Constructivism

9/30/2015

Some people view constructivism like this: placing one block on top of the other each time a new topic is learned. In this way, knowledge is continually growing in a linear fashion.

However, I feel like this is a more accurate representation of constructivism: you have to tear some towers down before you can build them back up, each tower containing different pieces of information that came from different places, of which, you hold different conceptions about.

Today we are going to be looking at constructivism through the eyes of Manuel Bachtold:

Bachtold, M. (2013). What do students "construct" according to constructivism in science education? Res Sci Educ: 43, 2477-2496. Retrieved from Ebscohost.

"Constructivism does not tell us how to teach."

It tells us how we learn.

There are two criteria of constructivism:

elicit students prior conceptions on the topic being taught
create a cognitive conflict in students' minds that confronts their prior conceptions with new phenomena, with the conceptions of other children, or with new knowledge.

Even though there are only two steps, I like to think of these criteria like a road map. You know where you want your students to get to (knowledge of the topic you are teaching), so you have to first figure out their starting point. It is from these two points that you will be able to drive your students from point A to point B. However, along the way, there may be road work or a closed route, in reference to criteria number 2. With only a map pointing from point A to point B, your students will become confused about how to proceed, and from this, they search for a new road to take, eventually reaching their destination.

In taking some of this information into my own classroom, it is important to remember that preconceptions do exist and that they are important to address, so students can learn to build on top of those prior conceptions, or tear down a few blocks to build a few more.

8 Comments

Anna Capre

10/1/2015 11:39:35 am

I like the 2 pictures you chose. If you believe students learn in such a unique ever-changing way, how will you apply that to your classroom?

Devon Smith

10/17/2015 03:36:53 pm

Anna,
I think it is important to figure out where my students are coming from and what conceptions they hold upon entering each new topic because then I will know what I need to address in the teaching of each unit.

drann

10/3/2015 05:13:57 pm

Where is your evidence that science educators see constructivism as building knowledge in a linear way? Does your article suggest this? If so, please explain.

I like how you defined constructivism... spot on! How will constructivism guide your own science teaching?

Devon Smith

10/17/2015 03:42:22 pm

In response to Dr. Ann,
That is actually a definition that I put together in my own words from my own experiences. Whenever the term constructivism comes up, people have a hard time understanding its true meaning, and most of the time, they describe it more like how someone would build a house from beginning to end: you wouldn't paint the walls before you put the roof on the house. In that way, some people suggest it is linear. However, I don't believe it is linear because every child comes in with their own knowledge and experiences. It is a different house for every student.
I think I will most use constructivism to encourage teams to work together to solve problems.

Nikita

10/4/2015 09:31:23 pm

I really enjoyed the quote about constructivism not being about how to teach, but it tells us how we learn. I think it represents constructivism well. I am interested in what you are going to take into your future classroom. How do you plan to address the prior conceptions of all of the students that come into your classroom?

Devon Smith

10/17/2015 03:34:44 pm

Nikita,
I think a good way to address prior conceptions is to do an activity before a until about what the students think (blank) is. This could be done through a pair and share activity or a concept map with the whole class. This way you can see what the students are already thinking about when you start a topic, and you can address your concerns throughout the unit.

Natalia Kellamis

10/4/2015 10:56:24 pm

I really loved the quote about constructivism not telling us how to teach, yet that is exactly what you then proceed to have it do. Do you actually believe the quote or do you actually believe it gives us a guideline of how to teach our students?

Devon Smith

10/17/2015 03:32:00 pm

Natalia,
Thank you for pointing this out to me, I didn't even realize that I did that until you mentioned it. That is definitely a flaw in my post, and I apologize. I do believe constructivism is a learning theory rather than a teaching theory, and I think it helps the teacher to understand how a students learns so that they can, in turn, teach those students better. There is a fine line there, but it does exist.

Constructivism

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Devon Smith

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