P540 - Learning and Cognition

Unit 6: Constructivism / Course wrap-up

Readings
Instructor notes
Learning activities
Web resources

Readings
Driscoll, Chapters 5, 11, and 12.
Note: For purposes of this course, we will not consider "situated cognition" (Driscoll, Chapter 5) to be a separate theory, but rather a set of ideas and research paradigms that are important to constructivism.

Optional: Gredler, pages 71-76.
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Instructor notes

What is constructivism?
One thing that can make constructivism difficult to grasp is that sometimes it seems like a philosophy, and sometimes it seems like a set of instructional practices. People may use these two senses of the word constructivism interchangeably, often without being clear about whether they mean one, the other, or both.
As a philosophy, constructivism suggests that, while there is a real world out there, there is no meaning inherent in it. Meaning is imposed by people and cultures. So, for example, one who followed the constructivist philosophy might say that there is nothing inherently correct about the way we classify living things (genus, species, etc.). This classification system is a human invention, and it is subject to revision or replacement. Thus, when we teach this classification system, we should teach it not as fact, but as the current system accepted by scientists. And we should also teach about the process of creating a classification system, not just the end product.
As a set of instructional practices, constructivism favors processes over end products; guided discovery over expository learning; authentic, embedded learning situations over abstracted, artificial ones; portfolio assessments over multiple-choice exams, etc.
Why is this distinction between constructivism as a philosophy (epistemology, to be more accurate) and constructivism as a set of teaching practices important? Because it is my contention that you could be a constructivist in philosophy without always using constructivist teaching methods. A useful analogy is with physics: Newtonian mechanics have been demonstrated to be inadequate and replaced by Einsteinian mechanics. However, we can continue to use Newtonian laws for many local situations because they work well enough and are simpler. Similarly, I may believe that people must construct their own knowledge--even of objects in the physical world--but I may choose to use relatively didactic approaches for some kinds of learning because it is expedient and works well enough.
On the other hand, someone who espouses an objectivist philosophy (if you can find anyone who admits to it!) would likely agree that constructivist-like teaching approaches are appropriate for areas of "knowing" that are highly divergent, say in the arts, literature, ethics, etc. Can you imagine teaching an ethics course didactically? It would be absurd. You would likely have to acknowledge that an ethical sense is something each learner has to develop for him/herself, and that the job of the course would be to provide an opportunity to do that with guidance.
Also, keep in mind that believing in a constructivist philosophy or epistemology does not automatically dictate using any particular set of teaching strategies--any more than being a behaviorist automatically dictates using teaching machines. Different learning theories may suggest particular kinds of instructional strategies, but they do not determine them fully.
Influences on constructivist "theories" of instruction
Constructivism, of course, did not simply spring up out of nowhere. In addition to the historical antecedents that your text discusses, constructivism seems to be related to a number of other ideas from the "cultures" of education, psychology, and other fields. These include

Qualitative/naturalistic research paradigms: Finding meaning in particulars rather than generalities. Increasing interest in these forms of research supports the constructivist notion that what is unique (in people, events, institutions, etc.) is at least as important as what one can generalize about them.

Situated cognition/learning: Learning in the "natural" setting seems to be quite different from learning in school. Lave, Brown, Resnick, and other psychologists have written extensively about the ways in which typical school learning tasks seem to be remote from the kind of learning we do outside of formal instructional settings. Thus, educators have sought ways to make school learning more "authentic."

Donald Schon's ideas about reflective practice in the professions: The real challenge of professional practice is framing a problem, not solving it after it has already been defined. Schon's ideas have been influential, particularly in education in the professions. What is important in the practice of most professions, Schon says, is the artistry of framing a problem in a useful way, not the "science" of solving it once it has been framed.

Cognitive and intellectual development theorists: E.g., Vygotsky, Bruner, Piaget, William Perry, Belenky. All have had something to say about the ways in which children or young adults "construct" their understanding of the world at various stages.

Hypertext/hypermedia:The notion of bodies of information that can be connected and organized in various, idiosyncratic ways (of which the World Wide Web is a prime example) is an obvious analogy to the constructivist idea of uniquely constructed understandings.

