Constructivist Teaching Methods Research Articles

A Study on the Application of Constructivist Theory in School Piano Teaching and Performance

This study investigates the application of constructivist theory in piano teaching at two music schools in China. The results reveal widespread utilization of constructivist teaching methods, such as activating prior knowledge, creating cognitive dissonance, and providing feedback. Piano teachers encountered challenges related to prior knowledge, dependency on rote learning, and inconsistent student engagement. Recommendations include encouraging students' independent exploration, promoting collaborative learning, employing multimodal strategies, and offering positive feedback. The application of constructivist theory in music education is expected to significantly transform the approach to nurturing the next generation of musical prodigies.

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.

A Study of Learning Progression in Science of Class IX Students of Balangir District, Odisha

A Study of Learning Progression in Science of Class IX Students of Balangir District, Odisha

Effect of Using the Constructivist Teaching Method on Creative Thinking and Entrepreneurship

Background: The process of entrepreneurship and creativity are the main current principles in human life at the beginning of the third millennium AD; therefore, it is considered one of the most important goals of educational organizations. Preparing students to enter society effectively will not be provided unless creativity is cultivated among them. Therefore, the present study was conducted to use the effect of the constructivist teaching method on students’ creative thinking and entrepreneurship.
 Methods: In this interventional study, 40 female students in sixth grade were selected by available sampling and randomly divided into two groups of 20 (20 in the intervention group and 20 in the control group). Then, the intervention group was given the necessary training for 5 one-hour sessions. The investigated variables were collected from demographic questionnaires, Abedi’s creativity, and Lumpkin and Dess’s tendency to entrepreneurship through pre-test and post-test. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software (version 25) and descriptive statistical methods of covariance test.
 Results: In terms of parents’ education level and household income, no difference was observed between the two groups (P > 0.05). The average score of creative thinking in the intervention group increased from 67.55 before the intervention to 75.75 after the intervention; however, in the control group, the average score decreased from 20.68 in the pre-test to 55.61 in the post-test. Additionally, the average score of entrepreneurial tendency in the intervention group increased from 43.75 before the intervention to 54.50 after the intervention; however, in the control group, the average score increased from 40.10 to 42.50.
 Conclusions: The constructivist teaching method plays a significant role in the learning approach. In addition, the use of this method can be effective in increasing the tendency to entrepreneurship. Considering the importance of entrepreneurship, teaching constructivist courses in universities and schools is appropriate.

Using simulations to meld didactic and constructivist teaching methods in complex second year STEM courses

ABSTRACT This paper explores the effective development and use of interactive simulations as a learning tool, integrating didactic and active approaches with complex laboratory and lecture content in undergraduate biochemistry and immunology courses. University science courses require students to master vast quantities of foundational knowledge that is commonly taught using didactic approaches. Over time, students are required to become more active and teaching approaches become more student-centred, extending students’ application of knowledge, critical thinking, and creativity which relies on a student’s ability to recall knowledge. Identifying the right timing and means for shifting from didactic approaches toward an active approach is critical for maintaining student interest and extending their learning. Active learning can transform the perception of a given subject, phenomenon, or experience, allowing students to engage meaningfully and deeply with critical and complex ideas. This paper demonstrates how active approaches to learning through simulations have been effectively used to reinforce threshold concepts in laboratory and lecture settings and the impact on student learning is discussed.

Socially Distant Social Constructivism: Transitioning Visual Arts Pedagogies Online During COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic, and the emergency pivot to online learning that this health crisis prompted, has inevitably impacted teaching and learning across all study disciplines in higher education. This article presents a case study conducted by tertiary visual arts educators who shifted their social constructivist teaching methods from the face-to-face classroom to the online setting during the first wave of the pandemic in Australia. In exploring the challenges and opportunities posed by this transition, this article outlines the affordances and limitations of the digital learning tools employed by the teaching staff within a pilot study. The success of this pilot was measured through data analytics, student surveys, and teacher observations and reflections. Based on the findings, the researchers propose several ways visual arts education can be adapted online, while still maintaining the integrity of the discipline and its concomitant pedagogies.

Thinking em processos de ensino-aprendizagem na contemporaneidade

Teaching has always appropriated concepts from antiquity to develop its pedagogical methods. Contemporary society has had changes in social life and human interaction, the emergence of new technologies and the connected world has developed generations that need other forms of information in addition to traditional ones. This factor creates the need to develop new teaching methods, using new tools to improve the pedagogical forms of learning. The present work seeks to present methods that help the reflection on the current methods of education presenting new forms of approach such as Design Thinking and the constructivist teaching method. For this, it uses several scientific publications that have already been validated and proven, drawing a parallel with the possible applications of methods in teaching. These encourage new content and complex interrelationships of information among teachers, providing group problem solving and receiving feedback on the results obtained, allowing new learning processes.

