Вы находитесь на странице: 1из 143

Pagei

InSearchofUnderstanding: TheCaseforConstructivistClassrooms
WITHANEWINTRODUCTIONBYTHEAUTHORS JacquelineGrennonBrooks MartinG.Brooks

Pageii

AssociationforSupervisionandCurriculumDevelopment 1703NorthBeauregardStreetAlexandria,Virginia223111714USA Telephone:18009332723or(703)5789600Fax:(703)5755400 Website:http://www.ascd.orgEmail:member@ascd.org Copyright1993,1999bytheAssociationforSupervisionandCurriculumDevelopment.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedor transmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopy,recording,oranyinformationstorageandretrievalsystem,withoutpermission fromASCD.ReaderswhowishtoduplicatematerialcopyrightedbyASCDmaydosoforasmallfeebycontactingtheCopyrightClearanceCenter,222 RosewoodDr.,Danvers,MA01923,USA(telephone:9787508044fax:9787504470).ASCDhasauthorizedtheCCCtocollectsuchfeesonitsbehalf. RequeststoreprintratherthanphotocopyshouldbedirectedtoASCD'spermissionsofficeat7035789600. ASCDpublicationspresentavarietyofviewpoints.TheviewsexpressedorimpliedinthispublicationshouldnotbeinterpretedasofficialpositionsoftheAssociation. JacquelineGrennonBrooksisAssociateProfessorintheCenterforScience,MathematicsandTechnologyEducationattheStateUniversityofNewYorkat StonyBrook.Email:jgbrooks@notes.cc.sunysb.edu MartinG.BrooksisSuperindendentoftheValleyStremCentralHighSchoolDistrictinValleyStream,NewYork.Email:vsdist1@li.net TypesetbyValerieSprague. PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica. s7/1999 ASCDmemberprice:$13.95nonmemberprice:$16.95 ASCDStockNumber:199234 ISBN:0871203588 LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationData Brooks,JacquelineGrennon. Insearchofunderstanding:thecaseforconstructivist classrooms/withanewintroductionbytheauthorsJacqueline GrennonBooks,MartinG.Brooks. p.cm. Includesbibliographicalreferences. ISBN0871203588 1.Constructivism(Education).2.CognitioninchildrenUnited States.3.ActivelearningUnitedStates.4.Thoughtand thinkingStudyandteachingUnitedStates.I.Brooks,MartinG. II.Title. LB1590.3.B751999996468 CIP 10987654321040302010099

Pageiii

CONTENTS
Introduction PartI.TheCallforConstructivism 1.HonoringtheLearningProcess 2.ConsideringthePossibilities 3.ComingtoKnowOne'sWorld PartII.SomeGuidingPrinciplesofConstructivism 4.PosingProblemsofEmergingRelevancetoStudents 5.StructuringLearningAroundPrimaryConcepts:TheQuestforExcellence 6.SeekingandValuingStudents'PointsofView 7.AdaptingtoCurriculumtoAddressStudents'Suppositions 8.AssessingStudentLearningintheContextofTeaching PartIII.CreatingConstructivistSettings 9.BecomingaConstructivistTeacher 10.PursuingMeaningfulVictories Bibliography vii

3 15 23

35 46 60 69 85

101 119 128

Pagev

DEDICATION

Forourparentsandtheirgrandchildren.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Weconsiderourselvesfortunatetohaveworkedovertheyearswithgroupsofoutstandingeducatorsandstudentsthroughoutthenationmostparticularlyinthe ShorehamWadingRiver(N.Y.)schooldistrict,theValleyStreamUnionFreeSchoolDistrict#13(N.Y.),theValleyStreamCentralHighSchoolDistrict(N.Y.),and attheStateUniversityofNewYorkatStonyBrookwhohavepermittedusaccesstotheirclassroomsandtheirthoughts.Ourinteractionswithandobservationsof thesepeoplehaveshapedourthinking.Itistheirworkthatwehighlightinthisbook.

Pagevii

INTRODUCTION
Judgingfromourconferencepresentations,ourconsultingwork,andourmailsincethe1993publicationofthisbook,thebasictenetsofconstructivismclearlystrikea responsivechordwithagreatmanyteachersandadministrators. Constructivismisatopicontheconferenceprogramsofvirtuallyallprominentnationaleducationalorganizationsandhasbeenwidelydescribedandanalyzedin professionaljournals.Recentpublicationshavepresentedconstructivisttheoryinavarietyofcontexts:curriculummapping,teachereducation,andschoolleadership, tonamethree.Universityfacultyandnationalteacherassociationshaveendorsedconstructivistlessondesignandinstructionalpractices.Moreover,afewstate educationdepartments(NewYork,California,andKentucky,amongothers)haveidentifiedconstructivistteachingpracticesaspreferred,andhaveincludedexplicit examplesofstudentdesignedworkintheirstatecurriculumframeworksandstandards. Learning: NotaLinearProcess Interestingly,alloftheseeventshaveoccurredatatimewhenthepoliticsofeducationhastakenaturnawayfromtheprinciplesonwhichconstructivistbased educationrests.Thethinkingbehindthisturnisexquisitelysimple:develophighstandardstowhichallstudentswillbeheldaligncurriculumtothesestandards constructassessmentstomeasurewhetherallstudentsaremeetingthestandardsrewardschoolswhosestudentsmeetthestandardsandpunishschoolswhose studentsdon't. Thissimple,linearapproachtoeducationalrenewalisbadlyflawed.Itisvirtuallyidenticaltoalltheotherapproachestorenewalthathaveprecededit,anditmisses thepoint.Meaningful