Constructivism: Opposing viewpoints to ponder

Point: "[Constructivism] holds that learning is infinite and not subject to the sorts of analyses favored by objectivists except in the most trivial cases [emphasis added]. Things can be known from a variety of sign systems (verbal, mathematical, visual, musical, gestural, etc.), a variety of metaphors ... , and with varying degrees of self awareness of the processes by means of which constructions are made. The role of education in a constructivist view is to show students how to construct knowledge, to promote collaboration with others to show the multiple perspectives that can be brought to bear on a particular problem, and to arrive at self-chosen positions [emphasis added] to which they can commit themselves, while realizing the basis of other views with which they may disagree." (from D. J. Cunningham, Assessing constructions and constructing assessments, p. 36. In Constructivism and the technology of instruction: A conversation (1992), Duffy, T. M. & Jonassen, D. H., eds. Hilldale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Counterpoint: "... [C]onstructivists argue that specific learning objectives are not possible--that meaning is always constructed by, and unique to, the individual; that all understanding is negotiated. In our opinion this is a very extreme position. Let me speak up for the vast amount of "trivial cases," those situations where shared meaning is not only possible but necessary. Do we want students to have a "self-chosen position" with regard to the sound of letters in learning to read? Do we want students to have a "self-chosen position" about the meaning of the integers. Will a machine allow us to have a "self-chosen position" about how it works? ... Do we want students to have a "self-chosen position" ... about how to solve a linear equation? Do we want drivers to have a "self-chosen position" about the meaning of a red light? ... If I hire a surgeon to do heart surgery, PLEASE let me have one who has learned the trivial case and knows that my heart looks like every other human heart. Please don't let him negotiate new meanings and hook up my veins in some "self-chosen position to which [she/he] can commit [herself/himself]." I want her/him committed to the standard objective view. The trivial case is not so trivial. To dismiss so casually the objective case is perhaps the greatest danger of radical constructivism." (From M. D. Merrill, Constructivism and instructional design, pp. 107-108. (same publication as above)

The Learner-Centered Principles

A large group of Educational Psychologists created a framework for instruction based on constructivistic-type principles. These learner-centered principles are important because they translate constructivism as a philosophy into action. Make sure to visit their site at http://www.apa.org/ed/lcp2/homepage.html.

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Learning activities

6.1 Discussion on situated cognition & constructivism (in Oncourse)
Facilitator (name of student here) to post by Tuesday July 20
Initial posts by Sunday July 25, responses by Thursday July 29
Wrapping (name of student here) to be completed by July 31
The following quotes come from an article by Mark Windschitl (1999).
1. "Before teachers and administrators adopt such practices (problem-based learning, inquiry activities, dialogues with peers and teachers that encourage making sense of the subject matter, exposure to multiple sources of information, opportunities for students to demonstrate their understanding in diverse ways), they should understand that constructivism cannot make its appearance in the classroom as a set of isolated instructional methods grafted on to otherwise traditional teaching techniques. Rather, it is a culture - a set of beliefs, norms, and practices that constitute the fabric of school life.
2. "Teachers must ask themselves, "Is my role to dispense knowledge or to nurture independent thinkers? How do I show respect for the ideas of the students? Am I here to learn from the students?" Teachers must struggle to develop a new, well-articulated rationale for instructional decisions and cannot depend on their previous teaching or learning experiences for much help in shaping their choice of methods."
3. "Constructivist instruction, especially that which is based on design tasks or problem solving, places high demands on the teacher's subject-matter understanding. The teacher must not only by familiar with the principles underlying a topic of study but must be prepared for the variety of ways these principles can be explored."
Many criticisms of constructivist and situated cognition learning theories focus on the difficulties of using the theory to design instruction. Do you agree with the challenges to sustaining a constructivist learning environment outlined above or not? Why? What implications do you think these quotes have for the widespread acceptance of this learning theory? Are there theories we have studied which might give us some information to address these issues?

6.2 Course Product #3

To be completed by Sunday August 8

Reflect on the following on your own or with your team.

This activity is an evaluation of a 'constructivist' learning environment. To get started with this thought activity, on your own or with your team analyze the features of the learning environment in terms of the principles of situated cognition and constructivism. Our whole class discussion synthesis (above) should be a big help. According to these theories, which features would be considered well designed and which features would be considered lacking for good instruction? What effect would this instruction likely have on learners?

Here are some examples of Web-based 'constructivist' learning environments that you may choose to evaluate. Or, you may choose some other environment with which you are familiar.

The Webquest Page (http://webquest.sdsu.edu/webquest.html)

TAPPED-IN (http://www.tappedin.org/)

The Global Schoolhouse (http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/)
Check out their Virtual Field Trips (http://www.globalschoolhouse.org/project/fieldtrips/)

Learning to Teach with Technology Studio (http://ltts.org)

Both synchronous (chat) and asynchronous (discussion forum) tools have been set up for you in Oncourse. Use whichever (or both) will help facilitate the completion of your synthesis. If you choose to communicate via email and/or outside of Oncourse, forward me copies of your group communications, as always.