Проектният подход в обучението по информатика – пример с реализация и използване на библиотека за аритметика с рационални числа

Project-Based Learning (PBL) has long been a well-known and widely used constructivist teaching method in various fields, in which students learn by taking active part in real-world and personally meaningful projects. When it comes to teaching Computer Science, developing software projects is a natural implementation of this pedagogical method. In this paper, the authors share their experience of adapting a project they have used for several years in undergraduate student training to the high school course in Computer Science. Emphasis has been placed on interactive teaching methods in the classroom and the interdisciplinary connection with mathematics. The achieved results have been analysed.

A constructivist approach to teaching patients with heart failure: results from an intervention study.

Despite published guidelines emphasizing the importance of education in the management of heart failure (HF), the most effective method of education remains unknown. The aim of this study was to test the efficacy of constructivist teaching method (CTM) on the patients with HF. This is a single-centre, randomized controlled trial. Patients in the intervention group were educated using the CTM in five phases: orientation, elicitation, restructuring, application, and review. The duration of intervention was 6 months. For the study outcome measures, five questionnaires were used: Atlanta Heart Failure Knowledge Test (AHFK), Minnesota Living with Heart Failure (HMLHFQ), Self-Efficacy for Appropriate Medication Use Scale (SEAMS), European Heart Failure Self-care Behaviour Scale (EHFScBS-9), and Duke Activity Status Index (DASI). A total of 122 adults (83.6% male, mean age ± standard deviation 67.1 ± 12.3 years) were enrolled in the study; 61 in the intervention group and 61 in the control group. At 6 months, the knowledge, the quality of life, the self-efficacy for appropriate medication use, the self-care behaviour, and the activity were improved in both groups but the degree of change was greater in the intervention group as indicated from the results of repeated measurements analysis of variance (P < 0.001). Significantly lower proportion of readmission at hospital at 1 month (8.2% vs. 23%, P = 0.025), and 6 months (13.1% vs. 36.1%, P = 0.003) were found for the intervention group. Training of HF patients through the CTM helps effectively manage the disease while significantly reducing hospital readmissions due to decompensation.

Refletindo sobre os métodos de alfabetização na construção do conhecimento

O presente artigo foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de compreender como os métodos podem contribuir com o processo de alfabetização desenvolvido em sala de aula, visando assim, discutir qual a melhor metodologia para ser privilegiada no trabalho realizado com os educandos das séries iniciais. Para subsidiar os fundamentos teóricos buscou-se compreender os conceitos de alfabetização, de método, assim como discutir sobre as correntes pedagógicas tradicional e construtivista, focando nos métodos sintético, analítico e as ideias de Paulo Freire e Emília Ferreiro, os quais defendem a alfabetização construtivista. A investigação foi realizada a partir de observações e vivências em sala de aula da Escola Municipal Vale do Guaporé, localizada na zona rural do Município de Vila Bela da Santíssima Trindade-MT, onde durante três meses os pesquisadores observaram as práticas e dialogaram com os professores alfabetizadores da escola. A abordagem metodológica contemplada na pesquisa foi uma investigação qualitativa e a revisão bibliográfica, as quais possibilitaram levantar informações acerca do tema. O seu referencial teórico está pautado em: Freire, (1980, 2000, 2001), Kato, (1999), Barbosa (1994), Silva (1981), Corrêa (2000), Soares (1998), Ferreiro (1987). Assim, o resultado apresentou indícios de que bons métodos são fundamentais na prática de alfabetizando pois contribuem para a aprendizagem dos educandos. É importante afirmar que além da escolha de um bom método, estes precisam ser bem pensados, planejados e organizados, além de contar com o acompanhamento da aprendizagem das crianças. A partir da pesquisa observou-se que é preciso investir em métodos de ensino construtivista, oportunizando que a alfabetização seja ativa, eficiente e contemple efetivamente as crianças, além disso, destaca-se também a necessidade de investir em estudos e diálogos sobre os métodos construtivistas, pois os professores demonstram fragilidades na compreensão dos mesmos.

