Teaching

My teaching credo is "Each One, Teach One". I believe that learning is holistic and that we can all learn from each other. As such, I incorporate a constructivist approach to my teaching and classroom activities.  According to the constructivist philosophy of education, teachers serve as facilitators rather than instructors of the learning process. Teachers must also be aware of any prior issues that students may be having and try to address them. Led Vygotsky believed that knowledge is co-constructed and that individuals learn from one another. However, for this to occur the role of the learner must be engaged in the learning process, thereby sharing the responsibility with the teacher. As such, the major principles that guide constructivism are that shared knowledge and authority between teachers and students, teachers act as a guide or facilitator and that learning activities occur with a small number of students within a group.

 

Vygotsky created the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) to describe the area between where a learner can do an activity on their own and what they can do with guidance or in cooperation with more experienced peers. A learning strategy that teachers use to encourage this is collaborative learning. As such, I've tested this theory in my EDIT 2000 class. At the beginning of my classes I incorporated community building activities (CBA's) to build a collaborative learning environment in the classroom. This, in addition to allowing the students to form peer partners at the beginning of the semester made the classroom environment more relaxed as students interactions were never forced but flowed effortlessly during most class sessions. Creating a collaborative environment for students to engage in is two-fold. Meaning that student questions aid in building upon their prior knowledge coupled with the conversations with the teacher so that they are guided in terms of constructing their own knowledge. 

​

The following images highlight some of the collaborative work and activities that occurred during the term.  

 

 

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

As with everything there are those that would have criticisms regarding the constructivist theory. One of the most common critiques leveled towards constructivist learning is its lack of structure. Some children flourish in highly structured and organized learning environments, whereas constructivist learning emphasizes a more relaxed approach to assisting students in engaging in their own learning. Grading is also a criticism as its frequently omitted from constructivist classrooms in favor of a greater emphasis on student achievement, which can result in students falling behind and failing to satisfy standardized grading criteria. This class was designed to be purely assessment based with no final exam. The students appreciated this greatly and often made the comment that the class was very interactive and something they looked forward to weekly.