Some things to consider in the evaluation:
1.The idea of learning communities, cognitive apprenticeship and communities of practice in the situated cognition theory.
2.The concepts of reflection, self-regulation, social negotiation, collaborative learning and problem-based learning in constructivist theory.
3.What do objectives look like for constructivist lessons? How do teachers know if they have met those objectives?
4. Try and choose an environment that is accessible and of interest to all team members.
5. Don't get bogged down in exploring every feature of the environment. One way to begin might be to identify the key principles of each theory and specifically search for those features.
6. Also create a list of teaching principles which would be inconsistent with the learning theory. Check to see if any of those principles exist.
How this thought activity will be assessed:

1. Please limit your synthesis to 3-4 pages. Again, this will be difficult because you'll want to examine every little detail. Choose your analysis points carefully.
2. Support your synthesis with evidence from the readings
3. Have you chosen important points to cover? Have you justified your choices and backed up your analysis with a solid understanding of each theory you are using?
4. Both processes and outcomes will be considered in the assessment.

6.3 Reflections

To be completed by Sunday August 8

The purpose of the reflection is for you to think about what you have learned through this experience.

If you completed this activity individually, please submit the answer to these questions to your instructor along with your unit product:

1. Why did you choose to work individually on this activity?
2. How did this individual experience compare with your earlier group experiences?
3. How did your understanding of the learning theory change through this activity?

If you completed this activity as a group, please answer the following questions individually and submit to the instructor. Please be honest. No group experience is without challenges and frustrations. Reflecting on the challenges of the group experience is just as important as celebrating the positive achievements. Being honest will help us as instructors give better guidance to teams collaborating online in the future.

1. Evaluate the contribution of EACH of your project team members, including yourself, on a scale from 1 to 5. Refer to the descriptions below as you make your ratings.

0 = team member made no visible contributions to the project OR made significant and sustained negative contributions to the project
1 = team member made minimal contributions to the overall project
2 = team member made uneven contributions to the project - some positive, some negative
3 = team member made reasonable contributions to the project
4 = team member made significant and sustained positive contributions to the project
5 = team member made significant and sustained positive contributions to the project AND supported every member of the group by actively bringing out the best in others.

2. Briefly describe your group's approach to completing this thought activity.

3. Briefly describe your individual contribution and each team member's contributions to the activity.

4. How did your understanding of the learning theory change through this activity?

6.4 Make sure and complete your course evaluation.
To be completed by Sunday August 8
Complete the online evaluation by going at the EvalOnline web site. At the end of the course you will be given a course evaluation code that will allow you to access the evaluation. At the site you will do the following:

click on the Students icon
click on the Evaluate a Course link
enter your course evaluation code and click the button to access the evaluation form
complete and submit the form

6.5 Toward a Personal Theory of Instruction

To be completed by Sunday August 8

Course wrap-up
One of the most important goals of this course is for you to come away with a personal sense of how these learning and instructional theories can be of use to you in your future "educational" practice, however broadly that may be defined. I would suggest that, at some point, you ask yourself a series of questions about each of the theories. Since the goal is to construct your own unique understanding of the theories, I can't tell you what those questions would be. I can suggest some possibilities, though, such as

What aspects of learning are addressed by this theory?
What are the main processes or mechanisms that are proposed to account for learning according to this theory?
What, to you, is the single most important "big idea" from this theory?
With what other theories is this theory most compatible?
Does this theory resonate with your own experiences and beliefs?
Does this theory seem to be a good match for the kinds of learners you're interested in?
... for the kinds of learning tasks you're interested in?
... for the kinds of educational settings you're interested in?

Well, you get the idea.
In Unit 1 you drafted a personal theory of instruction. You have now done a good deal of reading, discussion and reflection on theories of instruction from a variety of perspectives. As a final activity in this course, you have a chance to revise your original theory of instruction. Note: This is an individual activity only, as each of our theories of learning will be slightly different.

What changes to the theory will you make now that you have spent the last 12 weeks thinking deeply about learning theories?

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Web resources
The Web Resources page has are several short sites that you may find useful. There is also a site that allows you to access the full text of some 70 articles on constructivism. However, you have to have the right "plug-in" installed on your computer to be able to use this.
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Comments: joalexan@indiana.edu