Pageviii

changeisnotaccomplishedthroughpoliticalpressurebut,rather,throughattentiontotheidiosyncratic,oftenparadoxicalnatureoflearning.Asmanystatesare discovering,''raisingthebar"bycommandmentresultsinajumpinhighschooldropouts,increasedspendingonstudentremediationandstaffpreparationfornew assessments,constrictionofcurriculumsastheyarealignedwiththenewassessments,andlossofpublicconfidenceinschoolsaslargenumbersofstudentsfailto meetthestandards.Missingfromthismixisevidenceofincreasedstudentlearning. Why?Learningisacomplexprocessthatdefiesthelinearpreceptsofmeasurementandaccountability.Whatstudents"know"consistsofinternallyconstructed understandingsofhowtheirworldsfunction.Newinformationeithertransformstheiroldbeliefsor...doesn't.Thequalityofthelearningenvironmentisnotmerelya functionofwherethestudents"endup"attestingtimeorhowmanystudents"endup"there.Thedynamicnatureoflearningmakesitdifficulttocaptureonassessment instrumentsthatlimittheboundariesofknowledgeandexpression. Pleasenotethatwearenotsayingthatclassroompracticesdesignedtochallengestudentsintransformingtheircurrentthinkingandstudentsuccessontestsare inherentlycontradictory.However,thereismuchevidence(fromNAEP[NationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress]andTIMSS[ThirdInternationalMathematics andScienceStudy],tonamebuttwosources)thatclassroompracticesspecificallydesignedtopreparestudentsfortestsdonotfosterdeeplearningthatisappliedto newsettings.Thisevidencehasledmanyschooldistrictstoquestionthephilosophicalunderpinningsofthelongdominantpretestteachposttestmodelofeducation. Despitecompletingalltheirassignmentsandpassingalltheirtests,toomanystudentssimplyarenotlearning. AProcessofMakingPersonalMeaning Consequently,manyprogramsandcurriculumsrecentlyadoptedindistrictsthroughoutthenationandcreatednotbypoliticalpressurebutbyteacherconvictionand demandarecenteredaroundthenotionthat,classroominstructionnotwithstanding,studentsmaketheirownmeaning.Examplesofsuch

Pageix

programsincludeprocesswriting,problembasedmathematics,investigativescience,andexperientialsocialstudies. Inaconstructivistclassroom,theteachersearchesforstudents'understandingsofconcepts,andthenstructuresopportunitiesforstudentstorefineorrevisethese understandingsbyposingcontradictions,presentingnewinformation,askingquestions,encouragingresearch,and/orengagingstudentsininquiriesdesignedto challengecurrentconcepts. Inthisbook,youwillreadaboutfiveoverarchingprinciplesevidentinconstructivistclassrooms. Teachersseekandvaluetheirstudents'pointsofview.Teacherswhoconsistentlypresentthesamematerialtoallstudentssimultaneouslymaynotconsider students'individualperspectivesonthematerialtobeimportant,mayevenviewthemasinterferingwiththepaceanddirectionofthelesson.Inconstructivist classrooms,however,students'perspectivesareteachers'cuesforensuinglessons. Classroomactivitieschallengestudents'suppositions.Allstudents,irrespectiveofage,entertheirclassroomswithlifeexperiencesthathaveledthemtopresume certaintruthsabouthowtheirworldswork.Meaningfulclassroomexperienceseithersupportorcontravenestudents'suppositionsbyeithervalidatingortransforming thesetruths. Teachersposeproblemsofemergingrelevance.Relevance,meaning,andinterestarenotautomaticallyembeddedwithinsubjectareasortopics.Relevance emergesfromthelearner.Constructivistteachers,acknowledgingthecentralroleofthelearner,structureclassroomexperiencesthatfosterthecreationofpersonal meaning. Teachersbuildlessonsaroundprimaryconceptsand''big"ideas.Toomuchcurriculumispresentedinsmall,disconnectedpartsandneverwovenintowhole clothbythelearner.Studentsmemorizethematerialneededtopasstests.Butmanystudents,eventhosewithpassingscores,areunabletoapplythesmallpartsin othercontextsordemonstrateunderstandingsofhowthepartsrelatetotheirwholes.Constructivistteachersoftenofferacademicproblemsthatchallengestudentsto grapplefirstwiththebigideasandtodiscernforthemselves,withmediationfromtheteacher,thepartsthatrequiremoreinvestigation.

Pagex

Teachersassessstudentlearninginthecontextofdailyteaching.Constructivistteachersdon'tviewassessmentofstudentlearningasseparateanddistinctfrom theclassroom'snormalactivitiesbut,rather,embedassessmentdirectlyintotheserecurrentactivities. TheSearchforUnderstanding Thepowerofthesefiveprinciplesiscompelling,butonlytothosenotweddedtolinearapproachestoeducationalrenewal.Weacknowledgethat,forsome,itis easiertodisseminateinformationfromthefrontoftheroom,assignchaptersfromtextbooks,andgradeworkbooksheetsandexamsthanitistohelpeachstudent searchforpersonalunderstandingandassesstheefficacyofthatsearch.And,itprobablyseemsmorereasonabletostructurelessonsaroundonerightanswertoeach questionthanitistovaluedifferent,oftencontrasting,pointsofview.And,yes,itispresumablymorecomfortingtothinkofallstudentsasblankslateswithsimilar cognitiveprofilesthanitistoviewthemasindividualswhoselifeexperienceshaveshapedsingularsetsofcognitiveneeds. Nonetheless,moreandmoreteacherscontinuetogravitatetowardconstructivistprinciplesbecause...well,becausetheymakesense.Teachingandlearningare complicated,labyrinthineprocessesfilledwithdeadends,falsepositives,contradictions,multipletruths,andagreatdealofconfusion.Tryingtosimplifyandquantify theteaching/learningdynamicwringsoutitsessenceandrendersitareductioadabsurdum. Overthepastseveralyears,then,thecaseforconstructivistclassroomshasbeenstrengthenedandalsohasbecomemoreacute.Virtuallyallschooldistrictsprofessto wanttheirstudentstobethinkersandproblemsolvers.Intheclassroom,theindividualsearchforunderstandingliesattheheartofthispursuit.Thelanguidinstructional practicesofthepast,evendressedinnewclothing,cannottrickstudentsintolearning.Engagementinmeaningfulwork,initiatedandmediatedbyskillfulteachers,is theonlyhighroadtorealthinkingandlearning. Duringaworkshopseveralyearsago,ateacher,reflectingonherowneducation,notedthattheteacherswhoinfluencedher

