Constructivism

After reading through the constructivism power point and making my map, it was amazing to see how connecting the idea on constructivism is to assessment, backward design and effective instruction. I was validated in some of the ways I have been teaching and I was also left with a few questions and thoughts about how to move to a more constructivist approach. I think my next step to fully understanding would be to find a constructivist lesson on you tube or something about how the teacher uses questions and prior knowledge to drive instruction.

I noticed many connections between the idea of constructivism and backward design. I actually thought backward design is exactly an example of a constructivist strategy because the structures are the same. You start with questions and big ideas and get student input to drive instruction. Backward design and constructivism are very student centered and the teacher takes a back seat and is more of a questioner and a guide. There are certain instructional strategies that would work well with a constructivist theme. Any strategy that allows the students to question and research and take responsibility for their own learning will apply to the constructivist idea. One strategy that stood out in the power point was using engaging activities that may contradict students initial ideas about the topic leading them to new information or transforming their learning. When thinking of assessment the teacher needs to think broadly and assess students on wether they can apply their learning to solving a problem rather than just spitting out facts. When assessing in a constructivist structure the teacher should observe the students' questions and investigation and see if they can apply their learning to the big ideas.