Constructivist Activity Research Articles

From Traditional to Practical: A Twist Using Inquiry Based Instruction in ESL Learning

Continuing professional development is an indispensable mechanism for deepening teachers’ knowledge about content and developing teaching practices. Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) through Inquiry Based Instruction (IBI) is a program designed as a set of experiential learning where teachers have opportunities to integrate, reflect upon and develop their inquiry teaching performance (Alper, 2018). Inquiry is a multifaceted, student-centered, collaborative, constructivist activity aimed at improving students’ higher-order reasoning. It could be described as hands-on, problem-based, project-based as well as deductive and inductive approaches in teaching ESL. The researcher surveyed students using a modified questionnaire not only on the opportunity given to students to inquire and the frequency of their asking of questions but also the kinds and types of questions the teachers asked in the academic set-up. Using discourse analysis too, the researcher was able to examine the ways in which language was used, in the study, the teachers’ questions, in the real situation, the classroom. The investigated data revealed merged linguistics and sociology by taking into account the social and cultural context language was used to better understand an aspect in communication. Highlight of the study was to assess the possible twist of instruction from traditional to inquiry-based approach in ESL learning, where students inquire instead of the teachers asking questions.

Tangible User Interfaces and Contrasting Cases as a Preparation for Future Learning

In this paper, we describe an experiment that compared the use of a Tangible User Interface (physical objects augmented with digital information) and a set of Contrasting Cases as a preparation for future learning. We carried out an experiment (N = 40) with a 2 × 2 design: the first factor compared traditional instruction (“Tell & Practice”) with a constructivist activity designed using the Preparation for Future Learning framework (PFL). The second factor contrasted state-of-the-art PFL learning activity (i.e., students studying Contrasting Cases) with an interactive tabletop featuring digitally enhanced manipulatives. In agreement with prior work, we found that dyads of students who followed the PFL activity achieved significantly higher learning gains compared to their peers who followed a traditional “Tell & Practice” instruction (large effect size). A similar effect was found in favor of the interactive tabletop compared to the Contrasting Cases (small-to-moderate effect size). We discuss implications for designing socio-constructivist activities using new computer interfaces.

Instructional Methods for Limited English Proficient Students in Subject Area Courses

This paper studies the question of what instructional strategies are most effective for classrooms with limited English proficient (LEP) students when teaching history content courses. Two specific instructional strategies are researched. The first is the ordering of direct instruction and constructivist activities. Is it best to begin with direct instruction, then move to a constructivist activity or is it best to order lessons in reverse order? The results of the study also offer insight into the efficacy of doing only direct instruction vs. constructivist activities. The second question studied is regarding group vs. individual work. Which type of work results in the most and deepest content knowledge for LEP students and what is useful about each type of work?
 A controlled experimental method was used with pre and post quizzes, teacher/researcher observation, and student surveys and interviews. The study finds that student learning is maximized for LEP students when direct instruction precedes a constructivist activity. Using both instructional strategies, but in this order, was shown to be the most effective instructional strategy. Individual vs. group work showed less clear results, but the student interviews provided insight into why LEP students sometimes prefer group work, even if their knowledge gained is not noticeably increased.

The Invention Coach: Integrating Data and Theory in the Design of an Exploratory Learning Environment

This design case describes the development of the Invention Coach, an intelligent exploratory learning environment (ELE) for the constructivist activity of Invention. The Invention Coach scaffolds students as they invent mathematical formulas to describe contrasting cases. In this paper, we detail our process and rationale for three key design decisions made with the goal of providing optimal guidance for Invention: (a) engaging in systematic analysis of teachers guiding students as a starting point for development; (b) developing a style of guidance that problematizes students’ work through constraints, contrasts, and prompts for explanation; and (c) structuring the space through a nonlinear, modular set of activities focused on problem subgoals. We revisit the age-old assistance dilemma, discussing the unique difficulties of designing guidance and support in a computer environment for exploratory learning. Throughout, we discuss the tensions between providing adequate guidance and encouraging student exploration. We end by considering the trade-offs and unforeseen challenges that have come out of our design.

Effective Listening Project: A Constructivist Activity

Effective Listening Project: A Constructivist Activity

Constructivist learning of anatomy: Gaining knowledge by creating anatomical casts

Educators are encouraged to provide inquiry-based, collaborative, and problem solving activities that enhance learning and promote curiosity, skepticism, objectivity, and the use of scientific reasoning. Making anatomical casts or models by injecting solidifying substances into organs is an example of a constructivist activity for achieving these goals. This report describes a student-implemented protocol for making postmortem anatomical casts of the bronchial tree and coronary arteries of rats using Silastic® sealant. The teacher facilitated this process by asking leading questions to guide the students toward the development of their own conclusions. This relatively simple and inexpensive procedure has important applications for the constructivist approach to study cardiovascular and respiratory morphology.

The relationship between course socio-epistemological orientations and student perceptions of community of inquiry

The Community of Inquiry Framework is based on the premise that online learning is a collaborative constructivist activity. However, not all courses are similarly oriented. In general, courses can be divided into constructivist and objectivist. In constructivist courses, learners develop solutions to problems through sustained discourse and inquiry, making the learning a function of interaction with other learners. In objectivist courses, truths are considered absolute and learning is more heavily weighted toward interaction with content. This study examines the impact that these differing orientations have on student perceptions of community of inquiry by examining the factor patterns of courses characterized along two dimensions — objectivist/constructivist and individual/collaborative. The findings reveal that learner age may be one of the most significant determinants of whether and how course orientation is perceived.

