Constructivist Education

In the coming decades, the platforms and formalisms scholars employ to display, transform, and transmit information will continue to evolve. Innovations in information management did not stop with the codex. They will not stop with the PC. The purpose of this paper is to explore a specific implication that new paradigms of computing—especially those pertaining to 3D objects and 3D environments—will present for the discipline of history. Put simply, this study suggests historians will need to re‐think the aesthetics of their discipline. Drawing on the experience of the<it> 3D Virtual Buildings Project</it>, it suggests there are two possibilities historians can and ought to explore. The first is to test the efficacy of 3D objects as cognitive tools, tools designed to assist student realization that historical works are models, models that must be distinguished from the objects they represent. The second is to explore the use of 3D‐immersive environments as platforms to display research findings. If Virtual Reality is to emerge as a viable medium for the historical discipline, scholars will need to transform their practice. Assumptions regarding the constitution of narrative, authorship and the scholarly work will all require modification.

Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação (Dias, 2007), procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo (Bardin, 1994). Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

An effective educational leadership philosophy involves mindful adherence to a set of approaches and core beliefs about teaching, learning and work environments. Educational philosophies are as diverse and unique as the individuals who espouse them. My core beliefs about educational leadership are drawn from a wide array of loosely connected concepts and " theories of action " that work in complimentary fashion to facilitate a well-run educational institution that positively impacts teacher effectiveness and student learning. Below I have clustered some key concepts that I embrace because various literatures, and my own research, indicate that they make a difference. In general, I believe the problems of today, dreams for tomorrow, and challenges of the future are best met by positive leaders who are informed, in touch, and involved in facilitating the success of those served. I strive to live and teach this philosophy of leadership in all I do. –XX The ultimate aim of education, as I see it, should be to teach students to use their minds well. In the 21 st century it is imperative that students access, comprehend, evaluate and judiciously act upon information, and then learn to generate and communicate new knowledge. Education at all levels should involve dynamic student-centered learning environments, which spark individual student achievement. Constructivist approaches, such as Active Learning, and Authentic Pedagogies hold much promise for improving student achievement because they emphasize student engagement and application in real-world contexts. When implemented well, on an institutional level, I believe students in social cognitive constructivist programs have numerous advantages over peers in traditional settings because the stimulating learning activities tend to engage and motivate learners. Educational leaders must clearly articulate institutional goals, philosophies and approaches to avoid competing ideologies from within the school from nullifying potential gains and creating cultures that are disjoint and competitive. Educational leaders can magnify the impact of the systems human and other resources by unifying faculty and staff under a common direction and approach. Clearly articulating a philosophical approach (such as social cognitive constructivism) involves critical evaluation and coordination of multiple aspects of the system operations for philosophical consistency, including vision and mission statements, curricula, instructional materials, professional development, programs, policies and practices so that they are aligned to the core tenants of the embraced philosophy. Leaders who dare to take a systemic approach are more likely to unite their staff in thought and action toward common goals. Leadership that Builds Collegiality and Shared Leadership A diverse faculty and staff unified by a common vision and mission is an extremely valuable asset. Team approaches reduce isolation and allow professionals to work collectively to develop the knowledge, skills and resources to meet challenges, while still fostering individuality and unique contributions. Healthy school cultures are typically found in high challenge, high trust, and high engagement work environments, that emphasize collaboration and problem solving. Effective teams can go a long way towards building productive collegial relationships., characterized by non-threatening and respectful professional debate. Shared leadership approaches can also provide faculty with a sense of empowerment and purpose, as well as providing a mechanism for problem solving. Shared leadership and improvement planning can also give voice to multiple groups within educational communities including students, parents, support staff, sister communities, and such and can increase community support for educational programs. In general, the administrative approach should place a high premium on building a non-competitive collaborative environment. Maintaining high faculty morale and vibrant teams of caring staff is among the most important aspects of school operations, including curricula and policy, because a caring and engaged staff the feels valued will have higher motivation. A motivated, challenged, collegial staff can do more to spark student learning than most any other aspect of operations, thus this must remain a priority of effective educational leaders. Professional Orientation has to do with the attitude and work habits of teachers and staff, and is greatly influenced by leadership priorities and approaches. Teacher norms in schools with a strong Professional Orientation involve assuming personal responsibility for student learning by increasing internal capacity to meet student needs. In school cultures high in Professional Orientation teachers tend to be perpetually preoccupied with finding more and better ways to engage learners. This typically creates a stimulating and vibrant work culture, characterized by highly committed and resourceful teachers with a large repertoire of instructional skills. Frequently, these schools have higher teacher morale and job satisfaction, which is associated with greater teacher retention. I espouse educational leadership styles that structure resources including, time, space, staff schedules, funding and so forth in order to maximize teacher professional learning and exposure to new instructional approaches and resources. Administrative practices that prioritize collaborative planning, ongoing job embedded learning, and in-class peer instructional support are more likely to facilitate higher Professional Orientation. Leadership for Professional Orientation also involves encouraging innovation and learning by trial and error. Routine monitoring and recognition of teacher leadership play crucial roles. Instructional Leadership that involves modeling, mentoring and clinical supervision such as frequent informal class visits and feedback, go a long way toward establishing strong Professional Orientation. Knowledgeable, engaged and supportive leadership over time helps to cultivate a culture where professional learning flourishes. Managing this type of robust culture requires leaders who are well-informed, open-minded, collaborative, flexible, highly involved with teachers, staff and students and are willing to take initiative to build to the intellectual community of the school.