Pagexi

mostwerethefewwhomadedifficultconceptsaccessiblebyseekingtounderstandwhatsheknewatthetime.Wehaveheardmanypeoplerecountsimilarstories abouttheirmostmemorableteachers.Forthemostpart,theseremarkableteachersmatteredsomuchbecausetheywerelessconcernedaboutcoveringmaterialthan theywereabouthelpingstudentsconnecttheircurrentideaswithnewones.Theseteachersrecognizedthatlearningisauniquelyidiosyncraticendeavorcontrollednot bythembutbytheirstudents,andtheyknewthatconceptualunderstandingmatteredmorethantestscores.Theseteachersareconstructivists,andthey'retheones weremember.

Page1

PARTI THECALLFORCONSTRUCTIVISM
HonoringtheLearningProcess ConsideringthePossibilities ComingtoKnowOne'sWorld

Page3

1 HonoringtheLearningProcess
FromtheWhiteHousetothestatehousetotheschoolhouse,politiciansandeducatorshavebeenwringingtheirhandsovertheconditionofeducationinournation. Someexcoriateourpresenteducationalsystem,citingreportsthatraisequestionsabouttheinabilityofAmericanstudentstoperformaswelloncontentareatestsas studentsfromothernations.Othersaretroubledbytheconditionofeducationinournationforverydifferentreasons.Foragrowingnumberofeducators,questions regardingunderstandingandmeaningandtherolesthatschoolsplayinencouragingorstiflingthesearchforunderstandingarefarmoreimportantthanquestions regardingachievementasmeasuredbytestscores. Manypromisingproposalshavebeenputforthtoaddresstheissuessurroundingstudents'constructionofmeaning.Theseproposalssuggestoverhaulingassessment practicestomakethemmorerelevantforstudents,establishingsitebasedmanagementteamsinschools,rethinkingtheefficacyoftrackingandabilitygrouping,and freeingschooldistrictsfromfederalandstatemandates.Weapplaudtheseefforts,butfindthattheseproposalsdon'tquitegodeepenough.Theydon'tspeakopenly enoughabouttheeducationsystem'sunderlyingsuppositionsaboutwhatitmeanstolearn,aboutwhatitmeanstobecomeeducated.Theydon'treachthenucleusof education:theprocessesofteachingandlearningthatoccurdaily,relentlessly,inexorablyinclassroomsthroughoutthenation.Educationalreformmuststartwithhow studentslearn

Page4

andhowteachersteach,notwithlegislatedoutcomes.Afterall,theconstructionofunderstandingisthecoreelementinahighlycomplexprocessunderpinnedbywhat appearstobeasimpleproposition. TheConstructionofUnderstanding Itsoundslikeasimpleproposition:weconstructourownunderstandingsoftheworldinwhichwelive.Wesearchfortoolstohelpusunderstandourexperiences.To dosoishumannature.Ourexperiencesleadustoconcludethatsomepeoplearegenerousandotherpeoplearecheapofspirit,thatrepresentationalgovernment eitherworksordoesn't,thatfireburnsusifwegettooclose,thatrubberballsusuallybounce,thatmostpeopleenjoycompliments,andthatcubeshavesixsides. Thesearesomeofthehundredsofthousandsofunderstandings,somemorecomplexthanothers,thatweconstructthroughreflectionuponourinteractionswith objectsandideas. Eachofusmakessenseofourworldbysynthesizingnewexperiencesintowhatwehavepreviouslycometounderstand.Often,weencounteranobject,anidea,a relationship,oraphenomenonthatdoesn'tquitemakesensetous.Whenconfrontedwithsuchinitiallydiscrepantdataorperceptions,weeitherinterpretwhatwesee toconformtoourpresentsetofrulesforexplainingandorderingourworld,orwegenerateanewsetofrulesthatbetteraccountsforwhatweperceivetobe occurring.Eitherway,ourperceptionsandrulesareconstantlyengagedinagranddancethatshapesourunderstandings. Consider,forexample,ayounggirlwhoseonlyexperienceswithwaterhavebeeninabathtubandaswimmingpool.Sheexperienceswaterascalm,movingonlyin responsetothemovementsshemakes.Nowthinkofthissamechild'sfirstencounterwithanoceanbeach.Sheexperiencesthewavesswellingandcrashingontothe shore,whitecapsappearingthensuddenlyvanishing,andtheoceanitselfrollingandpitchinginaregularrhythm.Whensomeofthewaterseepsintohermouth,the tasteisentirelydifferentfromherpriorexperienceswiththetasteofwater.Sheisconfrontedwithadifferentexperienceofwater,one

