What role should the teacher play in the classroom when using the constructivist approach?

CONSTRUCTIVISM IN SCHOOLS:

IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMMES

Ms Sonal Chabra*, Ms Chetna* & Dr. Manorama Mathur**

Education bears the impact of the newer developments in allied fields like psychology, cognitive learning, philosophy and others. Constructivism is undoubtedly a main theoretical influence in contemporary teaching-learning practices. Some would say it is the major influence. Constructivism seemingly fits in with, and supports, a range of multicultural, and broadly reformist programmes in education.  Although constructivism began as a theory of learning, it has progressively expanded its dominion, becoming a theory of teaching, a theory of education, a theory of the origin of ideas, and a theory of both personal knowledge and scientific knowledge.  Indeed constructivism has become education’s version of the ‘grand unified theory’. 

Historical figures like Immanuel Kant, John Dewey, Piaget, Vygotsky, Bruner and others have influenced the premise of constructivism. Various notions of constructivism have been prevalent in the academic circle. In simple words, constructivism is a theory of knowledge which argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning from their experiences. Scholars view constructivist learning as an active process where learners should learn to discover principles, concepts and facts for themselves. Knowledge is thus a product of humans and is socially and culturally constructed. Learning is not a process that only takes place inside our minds, nor is it a passive development of our behaviours that is shaped by external forces and that meaningful learning occurs when individuals are engaged in social activities. This means that the learning experience is both subjective and objective and requires that the culture, values and background become an essential part in the shaping of meaning. Constructivism advocates learner-centred, activity-centred interactive pedagogical approach. Constructivism thus emphasizes the importance of the learner being actively involved in the learning process, unlike previous educational viewpoints where the responsibility rested with the instructor to teach and where the learner played a passive, receptive role.

In past centuries, constructivist ideas were not widely valued due to the perception that children's play was aimless and of little importance. However, Jean Piaget differed from these traditional views. He saw play as an important and necessary part of the student's cognitive development and provided scientific evidence for his views. Hence, formalization of the theory of constructivism is generally attributed to him, who articulated mechanisms by which knowledge is internalized by learners. He suggested that through processes of accommodation and assimilation, individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences. It is important to appreciate that constructivism is not a particular pedagogy. In fact, constructivism is a theory describing how learning happens, regardless of whether learners are using their experiences to understand a lecture or following the instructions.

Brooks and Brooks (1993) clearly state that "in order for learning to take place in schools, teachers must become constructivist, that is, in the classroom, they must provide a learning environment where students search for meaning, appreciate uncertainty, and inquire responsibly." The NCF (National Curriculum Framework) 2000 and 2005 by NCERT strongly support the constructivist and learner-centred approach in school education. The premise of constructivism is not just an ideal or purely normative theory: it purports to give scientific guidance about human learning and the process of knowledge production; and philosophical guidance about the epistemological status of what is being learned. With constructivism in classrooms at school level, it leaves a lot of changes in the role the teacher has to play in such a setting. 

