My ideas on education and the ways in which i think students learn best would have to be aligned with the constructivist theory. So what does that really mean in regards to classroom learning? Well i guess that the best environment i see for students to learn in is with them using what they have learnt so far to help them to construct new knowledge. Allowing students to experiment for themselves and focus on problem solving activities to achieve learning are some of the ways to help students become self constructing learners. By allowing students to formulate their own questions (inquiry), the teacher allows them todiscover their own way in learning a particular thing. Along with that its is essential for students to talk about their learning and think about how their learning or understanings of things change.
This isn’t to say that the teacher does not have a very important role to play,the teacher still needs to be there as a facilitator and to ensure students are on the right track.
So where does ICT fit in will all of this? I guess it is important to let students get out there and discover somethings for themselves. This involves setting tasks using technology and not restricting the students on what exactly they have to do. There is so much to learn in regards to using technology that it would be impossible for the teacher to simply tell students about it. If the teacher can simply give guidance and alllow students to work through it and construct their own meanings, than learning has got to be more beneficial!
<object width=”425″ height=”344″><param name=”movie” value=”http://
Hi Lew,
I really like the idea of the constructivist theory. I totally agree with what you said about children using their prior knowledge to help them learn more and gain more knowledge. I also believe that children learn a lot through problem solving which does help them to become self constructing learners. In my teaching pedagogy i wrote that I believe students learn better through group work, classroom discussions, self discovery and hands on learning experiences. I think this deals a lot with constructivist theory as self discovery and group work doesn’t have a lot of teacher involvement but rather seeing the Students work things out on their own.