Reznik Yuriy
Institute of philology,
history and arts,
Crimean
Humanitarian University (Yalta)
CONSTRUCTIVIST APPROACH IN TEACHING
Constructivist teaching dwells upon constructivist
learning theory. This theory says
that learning develops knowledge that a student already knows; this knowledge
is named schema. Different methods are based on constructivist
learning theory. The majority of them rely on guided discovery where the
teacher does not use direct instruction and leads the student through questions
and activities to discover, discuss, appreciate, and verbalize the new
knowledge. One of the primary goals of using constructivist teaching is that
students are educated by getting the
training to take initiative for their own learning experiences.
The tips of the classroom organised with respect to the
constructivist approach are the following: the learners are actively involved, the
environment is democratic, the activities are interactive and student-centered,
the teacher facilitates a process of learning in which students are autonomous.
The teacher’s role is that of a facilitator of the
discussion. Thus, the teacher’s main focus should be on guiding students by
asking questions that will lead them to develop their own conclusions on the
subject.
Traditionally, assessment in the classrooms is based on
testing. In this way, it is important for the student to give right answers.
However, in constructivist teaching, assessment is based not only on tests, but
also on observation of the student, the student’s work, and the student’s
points of view. Here assessment strategies are oral discussions, KWL(H) Chart
(What we know, What we want to know, What we have learned, How we know it), mind mapping, hands-on activities.
Constructivist
philosophy has been used in education programs for young children, but is used
less frequently in learning adults. As people develop, there are qualitative changes
in their thinking abilities. In the basis of constructivist theory is the
statement that knowledge is not given but gained through real experiences (Piaget & Inhelder, 1969; Vygotsky,1978).
To this point of view learners are helped to connect
new material with their previous one. The best way to do this is to ask open-ended questions such as “Tell me about a time when….” or “How might
this information be useful to you?”. These questions are important because with
their help the teacher pays attention to what is interesting for students.
Teachers must remember that the students work with
already existing knowledge, so when they are proposed to process the new
information, they are apt to mistake. It is known as reconstruction error. The
majority of constructivist pedagogies view the teacher's role not only in
observing and assessing but in engaging, motivating and stimulating students
while they are doing different kinds of activities, thinking aloud and asking
questions to the students for promotion of reasoning. Teachers may
permeate when there appear conflicts; but, they must keep in mind, that they
are only facilitators so the students have to solve problems themselves. The
teacher, after reading a story, encourages the students to write or draw
stories of their own, or by having the students reenact a story that they may
know well, both activities encourage the students to conceive themselves
as reader and writers.
Mayer (2004)
conducted a research where he analysed philosophical and pedagogical literature for the period of
fifty years and made the following inference "The research in this brief
review shows that the formula constructivism = hands-on activity is a formula
for educational disaster." He explains it that active form of learning is frequently given by
advocates of this philosophy. In the process of creating this instruction such
teachers invent materials that demand to be active in their behaviour and not be "cognitively active."
The consequences of this are that students are involved in the variety of
different activities so that they misunderstand the material. Mayer's
recommendations are the following: to use
the guided discovery, a set of direct instruction and hands-on activity, rather
than pure discovery: "In many ways, guided discovery appears to offer the
best method for promoting constructivist learning".
1.
Jonassen, D. H. (1999).
Constructing learning environments on the web: Engaging students in meaningful
learning. EdTech 99: Educational Technology Conference and Exhibition 1999:
Thinking Schools, Learning Nation.
2.
Piaget, J. &
Inhelder, B. (1969). The Psychology of the child. New York: Basic Books, Inc.
Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological
processes. Cambridge: MA, Harvard University Press.
3.
Mayer, R. (2004). "Should there be a
three-strikes rule against pure discovery learning? The case for guided methods
of instruction". American Psychologist 59 (1): 14–19.