Constructivism

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Constructivism

• A learning theory for todays classroom

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What is constructivism?

• Constructivism is a theory based on observation
  and scientific study -- about how people learn.
• people construct their own understanding and
  knowledge of the world, through experiencing
  things and reflecting on those experiences.

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Constructed Knowledge

• Constructivism's central idea is that human
  learning is constructed, that learners build new
  knowledge upon the foundation of previous
  learning.
• The second notion is that learning is active
  rather than passive.

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In the constructivist classroom, the focus tends
to shift from the teacher to the students. The
classroom is no longer a place where the teacher
("expert")pours knowledge into passive students,
who wait like empty vessels to be filled.In the
constructivist model, the students are urged to
be actively involved in their own process of
learning. The teacher functions more as a
facilitator who coaches, mediates, prompts, and
helps students develop and assess their
understanding, and thereby their learning. One of
the teacher's biggest jobs becomes ASKING GOOD
QUESTIONS.
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What is Constructivist teaching?

• Student tasks
• resemble the real world, are authentic
  activities.
• Deal with a wide range of complex issues.
• Planning and decision making are the students
  responsibilities, not the teachers.

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Teaching Style

• Facilitates student initiatives rather than
  scripting student tasks.
• Collaborative teams
• Exposure to other students thinking is
  intellectually challenging.
• Collaboration develops a social expectation.

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The Curriculum focus

• Thematic and interdisciplinary.
• Issues are explored in depth.
• Approach is Procedural rather than factual
• Project management, organization, presentation
  and reflection skills.

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Perceptions

• Collegial environment facilitates innovative
  practices.
• Teachers need to work together to support new
  teaching practices.
• Networking with other teachers

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Scaffolding

• According to Lev Vygotsky, students problem
  solving skills fall into three categories
• Skills which the student cannot perform
• Skills which the student may be able to perform
• Skills that the student can perform with help.

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Scaffolding

• Allows students to perform tasks that would
  normally be slightly beyond their ability without
  the assistance and guidance of their teacher.

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Constuctivism and your Classroom.

• Multiple Perspectives and representations of
  concepts are presented and encouraged
• Goals and objectives are derived by the student
  or in negotiation with the teacher.
• Teachers serve in the role of guides, coaches and
  facilitators.

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• Activities, opportunities, tools and environments
  are provided to encourage reflection and self
  analysis.
• The student plays a central role in mediating and
  controlling learning.
• Learning situations are relevant, realistic,
  authentic and represent the natural complexities
  of the real world.
• Primary sources are used.
• Knowledge construction and not reproduction is
  emphasized.

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• Problem solving, higher order thinking skills and
  deep understanding are emphasized.
• Exploration is favored in order to encourage
  students to seek knowledge independently
• Learners are provided with the opportunity for
  the apprenticeship

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• Collaborative and cooperative learning are
  favored in order to expose the learner to
  alternative viewpoints.
• Scaffolding is facilitated to help students
  perform just beyond the limits of their ability.
• Assessment is authentic and interwoven with
  teaching.

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The Constructivist Classroom V the Traditional
Classroom

• Curriculum begins with the parts of the whole.
• Curriculum emphasizes big concepts, beginning
  
  with the whole and expanding to include the
  parts.
• Pursuit of student questions and interests is
  
  valued.
• Materials include primary sources.
  
  

• Curriculum begins with the parts of the whole.
• Emphasizes basic skills.
• Strict adherence to fixed curriculum is highly
  valued.
• Materials are primarily textbooks and workbooks.
• Learning is based on repetition.

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• Teachers disseminate information to students
• students are recipients of knowledge.
• Teacher's role is directive, rooted in authority.
• Assessment is through testing, correct answers.
• Knowledge is seen as inert.
• Students work primarily alone.

• Learning is interactive, building on what the
  
  student already knows.
• Teachers have a dialogue with students, helping
  
  students construct their own knowledge.
• Teacher's role is interactive, rooted in
  negotiation.
• Assessment includes student works, observations,
  and points of view, as well as tests.
  
  

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• Process is as
  important as product
• Knowledge is seen as dynamic, ever changing with
  our experiences.
• Students work primarily in groups.

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Condition in Which Computers Can Facilitate
School Change

• Opinion Climate
• Information and social support resources
• Appropriate educational resources in sufficient
  quatitities.

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Opinion Climate

• Local school culture affects teacher initiatives
• Supportive teacher opinions encourage and allow
  change to occur.

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Information and Social Support

• Network of like minded people are necessary to
  accomplish constructivist goals.

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Appropriate Educational Resources in Sufficient
Quantities

• Activities require resources.
• Materials, Equipment and communications resources
  are critical.

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Benefits of Constructivism

• Children learn more, and enjoy learning more
  when they are actively involved, rather than
  passive listeners.
• Education works best when it concentrates on
  thinking and understanding, rather than on rote
  memorization.
• Constructivism concentrates on learning how to
  think and understand.

• Constructivism gives students ownership of what
  they learn, since learning is based on students'
  questions and explorations, and often the
  students have a hand in designing the assessments
  as well.
• Constructivist assessment engages the students'
  initiatives and personal investments in their
  journals, research reports, physical models, and
  artistic representations.

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Benefits

• Engaging the creative instincts develops
  students' abilities to express knowledge through
  a variety of ways.
• The students are also more likely to retain and
  transfer the new knowledge to real life.

• Constructivist learning is transferable.
• In constructivist classrooms, students create
  organizing principles that they can take with
  them to other learning settings.

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Benefits

• By grounding learning activities in an authentic,
  real-world context, constructivism stimulates and
  engages students.
• Students in constructivist classrooms learn to
  question things and to apply their natural
  curiosity to the world.
• Constructivism promotes social and communication
  skills by creating a classroom environment that
  emphasizes collaboration and exchange of ideas.

• Students must therefore exchange ideas and so
  must learn to "negotiate" with others and to
  evaluate their contributions in a socially
  acceptable manner.
• This is essential to success in the real world,
  since they will always be exposed to a variety of
  experiences in which they will have to cooperate
  and navigate among the ideas of others.

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Constructivism and Technology

• Access to global information and e-mail
  communication to anywhere in the world.
• Multi media
• Collaboration, project based work, and hands on
  activities.
• Facilitates constructivist practices.