Enabling IT Self-leadership in Online Education

Aim/Purpose: This paper investigates the factors contributing to student IT self-leadership in online education using an exploratory study. Specifically, our goal was to understand whether the instructors’ transformational IT leadership and the students’ personal innovativeness with IT contributed to student IT self-leadership. Background: The study was conducted in an online course. While today’s students are expected to be IT natives, they still lack the skills to find and learn technologies on their own. This is problematic for both online education and students’ future careers. Directed-teaching methods are not appropriate to solve this kind of problem, a more constructivist teaching method is appropriate. We recommend that instructors adopt transformational IT leadership to set norms around technology use, to be role models in using online course technologies with utmost knowledge, and to encourage and support the students in their use of IT. Methodology: An exploratory research is conducted with 46 students in an online management information systems course at a public university. The data were analyzed using PLS structural equation modeling technique. Contribution: This paper introduces the unique concepts of student IT self-leadership and instructors’ transformational IT leadership by adapting concepts from the self-leadership and transformational leadership theories. IT self-leadership refers to the ability to intentionally influence one’s own thinking, feeling, and actions toward the use of IT to reach one’s work and life goals. To increase IT self-leadership, students should try new technologies as much as possible. Instructors should set up norms about trying new technologies, troubleshooting one’s own issues, and play a supportive and encouraging role, rather than employing directed-teaching methods. Findings: IT self-leadership skills are the ability to intentionally influence one’s own thinking, feeling and actions towards the use of IT to reach one’s work and life goals. The findings show that instructors’ transformational IT leadership as well as students’ innovativeness with IT contributes to students’ IT self-leadership. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners may consider exhibiting transformational IT leadership skills including (1) giving encouragement about IT use, (2) fostering trust, (3) encouraging thinking about IT problems in new ways, (4) being clear about their values about IT by practicing what they preach in their IT use, and (5) inspiring students by being highly competent in IT. Potential ways that the instructors can exhibit these skills are discussed in the paper. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers are recommended to include IT-self leadership of both students and instructors in their investigations on learning success. Furthermore, the inclusion of transformational IT leadership in new studies of teaching and learning success is recommended. Impact on Society: This paper includes students as part of the solution to challenges students face in online courses rather than treating them like passive recipients of educational changes. Thereby, it helps teachers and students to work together for a better solution to educational disruptions. Future Research: Studies should be conducted to determine other antecedents and outcomes of IT self-leadership. Research is needed on specific ways practitioners can increase their IT transformational leadership. While this paper introduced how the instructor of the exploratory study provided transformational IT leadership, more than one way of reaching each goal was practiced. Future research should test the connection between each transformational IT leadership behavior presented here and its outcome.

The Effect of Appling Constructivist Teaching Methods on Children Ability in Critical Thinking.

The Effect of Appling Constructivist Teaching Methods on Children Ability in Critical Thinking.

K.A.P.S.: A Disaster Training Approach for High-Risk Communities

Communities along the US Gulf Coast are at high risk of natural and human-caused hazards. We developed a disaster training designed to increase Knowledge, Attitude, Preparedness, and Skills (K.A.P.S). We held a series of six identical training sessions in Geismar, Louisiana, a community that faces multiple hazards. Residents (n = 34) were trained using a community-tailored approach that combined constructivist (hands-on) and traditional (lecture) methods of instruction. Pre-test and post-test surveys demonstrated that the instructional content was effective (p &lt; .01), and that individual preparedness knowledge increased significantly because of the constructivist teaching approach (p &lt; .05). The results indicate that this high-hazard setting called for more extensive instructional content, constructivist teaching methods, and the inclusion of residents at all education levels.

The missing link in teachers’ knowledge about common fractions division

ABSTRACTThe current study explored the difficulties teachers encounter when teaching common fractions division, focusing on teachers’ knowledge concerning this issue. Nine teachers who study towards a M.Ed. degree in mathematics education demonstrated the algorithms they apply in order to solve fractions division problems, described how they teach the subject, and attempted to explain a student's mistake, in understanding a word problem involving dividing by fraction. The findings indicate there is a missing link in the teachers’ pedagogical capability, stemming from insufficient content knowledge. They presented different solution algorithms and reported using constructivist teaching methods, yet the methods they described couldn't lead a student to understand the logic behind the algorithm they teach (invert-and-multiply – multiplication by an inverse number, in accordance with the requirements of the curriculum). Furthermore, the participating teachers did not possess specialized mathematics content knowledge (SCK) and knowledge of content and students (KCS), enabling them to identify the source of a student's misconception.

