In they marched… one holding a shoe box, one with a poster board, one with a shoe box attached to a poster board all for display about the school for their peers to marvel over. WHY all the fuss? WHAT exactly was in the shoe box and what tiny items were affixed on the giant poster board? The wonderments would be explained soon enough… Were these creations examples of Constructivism or were they models of Constructionism? Time, and the student’s, would tell soon enough!
Constructivism -a theory of knowledge stating that each individual actively constructs his/her own meaning of what something is (LAUREATE, Inc. 2009). According to Dr. Michael Orey, Constructionism is “a theory of learning that states people learn best when they build an external artifact or something they can share with others.” The 4th grade students that attend my school had the chance to exhibit both while meeting state standards.
Georgia Standard SS4H1 (b) requires the student describe the culture of early Native American in North America including how American Indians “used their environment to obtain food, clothing, and shelter” (GA DOE, 2007). Following the unit study of Native Americans in North America each student is responsible for creating their own representation of a Native American family complete with its environment. The student is equipped with a rubric and ample resources for their depiction. Their project brings their study from Constructivism to Constructionism.
The shoe box/poster board project was far more than craft supplies; it was a learning experience that, in my opinion, will never be forgotten. While the student’s participated in class discussion, appeared to enjoy videos shown on the large interactive screen, and remained active participants in two-way dialogue, demeanors and attire drastically improved on presentation day. The facts that the projects were student created and to be shared gave a sense of ownership and pride, which was an unforeseen, yet refreshing, change. All in all, it was apparent the Constructionist theory, building or real world connection, was a success for these 4th grade students.
Approaches and theories to learning are formerly being tested by the likes of Drs. Piaget and Skinner and so forth, but we as teachers have to find the best and leave the rest and quite honestly, what works today may not work as beautifully tomorrow, these are factors that keep our lives interesting and keep me loving what I do. As summer closes in, I anticipate those young feet marching in, one by one…
Georgia Department of Education. (2007)Constructivism -a theory of knowledge stating that each individual actively constructs his/her own meaning of what something is (LAUREATE, Inc. 2009). According to Dr. Michael Orey, Constructionism is “a theory of learning that states people learn best when they build an external artifact or something they can share with others.” The 4th grade students that attend my school had the chance to exhibit both while meeting state standards.
Georgia Standard SS4H1 (b) requires the student describe the culture of early Native American in North America including how American Indians “used their environment to obtain food, clothing, and shelter” (GA DOE, 2007). Following the unit study of Native Americans in North America each student is responsible for creating their own representation of a Native American family complete with its environment. The student is equipped with a rubric and ample resources for their depiction. Their project brings their study from Constructivism to Constructionism.
The shoe box/poster board project was far more than craft supplies; it was a learning experience that, in my opinion, will never be forgotten. While the student’s participated in class discussion, appeared to enjoy videos shown on the large interactive screen, and remained active participants in two-way dialogue, demeanors and attire drastically improved on presentation day. The facts that the projects were student created and to be shared gave a sense of ownership and pride, which was an unforeseen, yet refreshing, change. All in all, it was apparent the Constructionist theory, building or real world connection, was a success for these 4th grade students.
Approaches and theories to learning are formerly being tested by the likes of Drs. Piaget and Skinner and so forth, but we as teachers have to find the best and leave the rest and quite honestly, what works today may not work as beautifully tomorrow, these are factors that keep our lives interesting and keep me loving what I do. As summer closes in, I anticipate those young feet marching in, one by one…
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Constructionist and Constructivist Learning Theories. [DVD]. Baltimore: Author.
Traci,
ReplyDeleteOh my, what a very captivating introduction to your post! I love it.
You must be very proud of your school. I am proud and I don't even work there(smile). It is so very heart warming and rewarding to see students take pride in their learning. The students by exhibiting both constructivism and constructionism have indeed been able to show the correlation between how they are thinking and to their full understanding of the lesson by their completed projects. By practicing regularly, the students improved and this was evident on presentation day.
You made a statement about what works today might not work as beautifully tomorrow and I equate it to a part of my discussion for today which stated that the 21st century is unpredictable. We do not know what to expect tomorrow, although today seemed to have been satisfactorily completed. It is great to see that the students willingly shared their artifacts with everybody.
Thanks, great post!
Yvonne
Yvonne,
ReplyDeleteThank you for responding so positively to my post! Indeed I am blessed to work in a school, with colleagues, and with students that become excited about learning. By incorporating all resources, including 21st century tools, each lesson constructs memories thus creating the necessary schema for future success.