Constructivist Teaching Approach Research Articles

“Understanding Dementia Together”: The Design, Delivery and Evaluation of a Collaborative Inter-professional Dementia Workshop for Healthcare Students

Abstract Background A collaborative, multi-disciplinary team input is crucial for the optimal management of a person with dementia. Interprofessional learning (IPL) has benefits at undergraduate level. Allowing students to engage in IPL pre-qualification enables them to understand the value of a collaborative approach in improving patient care, and this insight may cultivate future collaboration. The aim of this study was to develop, deliver and evaluate an IPL dementia workshop for healthcare students across a broad range of relevant disciplines. A secondary aim was to determine the extent of perceived clinical application of learned knowledge in students who completed the workshop and subsequently underwent clinical placement. Methods This study adopted a social constructivist pedagogical approach. A steering group was formed which included faculty members from 11 healthcare disciplines. Disciplines represented included medicine, nursing, dentistry, physiotherapy, radiography, radiation therapy, audiology, speech and language therapy, pharmacy, occupational therapy and paramedicine. Kern's map for the development of a curriculum in medical education informed the development of the intervention. The Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale questionnaire was used to assess students’ knowledge. Results 102 students completed the pre and post workshop surveys. There was a statistically significant increase in student's knowledge (t (11) = -5.251, p≤0.001) and communication scores (Z=-7.792, p≤0.001) post workshop. The follow up of students on clinical placement showed a perceived behavioural change in communication modification, with 79% of students stating that they have changed the way they communicate with a person with dementia. Conclusion The findings of this study provide insight into the optimum modes of design and delivery of an IPL dementia workshop, state of knowledge, confidence, and role recognition across a broad spectrum of healthcare students. The longitudinal follow up of students on clinical placement established perceived behavioural change due to the training.

The use of Van Hiele’s geometric thinking model to interpret Grade 12 learners’ learning difficulties in Euclidean Geometry

The 21st-century mathematics classrooms should equip learners with well-grounded knowledge and thinking skills pertaining to geometry. However, Euclidean geometry remains one of the challenging, if not the most difficult topic for many learners. As a result, the purpose of this article is to interpret Grade 12 learners’ learning difficulties in Euclidean geometry. We use Van Hiele’s geometric thinking model and Hoffer’s skills to argue an interpretation of learning difficulties in Euclidean geometry as a focal point towards creating effective teaching and learning of this important topic. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods approach involved 60 Grade 12 learners who wrote a geometry test and completed a questionnaire based on Van Hiele’s geometric thinking levels. In addition, semistructured interviews were conducted with a sample of 12 learners and four educators to investigate their views about geometry learning difficulties. The findings of the study revealed that learners had poor conceptualisation of properties of shapes, visualisation skills, circle theorems and geometry terminology, resulting in them experiencing learning difficulties. The recommendations are that, during instruction learners should be given the opportunity to manipulate real geometric objects to enhance their visualisation and visual thinking skills. In addition, we recommend that educators should teach level-specific geometry vocabulary to enable learners to understand concepts at different Van Hiele’s levels. Furthermore, we recommend that educators should use constructivist teaching approaches that encourage learners’ conceptual understanding instead of traditional methods that promote rote memorisation of geometric facts. Educators should develop learners’ broad knowledge of geometry to overcome geometry-related errors and misconceptions.

Assessing the Approaches and Challenges Encountered by Primary School Teachers in Managing Inclusive Classrooms

This study assessed how primary education teachers who handle inclusive classrooms utilized the teaching approaches and the challenges they experienced. This descriptive correlation study had 30 purposively selected teacher respondents who answered the researcher-made survey questionnaire containing ten indicators for the teaching approaches used and the ten challenges encountered. The data gathered were treated using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that the respondents’ perceptions of their teaching approaches in managing the mainstream classroom in terms of: managing teacher-student interaction were generally positive opinion of the teaching methodologies used to manage teacher-student interaction; classroom conduct and demeanor was diverse; fostering logical development was favorable tendency towards it; and there was a general alignment with constructivist teaching methods but emphasizing opportunities for improvement. The respondents’ perception of the challenges encountered in fulfilling their role in an inclusive education setting highlighted the need for better teacher preparation, curricular adaptation, and inclusive and collaborative education. Targeted professional development, curriculum reform, and stronger parent partnerships could improve inclusive education and help all students succeed academically and socially. There was no significant relationship between teacher-student interactions and fostering logical development, and challenges experienced by the teachers. There was a significant relationship between the classroom conduct and demeanor, implementing a constructivist teaching approach and the challenges experienced by the teachers. It is recommended that educational institutions and policymakers should prioritize inclusive education teacher competency through focused professional development and collaboration among all stakeholders.