Changing role of teacher in the constructivist learning process

It has been well accepted that the role of teacher changes in the constructivist classrooms. The teacher would move from the role of instructor to the role of facilitator on the continuum of teaching. Where the instructor gives a didactic lecture which covers the subject matter, a facilitator helps the learner to get to his or her own understanding of the content. In the former scenario the learner plays a passive role and in the latter scenario the learner plays an active role in the learning process. The emphasis thus turns away from the instructor and the content, and towards the learner (Gamoran, Secada, & Marrett, 1998). This dramatic change of role implies that a facilitator needs to display a totally different set of skills than a teacher (Brownstein 2001). A teacher tells, a facilitator asks; a teacher lectures from the front, a facilitator supports from the back; a teacher gives answers according to a set curriculum, a facilitator provides guidelines and creates the environment for the learner to arrive at his or her own conclusions; a teacher mostly gives a monologue, a facilitator is in continuous dialogue with the learners (Rhodes and Bellamy, 1999). A facilitator should also be able to adapt the learning experience ‘in mid-air’ by using his or her own initiative in order to steer the learning experience to where the learners want to create value. A further characteristic of the role of the facilitator in the social constructivist viewpoint, is that the instructor and the learners are equally involved in learning from each other as well (Holt and Willard-Holt 2000). Learners compare their version of the truth with that of the instructor and fellow learners in order to get to a new, socially tested version of truth. The task or problem is thus the interface between the instructor and the learner. This creates a dynamic interaction between task, instructor and learner. This entails that learners and instructors should develop an awareness of each other's viewpoints and then look to their own beliefs, standards and values, thus being both subjective and objective at the same time. The teachers have to sometimes assume the role of a escort keeping in mind the importance of mentoring in the process of learning. David Jonassen identified three major roles for facilitators to support students in constructivist learning environments: Modeling, Coaching and Scaffolding. The role of the teacher is to organise information around conceptual framework of problems, questions, and discrepant situations. The most essential and indispensable role of the teacher is to try to understand his students and to help each one in his growth and development.

Skills expected from a constructivist teacher

In light of the changing role of the teacher in the constructivist classroom, it would be wise to pen down at one place, the skills and qualities expected from such a teacher. Teaching based on constructivist principles is demanding and requires a great deal of expertise. It opens new approaches as well as challenges for teachers trying to implement it. The learner centred approach does not reduce the importance of teachers. On the other hand, their role becomes more complex, difficult and pivotal. The superlative quality for a constructivist teacher to have is the ‘instantaneous and intuitive vision of the pupils’ mind as it goes gropes and fumbles to grasp a new idea’ (Brooks and Brooks, 1993). They have to get prepared for this new responsibility by creating insights, outlooks and competencies. Teachers have to play a catalytic role.

In most pedagogies based on constructivism, the teacher's role is not only to observe and assess but to also engage with the students while they are completing activities, wondering aloud and posing questions to the students for promotion of reasoning (DeVries et al., 2002). The teacher should thus have the corresponding skills. Putting it all together, different constructivist approaches recommend that educators:

♦   Embed learning in complex, realistic and relevant learning environments.

♦   Provide for social negotiation and shared responsibility as a part of learning.

♦   Support multiple perspectives and use multiple representations of content.

♦   Nurture self-awareness and an understanding that knowledge is constructed and

♦   Encourage ownership in learning (Driscoll, 2000).

The teachers should have a whole bunch of skills to encourage students to take initiative for their own learning. To sum it up, the qualities, capacities and skills that should be exhibited by a constructivist teacher are:

(a) A spontaneous but well-cultivated interest in observing students with deep insight and sympathy;

(b) Psychological tact to deal with collective and individual needs of growth of students;

(c) Capacity to lead students to the art of self- learning;

(d) A cheerful and enthusiastic disposition capable of inspiring students to pursue their work with sincerity and dedication;

(e) Capacity of guiding and counselling, more by suggesting and by uplifting example rather than by lecturing;

(g) Capacity to handle self-learning equipment, audio- visual instruments and various kinds of new learning materials including work sheets, workbooks, programmed books, test papers with auto-correcting components and other materials required, for vocational guiadnce;

(h) Knowledge of art and science of educating the personality in all its aspects with a special emphasis on integration, harmony and excellence.

(i)  The teachers should be well versed with instructional methods like problem-solving, inquiry training, discovery method and other teaching schemes.

How would teacher education programs adapt to constructivist expectations?

While it may inform and influence practice, constructivism is a theory of learning, not a theory of teaching (Wolffe & McMullen, 1996), and translating theory to practice is both difficult and imprecise (MacKinnon & Scarf-Seatter, 1997). However, education literature documents several large- and small-scale efforts to do so. These efforts need to be organized so that consequential steps can be taken in the direction. The first target group which needs to be focused is the teachers. It is a topic of discussion at different platforms that teachers should adapt to this changing expectations. It is the teacher education programs which hold the responsibility of preparing teachers, hence it becomes the accountability of teacher education programs to instill these skills in our teachers both through pre-service and in-service education. Consequently, a constructivist approach to teacher education is needed so that students in schools can develop problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. To promote constructivism in schools, pre-service teachers must engage in constructivist processes throughout their education. Following paragraphs highlight the adaptations in the teacher education programmes that can be made to arrange constructivist teachers for our children in their classrooms.

