Constructivism and Constructionism

Dr. Orey explains that Constructionism is a theory of learning where “people learn best when they build an external artifact or something they can share with others and Constructivism is a theory of knowledge stating that each individual actively constructs his or her own meaning (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).  This topic is not new to educators.  In 1993, Brooks and Brooks suggested that constructivist pedagogies include 1) inspiring student initiative, 2) accepting student autonomy, 3) employing cognitive language to challenge critical thinking, 4) fostering independent thinking and innovation by building on student responses, 5) developing knowledge construction by challenging students to recognize prior learning, 6) provide interactive opportunities among students, 7) encourage critical thinking and problem solving individually and collectively, and 8) provide time, prompts, redirected questions and probing to push students to develop and integrate new knowledge and construct their own meaning (Brooks & Brooks, 1993). 

I think that both theories have a place in today’s classroom with Constructionism being dominant especially in Physical Education.  There are times when we have to present facts to the learners in the traditional way and there are times when students need to create something based on their learning.  This is the most ideal learning experience and one that is enduring.  In my classes, with most skills and activities we teach, the above concepts are natural as the students are engaged in activity, required to call upon to recognize prior learning, interactive,  challenged to think critically and independently.  The challenge for us is time as I have previously stated.  It is my goal to keep the students actively engaged in exercise and skill development.  However, I can incorporate the strategies using technology tools such as Power Point, Excel, Word, Webquests, etc. to enhance our learning experiences.  We just don’t have easy access to incorporate these strategies on a daily or weekly basis.  We do integrate technology in some form during each unit of instruction.   

Generating and Testing Hypotheses in PE

This week we also explored the learning strategy Generating and Testing Hypotheses.  “When students generate and test hypotheses, they are engaged in complex mental processes, apply content knowledge like facts and vocabulary, and enhancing their overall understanding of the content” (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012).  The processes that can be used to generate and test hypotheses are systems analysis, problem solving, experimental inquiry, and investigation.  These processes should also be used to students’ previous knowledge, experience, or interests(Pitler, et al, 2012).  A lot of people would not think that this strategy can be used in Physical Education other than health related issues.  When we fitness test our students during the fall we test five components of fitness which are endurance, upper-body strength, abdominal strength/endurance, flexibility, and agility.  They record their initial scores on a goal sheet as well as a goal for the spring test. This is done in excel.  We then have them research ways to improve in each category and come up with a plan.  During our warm up activities, we often set up stations which are designed to improve one of the fitness areas.  We include activities that they have researched and determined will assist them in improving in a certain fitness area.  They keep up with their progress.  One way that I can use this activity and incorporate the strategy from this week’s resources is to have the students determine if their Physical Education time is going to be sufficient to improve their fitness scores. Through research they will need to determine what exercises and how much of the exercise will improve fitness in each category. This information will be recorded on a spreadsheet.  They will gather the information and give a presentation to a peer group the exercises necessary to make improvements and whether or not PE time will be sufficient to reach their set goal.

This instructional strategy correlates with the Constructivism and Constructionism Learning Theories because it is constructivism when they generate they hypotheses, and constructionism when they collect the date and utilize a technology tool to produce an artifact.  I just learned today that our TIS at our school is going to train our fifth grade students to use Keynote for the iPad.  I don’t know a lot about Keynote yet, but I think that it would be a cool way to design and share a presentation.

References

Brooks, J., & Brooks, M. (1993). In search of understanding: The Case for

Constructivist Classrooms. ASCD.

 

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program seven: Constructionist and

constructivist learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R., & Kuhn, M. (2012). Using Technology with Classroom

          Instruction that Works (2^nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Cognitivism in Practice

This week in my technology class, we have moved from focusing on the Behaviorist Theory to the Cognitive Theory. In The Cognitive Learning Theories video segment Dr. Orey explains that the Cognitive Learning Theory is all about processing information starting with information reception to short-term or working memory then to long-term memory. The three types of long-term memory are: declarative (facts/information), procedural (how to do things), episodic (events in our lives) (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011a). It is my goal to produce rich learning experiences so that the information will be stored in the learner’s long-term memory.

We learned about several instructional strategies and tools that directly correlate with the Cognitive Learning Theory. They are: cues, questions, advance organizers, summarizing, note-taking, concept mapping, and virtual field trips. I have to say that my first thought was how can these strategies help me in Physical Education where we have strict activity guidelines and are usually moving for most of the 50 minutes that our students are with us? After exploring each strategy and tool, I found that I can utilize most of the strategies and already use some with my students.

Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers:
Cues are “hints” to students about the content of a lesson. Questions allow students to access previously learned information on the topic, and teachers to assess what the students do not already know. Advance organizers are introduced before a lesson to draw attention to important points, identify relationships within the material, and relate material to students’ prior knowledge (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, 2012). In our classes we constantly use cues and questions, and this week’s information has caused me to contemplate how I can utilize advance organizers in my classes. One way that I found to be conducive to PE class is to have the students to create a brochure outlining skills and techniques for a certain sport or activity. This could be coordinated with the computer lab instructor.

Summarizing and Note Taking:
Note taking and summarizing are similar in that they enhance the students’ ability to organize information in a way that captures the main ideas and supporting details. Note taking is rarely taught as a skill, and some students really need guidance in this area. There are a number of word processing and web applications that assist with summarizing and note taking. Wikis and blogs support collaborative note taking and summarizing (Ptiler, Hubbell, Kuhn, 2012). Here is a website that is fun for the students to demonstration summarization: www.wordle.com.

Concept Maps:
Concept maps are graphical tools for organizing and representing knowledge. They include concepts, usually enclosed in circles or boxes of some type, and relationships between concepts indicated by a connecting line linking two concepts. Words on the line, referred to as linking words or linking phrases, specify the relationship between the two concepts (Novak, & Cañas, 2008). Concept maps are advance organizers.

Virtual Field Trips:
Virtual Field Trips provide rich experiences that in turn create episodes that will hopefully stay in the student’s long-term memory. They provide opportunity to compare information with other primary sources. Usually when we allow our students to experience a virtual field trip, we are using all of the learning theories (Orey, 2011). Check out this website for a variety of virtual field trips: http://www.areavibes.com/library/online-field-trips-for-students/

This week’s resources have really been an eye opener for me in regards to utilizing strategies and technology tools as they relate to the Cognitive Learning Theory. I have a new commitment to utilize some of these strategies and tools to help my students make connections and associations to the content that will help get information to and keep it in their long-term memory. This, in turn, will hopefully assist in producing lifelong, healthy learners even in Physical Education.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program five: Cognitive learning theory [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program six: Spotlight on technology: Virtual field trips [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Novak, J. D., & Cañas, A. J. (2008). The theory underlying concept maps and how to construct and use them, Technical Report IHMC CmapTools 2006-01 Rev 01-2008. Retrieved from the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition Web site: http://cmap.ihmc.us/Publications/ResearchPapers/ TheoryUnderlyingConceptMaps.pdf

Pitler, H. Hubbell, E. & Kuhn, M. (2012). Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD

Behaviorist Theory

In my Walden class this week we are learning about the Behaviorist Learning Theory and how certain instructional strategies correlate with this learning theory.  At the beginning of each year, most teachers establish expectations that relate to classroom management and behavior. This is to ensure the learning experiences are positive and maximized for every student.  In our PE classes, we reinforce effort and recognize positive actions and behavior.  As stated in our text for this course, “research indicates that when teachers use a mastery-oriented approach to provide recognition and praise, praise can be used to promote student engagement and decrease behavioral problems.”  They also discuss that when praise is sincere, it can influence intrinsic motivation (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012).  As I was studying the information about reinforcement, it reminded me of a quote that our principal uses frequently, “No significant learning occurs without a significant relationship” (Comer, 1995).  This positive relationship needs to take place in order to ensure intrinsic motivation and trust. 

“Reinforcing effort and providing recognition” (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012) are natural strategies for a PE class.  We are constantly seeking to reinforce behaviors as well as effort so that a student experiences some success and hopefully, in turn, will be excited about PE and lifelong activity.  It is important to me for my students to succeed to the point that they love PE and develop a desire for a healthy lifestyle.  These positive outcomes only happen when we reinforce, recognize, and develop that significant relationship to build trust. 

In our classes, it is also very important to provide opportunities for practice of a skill.  For instance, we have students who could not jump rope at the beginning of this school year.  As an aerobic activity, when we can’t get outside to walk/jog, we jump rope.  Providing practice, reinforcing effort, and encouraging home practice has helped some students to go from not being able to jump rope at all to  being able to jump for one to two minutes without stopping.  This type of success is attributed to merging positive behavior management with positive instructional strategies.

Comer, J. (1995). Lecture given at Education Service Center, Region IV. Houston, TX.

Pitler, H. Hubbell, E. & Kuhn, M. (2012).  Using Tehcnology with Classroom Instruction that Works.  Alexandria, VA:  ASCD