Constructivism, eh?

Since reading through the Constructivist materials I am beginning to understand TEAM. Since orientation I was a little confused about the reason for all the collaborative work that I'd be engaging in during the 2 years. Now it makes sense. Collaborative learning occurs when there is social negotiation so there is better understanding, use and retention. It totally makes sense. Looking back to my undergrad years, collaborative learning rarely occurred. I have a feeling if it would have, I might have walked away with a completely different experience.

So all of that got me thinking about the constructivist learning environment for students. Student teaching for me was a time to explore the many different ways of teaching. My mentors always stressed the importance of multiple representations to ensure that each learner was learning. But, it's much more than that. Sure I've learned about constructivism in psychology courses, but I didn't really understand how to apply it in the classroom.

Within the mathematical content, it's crucial that students engage in tasks that are meaningful, and along with prior knowledge develop their problem solving skills while actively involved. Just as with TEAM, it's important for students to have social interactions while they embark on learning and take ownership. By creating a learning environment where students work with one another, they will be able to take more away with them, for immediate use and in the future, when they enter the real world. The skills learned while engaging in collaborative work are lifelong skills which will be a part of them, always. Those skills include but aren't limited to the ability to problem solve, think critically, reflect on oneself and interact socially.

As far as the methods for creating such an environment, the possibilities are endless. Aside from ensuring that the material pertains to the students lives, there are so many activities where students can take ownership of their own learning, especially when you realize how many ways there are to obtain solutions, to many topics within the curriculum. Of course feedback and modeling would be used, but ensuring that students can perform on their own is the true meaning of all of this. What good is it if students watch and leave the room clueless?