Constructivism and objectives: The focus of the teacher education programmes should be to make the p teachers ready to rethink and change the criteria and basic situation of the teaching profession, in which the job of educating and stimulating students is steadily superseding that of simply giving instructions. The teacher trainees should be taught to take responsibility of their own learning. Another key to a successful transition to a constructivist classroom involves helping teachers trainees rethink the source and role of authority within a class structure. The objective should be to make the prospective teachers realize that teachers and learners are partners in the process and teaching cannot be viewed as the transmission of knowledge from enlightened to unenlightened. Efforts should be made in these programs to help teacher education students deconstruct their own prior knowledge and attitudes, comprehend how these understandings evolved, explore the effects they have on actions and behavior, and consider alternate conceptions and premises that may be more serviceable in teaching.

Constructivism and program design: The first realization in designing a constructivist program is that it takes time for students to actually address their beliefs and construct new insights. For many teacher preparation programs, the first move should be to increase the course time and spacing of program components. Far too often teacher preparation methods courses take place for a few weeks, and the students are moved immediately into teaching practice. Different practicals should be given due attention because their absence leaves students with an information base without context. The whole program should be based on situated learning. Situated learning is where the student takes part in activities which are directly relevant to the application of learning and which take place within a culture similar to the applied setting. The knowledge given should not be decontextualised because of it obvious limitations.

Constructivism and teaching methods: Teacher education programs should teach prospective teachers how to teach in a constructivist, generally Piagetian, manner. They should be characterized by substantial direct instruction in theory and practice, and complementary opportunities for inquiry, discovery, or self-examination. This approach should not become overly prescriptive. If this occurs, the teacher educator models an approach to teaching that is essentially antithetical to the approach student teachers are intended to employ in their future classrooms. Teacher educators' should model constructivist approaches and should combine lectures with seminars, tutorials, demonstrations, exhibitions and individualised guidance so as to make the process of training as effective as possible. The different methods involved should entail dynamic interaction between task, instructor and learner. These could be in the form of reciprocal teaching (two learners teach  each other), critical explorations, tutoring, cognitively guided instruction, anchored instruction, cognitive apprenticeship, problem-based instruction, web quests, and similar approaches that involve learning with others. Constructivist approaches can also be used in online learning. For example, tools such as discussion forums, wikis and blogs can enable learners to actively construct knowledge.

Constructivism and learning environment: It has been recommended that the conditions in which teachers are trained should be profoundly changed so that, essentially, they become educators rather then mere specialists in transmitting pre-established curricula. It has been underlined that the teaching profession will not be in a position to fulfill its role in the future unless it is given, and develops itself, a structure better adapted to modern educational systems. The learning environment should be so designed so as to support and challenge the learner's thinking. While it is advocated to give the learner ownership of the problem and solution process, it is not the case that any activity or any solution is adequate. The critical goal is to support the learner in becoming an effective thinker. This can be achieved by providing a stimulating learning environment. Highlighting the importance of the learning environment Albert Einstein said “ I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.”

Constructivism and the role of practicum: Early and frequent practicum experiences are crucial to a constructivist teacher preparation program. More and more, programs are recognizing the tremendous and essential value of these experiences as they see the results of constructed understanding in context. This contextual understanding can only develop when pre-service teachers re-enter this familiar world, no longer as a student but as a prospective teacher. The process of revisiting challenges many of their pre-conceived ideas and adds real-world experience, through practicum, to aid in constructing new understandings of teaching and learning.

