Chapter 10 Notes - Covers the basic principles of constructivist learning theory. PDF

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Covers the basic principles of constructivist learning theory. ...

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Chapter 10 Notes Constructivist Theory: Meaningful learning occurs when individuals create individual interpretations of the world by filtering new ideas + experiences through prior knowledge  Common claims o Discovery learning: discovering how ideas relate to each other and to existing knowledge, theorized by Jerome Bruner o Meaningful learning is the active creation of knowledge structures from personal experience  One example: flipping the classroom  Prior knowledge is highly emphasized o Knowledge structures are created from interpretations of personal experience + from social interaction  One person's knowledge can never be identical to another since knowledge is a result of interpretation of experience influenced by age, gender, race, ethnic background, and knowledge base o Self-regulation is a major component to successful learning o Solving authentic problems contributes to meaningful learning/transfer  Allows students to engage prior knowledge and provide opportunities for collaborative work  Three major variations o Cognitive Constructivism: Emphasizes development of meaningful learning by focusing on cognitive processes that take place within individuals  Heavily based off of Piaget's theories of cognitive development o Social Constructivism: Emphasizes development of meaningful learning by focusing on culture/social interactions  Developed from Vygotsky's theories  Negotiating meeting: Students engage in open-ended discussion with peers and teachers about things like the meaning of terms/procedures, the relationships among ideas, and the applicability of knowledge to specific contexts  CHAT: Cultural-historical activity theory, provides a way of analyzing/understanding activity in complex, real-life situations o Critical Constructivism: Emphasizes effect of teachers' assumptions about students from various racial, ethnic, and SES backgrounds on student knowledge construction  Two things that distinguish cultures are ethnicity and social class  Cultural differences can lead to differences in communication patterns (and potentially misunderstandings)  Teacher expectations can influence how students perform in school o Different emphases do not mean incompatibility  Conditions that foster constructivist learning o Cognitive apprenticeship: Teachers model cognitive processes and students eventually take over that work as they become more skilled  Occurs in scaffolding and less formal circumstances like play groups o Situated learning/cognition: giving learning tasks situated in realistic contexts  Learning is more likely to be meaningful when given in realistic context  Traditional forms of classroom learning/instruction lead to inert knowledge: when students fail to use what they learned earlier to solve real-life problems or other school-related problems because they don't see any relationship between the two  Formal way to implement would be PBL learning

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Students who use PBL learning give more basic/elaborated explanations of concepts  Scored higher on application tests o Multiple perspectives: students should have the opportunity to view ideas/problems from multiple ways o Examples:  Teacher needs to determine what students know and what experience is relevant  Assigning measurement tasks that produce relevant past knowledge  Students are forced to infer the point of project based on information gained from measurement tasks  Similar to instructional practice of "flipping the classroom" - students do basic reading/practice exercises at home and use class time to discuss concepts, solve problems, or work on projects o In perspective:  Almost impossible to create highly detailed lesson plans bc of variation  Teaching is more time consuming and also places higher demands on learners compared to lecture format  Not the only orientation to learning you will ever need; need to know which theory or approach best fits certain purposes/circumstances  Formulating classroom discussion allows students to deal with complex/realistic problems Suggestions for Constructivist Teaching  Arrange the learning so that students are exposed to different perspectives on a problem or an issue o Ask students to discuss familiar topics or those that are matters of opinion  Structure discussions by posing a specific question, presenting a provocative topic-related issue, or asking students to choose topics or subtopics o Encourage students to arrive at conclusions already reached by others o Emphasize contrast and stimulate informed guessing o Encourage participation and stimulate awareness o Present a controversial topic for which there is no single answer  If time is limited and only one topic is covered, ask students to form a circle and have an all-class discussion o Ask questions that stimulate students to apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate o Allow enough time for initial responses, then probe for more information if appropriate  Use guided experiences to satisfy both constructivist principles and state learning standards o Embed learning standards in learning experiences that students care about  If enough time is available and if a controversial topic is to be discussed, divide the class into groups of around five  Extend and augment classroom discussions with discussion-oriented websites Problem-Solving: The identification and application of knowledge and skills that result in goal attainment  Three types of Problems: o Well-structured problems: clearly formulated, solved by specific procedures (algorithms), solution evaluated against common standard o Ill-structured problems: complex, few clues to solution procedures, less definite criteria for deciding when solution was reached