Instructional design as a serious course of study has been around just a few short years in comparison with other educational methodologies. Because it is still quite young, debates about its effectiveness and the effectiveness of the tools and technologies used to create instructional designs are still relevant to the new science, for science it is if one considers the research, data collection, observations, and empirical evidence gathering performed daily by those who would understand the principles used to design, develop, and deliver effective instructional content. Topics of discussion and debate that frequently make an appearance include (a) the use of media and whether or not one media type is more effective than another, (b) learning styles and whether or not they exist, and (c) which approach to learning to use: instructivist or constructivist. That these discussions are still relevant to the young science is the basis for the paper which follows – especially when considering the technological advances occurring rapidly around us every day.

Observations and interview transcript from Kamaroi Rudolph Steiner School in Sydney, Australia, focusing on how the arts are integrated into all learning in the curriculum, as well as how the school as avoided the use of technology.

This paper is an enhanced transcription of two lectures given as part of the University of Sydney Massively Open Online Course (MOOC), The Place of Music in 21st Century Education, published on Coursera (Humberstone, 2016) that has been edited in order to provide the clearest possible communication to the course participants. Additional context from the original scripts that was omitted from the video and/or occasional clarifying screenshots may have been added for greater understanding. Each of the 36 short content lectures in this series either presents the author’s synthesis of the literature on a particular topic with his own research and practice; or is an observation or interview to further explore the topic beyond the confines of published literature. In most cases the intention is not to present new data (although many of the interviews published in this series become, in their own right, primary source material) or findings, nor to publish a “position” on a particular topic, but to illustrate that taking a position is incredibly difficult when the literature is in a state of contradiction and flux; the intention, instead, is to provoke critical thinking in the course participant. The lectures are best understood in their original format: video.

Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação (Dias, 2007), procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo (Bardin, 1994). Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

This chapter discusses efforts to cultivate a critical, arts-based approach, focusing on how students and their teacher experienced a curriculum designed to deconstruct identity, personalize literature, and foster community in a high school English classroom. The structured practices of autoethnographic writing, performance poetry, and intergroup dialogue are merged to engage students in critical dialogue within and across differences in the classroom.

The book this chapter is drawn from, "Constructivist Education in the Age of Accountability (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018), contrasts authentic approaches to education with classroom practices based primarily on standards external to the individuals who are supposed to learn. While other books tend to promote either a desperate scramble for meeting standards or determined resistance to neoliberal reforms, this book fills that gap in ways that will inspire practitioners, prospective teachers, and teacher educators. Mandates pay only lip service to constructivist and social constructivist principles while thwarting the value of both students and teachers actively creating understandings. Authors in this book assert the central importance of a range of constructivist approaches to teaching, learning, and thinking, inviting careful reflection on the goals and values of education.

Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação (Dias, 2007), procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo (Bardin, 1994). Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

Abstracts:
A. Rationale/Background

The Conceptual Framework in English of the 2010 Secondary Education Curriculum (SEC) reveals that the Department of Education in the Philippines believes in the Constructivist Theory of Learning as one of the foundations of functional literacy for all.  This research study dealt with the discovery of the extent of implementation of constructivist language teaching in the fifth district of the province of Pangasinan. 

Two years after the release of the 2010 SEC, this study aimed to find out if constructivism had been fully implemented in the national high schools that had both regular sections and special science sections in the grade 7 and the third year levels.


B. Summary

This study sought to assess the extent of implementation and use of constructivist language teaching in the national high schools in the fifth district of Pangasinan.  Specifically, it answered the following questions:

1. What is the extent of implementation of the constructivist language teaching in the national high schools in the fifth district of Pangasinan along the elements of
a)  learning by doing
b)  reflective learning
c)  social learning
d)  learning strategies, and
e)  transformative learning?

2. To what extent is constructivist language teaching implemented according to
a) type of sections
b) year level?

3. What is the difference in the extent of implementation of constructivist language teaching according to
a) type of sections
b) year level?

Hypothesis:  There is a significant difference in the extent of implementation of constructivist language teaching according to type of section and year level.

4. Do the following factors influence the implementation of constructivist language teaching:
a) trainings
b) materials
c) facilities?

5. What training materials can be proposed to reinforce the implementation of constructivist language teaching among the teachers?

The data were gathered from four national high schools in the fifth district of Pangasinan; namely, Bautista National High School, Don Ramon E. Costales Memorial National High School in Villasis, Juan G. Macaraeg National High School in Binalonan, and Benigno V. Aldana National High School in Pozorrubio.  Fifteen students from each of the special science sections and top regular sections in the grade 7 and the third year levels answered the Constructivist Teaching Inventory for Students to discover the extent of implementation of constructivism in the language classes. 

Meanwhile, the teachers of each of these classes answered the Constructivist Teaching Inventory for Teachers for the researcher to find out if availability of trainings, facilities, and materials have influence on the implementation of constructivism.  To validate and correlate the data gathered from both the students and the teachers, focused group discussions with the teachers were facilitated by the researcher.

Based on the interpretation and analysis of the gathered data, the researcher put together training materials to help the teachers implement constructivist teaching and learning in their language classes.

