The Learning Cycle (Constructivism and Lesson Design)

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The Learning Cycle (Constructivism and Lesson
Design)

• Text Chapter 6
• Course Packet pages 87-95

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(No Transcript)
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Constructivism

• The process by which children acquire and
  organize information
• Associated with theorists Piaget and Vygotsky
• Children develop intelligence not by being told,
  but by building their own understandings

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Piaget

• Schemata gradually become more complex
• Happens through a sequence of adaptation
• 1. Assimilation
• 2. Disequilibrium
• 3. Accommodation
• Motivation comes from childrens drive to either
  assimilate into or accommodate schemata in
  response to new experiences in their environment

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Constructivist Learning

• A problem-solving process by which learners are
  intrinsically driven to construct meaning from a
  new learning challenge
• Happens when the learners experiences are
  triggered or activated by the challenge of a new
  learning situation
• Teachers role is to create challenging
  situations for learners

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Cognitive vs. Social Constructivism

• Cognitive
• The idea that learning occurs within
  each individual learner
• Social
• The idea that learning occurs when
  people work together to make sense out
  of their world

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Social Constructivism

• Centers on positive adult-student and
  student-student relationships
• Teachers make available absorbing materials and
  intriguing situations
• Teachers engage students in activities and
  provide some sort of systematized instruction and
  intervention

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Vygotsky

• Believed that humans are different from animals
  because they make and use tools (physical and
  mental)
• Humans pass on knowledge and skills through
  language during verbal interactions
• Zones of Development
• Zone of Actual Development learning tasks are
  completed individually with no assistance
• Zone of Proximal Development learning tasks are
  completed with just the right amount of
  assistance

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Scaffolding

• When teachers offer just the right amount of help
  for students as they attempt to bridge the gap
  between what they already know and what they need
  to learn
• Provides temporary support (cueing,
  questioning, coaching, assistance)

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The Learning Cycle

• Learning cycle is a student-centered, problem
  solving teaching approach that creates conceptual
  change through social interactions
• Three major elements
• Exploration
• Concept/skill Development
• Concept/skill Application

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Lesson Design Menu
Appetizer (Exploration) Main Course (Concept Development) Dessert (Concept Application)
Focus and Review Statement of Objective Teacher Input Presentation Guided Practice Independent Practice Closure
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Exploration Phase

• Purpose
• Activate prior knowledge
• Draw students into the lesson
• Focus students attention on task with clear
  purpose

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Activating prior knowledge

• Goal is to establish a connection between what
  they know and the new information (advanced
  organizers, anticipatory set, external mediators)
• External Mediator
• Class discussion
• Provocative objects
• Graphic outlines of material
  to be covered

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Discussion Sequence

• Existing knowledge
• Thought association
• Rapid recognition
• Quick lesson review
• Open discussion

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Graphic Organizers

• Bubble trees
• Prediction charts
• K-W-L
• Venn Diagrams
• Cycles
• Thinking Maps (see Course Packet p. 95)

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Establishing a Clear Purpose

• Children ask Why is this important?
• Knowing what is expected is important
• Must be linked to prior knowledge and lessons
• Generally comes last during introductory sequence
• Focuses student attention

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The Development Phase

• This is the main learning experience
• This is III. Teacher Input or Presentation
• Key Questions
• What basic concepts or skills are to be taught?
• What learning materials should be used?
• How can the teacher help students construct key
  concepts and skills?
• What strategies can be used to ensure that
  students understand and master the skill?

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Teaching the Concept

• 1 Provide Information
• Explain the concept
• Define the concept
• Provide examples of the concept
• Model
• 2 Check for understanding
• Pose key questions
• Ask students to explain concept/definition in
  their own words
• Encourage students to generate their own examples

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Concepts and Examples

• Community
• Wilmington
• Washington, DC
• Tokyo
• Mountain
• Mt. Everest
• Mt. Fuji
• Grandfather Mountain

• Island
• Hawaii
• Cuba
• Wrightsville Beach
• Justice
• Taking turns
• Writing down rules
• Applying rules equally to everyone

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Factstorming

• Process of finding relevant details associated
  with a concept

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Task Analysis

• Skills are mental or physical operations having a
  specific set of actions that are developed
  through practice
• Task analysis process of identifying component
  parts of skills and sequencing the steps
• Modeling of skills is highly effective and
  efficient

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Materials for Instruction

• Bruners three level of learning
• Enactive
• Iconic
• Symbolic
• Select materials that represent a
  balance of these three
  levels

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Assisting students as they construct key concepts

• Use of language-based strategies
• General instructional conversations
• Small group instructional conversations
• Graphic organizers
• Conceptual
• Sequential
• Cyclical
• Hierarchical

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Questioning Strategies

• Two types of questions Purposes?
• Closed
• Open-ended
• Art of Questioning (Dewey) p. 297
• Framing questions and Wait time
• Ask question
• Pause 3 5 seconds
• Call on someone to respond
• Pause 3 5 more seconds to give think time

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Concept/Skill Application Phase

• Opportunity to apply and practice new skill or
  concept through special projects or independent
  activities
• Two parts
• Guided Practice
• Independent Practice or Functional Application
• Should result in constructing deeper meaning

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Guided Practice

• Many kinds of practice for new learning
• Use of concept mapping/graphic organizers
• Conceptual
• Sequential
• Cyclical
• Hierarchical
• Thinking Maps

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Independent Practice

• Independent Activities (different activity from
  Guided Practice!)
• Focus on creativity and choice
• Provide for extension, application, relevance,
  and usefulness

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Closure

• Involves summarizing, sharing, reviewing,
  extending the concept
• May provide transition to new lesson or learning