Tablets in Primary Schools

This article presents the results of a short project in which tablets were used for teaching the respiratory, circulatory, and digestive systems to 162 sixth-grade primary school students who were divided into three groups. The first group was taught conventionally using a textbook, while in the second a constructivist teaching method was applied and the teachers actively participated in the process. The third group was also taught using the same constructivist teaching method, but the instruction was technologically enhanced with tablets and an application with augmented reality features. Data was collected by means of evaluation sheets and a questionnaire. The results indicated that students in the third group outperformed students in the other two groups. As for students' misconceptions, the only notable difference was between the third and first group. These results can be attributed to students' strong positive attitude towards the use of tablets, motivation, and enjoyment, as well as to the teaching method. The study's implications are also discussed.

The complex zone of constructivist teaching: a multi-case exploration in primary classrooms

This case study investigates the variety of constructivist approaches to teaching evident in classroom practice. Teaching practices associated with constructivist perspectives have been prevalent in curriculum reforms for some time. Meanwhile, constructivist approaches have been critically discussed in scholarly literature, revealing problematic and ambiguous aspects. This study introduces a model describing constructivist teaching practices according to the following dimensions: knowledge structuring activities, exercise of student autonomy, organisation of authentic learning environments and problem-oriented learning activities. This model is used to analyse the classroom practice of five primary teachers using video recordings. The results of this analysis suggest that the teaching approaches differed primarily in the degree of student autonomy allowed, so that either more comprehensive constructivist teaching methods or rather minor constructivist teaching techniques were emphasised. The distinction between constructivist teaching methods and constructivist teaching techniques is suggested as an explanation of the observed variation among constructivist approaches to teaching. This study identifies the characteristics of these teaching practices, helping researchers and teachers to articulate more nuanced teaching approaches in the future.

Investigating Flipped Learning: Student Self-Regulated Learning, Perceptions, and Achievement in an Introductory Biology Course

In flipped classrooms, lectures, which are normally delivered in-class, are assigned as homework in the form of videos, and assignments that were traditionally assigned as homework, are done as learning activities in class. It was hypothesized that the effectiveness of the flipped model hinges on a student’s desire and ability to adopt a self-directed learning style. The purpose of this study was twofold; it aimed at examining the relationship between two variables—students’ perceptions of the flipped model and their self-regulated learning (SRL) behaviors—and the impact that these variables have on achievement in a flipped class. For the study, 76 participants from a flipped introductory biology course were asked about their SRL strategy use and perceptions of the flipped model. SRL strategy use was measured using a modified version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ; Wolters et al. 2005), while the flipped perceptions survey was newly derived. Student letter grades were collected as a measure of achievement. Through regression analysis, it was found that students’ perceptions of the flipped model positively predict students’ use of several types of SRL strategies. However, the data did not indicate a relationship between student perceptions and achievement, neither directly nor indirectly, through SRL strategy use. Results suggest that flipped classrooms demonstrate their successes in the active learning sessions through constructivist teaching methods. Video lectures hold an important role in flipped classes, however, students may need to practice SRL skills to become more self-directed and effectively learn from them.

The Use of Collaboration, Authentic Learning, Linking Material to Personal Knowledge, and Technology in the Constructivist Classroom: Interviews with Community College Faculty Members

ABSTRACTThis study explored how faculty members implemented constructivist teaching methods after training. The student-centered teaching methods were interactions and collaborations, authentic learning and real-world experiences, linking material to previously learned information, and using technology in the classroom. Seven faculty members trained in student-centered teaching methods by the professional development department at a community college were interviewed. Interviews were supplemented with teacher-generated documents and classroom observations. All reported implementing the recommended practices in the classrooms, both online and in traditional face-to-face classrooms.

The Three Pigs: Can They Blow Us Into Critical Media Literacy Old School Style?

ABSTRACTIn this article, the authors show how groups of 2nd- and 4th-grade students in an urban school district responded to a postmodern children’s book, The Three Pigs by David Wiesner (2001). The students came to the project from basal-based direct instruction, and here they were offered a more constructivist opportunity to engage with a text. The authors found that this text afforded the students with opportunities for discussion and thus were able to hone critical literacy skills, which correspond with critical media literacy concepts and new expectations within the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The authors also make the case that these texts can be especially useful in settings still lacking sophisticated technologies. Thus, students can still gain complex literacy concepts despite a school’s limited resources. What they find then is that students gain conceptual depth from postmodern children’s literature using constructivist teaching methods.

Constructivism Learning: A Way to Make Knowledge Construction

Constructivism is an epistemological view of knowledge acquisition which emphasize on the active role of the learners in the construction of knowledge and interpretation of reality. This paper describes about the constructivist teaching learning process on the way to construction of understanding. It demonstrates how learners construct their own knowledge and making sense of information in a constructivist classroom. It also pays focus on the importance of constructivist teaching methods and the teaching–learning environment of constructivist classroom with the changing roles of students and teachers in the class room.