How constructivism influences pre-service teachers’ beliefs and practices and child self-regulation

ABSTRACT Project Construct is a learner-centered constructivist framework that emphasizes positive teacher-student relationships, autonomy, and child-led experiences. Constructivist pedagogy promote cognitive, behavioral, and academic outcomes. Yet, novice teachers struggle to grasp constructivist teaching practices and tend to emphasize teacher-directed activities. The present study investigated whether the opportunity to learn and apply constructivist teaching approaches in an elementary school setting would affect education students’ understanding of constructivism and children’s self-regulation. Eight education students participated in a 4-week summer undergraduate class in a public-school setting. Students’ understanding of constructivist principles was assessed through a 30-statement questionnaire. Kindergarten classrooms were randomly assigned to either the Project Construct classroom where Education students participated in or the control classroom. Children’s self-regulation skills were assessed through the Head Toes Knees and Shoulders (HTKS) Task before and after the 4-week class. Results revealed that Education students’ knowledge of principles of constructivism grew significantly from the beginning to the end of this semester. Children’s performance on the HTKS grew significantly in the Project Construct and control classrooms, although there were no significant differences between the Project Construct and control classroom. These findings have implications for teacher education and how constructivist pedagogy can affect child self-regulation.

Exploring the Potential of Constructivist Pedagogical Approach in Strengthening Religious Moderation a Systematic Literature Review

This study aims to outline various previous research findings related to applying the constructivist pedagogy approach in improving moderate attitudes in educational institutions and explore the potential of the constructivist pedagogy approach to internalize the value of religious moderation in Indonesian education. This research uses the Systematic Literature Review method using the Watase Uake tool and the Google Scholar search engine. The data in this study are articles indexed in Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4. The articles were selected using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) technique. After going through the identification, screening, and eligibility process, 48 articles were included in the inclusion stage and analyzed using the meta-synthesis technique. The results of this study show that i) the findings of previous studies indicate that constructivist pedagogical approaches contribute positively to increasing openness and tolerance towards differences and building more appropriate attitudes in understanding diversity; ii) through constructivist activities, egalitarian teacher-student interactions, and inclusive social activities, students can develop a deeper understanding of the values of religious moderation (such as tawassuth, tawazun, tasamuh, musawah, and shura), appreciate the diversity of beliefs, and build openness to differences, so that constructivist approaches in learning have great potential to improve moderate attitudes in religion, especially in the context of Islamic education. The results of this study can positively contribute to the development of curriculum and religious learning methods oriented towards religious moderation in Indonesia.

Strategies for Promoting the Practice of Constructivist Teaching and Learning Process in Tanzanian Schools

This research aimed to investigate the strategies employed by schools to promote the constructivist teaching and learning approach. The study was conducted at Monduli Secondary School and utilized a qualitative research approach, incorporating ethnographic and phenomenological designs. The selection of participants followed a purposeful sampling strategy, including the district education officer, two ward education officers, four school heads, and twelve departmental heads. The data collection methods comprised participatory observation, in-depth interviews, and focused group discussions. To interpret and underscore the significance of teaching and learning activities, the study applied the perspectives of human capital and critical pedagogy theories. The findings revealed that extracurricular programs in schools effectively imparted self-sustainability knowledge and skills to students. These competencies are crucial in preparing students to innovate and create sustainable projects, thereby contributing actively to socioeconomic development. The study recommends that educators integrate extracurricular activities into regular classroom sessions to foster students’ abilities for active participation in knowledge creationConstructivist, Critical thinking, Teaching Pedagogy, and sustainable livelihood

Examining the Interaction Effect of 7E Model of Constructivist Pedagogical Approach and Science Self-Efficacy on Attitude towards Science

Examining the Interaction Effect of 7E Model of Constructivist Pedagogical Approach and Science Self-Efficacy on Attitude towards Science

Effects of Mastery 5Es Constructivist Teaching Approach on Secondary School Students’ Achievement in Chemistry in Rongai Sub-County, Nakuru County, Kenya

Effects of Mastery 5Es Constructivist Teaching Approach on Secondary School Students’ Achievement in Chemistry in Rongai Sub-County, Nakuru County, Kenya

Teaching Approaches and Student Engagement in Secondary Schools in Arua City, Uganda

