Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

This week, we were introduced to the learning theory of social constructivism.  Going into this week, I fully expected a challenge with this theory.  Previous learning theories such as behaviorism and cognitivism I had heard of, and even knowingly implemented them into my classroom.  Social constructivism however, I had never heard of before this course.  I did not have any prior knowledge to its central components, its core strategies, or any of the founders of this theory.  Not having any prior knowledge of a topic can indeed be intimidating to a learner at any age, and I felt a lot like many of my students must when I introduce a new topic to them.  However, after researching social constructivism this week, I have found that I unknowingly subscribe to many components of this theory and employ many of them in my daily practice.

In essence, the theory of social constructionism/social constructivism is that students learn when they are actively engaged in constructing artifacts and conversing with others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).  Dr. Michael Orey described this process very efficiently to me this week, and I definitely feel as though I consistently use it in my classroom.  One part of social constructionism that I certainly use often in my classroom often is the idea of cooperative learning.  In a cooperative learning group, students are responsible for learning information and teaching it to their teammates (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).   In essence, cooperative learning is not so much learning to cooperate as it is cooperating to learn (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p 143).  Students may complain about working in a group with specific partners, but ultimately they will get out of the lesson what they put into it.  The student becomes directly responsible for their education, and the teacher serves to guide them through that content.  I completely agree with Dr. Orey in that when a person teaches others, then that helps the learner develop a deeper understanding of the content that was presented (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011). 

It is important that when teachers are designing cooperative learning groups that they use a variety of criteria to group all students (Pitler et. al, 2007, p 140).  Some students are better suited in particular roles in a group, and may struggle if they are not in roles that best suit their individual needs.  The difficulty with designing these types of lessons is that it takes a lot of time to get to know how students work.  Many educators are unable, or perhaps unwilling, to devote the time necessary to get to know the learning styles of each of their students.  This task may indeed be daunting, but there are ways to do this without completely revamping a teaching style that has taken years to develop.  One way to do this is by combining cooperative learning with other classroom structures (Pitler, et al., 2007).  One way that I do this is by having students read core texts in cooperative groups.  As a teacher, I can still guide the lesson when necessary, and I can interject points into the reading as I am walking around the classroom.  Students will usually read the topic together and summarize the information, thus sharing previous knowledge and different skills together.  There are many of my students who do not enjoy the cooperative groups, as many learners prefer to construct meaning on their own.  However, I strongly believe that these types of groups are for the betterment of all students, and they construct their own meanings.

Cooperative learning can certainly be effective through group learning such as described above, but technological tools can enhance the construction of knowledge. The creation and use of blogs, wikis, and podcasts are all ways to engage our students in cooperative groups while integrating technology.  My social studies curriculum allows for me to be extremely creative with the integration of technology into my class.  It allows for opportunities in the technological world that others may not.   We discuss world cultures and global topics, and modern technology allows for information to be passed globally with one click of the mouse.  

As we read this week in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, “communication with students from other cities, states, and countries broadens the perspective of students and challenges them to learn about other cultures, languages, and issues throughout the world” (Pitler, et al. 2007, p 145).  Newer technologies allows for this to happen much easier.  For my first 8 years of teaching in my district, I have had my students writing a pen pal letter to a 'student' from another culture.  Students may watch a film on another culture and be curious as to some of the nuances of that culture, and want to ask questions so I allow for them to be creative.  However, students do not get much in the way of TRUE feedback to their questions.  I answer them, and may not be able to construct true knowledge for the student.  This week, we were introduced to the website www.epals.com.  This site allows for students to connect with classrooms all over the globe.  As a teacher of world cultures and social studies, this tool is very exciting for the next school year.  I am very eager to try it out with my students, and develop lessons surrounding the site. 

New and exciting tools like this allow for students to converse with one another, and to create meaning to a broad range of topics.  I definitely love to use cooperative learning in my classroom, and believe that the above activities are directly influenced by social constructivist/constructionist theory.  Now that I know this to be true, I completely subscribe to this learning theory and actively employ it in my classroom

Resources:


Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program seven: Constructionist and constructivist learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.