Page5

thatdoesnotconformtoherpriorunderstanding.Shemusteitheractivelyconstructadifferentunderstandingofwatertoaccommodatehernewexperiencesorignore thenewinformationandretainheroriginalunderstanding.This,accordingtoPiagetandInhelder(1971),occursbecauseknowledgecomesneitherfromthesubject northeobject,butfromtheunityofthetwo.Inthisinstance,theinteractionsofthechildwiththewater,andthechild'sreflectionsonthoseinteractions,willinall likelihoodleadtostructuralchangesinthewayshethinksaboutwater.Fosnot(inpress)statesitthisway:''Learningisnotdiscoveringmore,butinterpretingthrougha differentschemeorstructure." Ashumanbeings,weexperiencevariousaspectsoftheworld,suchasthebeach,atdifferentperiodsofdevelopment,andarethusabletoconstructmorecomplex understandings.Theyoungchildinthisexamplenowknowsthatthetasteofseawaterisunpleasant.Asshegrows,shemightunderstandthatittastessalty.Asa teenager,shemightunderstandthechemicalconceptofsalinity.Atsomepointinherdevelopment,shemightexaminehowsaltsolutionsconductelectricityorhowthe powerofthetidescanbeharnessedasasourceofusableenergy.Eachoftheseunderstandingswillresultfromincreasedcomplexityinherthinking.Eachnew constructionwilldependuponhercognitiveabilitiestoaccommodatediscrepantdataandperceptionsandherfundofexperiencesatthetime. StudentLearninginSchools Acceptingthepropositionthatwelearnbyconstructingnewunderstandingsofrelationshipsandphenomenainourworldmakesacceptingthepresentstructureof schoolingdifficult.Educatorsmustinvitestudentstoexperiencetheworld'srichness,empowerthemtoasktheirownquestionsandseektheirownanswers,and challengethemtounderstandtheworld'scomplexities.Duckworth(1993)describesherversionofteachingthusly:"Iproposesituationsforpeopletothinkaboutand Iwatchwhattheydo.Theytellmewhattheymakeofitratherthanmytellingthemwhattomakeofit."Thisapproachvaluesthestudents'pointsofviewand attemptstoencouragestudentsinthedirectionstheyhavechartedforthemselves.Schoolsinfrequentlyoperateinsuchaway,astheytypicallynarrowthebandof issuesforstudentsand

Page6

teacherstostudy,demandshortandsimpleanswerstoquestions,andpresentcomplexityaspreviouslycategorizedhistoricaleras,mathematicalalgorithms, scientificformulas,orpreestablishedgenresandclasses. Butschoolingdoesn'thavetobethisway.Schoolscanbetterreflectthecomplexitiesandpossibilitiesoftheworld.Theycanbestructuredinwaysthathonorand facilitatetheconstructionofknowledge.Andtheycanbecomesettingsinwhichteachersinvitestudentstosearchforunderstanding,appreciateuncertainty,andinquire responsibly.Theycanbecomeconstructivistschools.Noddings(1990)writes:


Havingacceptedthebasicconstructivistpremise,thereisnopointinlookingforfoundationsorusingthelanguageofabsolutetruth.Theconstructivistpositionisreallypost epistemological,andthatiswhyitcanbesopowerfulininducingnewmethodsofresearchandteaching.Itrecognizesthepoweroftheenvironmenttopressforadaptation,the temporalityofknowledge,andtheexistenceofmultipleselvesbehavinginconsonancewiththerulesofvarioussubcultures(p.12).

StartingwithWhatWeKnow Toeffectivelyexploreoureducationalsystem,wemustfirstexaminethecoreunitofthewholeenterprise,theclassroom,asettingwealreadyknowmuchabout.First, theAmericanclassroomisdominatedbyteachertalk(Flanders1973,Goodlad1984).Teachersoftendisseminateknowledgeandgenerallyexpectstudentsto identifyandreplicatethefieldsofknowledgedisseminated.Inaflowchartofclassroomcommunication,mostofthearrowspointtoorawayfromtheteacher. Studentinitiatedquestionsandstudenttostudentinteractionsareatypical. Second,mostteachersrelyheavilyontextbooks(BenPeretz1990).Often,theinformationteachersdisseminatetostudentsisdirectlyalignedwiththeinformation offeredbytextbooks,providingstudentswithonlyoneviewofcomplexissues,onesetoftruths.Forexample,manyteachersvalidatethetextbookviewof ChristopherColumbusasanintrepidexplorerinsearchofanewworld.TherevisionistviewofColumbus'voyageasthecauseofoppres

Page7

sionoftheNativeAmericanpopulationinNorthAmericaisnotfrequentlydiscussedinclassrooms.Alternativeinterpretationsofsocialphenomenaarerarely considered. Third,althoughthereexistsagrowinginterestincooperativelearninginAmerica'sschools,mostclassroomsstructurallydiscouragecooperationandrequirestudents toworkinrelativeisolationontasksthatrequirelowlevelskills,ratherthanhigherorderreasoning.Thinkabout,forexample,themanyelementaryclassroomsin whichstudentssitaloneforportionsofalmosteverydaycompletingworkbookanddittosheets. Fourth,studentthinkingisdevaluedinmostclassrooms.Whenaskingstudentsquestions,mostteachersseeknottoenablestudentstothinkthroughintricateissues, buttodiscoverwhetherstudentsknowthe''right"answers.Consequently,studentsquicklylearnnottoraisetheirhandsinresponsetoateacher'squestionunlessthey areconfidenttheyalreadyknowthesoughtafterresponse.Doingotherwiseplacesthematsomerisk. Fifth,schoolingispremisedonthenotionthatthereexistsafixedworldthatthelearnermustcometoknow.Theconstructionofnewknowledgeisnotashighlyvalued astheabilitytodemonstratemasteryofconventionallyacceptedunderstandings. PerceivedSuccess Thepowerandsanctityofthecurriculumandthesubordinationofstudents'ownemergingconceptsareprofoundconcerns.Manystudentsstruggletounderstand conceptsinisolation,tolearnpartswithoutseeingwholes,tomakeconnectionswheretheyseeonlydisparity,andtoacceptasrealitywhattheirperceptionsquestion. Foragoodmanystudents,successinschoolhasverylittletodowithtrueunderstanding,andmuchtodowithcoverageofthecurriculum.Inmanyschools,the curriculumisheldasabsolute,andteachersarereticenttotamperwithitevenwhenstudentsareclearlynotunderstandingimportantconcepts.Ratherthanadapting thecurriculumtostudents'needs,thepredominantinstitutionalresponseistoviewthosewhohavedifficultyunderstandingtheunalteredcurriculumasslowor disabled.These