C. Findings

The following were the major findings of the study:

1.  Constructivist language teaching was moderately implemented in the national high schools.
a)  Learning by doing was of moderate extent of implementation.
b)  Reflective learning was of moderate extent of implementation.
c)  Social learning was of moderate extent of implementation.
d)  Learning strategies was of moderate extent of implementation.
e)  Transformative learning was of moderate extent of implementation.

2.  The sixteen classes were grouped according to type of section and according to year level.
a)  When grouped according to type of section, constructivism was moderately implemented in the language classes.
b)  When grouped according to year level, constructivism was moderately implemented in the language classes.

3.  a)  There was a significant difference in the implementation of constructivist language teaching when the classes were grouped according to type of section.
  b) There was a significant different in the implementation of constructivist language teaching when the classes were grouped according to year level.

4.  a)  Teacher training influenced the implementation of  constructivist language teaching.
b)  Availability and quality of facilities, and the knowledge of teachers in using these facilities influenced the implementation of constructivist language teaching.
c)  Availability of materials and the knowledge of teachers in using these materials influenced the implementation of constructivist language teaching.

5.  Training materials for all the learning areas were developed to help the teachers fully implement constructivist language teaching in their classes.

D. Conclusions

In light of the findings of the study, the following
are the conclusions:
1.  Some of the constructivist principles were practiced in the schools, but not frequently.
2.  a)  When the language classes were grouped according to type of section, constructivist teaching practices were perceived by the students to be existing but not frequently and consistently.
    b)  When the language classes were grouped according to year level, constructivist teaching practices were perceived by the students to be existing but not frequently and consistently.
3.  a)  Type of section was a factor that had an influence on the implementation of constructivist language teaching.
    b)  Year level was a factor that had an influence on the implementation of constructivist language teaching.
4.  a)  Seminars and trainings that are made available for all language teachers could contribute to the full implementation of constructivist language teaching.
    b)  Provision of enough facilities for all language classes, and proper training of teachers on the use of such facilities could contribute to the full implementation of constructivist language teaching.
    c)  Provision of enough instructional materials for all language classes, and proper training of teachers on the design and use of such materials could contribute to the full implementation of constructivist language teaching.
5.  Training materials used in seminars and in departmental focused group discussions/conversations could help ensure full implementation of constructivist language teaching.

Recommendations

In relation with the findings and conclusions of this
research, the following are recommended:
1.  Constructivist teaching must be emphasized to the language teachers through proper orientation, trainings, seminars, and discussions.
2.  The education supervisors in English of the Department of Education should organize seminars and echo seminars where the seminar/training materials provided in this manuscript can be used.
3.  The conditions that are true in the special science sections and the third year classes must be made available to the regular sections and the grade 7 classes.
4.  Trainings, materials, and facilities that support constructivist teaching must be made available for all teachers whatever year level or type of section they are handling.
5.  Department heads of content subjects can modify the Constructivist Language Teaching Inventory for Students and the Constructivist Language Teaching Inventory for Teachers to discover the extent of implementation of constructivism in their disciplines.
6.  The focused group discussion questions can be adopted or modified by the departments in other content areas.
7.  The researcher can conduct a study on constructivist language teaching in the tertiary level.
8.  Future research studies on the influence of age, economic status, and level of self-esteem on the acceptance and implementation of constructivist language teaching can be conducted.

This paper explores the impact of NCLB on the behavior of teachers and school leaders and juxtaposes their reactions to the types of teaching and leadership needed to lead 21st century schools, as described by the authors of the 21st Century Schools movement.

Tarih öğretim programlarının doğasını belirleyen temel etken, kabul edilen felsefi paradigmanın ve öğrenme-öğretme yaklaşımlarının özelliklerinin programa yansımasıdır. Kabul edilen yaklaşım, pozitivist bilgi kuramı üzerine dayalı bir yaklaşım olan davranışçılık olduğunda; tarih öğretim programları temelde hedef, içerik, öğretme-öğrenme süreci ve değerlendirme bileşenlerinden oluşur. Post-pozitivist bilgi kuramı üzerine dayalı olan yapılandırmacılık kabul edildiğinde ise; beceri, kazanım, öğrenme-öğretme süreci ve değerlendirme temel bileşenler haline gelir. Bu bileşenlerin kendi aralarında tutarlılık göstermeleri, öğretim programının uygulanabilirliği açısından en temel özelliklerinden biridir. Bu bileşenlerden değerlendirme, programın üç bileşeninin çıktılarını ortaya koyması bakımından önemlidir. Kabul edilen eğitim yaklaşımının, ölçme ve değerlendirme sürecini tanımlaması ve programın doğasını bu sürecin bir parçası haline getirmesi beklenmektedir. Bu araştırmanın amacı, yapılandırmacılık yaklaşımı çerçevesinde hazırlanan MEB tarih öğretim programlarının ölçme ve değerlendirmeye nasıl yansıdığını tartışmaktır. Bu tartışma, uygulama alanında yer alan tarih öğretmenlerinin temel sorunlarını ve sınıf içinde yapılandırmacı ölçme ve değerlendirme yaklaşımının nasıl kullanıldığına dair sonuçları ortaya çıkaracaktır. Araştırmada nitel araştırma desenleri içerisinde yer alan durum çalışması kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın veri toplama araçları ise odak grup görüşmesi ve doküman incelemesidir. Literatürde, " araştırmacı tarafından seçilmiş ve bir araya getirilmiş bir grup insanın kendi deneyimlerinden yola çıkarak araştırmaya konu problem hakkında görüş belirtmeleri ve tartışmaları " şeklinde tanımlanan odak grup görüşmesinin tercih edilmesi, farklı okullarda görev yapan tarih öğretmenlerinin öğretim sürecindeki deneyimlerini birbirleriyle paylaşmasından dolayı da önemlidir. Bu bağlamda İstanbul Eyüp ilçesinde görev yapmakta olan 8 tarih öğretmeniyle yapılan odak grup görüşmesinde tarih derslerindeki " değerlendirme " süreci üzerine görüşmeler yapılmış, yapılandırmacı yaklaşımda öğretim süreci ile birlikte görülen değerlendirme basamağı hakkında öğretmenlerin görüşleri alınmıştır. Görüşmeler aracılığıyla elde edilen veriler, içerik analizi yaklaşımı ile analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre, programı uygulayıcılar, tarih öğretim programlarında yer alan ölçme araçlarının uygulanabilirliğinin mümkün olmadığını, denense bile nesnel ölçme araçlarının kullanılması gerektiğine dair yöneticilerin yönlendirmelerinden ve merkezi sınavların içeriğinden dolayı, yapılandırmacı yaklaşımın ruhuna uygun ölçme ve değerlendirme yapılamadığı, süreçte grup içi değerlendirme ve bireysel değerlendirme formlarının kullanılamayacağını ifade etmişlerdir.