This study examined the relationship between teaching approaches and student engagement in secondary schools in Arua City, Uganda. Specifically, the study examined the relationship between constructivist teaching approaches and behaviourist teaching approaches with student engagement. This study adopted a correlation analysis as the basis for determining whether there was a relationship between the study variables. Data were collected from a sample of 341 students using a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and structural equation modelling were used to analyse data. Descriptive results revealed that while students’ engagement was moderate, teachers’ use of the constructivist approach was lower than student-centred approaches. Structural equation modelling using SmartPLS results revealed that constructivist teaching approaches positively and significantly predicted student engagement, while behaviourist teaching approaches negatively significantly predicted student engagement. This study concluded that the constructivist teaching approach promotes student engagement, and behaviourist teaching approaches do not enhance student engagement. It was therefore recommended that teachers should emphasise using constructivist teaching approaches, and teachers have to reduce the use of behaviourist teaching approaches. This article will be of value to both researchers and policymakers in the education sector in Uganda as it identifies appropriate teaching approaches that enhance the effective engagement of students. Therefore, it might inform policy-making on curriculum development and further research

“Chinese core, global trend”: A critical discourse analysis of Chinese civics teachers’ perceptions on global citizenship education

ABSTRACT Globalization has stimulated widespread reforms of traditional citizenship education. Regional sociopolitical and cultural circumstances substantially influence global citizenship education (GCE) discourse. A more in-depth examination of the recontextualization of GCE in educational institutions is required to comprehend its inner power tensions and potential dilemmas. This study investigates how GCE is recontextualized in China’s civics curriculum through a critical discourse analysis of 17 civics teachers’ perceptions, considering the expanding global perspective on national curriculum in recent years. The analysis revealed a nation-centric view of GCE dominated by sociopolitical ideology and Confucian norms, communicated in complicity with localized constructivist teaching and learning approaches that tend to be co-opted as a tool for dissimulating and euphemizing official knowledge standing for nationalism in educational practice. The study discusses the epistemological paradox in Chinese teachers’ perceptions, shedding light on repressed teacher subjectivity and limited educational initiatives in the nationalist-dominated GCE. It advocates a critical and reflective examination of the educational practice of GCE and a better way of speaking GCE that avoids equating it with teaching and learning techniques while ignoring the extent to which these methods have shaken educational relationships and value assumptions.

TESOL Practices with Constructivism Prospective within Adult and Higher Education with Focus to Iraq and China Models

Philosophical perspectives views are concerned with defining the natural of world, the place in which individuals stand, and the possible relationships between the world and its parts. These perspectives such as behaviourism, cognitivism, liberalism, and humanism provide frameworks to facilitate instructional designers and teachers when they are designing curriculums such as in TESOL classes. This paper aims to explain the proper and teachers’ reasonability of implementing constructivism while designing educational activities within TESOL and humanistic curriculum in higher education taking some qualitative classroom observation at English department at College of Basic Education in Duhok University. Moreover, the paper describes the definition of constructivism at first then, to shed on the rationale of choosing constructivism as the guiding theory will be interpreted, based on current practices of learning history as an adult learner in the Kurdistan Region besides presenting materials that necessary to use in TESOL curriculum. Following that assessment of history curriculum will be illustrated afterwards. A conclusion will be sum up in the end to find the key concepts of constructivism in education is that knowledge should not be passively received but contributed by cognizing subject activity by learners. In order to reach this goal, teachers should respect students’ prior experience, concepts and beliefs and assist them to understand new knowledge. What the paper found at the end is that students need to be encouraged and engaged to participate into learning activities by teachers especially in TESOL classes, in this process, the role of teachers is no longer as dominators but facilitators in the classroom. However, it demands high quality of teachers to complete the whole curriculum, because student performance on which can be significantly affected by the quality of teachers; teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and behaviours are all associated to the success of learners in the constructivist teaching approach.

Examining the Interaction Effect of 7E Model of Constructivist Pedagogical Approach and Science Self-Efficacy on Integrated Science Process Skills

Examining the Interaction Effect of 7E Model of Constructivist Pedagogical Approach and Science Self-Efficacy on Integrated Science Process Skills

Analyzing the Models of Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) and Constructivist EFL Pedagogy: A Review Study

In recent years, the importance of developing intercultural communicative competence (ICC) has gained significant traction. Since language teachers are expected to play a crucial role in helping students to develop their ICC, this review article aims to analyze the research available about this construct to understand its implications for teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in academic settings. It begins by examining the current understanding of ICC and its importance in language learning. It then looks at how an ICC-based curriculum can be paired with a constructivist pedagogical approach to create a learning environment that promotes the exploration, experience, and comprehension of intercultural communication opportunities and challenges. Finally, it concludes with a discussion of the potential implications of incorporating ICC into English language instruction in Pakistan and other similar EFL contexts. This includes its impact on teacher education as well as its wider social implications for promoting interculturality in EFL learning environments.