Page8

studentsareoftenremovedfrommainstreamclasses,givenremedialinstruction,orretained. Evenstudentswhoarecapableofdemonstratingsuccess,whopasstestswithhighmarksandobtain''honors"diplomas,frequentlydon'tconnecttheinformationthey receiveinschooltointerpretationsoftheworldaroundthem.ConsiderGardner's(1991b)lament:


Icontendthatevenwhenschoolappearstobesuccessful,evenwhenitelicitstheperformanceforwhichithasapparentlybeendesigned,ittypicallyfailstoachieveitsmost importantmissions.Evidenceforthisstartlingclaimcomesfromabynowoverwhelmingbodyofeducationalresearchthathasbeenassembledoverthelastdecades.These investigationsdocumentthatevenstudentswhohavebeenwelltrainedandwhoexhibitalltheovertsignsofsuccessfaithfulattendanceatgoodschools,highgradesandhigh testscores,accoladesfromtheirteacherstypicallydonotdisplayanadequateunderstandingofthematerialandconceptswithwhichtheyhavebeenworking(p.3).

Inmanydistrictsthroughoutthenation,studentsspendagooddealoftimepreparingforstandardizedtestsorstatewideexams.Forexample,inmathematics,a geometryteachermighthelpstudentsmemorizetheformulasandproofsnecessarytopassanexitorminimumcompetencyexam.Afewmonthslater,however,when someofthesesamestudentsareaskedtoapplygeometricprinciplesonanationalexamination,suchastheNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress(NAEP), onlyasmallpercentageofthemmightdemonstratetheabilitytodoso(Schoenfeld1988).Inotherwords,althoughconsideredsuccessfulinahighschoolgeometry course,manyofthesestudentscannotdemonstratefacilitywithgeometricprinciples,evenwhentheirlearningwasassessedinthesamemannerasitwaspreviously assessed,specifically,onamultiplechoiceexam. Katz(1985)andGardner(1991b)describethediscrepancybetweenperceivedandactualsuccessasthedifferencebetweenlearningandperformance.Indiscussing thisdifference,Katz(1985)stressesthatemphasisonperformanceusuallyresultsinlittlerecallofconceptsovertime,whileemphasisonlearninggenerateslongterm understanding.Studentseducatedinasetting

Page9

thatstressesperformancelearnthattechnique,rules,andmemorymattermorethancontext,authenticity,andwholeness.Therefore,ratherthanseekingdeep understanding,thesestudentsseekshorttermstrategiesforaccomplishingtasksorpassingtests.Whenasked,severalweeksormonthslater,toapplywhatthey supposedlyhadlearned,moststudentscan't. MakingaDifference Thedebatethatframescurrentconceptionsofschoolreformwaslargelydefineddecadesago.FranklinBobbitt(1924,p.8)wrote:''Educationisprimarilyforadult life,notforchildlife.Itsfundamentalresponsibilityistoprepareforthe50yearsofadulthood,notforthe20yearsofchildhoodandyouth."Thecurrentcritiquesof AmericaneducationemanatingfrombusinessandindustrycertainlyhavetheirrootsinBobbitt'sconceptionofthepurposeofschooling.JohnDewey(1938), however,arguedthateducationaspreparationforadultlifedeniedtheinherentebullienceandcuriositychildrenbroughtwiththemtoschool,andremovedthefocus fromstudents'presentinterestsandabilitiestosomemoreabstractnotionofwhattheymightwishtodoinfutureyears.Deweyurgedthateducationbeviewedas"a processoflivingandnotapreparationforfutureliving." Schoolsandtheteacherswithinthemcandoboth:theycanbestudentcenteredandsuccessfullypreparestudentsfortheiradultyearsbyunderstandingandhonoring thedynamicsoflearningbyrecognizingthat,forstudents,schoolingmustbeatimeofcuriosity,exploration,andinquiry,andmemorizinginformationmustbe subordinatedtolearninghowtofindinformationtosolverealproblems.Adultmodelingandenvironmentalconditionsplayasignificantroleinthedevelopmentof students'dispositionstobeselfinitiatingproblemposersandproblemsolvers.Whenstudentsworkwithadultswhocontinuetoviewthemselvesaslearners,whoask questionswithwhichtheythemselvesstillgrapple,whoarewillingandabletoalterbothcontentandpracticeinthepursuitofmeaning,andwhotreatstudentsand theirendeavorsasworksinprogress,notfinishedproducts,studentsaremorelikelyto

Page10

demonstratethesecharacteristicsthemselves.Barzun(1992)writes:
Anyonewhohasevertaughtknowsthattheartofteachingdependsupontheteacher'sinstantaneousandintuitivevisionofthepupil'smindasitgropesandfumblestograspa newidea(p.20).

Similarly,whentheclassroomenvironmentinwhichstudentsspendsomuchoftheirdayisorganizedsothatstudenttostudentinteractionisencouraged,cooperation isvalued,assignmentsandmaterialsareinterdisciplinary,andstudents'freedomtochasetheirownideasisabundant,studentsaremorelikelytotakerisksand approachassignmentswithawillingnesstoacceptchallengestotheircurrentunderstandings.Suchteacherrolemodelsandenvironmentalconditionshonorstudentsas emergingthinkers. ConsideringDevelopmentalPrinciples Students'cognitivedevelopmentalabilitiesareanothermajorfactorintheprocessofconstructingunderstanding.Itiscrucialthatteachershavesomeunderstandingof thefoundationalprinciplesofcognitivedevelopmentaltheory.Forexample,inonekindergartenclass,childrenwatchedtheirteachermoldthreebucketsofclayinto eightballseachandgiveoneballtoeachchild.Mostofthestudents''correctly"countedthetwentyfourballsandacknowledgedthateachchildgota"fair"share.Did thestudentsactuallyknowthatwhentheteacherdividedtheclayeachballbecame1/8ofabucketand1/24ofthetotalamountofclay?Theywereintheroomand theysawithappen.But,thechildreninthiskindergartenclasswereintellectuallybusygrapplingwithotherrelationshipsandunderstandings.Theywereengagedin notionsofcounting,distributing,andmatching,importantundertakingsinthedevelopmentoftheirconceptsofnumber.Mostofthemdidn'tconsidertheballofclay 1/8ofonetotalandsimultaneously1/24ofanothertotal.Theydidnotconstructtheconceptthatfractionsimplyrelativity.Theydidconstructandconsolidatemany otherconcepts.Theyseriatednumbersandestablisheda