The basic component which effects the history teaching programs majorly, is the reflection of the well accepted philosophical and teaching – learning approaches to the program. If the accepted approach is behaviorism, an approach based on positivist epistemology, the history teaching programs consist of, in general, aim, content, teaching – learning process and evaluation parts. On the other hand, if constructivism is accepted, capability, gains, teaching – learning process and evaluation becomes the parts. This is a crucial component for the application of the teaching program with the parts that show coherence with each other. Among these parts, the " evaluation part " is much more important as it shows the outcomes of the other three parts. It is expected that the well accepted education approach will define the assessment and evaluation period and allow the nature of the program to become a part of this period. The aim of this research is to open to discussion how the MEB history education programs, prepared in the frame work.

In recent decades, student centered pedagogy has provided serious challenges to traditional ―lecture-and-test‖ modes of education in colleges and universities. Advocates of student-centered pedagogy generally proceed from the constructivist position that maintains that learners construct their understandings through their actions and experiences on the world. Student-centered thinking has spawned a burgeoning interest in the use of a variety of different active learning methods in and out of the classroom. These include collaborative learning, experiential learning, problem-based learning, and a variety of other pedagogical methods. However, the theory and practice of student-centered pedagogy is not without its problems. ―Student centered‖ learning is often defined in contradistinction to ―teacher-centered‖ pedagogy. The idea that students must be active in the construction of knowledge is often understood to imply a diminishing role for the teacher in the learning process. Teachers are called upon to relinquish singular claims to authority or power in the classroom. As a result, the role of the teacher becomes recast as one of ―coach‖ or ―facilitator‖. In this paper, I argue that the student/teacher-centered dichotomy is built upon a false premise -- namely that it is possible to parse off the active role of the student from the socio-cultural activities of which the student and teacher are a part. An alternative approach is based upon the socio-cultural-constructivist idea that learning is a form of guided participation in socio-cultural activity. From this view, knowledge in any given discipline is the historical product of socio-cultural processes that have evolved over long periods of time. Such knowledge is preserved and communicated through the cultural vehicle of language. It follows that learning within any given discipline requires mastery of the language-based meanings that define disciplinary knowledge and practice. Such knowledge can only be acquired through active participation in language-mediated learning activities that are structured by more expert individuals. All learning is thus viewed as a form of doing. Pedagogy becomes a task of articulating learning goals and identifying the forms of doing that promote development toward those goals.

تهدف هذه الورقة إلى تبيان التغيير الذي يحدثه اعتماد المقاربة المعرفية – البنائية (Approche cognitive – constructiviste) على الكتاب المدرسي في العملية التعلّمية. علمًا أن هذا التغيير يطال دور الكتاب، وبنائه (كمؤلَّف وكسلسلة مؤلَّفات)، ومحتواه.
تنطلق هذه الورقة من مسلّمة تكامل كافة عناصر العملية التربوية. كون الكتاب المدرسي هو أحد هذه العناصر الهامة (وهو بذلك جزء من مجموعة الوثائق الخطية، والسمعية، والبصرية، والمتعددة الوسائط، التي يمكن أن توضع في تصرف العملية التربوية)، فلا بد من أن يتأثّر هو أيضًا باعتماد مقاربة تربوية تأخذ أبعادها العملانية.

The study investigated the relative effect of constructivist based teaching strategy on academic performance of junior secondary school students in integrated science. Four (4) Junior Secondary Schools were randomly selected for the study. In all a total of 120 junior secondary school students participated in this study. The instruments used for data collection are instructional package with the use of constructivist based teaching strategy and traditional instructional strategy and Integrated science achievement test (ISAT).The data obtained for the study were analyzed using SPSS 14.00 package and T-test statistics to test the four (4) research questions as well as the four (4) hypotheses generated for this study at 0.05 level of significant. The findings revealed that: there is a significant difference in achievement test scores between students instructed with constructivist-based teaching strategy and those taught using traditional classroom teaching method. Based on the findings some recommendations are hereby made for effective teaching and learning of integrated science: Government should continuously organize seminars and workshop for science teachers for the promotion and the application of constructivist approach to classroom instructional process in secondary schools, Science curriculum must stress educational choices based on our values and purposes and provide the materials that can help advance the agenda of scientifically based child-centered pedagogy.