Constructivism and methods classes: The methods classes are an essential part of the teacher training programmes. These must encourage student-to-student interaction, initiating lessons that foster cooperative learning, and provide opportunities for students to be exposed to interdisciplinary curriculum. May be the biggest shift is for students to understand that they are ultimately responsible for their own learning and that this constructivist climate has been established to facilitate their growth. Teachers as facilitators and guides cannot solve problems with mechanistic ‘cook book’ recipes. Therefore a constructivist teacher preparation program, must work at the interface of curriculum and student to bring them together in a way that is meaningful to the learner. The methods instructor must model the process of effective questioning and reflection. Only when the teacher exposes their personal search for hidden biases and models these internal struggles can students begin their own personal questioning of deeply held teaching beliefs.

Constructivism and assessment: The pattern of assessment should be seen as a continuous and interactive process that measures the achievement of the learner, the quality of the learning experience and courseware. The feedback created by the assessment process should serve as a direct foundation for further development.. Critical analysis and structured reflection on formal course knowledge and everyday practical experience should be incorporated in the learning and evaluated in some form.

Challenges For Teacher Educators

The overarching challenge constructivism presents to teachers and teacher educators is the formidable task of translating a learning theory into a theory of teaching (MacKinnon & Scarff-Seatter, 1997). For teacher educators, among other tasks, this involves balancing the need to acknowledge the different discipline-specific requirements of teaching with the need to model constructivist methods in teacher education courses and practicum. Next is the shift from single perspective mindedness to a multi-perspective teaching that values students' understandings at the expense of "right" answers, required from the teacher educators. At times it may become difficult for them to accept idiosyncratic student knowledge; 30 different students may arrive at 30 different understandings or interpretations of a concept. Thirdly, the teacher educators need to become constructivist themselves. To become a constructivist is to use constructivism as a referent for thoughts and actions. For a variety of reasons this process is not easy. Besides, the constructivist teaching methods need to be aptly used. Inappropriately applied, constructivist approaches may lead to the "abandonment" style of teaching (MacKinnon & Scarff-Seatter, 1997). Constructivist teaching methods should not become unguided methods of instruction. The concern would be how a teacher applies constructivist teaching techniques. Martin (1994) and Vadeboncoeur (1997) urge teacher educators to deconstruct and scrutinize cultural assumptions that underlie various interpretations of constructivism to expose how social beliefs have influenced the development of theory and practices. A final challenge faced by educators is the pitfall of regarding constructivism as the only viable theoretical framework for teaching and learning. It is one way of thinking about how knowledge and understanding are formed, but it is not the only way. There are various interpretations of constructivism but these are not necessarily incompatible with one another.

Conclusion

Constructivism has been welcomed as a theory of knowing that fully explains the dynamics of teaching-learning process. Adopting constructivism accentuates the need to redefine the role of teacher in the classroom. It has, therefore, been recommended that teacher training programmes should be so modified that teachers are equipped for the different roles and functions imposed by new constructs and technologies. A training programme is needed for both pre-service and in-service teachers on theoretical and practical knowledge about this approach. The process of learning and constructing knowledge does not end with the “bell rings” or the end of the course, but rather is an ongoing process throughout the teachers’ candidates career. Constructivist teacher preparation programs are intentionally designed to be transformational, not just informational. Students are constantly given opportunities to make new connections in a setting focusing on personal empowerment and critical reflection. The program challenges both students and teachers to move toward self-directed life-long learning. Most educators would agree that the basic tenets of constructivism describe the way we have "always known that people learn." Still some teachers resist constructivist pedagogy Brooks and Brooks (1993) suggest that resistance to constructivism is due to one of the three factors: teachers are committed to their present instructional approach, convinced that students will not learn, or they are uncomfortable giving up control.

In closing, it must be appreciated that at times, different things tried in this course ultimately will not work and there will be failures. But please remember that if we intend to increase our successes, we must create a climate where failure is not only okay, but expected from time to time.

References

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Vadeboncoeur, J. (1997). Child development and the purpose of education: A historical context for constructivism in teacher education. In V. Richardson (Ed.), Constructivist teacher education: Building new understandings  (pp. 15-37). Washington, DC: Falmer Press.

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