Page11

onetoonecorrespondencebetweenstudentsintheclassandballsofclay,constructionsmeaningfultothem. Tomaximizethelikelihoodthatstudentswillengageintheconstructionofmeaning,teachersmustinterpretstudentresponsesindevelopmentaltermsandmust appreciatethoseterms.Forexample,indiscussinghowchildrencometounderstandnumber,Papert(1988)writes:


Childrendon'tconceivenumber,theymakeit.Andtheydon'tmakeitallatonceoroutofnothing.Thereisalongprocessofbuildingintellectualstructuresthatchangeand interactandcombine(p.4).

Teacherswhovaluethechild'spresentconceptions,ratherthanmeasurehowfarawaytheyarefromotherconceptions,helpstudentsconstructindividual understandingsimportanttothem. TheSimplePropositionRevisited Thepropositionthatweconstructindividualunderstandingsofourworldandtheassertionthatschoolsmustplayanimportantroleinthisprocessdoessoundsimple. Butwhatsoundssimplepropositionallyisquitedifficultoperationally.Considerthisexampleofafirstyearmiddleschoolteacherpreparingforopeningdayinaschool notedforitsconstructivistorientation.Herjournalentriesdescribeherlessonplanningprocess:


9/2 Hereitis,LaborDay,thedaybeforeIstartmynewjob.I'mscaredtodeath.Lastweek,Ihadameetingwithmyteamteacher.Wetalkedaboutwhatwearegoingtoteachforthe firstfewweeks.Itwasverysketchy.Shealsotalkedaboutsomethingcalled''thebigpicture."I'mnotquitesurewhatshemeant.Shegavemeanexample.IfonlyIcouldremember itnow.We'restartingthemicroscopeunit.Oh,that'sanotherthing.Ialwaysthoughtthatwewouldjustfollowthetextbook.Shetellsmeto"startthinkingintermsofunits."IfI couldonlygetanopeningtostartthisunitoffwith,I'dbealittlemoreatease.

Page12 9/3 ...TomorrowwiththekidsIhavetohaveagrabberlesson.Tomorrow,I'mTHETEACHER.Myteamteachertoldmetogetanideaofwhatthemicroscopeunitisallabout. Nothinghascometomeyet.Perhaps,ifIcouldonlyrelax,Icouldthink. 9/4 Ithappened!Thismorningaround4a.m.Igotanidea.Amicroscope''takesacloserlookatlife."Mytopictodaywas"TakingaCloserLookatLife."Iparalleledastoryabout peoplewantingtotakeacloserlookatwhatwashappeningatthesceneofafiretotakingacloserlookthroughamicroscopelens.Notaverycloseanalogy,but,inasense,it worked....

Theteacheropenedherfirstlessonwiththequestion:Whatdoyouthinklifescienceisallabout?Afewstudentsrespondedwithonewordanswerssuchas"living," "animals,""plants."Sheacknowledgedeachstudentwith"Yes"or"That'sright."Shethenreadastoryaboutafireengine.Immediatelyuponfinishingthestory,she saidtothestudents:"Thepointofthestoryisthatyoucanseemanythingsatafireandyoucanseemanythingsinscience.Everyonecometothefrontandgetyour textbooks."Aftersomeadministrativeworktookplace,theteacherhandedoutphotocopiesofsomewellknownopticalillusionsandsaid:"Inscience,youhaveto developacriticaleye.Writedownwhatyouthinkyousee."Hernextquestionswere:"Whocanseeavase?"and"Whocanseetwofaces?" Theteacher'slessonplanhadmanyoftheelementsofaconstructivistapproach,butherimplementationoftheplandidnot.Sheopenedthelessonwithanumbrella questionthataskedstudentstosharetheircurrentpointsofview.Butsheacceptedonewordanswers,askedforneitherelaborationonthepartofthespeakernor feedbackfromthegroup.Sheplannedforananalogicaldiscussionwithstudents.But,she,herself,drewtheanalogyforthestudentsratherthanaskingquestionsthat wouldhaveallowedthestudentstogeneratetheirownanalogies.Sheattemptedtointegrateher"science"topicwithliteratureandart,encouragingthestudentsto challengetheirownperspectives.Butshedefinedtherangeofperspectivesbyaskingifthestudentssaw

Page13

avaseortwofacesbeforethestudentshadtimetodetermineforthemselveswhattheywereseeing. Thenewteachertookdelightinhergenerationofthe''TakingaCloserLook"themeanddesignedacarefullystructuredplantosharehercreativity.But,indoingso, shelimitedthestudents'opportunitiestotapintotheircreativity.Thelessonwasnotaninvitationtoexplorethetheme.Itwasamethodicaltellingofthetheme. Thisexamplesuggeststhatbecomingaconstructivistteacherisnotsimple.Itrequirescontinualanalysisofbothcurriculumplanningandinstructionalmethodologies duringtheprocessoflearningtobeateacher,reflectivepracticesforwhichmostteachershavenotbeenprepared. Mostteachersagreewiththequestsandgoalsoftheconstructivistorientation:teacherswantstudentstotakeresponsibilityfortheirownlearning,tobeautonomous thinkers,todevelopintegratedunderstandingsofconcepts,andtoposeandseektoanswerimportantquestions.Someteachers,though,havedifficultypracticing constructivistmethodologies.Thepathwaytobecomingaconstructivistteachermeandersthroughourownmemoriesofschoolasstudents,ourprofessional education,ourdeeplyheldbeliefs,ourmostcherishedvalues,andourprivateversionsoftruthandvisionsforthefuture.Bruner(1986)writes:


"[W]orldmaking"...startingasitdoesfromapriorworldthatwetakeasgiven,isconstrainedbythenatureoftheworldversionwithwhichwebegintheremaking.Itisnota relativisticpicnic....Intheend,itisthetransactionofmeaningbyhumanbeings,humanbeingsarmedwithreasonandbuttressedbythefaiththatsensecanbemadeand remade,thatmakeshumancultureandbyculture,Idonotmeansurfaceconsensus(p.159).