A Comparative Study of Constructivist and Traditional Methods of Teaching Science to Grade V, Primary Level Public School of District Korangi, Karachi

Constructivist teaching approach is beneficial for effective and long-lasting learning of students especially in young children. The current study was conducted to identify the effect of constructivist teaching approach on fifth-grade students’ science achievement. Convenient sampling technique was used to select 30 fifth grade students at a public primary school in district Korangi, Karachi. Data was collected with a self made test. SPSS software was used to analyze the data collected from respondents. Experimental pre-test post-test design was used to check the effectiveness of constructivist teaching approach on students’ achievement in science subject. The results illustrated that constructivist teaching approach improved students’ achievement in science. In order to have effective learning for students there is a need to transform the old style of teaching into an innovative and constructive one. Therefore, the researcher utilized activity-based learning approach to foster the students’ learning. Two-way communication between a teacher and the students provides a baseline for activity-based learning. The findings of the current study highlighted the importance of innovating teaching methodology like activity-based learning that significantly proves beneficial in improving the students’ science achievements. It also reflected that the activity-based teaching methodology helped the students perform better than the students who taught with traditional methods.

Effect of ELT Programme to Develop RACE

India has completed more than 180 years of learning English, however the people of India frighten of English language teaching and learning. There have been many reasons pertaining in this. The major reasons listed in the research studies are overcrowded classes, infrastructure and foreign pedagogies of teaching English. Thus, the present research study aims to make use of the natural and constructive pedagogy of teaching English rather than making use of Grammar translation, structural approach and other foreign pedagogies for teaching English. The students of one Gujarati medium school were selected through simple random sampling technique. The researcher made use of single group pre test programme post test method. Self constructed English competency test was constructed and implemented as a pre and post test. Five activities were included in the programme to develop English language competency. The activities were taught through constructivist approach of teaching in a natural learning style. The findings of the study explain there is a major effect on developing rapid acquisition of competency in English through teaching in a constructive method. All the students admired and reflected the natural style of learning English.

The Abu Dhabi Police Virtual Training Centre: A case study for building a virtual reality development capacity and capability

Abstract Virtual reality (VR) technology has revolutionized the way organizations are approaching the training of their workforce. By adopting elements of gamification, VR developers are now able to develop simulations that studies are beginning to demonstrate can teach vocational content in a more effective, efficient, and cost-effective manner, in comparison to traditional teaching approaches, such as classroom tuition for example. VR simulators are considered to be especially effective when used for replicating real-life training scenarios and this is the reason that they are beginning to be adopted by policing. To date, studies have examined their application in a small variety of policing scenarios but no literature has examined exactly how the police develop such VR training simulators, and this is the primary research gap that the study seeks to fill. This is achieved by using a single holistic case study methodology (Yin, 2018. Case Study Research: Design and Methods (6th edn). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage) to examine the design process of nine simulators developed by the Abu Dhabi Police Virtual Training Centre (ADPVTC). By examining detailed design documents this article identifies the use of elements of the constructivist pedagogical approach to learning to underpin the development process used, and associated hardware and software specifications and outlines practical methods of scalability, portability, and mitigation of health and safety risks. In doing so, whilst also providing a blueprint, and the argument for police services to consider the implementation of their own internal VR development capacity and capability, we discuss the possible implications of this for policing. Limitations are also outlined, with the primary issue being the absence of a formal effectiveness evaluation of the products produced, particularly those used for training.

Functional Health Literacy, Invented Spellings, and MyPlate Representations of 2nd and 3rd Grade Children Learning about Breakfast Eating and Food Groups in Health Education

