4 minute read
Lesson 4: The Teaching Cycle
3. Constructivist teachers encourage student's leadership, cooperation, seeking information, and the presentation of the ideas.
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4. Constructivist teachers modify their instructional strategies in the process of teaching based upon students; thought, experience and or interests.
5. Constructivist teachers use printed materials as well as experts to get more information.
6. Constructivist teachers encourage free discussions by way of new ideas inviting student questions and answers.
7. Constructivist teachers encourage or invite students' predictions of the causes and effects in relation to particular cases and events.
8. Constructivist teachers help students to test their own ideas.
9. Constructivist teachers invite students' ideas before the student is presented with the ideas and instructional materials.
10. Constructivist teachers encourage students to challenge the concepts and ideas of others.
11. Constructivist teachers use cooperative teaching strategies through student interactions and respect, sharing ideas, and learning tasks.
12. Constructivist teachers encourage students to respect and use other people's ideas.
Experience
So how is a constructivist classroom different from a traditional classroom? In the constructivist classroom, the focus shifts from the teacher to the students. The classroom is no longer a place where the students are seen as empty vessels to be filled by the teacher. In a constructivist classroom, the students are actively involved in their own learning. The teacher functions as a facilitator who guides, prompts, and helps students to develop and assess their own understanding.
Traditional Classroom Constructivist Classroom
Curriculum
Teacher's role
Curriculum begins with the parts of the whole, emphasizing basic skills. Curriculum emphasizes big concepts, beginning with the whole and expanding to include the parts.
Teachers disseminate information to students; students are recipients of knowledge. Teachers have a dialogue with students, helping students construct their own knowledge.
Student's role Students work primarily alone. Students work primarily in groups.
Assess
Answer the following questions to verbalize your understanding of the constructivist learning theory.
1. What is the constructivist theory? Explain it in your own words.
2. Expound why the constructivist theory is applicable in teaching mathematics.
Challenge
How well do you understand the constructivist learning theory? Consider the following scenarios and answer the questions that follow.
Scenario 1
\ \ A teacher told the students, "Four glasses of water will fill this pitcher."
Scenario 2
A teacher provides a glass and lets the children pour water into the pitcher. They are learning how much water it takes to fill the pitcher.
In which scenario do you think will the students learn better? Why do you think so?
Harness
The following activity will direct your observation skills to the teaching style of the teacher. Note that this is not an activity to criticize the teacher. The purpose is for you to develop keen observation skills on teaching styles implemented in the classroom, and later on, suggest ways to improve the learning activities. This activity will be part of the learning portfolio which you will compile at the end of this module.
Observe a Grade 3 mathematics class. Did the lesson develop in a constructivist way? If yes, describe the part of the lesson that followed constructivism. Otherwise, explain how you would revise the lesson in order to facilitate a constructivist lesson.
Summary
The constructivist learning theory states that learning takes place when we build on what students already know. Moreover, it is student-centered, allowing the students to take ownership of their own learning.
In this unit, you will learn about how to plan, develop, and execute lessons in -lathematics for the primary grades. You will go over the learning cycle, the things to consider in lesson planning, and the different instructional planning models.
Objectives
Demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the instructional planning cycle
In tro du ctio n
The work of a teacher does not start and end in teaching per se. The teaching process is not a linear activity that starts with planning and ends with testing. Instead, it is a cycle of repeating stages until the students acquire an understanding of the targeted concepts and skills. You may think of the teaching cycle as a spring—you go through the same process over and over again, but each time with a more informed objective and a better understanding of what it means to learn and teach mathematics.
There are many models of the teaching cycle that various educators have developed over the years. However, all models boil down to six common stages: (1) identify objectives, (2) plan instruction, (3) implement plan, (4) check for understanding, (5) reflect on teaching, and (6) assess learning and reflect on results. The cycle that involves these stages is illustrated below.
Think
Identify objective
Assess learning and reflect on the results
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