It'simportantthatwe,together,exploretheconstructivistpropositionandwaystoputthispropositionintopractice.

Page14

References Barzun,J.(1992).BeginHere:TheForgottenConditionsofTeachingandLearning.Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress. BenPeretz,M.(1990).TheTeacherCurriculumEncounter:FreeingTeachersfromtheTyrannyofTexts.NewYork:StateUniversityofNewYorkPress. Bobbitt,F.(1924).HowToMakeaCurriculum.HoughtonMifflin,Boston. Bruner,J.(1971).TheRelevanceofEducation.N.Y.:Norton. Dewey,J.(1938).ExperienceandEducation.NewYork:Macmillan. Duckworth,E.(April30,1993).Personalcommunication,presentationatInstituteforEducationalDialogueonLongIsland. Flanders,M.(1973).''BasicTeachingSkillsDerivedfromaModelofSpeakingandListening."JournalofTeacherEducation24,(Spring73):2437. Fosnot,C.T.(inpress)."RethinkingScienceEducation:ADefenseofPiagetianConstructivism."JournalforResearchinScienceEducation. Gardner,H.(1991b).TheUnschooledMind:HowChildrenThinkandHowSchoolsShouldTeach.NewYork:BasicBooks. Goodlad,J.(1984).APlaceCalledSchool.NewYork:McGrawHill. Katz,L.G.(1985)."DispositionsinEarlyChildhoodEducation."ERIC/EECEBulletin18,2.Urbana,Ill.:ERICClearinghouseorElementaryandEarlyChildhood Education. Noddings,H.(1990)."ConstructivisminMathematicsEducation."JournalforResearchinMathematicsEducation#4.Reston,Va.:NCTM. Papert,S.(1988)."TheConservationofPiaget:TheComputerasGristtotheConstructivistMill."InConstructivismintheComputerAge,editedbyG.Forman andP.B.Pufall.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates. Piaget,J.,andB.Inhelder.(1971).PsychologyoftheChild.NewYork:BasicBooks. Schoenfeld,A.(1988)."WhenGoodTeachingLeadstoBadResults:TheDisastersof`WellTaught'MathematicsCourses."EducationalPsychologist23,2:145 166.

Page15

2 ConsideringthePossibilities
ContrastingParadigms ConstructivismstandsincontrasttothemoredeeplyrootedwaysofteachingthathavelongtypifiedAmericanclassrooms.Traditionally,learninghasbeenthoughtto bea''mimetic"activity,aprocessthatinvolvesstudentsrepeating,ormiming,newlypresentedinformation(Jackson1986)inreportsoronquizzesandtests. Constructivistteachingpractices,ontheotherhand,helplearnerstointernalizeandreshape,ortransform,newinformation.Transformationoccursthroughthecreation ofnewunderstandings(Jackson1986,Gardner1991b)thatresultfromtheemergenceofnewcognitivestructures.Teachersandparentscaninvitetransformations, butcanneithermandatenorpreventthem.Forexample,aftergazingatablockofwoodforthefirstthreemonthsofhislife,aninfantwhotouchestheblockwithhis newlyacquiredgraspingskilltransformshiscognitivestructures,andthusaffectshisunderstandingsoftheblock.Virtuallyallinfantsdothis.Ontheotherhand,many highschoolstudentsreadHamlet,butnotallofthemtransformtheirpriornotionsofpower,relationships,orgreed.Deepunderstandingoccurswhenthepresenceof newinformationpromptstheemergenceorenhancementofcognitivestructuresthatenableustorethinkourpriorideas. Whydoesn'tmorethinkingandrethinkingoccurinschools?Ourpositionisthatthemimeticapproachtoeducationistoocompellingformanyeducatorstogiveup.It isamenabletoeasily

Page16

performedandwidelyacceptedmeasurement,management,andaccountabilityprocedures.Thisapproachhaslongdominatededucationalthinking,and,therefore, policymaking.Ifstudentscanbetrainedtorepeatspecificproceduresandchunksofinformation,thentheyareviewedas''havinglearned."Thepredominantwaysin whichstudentsareaskedtoexpressthislearningisthroughmultiplechoiceorshortanswertests.Thetypicalmannerinwhichteachersdocumentthislearningis throughpostinggrades. Theconstructivistvista,however,isfarmorepanoramicand,therefore,elusive.Deepunderstanding,notimitativebehavior,isthegoal.But,capturinganotherperson's understandingis,ifanything,aparadoxicalenterprise.Unliketherepetitionofprescribedbehaviors,theactoftransformingideasintobroader,morecomprehensive imagesescapesconcisedescription.Weseeneitherthetransformedconceptnortheprocessofconstructionthatprecededitstransformation.Theonlydiscernible aspectis,onceagain,thestudent'sbehavior,butadifferenttypeofbehavior.Intheconstructivistapproach,welooknotforwhatstudentscanrepeat,butforwhat theycangenerate,demonstrate,andexhibit. Traditionalinstructionoftenleadsstudentstobelievetheyarenotinterestedinparticularsubjectareas,suchasphysicsorforeignlanguageorliterature.The constructivistparadigmholdsdisinterestlessasafunctionoftheparticularsubjectareasthanasafunctionofthewaysinwhichstudentshavebeentaught.Figure2.1 summarizessomevisibledifferencesbetweentraditionalandconstructivistlearningenvironments. Take,forexample,two7thgradesciencelessonsonphotosynthesis.InMr.Randall'sclassroom,middleschoolscienceistaughtthroughacombinationoftextbook workandteacherdemonstration.Studentsperformexperimentsfromtimetotime,dependingupontheavailabilityofmaterialsandspace.Studentsreadawidelyused 7thgradesciencetextbook(Heimler,Daniel,andLockard1984),whichexplainsthat:
Photosynthesis(fohtohsinhthuhsus)isthechemicalchangethatproducesfood.Inphotosynthesis,carbondioxidegasandwaterarecombinedtoproducesugarandoxygen. Thesugarmaybechangedtostarch.Sunlightisnecessaryforphotosynthesis.Itsuppliestheenergyforthechemicalchange.Theenergybecomeslockedinthesugarandstarch moleculesthatareproduced(pp.176).