Chapter 10 Notes Issues: Ill-structured problems that arouse strong feelings and polarize people as to the nature of and solution to the problem  Helping students become good problem solvers o Realize a problem exists  Called problem finding  Depends on curiosity and dissatisfaction with status quo  Does not come easily to people since schools emphasize solving well-structured problems  Useful when working with ill-structured problems o Understand the nature of the problem  Called problem representation/problem framing  Requires high level of knowledge of subject matter + familiarity of type of problem  Activate relevant schemes from LTM when needed  Most standard education practices produce inert knowledge: accessed only under conditions that mimic original learning context o Compile relevant information  Defining a problem comes with two difficulties  Amount of information relevant to solution becomes too great to keep track of  Increasing chance of not possessing all relevant information  Well-structured problems: recall information from LTM  Ill-structured problems: seek external sources of info o Formulate/carry out a solution, listed in heuristics (general solution strategies)  Study past examples  Obvious solution strategies are the most overlooked  Effective solution strategy  Work on simpler version of problem  Break into parts  Reduces amount of information kept in short-term memory to manageable level  Method used to solve one part of problem can be used to solve another part  Work backward  Backward fading: a procedure that helps students develop problemsolving capability by reasoning from the solution back to first steps  Solve similar problem  Create external representation o Evaluate the solution (does it really work? Is there a new problem?)  For well-structured problems, use an alternative algorithm or ask if the answer makes sense  Ask and answer basic questions  Identify imperfections/complications  Anticipate possible negative reactions from others  Devise improvements Suggestions for Improving Problem-Solving  Teach students how to identify problems o List different ways in which problems can be identified o

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Have students carry out these suggested activities to gain an understanding of the status quo and to find out how people identify problems Teach students how to represent problems o Students must comprehend subject matter critical to problem solving o Demonstrate methods to represent those methods and how they interrelate Teach students how to compile relevant information o Make sure instruction in problem solving emphasizes importance of retrieving and utilizing previously learned knowledge Teach several methods for formulating problem solutions Teach students the skills of evaluation

Transfer of Learning: Students independently apply knowledge and skills to similar but new info  Doctrine of formal discipline: early view of transfer based upon learning difficult subjects to make the brain stronger  Theory of identical elements: the greater the degree of similarity is between tasks' stimulus and response elements, the greater the amount of transfer will be  Nature and significance of transfer of learning o Positive transfer: prior learning aids subsequent learning o Negative transfer: prior learning interferes with subsequent learning o Zero transfer: prior learning has no effect on new learning o Specific transfer: prior learning aids subsequent learning because of specific similarities between two tasks o General transfer: prior learning aids subsequent learning due to use of similar cognitive strategies' o Near transfer: knowledge domains are highly similar, settings in which original learning and transfer tasks occur are almost the same and the time between the two is very short o Far transfer: knowledge domains/settings are dissimilar and time between original learning and transfer tasks is very long o Contemporary views of specific/near and general/far:  Low-road transfer: previously learned skill or idea is almost automatically retrieved and applied to highly similar current task  Students have to be given opportunities to practice using target skill  Practice has to occur with different materials and in different settings  High-road transfer: conscious, controlled, and somewhat effortful formulation of an "abstraction" that allows a connection to be made between two tasks  Teaching for low-road/high-road transfer  Provide students with multiple opportunities with multiple opportunities for varied practice to develop web of interrelated concepts  Give students opportunities similar to those they will have to solve later in life  Teach students how to formulate for a variety of tasks, general rules, strategies, or schemes that can be used with variety of similar problems  Give students cues that will allow them to retrieve from memory earlier learned information that can be used to make current learning easier  Teach students to focus on the beneficial effects of creating/using rules and strategies to solve problems Technology tools for knowledge construction and problem solving

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Computer supported intentional learning environments o Students can learn how to set goals, generate/interrelate new ideas, link new knowledge to old, share ideas with peers Quest Atlantis: Gaming and consequential engagement o Online multi-user virtual environment in which students collaborate with others to solve various problems related to a hypothetical theory o Research shows increase in meaningful learning/problem-solving skills

Reciprocal Learning: When student functions as the teacher and educates other students to demonstrate understanding/mastery...