Constructivism in Practice

This week I am thinking about constructivist/constructionist learning theories. Constructivism is a theory of knowledge stating that every person actively builds his or her own meaning, while constructionism is a theory of learning which explains that students learn best when they design something to share with others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008). A person’s current beliefs and understandings are referred to as his schema. Our schema grows and changes as we have more life experiences. We put together what we experience with our schema to make meaning in our world either by fitting the new knowledge with our existing schema, or by altering our schema to fit the new understanding (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008). Either way, for these learning theories, the students are engaged in learning by creating an artifact.

In my studies this week, I explored an instructional strategy that embeds technology: “Generating and Testing Hypotheses.” “When students generate and test hypotheses, they are engaging in complex mental processes, applying content knowledge like facts and vocabulary, and enhancing their overall understanding of the content” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski, 2007, p. 202). For this strategy, students are presented with a problem or scenario, they make a prediction about what will happen or how something happened, then they test that prediction.

Computers are a great companion to this instructional strategy. They speed up the data gathering portion of the experiment or scenario and allow the learner to focus on the interpretation of the results (Pitler, et. al., 2007). Computers allow a learner to create a scenario or step into a situation to which he or she might not otherwise have access. In addition, artifacts that are created with technology are easily shared with others using the Internet. This allows for collaboration among groups of students, even when they are not at school. “Sharing and comparing data from other localities gives students enough information to generate and test hypotheses concerning the nation and other parts of the world” (Pitler, et. al., 2007).

“In constructionism, the focus is on getting kids to build stuff” (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008). By using spreadsheet software, data collection tools such as the Internet, and web resources, we are providing students with the tools, information, and motivation they need to build an artifact. And, by doing this, they are adding to or changing their schemas, a sure sign that learning is taking place!

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). Constructionist and Constructivist Learning Theories. Baltimore: Author.

Pitler H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Cognitivism in Practice

The cognitive learning theory is an effort to explain human behavior by understanding the thought process of individuals (Smith, 1999). In the cognitive learning theory, learning occurs when information is transformed from the world around us to knowledge that is put into long-term memory.

In our studies this week, we explored two instructional strategies that embed technology: “Cues, Questions, and Advance organizers” and “Summarizing and Note Taking.” Both of these strategies lend themselves to integrating technology with the cognitive learning theory.

“The instructional strategy cues, questions, and advance organizers focuses on enhancing students’ ability to retrieve, use, and organize information about a topic” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). Cues and questions are used to jog students’ memories. They can also help with accessing prior knowledge (Pitler, et. al., 2007). Advance organizers “…are structures that teachers provide to students before a learning activity to help them classify and make sense of the content they’ll encounter, particularly new content that is not well organized in its original format” (Pitler, et. al., 2007). Technology makes these strategies easily accessible with the large amount and variety of graphic organizers. The availability of word processors, spreadsheets, and multimedia applications such as PowerPoint and Prezi helps students to be organized and offer templates for creating advance organizers (Pitler, et. al., 2007).

“The instructional strategy summarizing and note taking focuses on enhancing students’ ability to synthesize information and distill it into a concise new form” (Pitler, et. al., 2007). Summarizing and note taking both are useful for organizing information. Technology is an important aspect of these strategies. I learned that there is even an AutoSummarize tool in Microsoft Word that will provide a summary for you! This way of using technology can be helpful in teaching students how to summarize.

Another way to summarize or take notes is with concept mapping software.  There are several different concept mapping resources on the Internet which guide students to possible solutions, or allow them to organize their work in a way that is easier to understand. And, of course, all of these strategies can be shared on a blog or wiki, so that students can work together in groups even when they are not at school.

These instructional strategies will help me teach for understanding by offering creative ways to reach students. We learned two weeks ago that people need hooks, or ways to make connections, in order to process new knowledge (Laureate Education, Inc., 2008). Technology, combined with these learning strategies, provides multiple hooks and connections for students. I am excited to work with my students to create a concept map in math!

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). Brain research and learning. Baltimore: Author.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Smith, M. K. (1999). The cognitive orientation to learning. The encyclopedia of informal education, www.infed.org/biblio/learning-cognitive. Last update: December 01, 2011.

Behaviorism In Practice

This week I am reading about the usefulness of the behaviorist learning theory in the classroom, specifically when used to reinforce effort or for homework and practice. Teachers have used the behaviorist learning theory for years; some of them without even knowing that they were using it (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011). Early in their careers, good teachers learn that it is most effective to praise the behaviors they want in the classroom and to overlook the less desirable behaviors. This is what behaviorism is all about.

Effort is the only contribution to success that an individual can control (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 155). Behaviorism is simply reinforcing desirable behaviors. Effort is a desirable behavior.  So, how can we reinforce effort?  First, we have to understand these two generalizations: “Not all students realize the importance of believing in effort” and “Students can learn to operate from a belief that effort pays off even if they do not initially have this belief” (Pitler, et al., 2007, p. 155). Then, we must teach students that effort is important and give them a way to compare their effort to their achievement (Pitler, et al., 2007, p. 156).

The text suggests that effort and achievement can be tracked very effectively with technology (Pitler, et al., 2007). The authors suggest using a spreadsheet to help students see the correlation between effort and achievement by recording the hours they spend studying and the grades they earn on a weekly basis (Pitler, et al., 2007, p. 156). This is a good idea, because it places the responsibility on the students.  If they can see a connection between their effort and their grades, perhaps they would be motivated to increase the effort that they expend on class work. A spreadsheet gives concrete evidence and immediate feedback. When trying to change a student’s belief about effort, having immediate evidence is a plus.

Homework and practice are easily addressed with direct instruction, a product of behaviorism.  Direct instruction includes “…breaking these tasks into smaller component tasks, designing training activities for mastery, and arranging the learning events into sequences that promote transfer and achievement of prerequisite learning before moving to more advance learning” (Magliaro, Lockee, & Burton, 2005). Students need to practice skills in order to master them. There are not enough hours in the school day to master skills. Teachers need to incorporate homework and practice into their lessons if students are to be proficient.

“Technology facilitates homework and practice by providing a wealth of resources for learning outside the classroom, making it easy for students to work on collaborative homework assignments and providing ‘drill and practice’ resources that help students refine their skills” (Pitler, et al., 2007, p. 189). I have found wikis and blogs to be good venues for assigning homework and practice. They hold the students’ interest and allow me to address many different learning styles at once.

I would be interested in hearing about other teachers’ experiences with behaviorism. How is it used in your classroom? Do you think behaviorism is the most effective way to increase effort? How do you feel about drill and practice? Do you use direct instruction? I invite you to add your comments and thoughts on these subjects.

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). Behaviorist Learning Theory. Baltimore: Author.

Magliaro, S. G., Lockee, B. B., & Burton, J. K. (2005). Direct instruction revisited: A key model for instructional technology. ETR&D, 53(4), 41–54.

Pitler H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.