School discipline remains authoritarian in the USA despite the superficial adoption of student-centered, constructivist lesson delivery. The issue may be lack of ideas for how to conduct constructivist discipline. Three novel activities are presented for classroom discipline that may close this gap. All three present discipline in a manner that is easy for a student to perform, thus increasing the likelihood of compliance. At the same time, these three are also demonstrably enriching, chosen to promote skills development.

Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação , procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo . Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

The main purpose of this research is to evaluate the effects of a constructivist instructional design on a group of students and their teacher. The sample consisted of 26 students and one teacher. The research was conducted at Istanbul Technical University, School of Foreign Languages, English Preparatory Program. The instructional design based on the constructivist learning principles that is developed by the teachers together with the class teacher was applied to the sample group. The data were gathered using quantitative data collection techniques, analyzed and interpreted. The findings emphasize that, in general, constructivist instructional design has a positive effect both on the students and the teacher. On the other hand, because most schools in Turkey have an exam-oriented system, constructivist ins tructional design does not appeal to some students.

Sesame Workshop is a non-profit organization involved with community outreach to support the educational needs of children and foster healthy, strong families. The Educational Outreach Department creates needs-driven public service initiatives across multiple media platforms, leveraging relationships and distributing materials through a network of strategic partnerships in the U.S. and internationally. One such initiative is Little Children, BIG Challenges, which provides educators, service providers, families, and young children with the tools and resources necessary to overcome everyday challenges, transitions, and stressful life events. These resilience-enhancing tools and resources maximize the use of multimedia and technology and showcase the lovable Muppets of Sesame Street in various scenarios and specific experiences relevant to military and civilian families.

This reflective paper discussesthe growingpresenceof student laptop computers and smart phones in classroomsand the various strategies adopted by lecturers and faculty todeal with ‘digital distraction’. The paper further suggests solutions based upon constructivist pedagogy toturn these distracting devices into learning tools. Students entering university are digital natives, having grown up in a world where computer and mobile phone use is second nature. However, literature in this area has provided conflicting results, some researchers concluding that students using computersto take notes have reduced test scores and that studentswho take handwritten notesutilize different cognitive areas of the brain than those who take notes on a computer. Other research concludes that restrictive methods for dealing with digital devices is ineffective and that educators should formulate creative tactics in order to make digital devices part of the learning experience. The paper concludes with a constructivist-based checklist for managing digital distraction in the classroom.

Nachdem der pädagogische Diskurs der 1990er und teilweise der 2000er Jahre sich auf einen bestimmten Begriff der Qualität bezog, womit Outputorientierung im Sinne effizienter Leistungserwartung verbunden war (vgl. Krönig 2007), ist mit dem aktuellen Leitbegriff der Inklusion (vgl. Boban/Hinz 2009) ein völlig veränderter Problembezug auch musikschulischer Bildung sichtbar geworden: nicht mehr (nur oder vorrangig), wie wir Exzellenz in der Spitze und hohe musikalische Kompetenz in der Breite erreichen, sondern, wie wir die Heterogenität unserer SchülerInnen anerkennen und die angemessenen Schlüsse daraus ziehen. Wie schaffen wir es im musikalischen Gruppenunterricht jede und jeden so ins Spiel zu bringen, dass niemandem Barrieren gesetzt werden, niemand zum Problem wird, dass individuelle Entwicklungspotentiale erkannt werden und individuelle Stärken sich entfalten? Unmittelbar damit verbunden ist eine Didaktik der Schülerzentrierung, die wiederum Formen der Öffnung zu implizieren scheint (Demokratisierung, Individualisierung). Der vorliegende Aufsatz sieht unterrichtliche Öffnung nicht nur als eine konsequente Umsetzung berechtigter Forderungen nach inklusiver Pädagogik, sondern zudem als einen Weg für MusikschullehrerInnen weg von der Rolle als Motivatoren und Disziplinaufsehern hin zur Rolle als MitmusikerInnen.

This is a systematic hands on writing process that begins by defining and outling writing skills required for California Content standards. Writing standards are outlined and compared by grade level for a systematic approach to teaching writing for grade levels K-5. Sample projects are summarized and the writing standard for each project is analyzed and supported through each project. Projects were created and executed by Riverside Preparatory School, Oro Grande, CA.

This paper is researched based and concluds with a literary review of the history of writing, emergent language, and classroom application.

This study implemented the proposed model of a constructivist teaching- learning process and determined the extent by which the students manifested the institutional learning outcomes which include competency, credibility, commitment and collaboration.  It also investigated if there was an improvement in the learning outcomes after the implementation of the constructivist teaching-learning process and determined the students’ acceptance of the constructivist teaching-learning process.  Towards the end a plan of action was proposed to enhance the students’ manifestation of the institutional learning outcomes.  It made use of the qualitative- quantitative method particularly the descriptive design. 
The results of the study revealed that the students manifest competency, credibility, commitment and collaboration as they accept positively the constructivist teaching-learning process in their chemistry laboratory subject.  It can be deduced from the findings that the constructivist teaching-learning process improved the learning outcomes of the students.  The use of the proposed plan of action is recommended for an effective chemistry laboratory instruction.

