From my experience I support the view that constructivism is a better way to learn new things than through lectures. I definitely have noticed that when I personally get to explore and experiment with something, it is easier for me to understand. Also, the things that I have done and seen in action are far easier for me to internalize and keep in my long term memory than the things that I have merely heard or seen someone else show me.
I definitely think that there is a place for both individual and social constructivism in education. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages but with both you can have a balanced education. I have seen kids work together and share their knowledge to create a joint project where every member of the group benefited and learned. I have also seen groups where they divided up the work or one person did everything. This is where individual constructivism might be a good alternative. In this method, the student is forced to learn all parts of the task and gather enough knowledge to finish on their own. However, this also limits the amount of knowledge they can gain because they don’t have others to share with them.
I also can see why we would want to bring our students cognition into disequilibrium. When I am sure I am right about something and someone tells me I am wrong, I hurry to go research the topic and learn what the correct answer is. If I was indeed wrong, I now have the correct information I need and will probably never forget it. By sending our students into disequilibrium, they too will want to find the knowledge they need to get back into equilibrium and this will cause them to go find new information and learn.
I also think that the zone of proximal development is a very important concept for teachers to know about. We want our students to be able to complete tasks that push and stretch them but that they are also able to complete within reason. We need to be able to scaffold learning for our students so that it is at just the right level for them to learn and progress.
2 comments:
I agree that constuctivism is a great way to learn. I think that having hands on experience definitley helps me remember more.
Ooh! You make a good point about using disequilibrium as a motivator! I never thought of it like that before, but I can see how it can help students be sure in their knowledge.
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