Constructivist Learning

(1). What are the features of constructivist learning?

The basic idea behind constructivist learning is that students will “construct” their own learning experiences based on personal experience, their interactions with others, and their environment.

During the video, Can we believe our eyes?, the following constructivist learning aspects were demonstrated:

1. Discovery learning – students were given the tools for making the light bulb light, but had to try and figure out how to make it work on their own.

2. Guided discovery – the teacher provided answered questions and provided some guidance without providing instruction.

3. Inquiry-based learning – teacher asked open ended questions as well has asked the students why they thought the certain configurations worked vs. the other configurations.
4. Social Constructivism – students shared why they thought the circular pattern of the configuration worked to make the light bulb light.

5. Cooperative Learning – the entire exercise was set up so that the students worked in pairs/partners together. It was also helpful in holding the different parts during the experimental portion in figuring out the different configurations.

(2). Based on what you learned from all of the videos, what socio-cognitive and constructivist ideas might you need to consider when planning your own lessons within your own domain of knowledge?

As a future Media Specialist, I think a great way to apply this approach would be in guiding students on how to locate reputable reference materials from different electronic sources (internet, databases…). First the exercise could be set up for pairs or small groups. Then, the students would be tasked to locate a certain number of reputable reference materials for a certain topic. The Media Specialist would need to be available to answer questions and ask open ended questions or maybe even provide hints. After the exercise was over, students could share how they found their resources, how they confirmed the information was reliable and what they learned that would help them the next time they needed to perform this type of research.

Another aspect I learned from the second video where the children were modeling the adults, is that our behaviors and communication are being absorbed right along with our lessons. So if we are distracted or irritated, then our students are picking up on this and learning from how we are handling the situations. I think as adults we always think of this when working with small children, but we really need to remember that this type of behavior is part of the entire learning exchange and our behavior can have an impact (positive or negative).