Background: Influenced by the original observations of Bunker and Thorpe Q1 , physical education theorists began to question the effectiveness of a traditional model for teaching games and have increasingly begun to believe that concentrating only on specific motor responses (techniques) fails to take into account the contextual nature of games. Games knowledge refers not only to the ability to execute complex motor skills but also to decisions concerning the appropriate use of the skill within the context of the game situation. Thus advances in sport pedagogy have resulted in a dialogue between whether skill/technique development or strategy/tactical skill development is more important in learning how to play a game or sport. Rather than deepen an either/or dichotomy, Griffin et al. introduced an approach that accentuates the connection between technique and tactics. The more the author of this paper analyzed the potential benefits of a tactical approach relative to problems inherent to the traditional approach, the more apparent it became that changes were necessary in her teaching strategy. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to introduce the methods, selected findings and a discussion of an action research on implementing a tactical approach to teaching tennis in a pre-service teacher education setting. The major purpose of this study was to investigate physical education majors' and their teacher educator's perceptions regarding the implementation of a tactical games approach in an eight-week tennis class. Participants and setting: The main participant of this investigation was a physical education teacher education (PETE) practitioner who studied her own practice. There were also the student participants of this study who were 18 pre-service PETE majors, 10 females and eight males ranging from freshman to senior. Pseudonyms were used to protect the participants' identity. The study was conducted during an eight-week tennis course that met twice a week for 90 minutes. Research design: The research design used for this study was a self-reflective inquiry conducted by the teacher educator considered as action research, a process in which teachers systematically and critically reflect on their work and make changes in their practice as a result of their reflection. Teachers are actively involved in their own educational process. The 'products' of action research generally include the generation of knowledge about teaching and learning, increased understanding of practice, and improvements in teaching and learning. This research fully describes the first action research cycle of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting on the implementation of a non-traditional teaching approach. 15 20 25 30 35 40

Encouragement by the Chinese government for education to move from an emphasis on passive learning, rote memorisation and mechanical training towards the development and delivery of education using active, student-centred education approaches has resulted in tensions and challenges, one of which is the reaction of students previously used to traditional passive transmission learning. To study the challenges that Chinese students face when undertaking a constructivist experience-based entrepreneurship course focused on process rather than content, eight groups of business students at a Chinese university were tasked with developing

Today, teaching and learning tend to be viewed from a constructivist perspective. Learning is regarded as a self-directed process of constructing meaning, which takes place in interaction. The teacher supports the learning process by selecting input and approaches that can scaffold the learning process and guide learners towards independent learning. Teachers are being urged to embrace this paradigm, which focuses on learning by constructing meaning (e.g. Baines & Stanley, 2000). Research into educational innovation suggests that the success of innovations depends on the extent to which teachers can realise a 'personal paradigm shift' in their views on what constitutes effective teaching for good learning. A change in teachers' beliefs is prerequisite for changes in teaching practice. This paper focuses on Spanish foreign language teachers' perceptions of culture teaching. It investigates to what extent present-day teaching practice reflects constructivist approaches. Specifically, it shows the extent to which teachers depart from what they perceive to be their learners' current understanding of foreign cultures when selecting cultural contents, and to what extent their culture teaching approaches can contribute to the learners' acquisition of independent culture-learning skills. The results show that current teaching practice only in part reflects constructivist convictions on the teachers' side.

Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação (Dias, 2007), procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo (Bardin, 1994). Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

This study aims at investigating the student teachers’ traditional versus constructivist educational beliefs and
their sense of self-efficacy by some variables: gender, grade, and department. Also it is intended to examine
the association between them. The population of the study is 3.817 (1.822 female, 1955 male) student teachers
in Faculty of Education at İnönü University during the first semester of 2007-2008 academic year. The
sample of the study comprises 411 students chosen using proportional stratified sampling technique.
Participants were given “Teachers Belief Survey” and “Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale”. The data
obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistical techniques, t-test, ANOVA, Kruskal Wallis, LSD, Mann
Whitney U and Pearson correlation. The analysis revealed that participants’ professional self-efficacy levels
were moderately over average and they had both constructivist and traditional beliefs, the former being
moderately more dominant. The comparisons between independent groups (gender, grade, and department)
gave some results partly consistent with the relevant literature. Also a positive correlation was found between
constructivist teacher beliefs and self-efficacy beliefs about student engagement, and between traditional
teacher beliefs and self-efficacy beliefs about class management, instruction, and overall self-efficacy.

This research paper is found also in
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Na sequência de um trabalho de investigação (Dias, 2007), procedemos à instalação e disponibilização da plataforma de eportefólio Elgg (open source) e a sessões para sua divulgação, na Escola Secundária Padre Benjamim Salgado (ESPBS). Neste momento, integrado num projecto de doutoramento, desenhámos um estudo para a dinamização da plataforma, em contexto de Educação e Formação de Adultos, cujos objectivos são: compreender e descrever de que modo a utilização do eportefólio pode contribuir, enquanto tecnologia e estratégia de ensino-aprendizagem e de avaliação para a construção dos portefólios reflexivos usados para a avaliação de competências, nos Cursos de Educação e Formação de Adultos e desenvolver o nível de literacia informática, quer dos formadores, quer dos formandos, promovendo uma cultura tecnológica crítica. Utilizando uma metodologia qualitativa, realizámos, nesta 1ª fase do trabalho, entrevistas semiestruturadas para um levantamento prévio das experiências desenvolvidas pelos formadores e Profissionais de RVC com os formandos, na construção do portefólio reflexivo de aprendizagens (PRA). A amostra é constituída por 6 formadores e 12 formandos e os dados foram analisados por recurso à análise de conteúdo (Bardin, 1994). Nesta comunicação, analisamos o significado do PRA para os entrevistados, assim como o processo de negociação estabelecido entre formador e formando na sua organização.

