Contrasted In The Diagram: Teacher-Centered Approach Of Teaching

A reflection on the skills acquired from collaborative learning and how they may be applied in practice

Constructivism is the learning theory that focuses on observation by acquiring data and thereafter reexamining, altering, and updating information to be useful in the present time. Humans process experiences, knowledge, and conception of life based on their impressions of their past. As individuals experience an unfamiliar event, they will attempt to integrate it with their knowledge and past, therefore replacing old outdated or incorrect data with new more pertinent information (Kerka, 1997). This learning theory states that learning is an ongoing process and not about merely comprehending available data without questioning, processing, and updating previously learned information (Allen, 2005).

Constructivist Learning Theory exists under the focus of cognitive learning and has substructures of the concepts of self- efficacy, self- regulation, and metacognition as it defines how adults learn (Billings & Halstead, 2012, p. 211). Billings & Halstead (2012) explains that learning is considered a transformation in a person from personal experience. It is a continued process that encompasses understanding, clarifying, and applying meanings of knowledge that is developed. The learning theory, constructivism embraces that learning is a development. A learner constructs new knowledge by building on existing information through a process

Collaboration: In a community of learners, students work together in teams, partners, or groups. This allows students to gain social skills and increases students’ motivation for the project. Students share ideas and gain a new understanding of the content.

A reflective essay on the skills acquired from collaborative learning and how they may be applied in practice.

2. Cooperative learning directed towards focusing on students’ team work while doing their project assignments.

Jean Piaget's theory of constructivism disputes that people produce knowledge and form meaning, based upon their experiences. Two of the major components which establishes the construction of an individual's new knowledge are accommodation and assimilation. According to the website Gsi.berkeley.edu, “Cognitivist teaching methods aim to assist students in assimilating new information to existing knowledge, and enabling them to make the appropriate modifications to their existing intellectual framework to accommodate that information. Thus, while cognitivists allow for the use of “skill and drill” exercises in the memorization of facts, formulae, and lists, they place greater importance on strategies that help students to actively assimilate and accommodate new material.” For instance, asking students to explain new material in their own words can help them in assimilating it by forcing them to re-state the new ideas in their existing vocabulary. Even, providing students sets of questions to structure their reading makes it easier for them to relate it to previous material by highlighting certain parts and to accommodate the new material by providing a clear organizational

Traditional teaching styles use teacher-centered approach. It includes a teacher that stands at the front and tells students step by step instructions. The teacher decides what is learned, when it is learned, how it is learned, and how learning is evaluated. In a nutshell, the teacher is an information giver and evaluator. The students are just there to learn through lessons and direct instructions. Their attention is mainly focused on passing tests, assessments, and evaluations.

Collaborative learning stems from the theory of Vygotsky’s conception of Zone of proximal development. The thought is that children learn best with “help and guidance” (Ormrod, 2012). In transitioning this zone to a collaborative learning experience, children work with their peers in broadening their learning experience, allowing small groups of students to work together to share knowledge, exchange ideas, problem solve, and more. These classroom environments help to create durable abilities in students and aid in producing a “smoother integration into adult society when the activities resemble real-world tasks” (Ormrod, 2012). As students work with peers and adults, they adopt some of the learning strategies demonstrated and develop more skills in problem solving. This scaffolding creates a trickle-down effect of knowledge construction. In collaborative learning, students are afforded a myriad of enriching opportunities to explore perspectives that may differ from their own. These activities serve to create a self-awareness in the student of their responsibilities to a group, requiring them to self-monitor their activity (Lee, Tsai, Chai, & Koh, 2014).

     With the Constructivist Theory, a child may not know how to deal with his or her internal emotions and/or thoughts. If that child does not know how to deal with his or her own internal workings, there is going to be much difficulty trying to deal with a personal accommodation. The same thing goes with assimilation. If a child does not know how to deal with his or her external environment, there is going to be difficulty changing them and dealing with assimilation.

Furthermore, as I read the assigned articles and viewed videos, I realized that my teachers obviously, followed Piaget’s, Vygotsky. Dewey, and Bruner constructivist view because they used the theory of assimilation and accommodation, e.g., the learning of a new experience and changing of a person’s worldview. I also discovered after deep reflection on this week’s assignment, how much of an impact my teachers had on my teaching style. Before retiring, I taught based on what my students needed. Therefore, much of my teaching mixed the theories of, Constructivism, Social Constructivism and Cognitive-Behavioral depending on the student.

The first approach of student-centered learning that will be discussed is a teaching method called the Learning Cycle. A study was done with fifth grade students learning about sound. There were some students who were taught using the Learning Cycle, and some students were taught using the textbook approach. To see which method produced a greater understanding of sound the students were randomly selected, and an interview method was used in both groups to see what the students previously knew about sound. Then, in the instruction part of the procedure an instructor was used in both methods. In the Learning Cycle approach there were three phases: "exploration, concept introduction and concept application". During these three phases the students worked together in-groups while discussing their ideas and using manipulatives to act out the concepts. Also, the teacher would act as a facilitator, while the students discussed their ideas, and created more ideas and situations to figure out. During the lessons, the students were in active control and they could lead the lesson with their ideas and conclusions. The students were very excited to work together and the groups encouraged some of the students to share their ideas more willingly (Barman, & Barman 1996). Dinan

First, cooperative learning is a kind of group work. Learners have to work together in small groups between two and six members.

The very first thing one must know about the constructivist theory of learning is the premise that learners arrive at learning situations with prior knowledge and proceed to take and active part in building new knowledge upon that prior knowledge as they experience new things and reflect on those collected experiences (Learning Theories Knowledgebase, 2012). This theory directly contradicts the behaviorist learning theory in which learners are believed to arrive at learning situations with “clean slates” of understanding. From a behaviorist’s perspective, people learn because as they respond to negative and positive stimuli in their environment (Learning Theories Knowledgebase, 2012). While that may change observable behavior

Collaborative learning is founded on the idea that the learning process is a naturally social act which requires the participants to talk among themselves. Collaborative learning involves small groups of students who act on a structured learning activity to solve a problem, complete a task, or create a product. In simpler terms, the students work in groups to learn or understand a new concept they are studying. In this learning approach, it is important to understand that the students are accountable for individual work as well as the group work they do as a group in collaborative learning