Establishing Real-World Connections for a Better Understanding of Circuits

Many physics teachers would agree that students making real-world connections is a critical aspect of learning physics, but what does this really mean? Merely seeing a real-world application of a physical concept does not necessarily allow students to incorporate the concept into the way they perceive their world. It is not just seeing the application that makes the real-world connection, but establishing personal relevance to that student's life that is a key to learning physics. This paper describes a constructivist activity in which students design and assemble a common and personally relevant electrical device—the power strip.

Problem Based Learning: Enhancing Constructivist Activities and Engagement by Fostering Online Knowledge Sharing

PBL was first introduced in medical education as a pure constructivist activity. This was popularly known as the McMaster approach [1]. Later, as can be seen in the literature [2], [4]-[10], there were several different implementations of PBL. There is no single definition of what is classed as a PBL activity. Similarly, there is no one approach reported to be the only successful approach. Sharing of knowledge and discussions based on this knowledge are the hall mark of any successful PBL based course. Varying amounts of scaffolding can be found in the research literature to support the sharing and knowledge construction activities done by the students. In a face to face university there are time pressures on the academics that may cause them to resort to direct teaching to help students progress in their PBL tasks. There are also space constraints that do not always allow for group meetings to take place. In a pure McMaster approach based PBL these meetings are very important as they facilitate constructivist activities. According to the McMaster version of PBL, the academics who set the curriculum need to ‘‘lose control’’ of the syllabus in order to maintain the core of self-learning [4]. Academics often find this difficult perhaps because their background and existing practice does not naturally allow them to easily loose control of the syllabus. They are used to be the central figure of authority - the “sage on the stage”. Also they are subject to delivery time frames, in our case a 12 week period for achieving everything required in the PBL. Due to this and other reasons the freedom of learning is often not implemented [4]. We found that there are several successful variants of the McMaster approach that do promote the collaborative and constructivist approach to PBL, but with some unavoidable instructional teaching [2], [4]. These are found where instructional teaching is the predominant teaching method used. In the many adapted versions of the McMaster approach to PBL the tutor remains in control and uses scaffolding to guide the students from time to time [4]. Scaffolding is used and found to be helpful in many successful instances of PBL [13].

Chinese children's constructive activity and text comprehension

This study investigated how constructive activities are involved when Chinese students are performing reading tasks that require deeper levels of understanding. Forty students from Grade 5 (19 boys and 21 girls), and 42 students from Grade 6 (20 boys and 22 girls) participated in this study. To reveal the children's constructive processes in reading, they were asked to think aloud while responding to a text. Analyses of the children's protocols identified five levels of constructive activity. Analyses further indicated that the Grade 6 children performed better than the Grade 5 children, and skilled readers outperformed less skilled readers in higher levels of constructivist activity and text understanding tasks. Implications of the important roles of constructivist activity in children's learning from texts were discussed.

Sources of support for pre‐service teachers during school experience

The purpose of the study was to report on the changing sources of support structures utilised by pre‐service teachers during a series of school experiences (SEs). A sample of pre‐service teachers was interviewed after their final SE. These students were in their last year of a four‐year Bachelor of Education degree at a college in southern England. The interviews were semi‐structured and focused on categories that originated from previous research. Sources of support were both formal (college tutors and teacher tutors) and informal (other pre‐service teachers, host families and other teachers). It appeared that the respondents moved from formal to informal sources of support as they progressed through the series of SEs. They particularly valued immediate professional support and advice from their teacher tutors and also the social support of their pre‐service and teacher colleagues. This supports the view that learning to teach is a constructivist activity where novitiates move from peripheral participation on SE into a full community of practice (the world of teachers) as suggested by situated learning theory. A further theme that emerged was that of the split responsibility for assessment between college tutors and teacher tutors.

Using Group Projects in Mis: Strategies for Instruction and Management

Using a project as a principal tool in course pedagogy can have many pitfalls. After examining feedback from our project-based courses in MIS, we implement strategies directed at addressing the problems we found. The course pedagogy uses complementary objectivist- and constructivist-learning environments and is guided by recommendations for successful project management found in the literature. Objectivist content (classroom experience) and constructivist activity (the project) are linked but content precedes the activity in a controlled way. Successful project management tactics guide administrative practices, such as student team selection and group equity. To determine the effectiveness of the strategies in providing a challenging learning experience with few administrative problems, a questionnaire was developed and administered to the students in two MIS courses. The feedback on the pedagogy and administration was positive, but issues still remained. Recommendations for practice are given.

Using Group Projects in MIS: Strategies for Instruction and Management

Using a project as a principal tool in course pedagogy can have many pitfalls. After examining feedback from our project-based courses in MIS, we implement strategies directed at addressing the problems we found. The course pedagogy uses complementary objectivist- and constructivist-learning environments and is guided by recommendations for successful project management found in the literature. Objectivist content (classroom experience) and constructivist activity (the project) are linked but content precedes the activity in a controlled way. Successful project management tactics guide administrative practices, such as student team selection and group equity. To determine the effectiveness of the strategies in providing a challenging learning experience with few administrative problems, a questionnaire was developed and administered to the students in two MIS courses. The feedback on the pedagogy and administration was positive, but issues still remained. Recommendations for practice are given.