1. Constructivism is a method that says students learn by building their schema by adding to their prior knowledge by the use of scaffolding (Rhinehart Neas). Because the students are basically teaching themselves new information, the teacher is there mainly for support and guidance for the students.
Pro: By using a constructivist approach to teaching, students will be “fully engaged in their own learning” (Rhinehart Neas). This allows the students to make sense of what they are doing by relating it to the real world and where they could use the information in their future.
Con: Constructivism classrooms do not have much room for structure (Rhinehart Neas). For new teachers, structure is important to maintain to have control of the classroom. Constructivism is meant for classrooms that can be more student centered than teacher controlled. For new teachers this method could not work very well. Another problem with constructivism is that students may not have the prior knowledge to begin a new lesson (Rhinehart Neas). The student that does not understand is also going to be the student who does not ask for help. Therefore, the teacher sometimes does need to teach and not just be a guide.
2. Inquiry Learning is a way to make the student find their own answers for their questions (Lakes Matyas, Ph.D). Posing a question for the students is a way to get them started. Then, by guiding the students on their own different searches, they all come together in the end to share their findings to answer the question.
Pro: Students today really enjoy the use of technology. With the teachers help the students should be completely engaged in their quest to find an answer. Like constructivism the students are also in charge of their own learnin...
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If you are a parent or plan to be a parent, Do you want your child to sit in a desk all day while the teacher lectures them on information that they need to know for life or would you rather have your child learn constructively? Constructivism has been labeled as the philosophy of learning that proposes learners need to build their own understanding of new ideas (Constructivism and the Five E?s,2001). Learning something new, or attempting to understand something familiar in greater depth, is not a linear process. The purpose of this research paper is to explain the theoretical foundations of the constructivist approach to teaching and learning, and to provide concrete examples to show the effectiveness of the constructivist approach with respect to student learning.
Teaching theories are as much part of the classroom as the student and the teacher. The effect individual theories have on an environment depends how they are incorporated within the classroom in addition to the influence they have had on the curriculum construction. This essay will briefly look at how motivation theory, cognitive and social cognitive theory along with constructivism have impacted on education and the classroom.
Tagg, John. “Why Learn? What We May Really Be Teaching Students.” About Campus. 2004. Print.
Empiricists and rationalists have proposed opposing theories of the acquisition of knowledge, which appear unable to coexist. Each theory holds its own strengths but does not demonstrate a strong argument in itself to the questions, “Is knowledge truly possible?” and “How is true knowledge obtained?”. Immanual Kant successfully merged the two philosophies and provided a convincing argument with his theory of empirical relativism, or what some may call constructivism. His theory bridges the gap between rationalism and empiricism and proves that empiricists and rationalists each present a piece of the full puzzle. In order to truly understand Kant’s epistemology, one must first review and understand both empiricism and rationalism on an impartial basis.
A. Behaviorism, constructivism and cognitivism are relatively common theories used in the classroom as ways to approach student learning. Behaviorism focuses on observable behavior, such as students answering questions correctly, or being able to follow directions to complete a task as instructed. Characteristics of a classroom that uses behaviorism might be memorization of facts, writing vocabulary words, or a token reward system to inspire the desired behavior and decrease undesired behaviors. Constructivism, as indicated by the root word “construct,” focuses on the construction of new ideas, or expanding on what is already known. Students in a classroom using constructivism as a means for learning might seem more actively engaged in the learning process; they often learn something new through applying what they already know about the content area, and exploring new matter to further their understanding. This type of classroom often uses hands on manipulatives to allow students to actually build, create, or experiment with what they are learning. A cognitivism approach to learning might be explained by the minds capacity to process information – such as how a learner might remember something, retrieve information, or store new concepts. Learning through this method often depends on how the student processes what the teacher is presenting. Classrooms using this approach might incorporate learning strategies that help students categorize and sequence information to assist with processing. Like constructivism, it can be an active style of learning.
