between internal psychological space (i.e., the person) and external physical space (i.e., the environment). The internal dynamic mechanism of the whole life space was illustrated based on Lewin’s dynamic psychology which reveals the relation between human and environment and an ecological space for the cooperation and development of teaching and learning, that is, a learning field, was constructed with reference to the operation of life space. In the present study, topological analysis was conducted on the mechanism of action between learners’ learning behavior and environment in the learning field. Apart from the construction of the learning field, the study also paid attention to some issues closely related to teaching such as the relation between teaching and learning and teaching and learning methods under the framework of learning field. A parallel cooperative teaching-learning relation was proposed and teachers are recommended to design teaching activities that fit the i+1 pattern by making the best of the potential teaching carriers in the physical environment to arouse learners’ learning interest, induce their learning motivation, awaken their inner tension system and finally transform their learning behavior. Learners were encouraged to engage in self-directed and experiential learning with the assistance of objects in the environment so as to achieve better learning outcomes and more efficient learning and eventually to form the habit of lifelong learning. The learning field constructed in the study is the fruit of an attempt to apply Lewin’s field theory in teaching domain. The significance of such construction lies in getting rid of the thinking model of regarding coursebooks or even teachers as the intermediate to link teaching and learning and taking the psycho-physical dialogue between learners and environment as the starting point to consider and solve teaching problems.
Keywords: Lewin’s equation for behavior, learning field, life space, teaching and learning method., teaching-learning relation