Özet Bu çalışmada müzik öğretmeni adaylarının yapılandırmacı yaklaşıma ilişkin bilgi düzeylerini ölçmek amacıyla bir başarı testinin geliştirilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Yapılandırmacı yaklaşım başarı testinin geliştirilmesinde, 2011-2012 eğitim-öğretim yılı ilköğretim ve ortaöğretim müzik dersi öğretim programları ve öğretmen kılavuz kitapları; yapılandırmacı yaklaşımı konu edinmiş araştırmalar ve kamu personeli seçme sınavı hazırlık kitaplarında yer alan eğitim bilimleri test soruları taranmıştır. Bunun sonucunda yapılandırmacı yaklaşımın alt boyutlarını kapsayacak nitelikte 50 çoktan seçmeli soru maddesi hazırlanarak 2 eğitim bilimleri uzmanının görüşlerine sunulmuştur. Hazırlanan başarı testinin ön uygulaması 2011-2012 eğitim-öğretim yılında 4. sınıfta öğrenim görmekte olan 120 müzik öğretmeni adayı ile gerçekleştirilmiş, geçerlik-güvenirlik çalışması sonucunda testin iç tutarlık katsayısının α=0.85 olduğu belirlenmiştir. Madde güçlük ve ayırt edicilik analizleri sonucunda test maddelerinin büyük çoğunluğunun 0.3'e değer olarak çok yakın olduğu görülmüş ve testten hiçbir madde atılmamıştır. Bu analizler doğrultusunda testteki maddelerin yapılandırmacı yaklaşım bilgi düzeyini büyük ölçüde ölçtüğü ve testin geçerli ve güvenilir bir yapıya sahip olduğu kabul edilmiştir. Anahtar sözcükler: yapılandırmacı yaklaşım, başarı testi, müzik öğretmeni adayı Abstract In this study, the aim is to develop a success test in order to measure the knowledge levels of music teacher candidates related with constructivist approach. In development of constructivist approach success test, Syllabuses of 2011-2012 academic year primary and secondary school music lesson teaching programs and teacher guide books, researches about constructivist approach and education science test questions in public personnel selection examination preparation books were scanned. As a result, 50 multiple choice questions so as to include sub dimensions of constructivist approach were prepared and submitted to the opinions of 2 education science experts. The pre-application of prepared success test were realised with 120 music teacher candidates having education in 4th grade in 2011-2012 academic year and internal consistency coefficient was determined as α=0.85 as a result of validity-reliability study. As a result of item difficulty and distinctiveness analyses it was observed that majority of test item values were very close to 0.3 and no items were removed from the test. In line of these analyses, It was accepted that items in the test measure the constructivist approach knowledge level to a great extent and that the test has a valid and reliable structure. GİRİŞ Son yıllarda eğitim-öğretim programlarının çağın gereklerine yönelik olarak geliştirilmesi ve yeniden düzenlenmesi ile birlikte eğitim araştırmalarına en çok konu olan ve kaynaklık eden öğrenme yaklaşımı yapılandırmacı yaklaşım olmuştur. Bilginin var olduğu haliyle öğretildiği, öğrenenlerin edilgen bilgi alıcıları konumunda oldukları, öğretmen merkezli geleneksel eğitim yaklaşımlarının aksine, yeni bilginin, öğrenen tarafından ön bilgi ve deneyimleri doğrultusunda, içinde yaşadığı sosyal çevrenin de yardımıyla, zihinsel süreçler sonucunda (İnel, Türkmen ve Evrekli, 2010, s.1) yapılandırılarak öğrenildiğini savunan yapılandırmacı yaklaşım doğrultusunda bilgiye ulaşma, bilgiyi kullanma ve bilgiyi üretme gibi ihtiyaç duyulan temel becerilerin bireylere kazandırılması ve bu becerilerin yaşam boyu sürdürülebilmesi hususunda, mevcut eğitim yaklaşımları, birey ve toplum ihtiyaçları doğrultusunda çözümlenerek yeni bir yapılandırmaya gidilmiştir (Yaşar, Çelik ve Şendağ, 2012, s.14). Yapılandırmacı yaklaşımın öngördüğü bu özellikler, doğal olarak öğretmenlerin görev ve sorumluluklarının; karar alıcı olmaktan öğrenmeyi kolaylaştırıcı olmaya, sadece öğretici konumunda olmaktan çok, işbirlikçi bir yaklaşımla öğrenciyle birlikte öğrenen bir birey olmaya doğru değişmesini gerektirmektedir (Siu'dan aktaran Ünver ve Demirel, 2004, s.188).

The goal of combining language instruction with the teaching of core content has been widely adopted in European schools and universities, at least since the 1990s. The concept has its roots in Content Based Language Instruction (CBLI) as well as in the older tradition known as English for Specific Purposes (ESP). These approaches to language teaching influenced the more development in Europe of ‘Content and Language Integrated Learning’ (CLIL). CLIL has what is called a “dual focus,” aiming to develop language skills and content knowledge in tandem. I suggest that all these projects have been inadequately theorized and, drawing on research in the psychology of writing, argue that language is already deeply embedded in disciplinary practice and that writing in particular plays a widely misrecognised role in learning and knowledge creation in the disciplines. This claim has important implications for “integrated” approaches to curriculum development, particularly when such curricula are designed jointly by applied linguists and disciplinary specialists.