John Dewey once said, “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” You may ask why John Dewey should be given merit for anything he says. In truth, John Dewey was one of the biggest supporters of constructivism in classroom. On a basic level, constructivism is described as learning by doing. This concept, while not necessarily new, is considered progressive. Today, we will explore the history and details of this concept, analyze how constructivism effects the modern classroom, and wrap it up with some concluding remarks.
One of the theorists that I strongly believe in is Jean Piaget. Piaget’s theory is based on Constructivism, a theory b...
Applefield, J M, Huber, R, Moallem, M 2001, ‘Constructivism in theory and practice: Toward a better understanding’, High School Journal, vol. 84, issue 2, p35, 19pp
Constructivism theorists believe that learning is an ongoing collective application of knowledge where past knowledge and hands on experience meet. This theory also believes that students are naturally curious. If students are naturally curious, their curio...
Constructivism represents a paradigm shift form education based on cognitive theories. This concept assumes that learners construct their own knowledge on the basis of interaction with their environment. (Gagnon & Collay, 200?) The role of the teacher as a constructor of the learning experience to ensure authentic curriculum and assessment which is responsive to the skills, needs and experiences of the learner, within established curriculum framework and with the reference to the achievement of literacy, numeracy, retention and attainment of outcomes. Krause, Bochner and Duchesne (p.157) comment that “as learners interact with their environment, they link information learned through experience to previous knowledge, and so construct new understandings and knowledge.” Constructivism then inturn encourages Teachers and Learning Managers to recognise the value of prior knowledge and experiences that each child brings with them into the classroom, and help them (the students) build on their understandings of the world by providing appropriate learning experience plans.
Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, Sinclair, C., Nanlohy, P. (2010). Learning for teaching: Teaching for learning. South Melbourne: Cengage Learning
Lutz, S., & Huitt, W. (2004). Connecting cognitive development and constructivism: Implications from theory for instruction and assessment. Constructivism in the Human Sciences, 9(1), 67-90. Retreived from: http://www.teach.valdosta.edu/whuitt/brilstar/chapters/cogdev.doc
Among many teaching styles and learning theories, there is one that is becoming more popular, the constructivist theory. The constructivist theory focuses on the way a person learns, a constructivist believes that the person will learn better when he/she is actively engaged. The person acts or views objects and events in their environment, in the process, this person then understands and learns from the object or events(P. Johnson, 2004). When we encounter a certain experience in our life, we think back to other things that have occurred in our life and use that to tackle this experience. In a lot of cases, we are creators of our own knowledge. In a classroom, the constructivist theory encourages more hands-on assignments or real-world situations, such as, experiments in science and math real-world problem solving. A constructivist teacher constantly checks up on the student, asking them to reflect what they are learning from this activity. The teacher should be keeping track on how they approached similar situations and help them build on that. The students can actually learning how to learn in a well-planned classroom. Many people look at this learning style as a spiral, the student is constantly learning from each new experience and their ideas become more complex and develop stronger abilities to integrate this information(P. Johnson, 2004). An example of a constructivist classroom would be, the student is in science class and everyone is asking questions, although the teacher knows the answer, instead of just giving it to them, she attempts to get the students to think through their knowledge and try to come up with a logical answer. A problem with this method of learning is that people believe that it is excusing the role of...
Inquiry is an interactive way of learning. Students are actively engaged in their studies. Inquiry involves student-centered activities focusing on questioning, exploring, and posing explanations. The goal of inquiry is to introduce a new way of learning where students can learn about the world around them through active engagement in real-life examples. Inquiry based learning can be incorporated into all academic subjects throughout the curriculum. Science could possibly be the most effective subject to incorporate inquiry.
Senge, P., Cambron-McCabe, N., Lucas, T., Smith, B., Dutton, J. & Kleiner, A. (2012). Schools that Learn (pp. 32-69). Boston: Nicholas Brealey Publishing.