PURPOSE: We had three purposes for this study: 1) to introduce 2nd and 3rd grade children to the concepts of breakfast and food groups in the MyPlate nutrition model while using an interactive constructivist approach; 2) to evaluate what foods children ate for breakfast over two days and to assess the visual-textual-lexical representations that they constructed to show their thinking about the MyPlate food model; and 3) to explore functional health literacy and inventive spellings from children who learned about food groups over two class sessions. METHODS: Pre to post student assessments focused on self-reported breakfast eating and ability to represent the MyPlate food model during the learning process. Student thinking about those topics were also elicited by multimodal approaches: oral language (conversations), written language (visual-textual-lexical illustrations), and body language (making nutritious snacks). For the latter, students constructed a snack to eat on both days at school and were encouraged to make the food at home to model nutritious eating behavior. RESULTS: Most children who participated in the lesson ate breakfast either at home or at school. Some students chose to communicate in words and pictures when asked to write about the foods they ate for breakfast. Many students illustrated and labeled food groups by drawing and using inventive spellings about their early understandings of the MyPlate food model. From the first to the second day of instruction, breakfasts with three food groups increased from 3% to 7% but breakfasts with two food groups declined from 55% to 41% due to more children (n = 60) eating breakfasts with only one food group on the second day. CONCLUSIONS: Some of the food items that students ate were not sufficient to produce an adequate nutritional benefit. The constructivist pedagogical approach assisted children with multimodal ways to communicate their understanding, including making two different snacks when planning a breakfast with multiple food groups. Functional health knowledge about a nutritious breakfast made with three food groups should be further aligned with functional health literacy skills of speaking and writing in multimodal ways in order to improve health behaviors. Inventive spellings demonstrated a developmental step in learning a vocabulary in a new domain. Use of written words and pictures reflected a positive way to learn health and nutrition, because children represented their understanding in more than one way. RECOMMENDATIONS: By adding fruit to the breakfasts of children who participated in the lessons, almost one-half of the children would be able to increase their consumption from two food groups to three food groups when consuming an ideal breakfast. Future work should elaborate on the role of interactive health literacy in school and home contexts when children are learning about breakfast eating and food groups. Future integration of the MyPlate food model with the National Health Education Standards can foster new classroom assessments that will support students to practice observable nutrition behaviors that can lead to consistent health habits for personal, family, and school health.

Examining the influence of professional development on tutors’ teaching philosophies

ABSTRACT This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study examining the influence of professional development (PD) on tutors’ teaching philosophies. It found that tutors construe their role in three ways: as transmitter, facilitator, or reflexive practitioner. The findings suggest most tutors, prior to a PD program, hold a teacher-focused conception of teaching and learning (that is, as transmitter) but shift toward a student-oriented conception following the completion of the PD program (facilitators or reflexive practitioners). Epistemic shifts among tutors were attributed to three specific features of the PD program: workshops, peer mentoring, and peer networking. This study provides insights into PD features that cultivate student-oriented teaching philosophies reflecting contemporary pedagogical strategies that promote experiential and constructivist teaching approaches.

Effects of Constructivist teaching Approach on Secondary School Students’ Geography Achievement in Jos North LGA of Plateau State, Nigeria

The study has investigated the effects of a Constructivist Instructional Approach on senior secondary (ii) school students’ geography achievement in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria. The study adopted the Quasi-experimental research design and random sampling method to select the sample of 110 students from the population of 859. The sample consisted of 46 students in the experimental group, 22 male and 24 females, and 64 students in the control 41 male and 23 females. Intact classes of two schools were used for the study. The research instrument was the Geography Achievement Test (GAT) that was adopted from the past questions of WAEC and NECO SSCE 2015 Gat was validated by three experts from the University of Jos in the department of science and technology education. A reliability coefficient of 0.73 was established through the Guttman split-half coefficient using SPSS 22. Two research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while the null hypotheses were tested at α 0.05 level of significance using t-test, ANOVA and ANCOVA. Findings from the study revealed that there was a significant difference in the posttest score of the experimental and control group, in favour of the experimental group. The null hypothesis was rejected because (p ≤ 0.05). Furthermore, the study revealed that there was no significant score difference between male and female students of the experimental group that received the treatment on constructivist learning approaches. Based on the outcomes of the study, few recommendations were made.

A constructivist approach to teaching scientific content to university students

The constructivist approach to acquiring new knowledge has very much been appreciated by foreign language practitioners for optimal learning. The E-Model, developed by Atkins & Karplus (1962) as a research-based approach implies that the learners construct new knowledge on their own (Lynch, 2017). The present paper then suggests the implementation of the instructional E-Model in teaching scientific content to Master students through a Self-Directed Approach. The study is exploratory and experimental in its scope and aims at unleashing university students’ desire to construct new knowledge through a reflective model composed of a set of stages: engagement, exploration, explanation, elaboration, and evaluation. Participant observation was used as a tool to obtain qualitative data. The findings demonstrated that the E-Model was effective as a constructivist teaching approach for a great majority of the students, and this was reflected through their skills in presenting and manipulating new information. In addition to their cognitive development, the students’ self-confidence and self-esteem were very much enhanced.