Childhood in the United States, and in the American South more particularly, has several well-known and popularized constructions, typically divided by social class and ethnic identity. More specifically, Southern childhood is constructed as an either white or black experience, with one's social world being extremely ethnically segregated in either case. Over the last several decades, as a post–North American Free Trade Agreement immigration boom has brought several generations of Latinos into the American South (in part because of these shifting demographics, the area is now often called the " New South "), this bifurcated popular conceptualization of childhood has been disrupted by the growing presence of Latino children in Southern schools and communities. Building upon Vygotsky's premise that identity (including ethnic identity) is constructed through a cultural–historical lens, we here use the nascent literature on Latino education in the New South to outline an initial construction of Southern Latino childhood.

The aim of this research is to determine the trends of education technology researches on Constructivist Learning Approach, which were published on database of ScienceDirect between 2010 and 2016. It also aims to guide researchers who will do studies in this field. After scanning the database, 81 articles published on ScienceDirect's data base from January 2010 to December 2016 were examined considering the following criteria in order to serve the purpose of the study; the concepts they deal with, instruments, software, education techniques used in the research, research methods, research designs, data collection instruments, types and sizes of samples, data analysis, the country where it takes place, number of authors, common studies done by researchers from different countries and number of sources. According to the research results, computer-supported education was the most addressed subject in the articles. It was found out that the most frequently used tool was the computer and the most frequently used software was learning management systems in the studies. Cooperative learning technique was the most preferred in terms of the used educational techniques. Quantitative method and survey design came into prominence in the studies. It was figured out about the data collection procedures that questionnaire as a data-collecting tool, university students as the subjects or the participants and descriptive analysis as data analysis method were mostly preferred. It is thought that results obtained will lead other future studies.

Constructivist instruction favours learning strategies that emphasize student independence (Bodner, 1986; Murphy, 1997). It suggests that limiting direct guidance and increasing constructed thinking through a student-centered approach will maximize higher order learning outcomes including creativity and originality (Liu & Matthews, 2005). In contrast, direct instruction models propose that in light of limited working memory capacity, increased guidance and feedback produces better learning outcomes (Sweller, 1998). Direct instructivists suggest that explicit guided instruction is crucial to develop skill acquisition and ad hoc information attainment (Kirschner, Sweller, & Clark, 2006). Friston's (2005) introduction to learning as optimization [free-energy] perspective enables a new non-antagonistic outlook that illustrates the importance of both constructivist and direct instructivist educational philosophies in routine brain functioning. In this paper I argue that this assimilative approach suggests new opportunities to investigate questions surrounding accuracy, creativity, and learning.

The “millennial” historical moment presents fresh dilemmas for race-critical instructors. In addition to being well-versed in colorblind racial discourse, millennial students are socialized in a pop-cultural milieu that implies a more integrated, racially egalitarian world than exists in reality, and includes claims that U.S. society is now “post-racial.” Millennials’ enthusiastic consumption of race in an era of seeming progress leads them to assume an ever greater social distance between their generation and the relics of those they consider “real” racists, as well as between the former eras of de jure white supremacy and the more racially meritocratic structure they presume exists today. In light of such obstacles, race-critical instructors must employ creative strategies to help students understand and identify their connections to larger, structural matters that create and sustain racial inequality at the systemic level. I introduce one successful approach, where students examine the social reproduction of racial inequality by tracing their family histories of wealth and capital acquisition and transfer.

O texto foi elaborado a partir de um conjunto de informacao recolhida em tres Centros de Reconhecimento, Validacao e Certificacao de Competencias (CRVCC). O trabalho realizado nos CRVCC consiste na avaliacao de competencias atraves da experiencia de vida. O processo de reconhecimento, validacao e certificacao de competencias (RVCC) e complexo e dificil tanto para os adultos como para os profissionais envolvidos, o que resulta de um conjunto de factores. Neste texto, optou-se por problematizar a complexidade inerente aos elementos que se consideram estruturantes do processo ? as competencias, a experiencia de vida e a avaliacao. As questoes que orientam a problematizacao e reflexao ao longo do texto sao as seguintes: Qual e a natureza dos elementos que estao associados ao reconhecimento e validacao e que tornam este processo complexo? Que profissoes emergem atraves do trabalho realizado nos CRVCC? As equipas dos CRVCC recorrem a um conjunto de estrategias (p.e modelo metodologico hib...

There are many classroom teaching approaches available, but they generally all have one fundamental commonality: they require some form of human communication. As human communication is subject to several perceptual errors in both listening and seeing, there are challenges imposed on the success of the communication. The ability of the teacher and the students to communicate effectively with each other is a factor for the success of each reaching their goals. The teacher imparts his/her knowledge in the classroom, but as von Foerster reminds us: “It’s the listener, not the speaker, who determines the meaning of an utterance” (Glasersfeld, 2007); for the listener contextualises this information based on their own past lived experience. Thus, the student’s epistemology and their expression of their understanding is integral in the classroom context. This position paper presents a cybernetic approach to the teacher-learner system, challenging traditional ideas about the role of each actor within the system, with special attention given to Pask’s (1976) Conversation Theory and its fi t for purpose in a contextual learning system.