Page17

TraditionalClassrooms Curriculumispresentedparttowhole,with emphasisonbasicskills. Strictadherencetofixedcurriculumis highlyvalued. Curricularactivitiesrelyheavilyon textbooksandworkbooks. Studentsareviewedas''blankslates"onto whichinformationisetchedbytheteacher. Teachersgenerallybehaveinadidactic manner,disseminatinginformationto students. Teachersseekthecorrectanswerto validatestudentlearning.

ConstructivistClassrooms Curriculumispresentedwholetopartwith emphasisonbigconcepts. Pursuitofstudentquestionsishighlyvalued.

Curricularactivitiesrelyheavilyonprimary sourcesofdataandmanipulativematerials. Studentsareviewedasthinkerswith emergingtheoriesabouttheworld. Teachersgenerallybehaveinaninteractive manner,mediatingtheenvironmentfor students. Teachersseekthestudents'pointsofview inordertounderstandstudents'present conceptionsforuseinsubsequentlessons. Assessmentofstudentlearningis interwovenwithteachingandoccurs throughteacherobservationsofstudentsat workandthroughstudentsexhibitionsand portfolios. Studentsprimarilyworkingroups.

Assessmentofstudentlearningisviewedas separatefromteachingandoccursalmost entirelythroughtesting.

Studentsprimarilyworkalone.

Figure2.1 ALookatSchoolEnvironments

Page18

Mr.Randallthentalksabouttheroleofchlorophyllandpresentsthechemicalequationforphotosynthesis:6CO2+6H2O C6H12O6+6O2.Thewrittenexplanation ofthechemicalequationindicatesthatwhencarbondioxideandwaterareinthepresenceofenergy(sunlight,inthecaseofphotosynthesis),sugarandoxygenare produced.Thesugarisusedbytheplanttomakethecellulosethatformsitscellwallsandtomakefoodforselfrepairsandstorageforlaternourishment.Mr.Randall alsodescribestheprocessofrespiration,thenreviewstheinformationthroughatestattheendofthechapterthatincludesseveralquestionformats:


TrueorFalse:''Foodisproducedinleaves." Circleone:"(Carbondioxide,Sugar,Water)isproducedinphotosynthesis." FillintheBlank:"Photosynthesisoccursinsideplantcellsthatcontain____________________." Shortanswer:"Howisrespirationdifferentfromphotosynthesis?"(pp.183185)

Thisisthemimeticapproachtolearning.Studentscommitnewinformationtotheirshorttermmemoryforthepurposeofmimickinganunderstandingof photosynthesisonanendofchaptertest.Thereislittleinthepresentationoftheinformationortheassessmentstrategiesthatchallengesstudents'currentbeliefsabout thewayplantsgrowandtherelationshipsamongplantsandotherlifeforms.Infact,boththewayinwhichthecontentispresentedandthemannerinwhichlearningis assessedmilitateagainstthedevelopmentofsuchunderstandings,andinsteadencouragerotememorizationofasymbolic,chemicalequation. Contrastthisapproachtoasecondclassroom,oneinwhichtheteacher,Ms.Martina,notonlydeletedthemolecularequationandreferencestocellwallsinher introductorylessonplan,butactuallydeletedallreferencestophotosynthesis.Ms.Martinaaskedherstudentstothinkofsystemswithwhichtheymighthavesome experienceandfamiliarity,andtoindicatetheproductcreated,theenergysourceneeded,andtherawmaterialsused.Sheaskedherstudentstoconsider,for example,theirartclassesandwhattheycreatethere.Severalstudentstakinga"hometechnolo

Page19

gies''classatthetimeweremakingmaltedmilkshakes.Theycombinedingredients(malt,milk,andcocoa)inthepresenceofanexternalenergysource(anelectric blender)toproduceaproduct(themilkshake).Theydidnotreadilycomeupwithabyproduct.Butwhentheylitonan"appetitewettingaroma"asapossibility,they becamequiteanimated.Anotherstudent,thinkingofhishealtheducationclass,describedexerciseasasystemconsistingofingredients(ahumanbody,weights,and exercisemachines)actedonbyanenergysource(one'smuscles)togenerateaproduct(increasedstrengthandmuscletone)andabyproduct(asenseofwell being).Theseanalogiesgeneratedenthusiasmaboutthestudents'hometechnologiesandhealthclassactivities.Thestudentsengagedininterdisciplinarydiscussions witheachotherandMs.Martina. Ms.Martinastructuredherinitiallessonsonphotosynthesissothatherstudentsmightconsiderandconsolidatetheaspectsofasystem.Thetermphotosynthesiswas notmentionedduringthelesson.Barzun(1992)writes:


Itisnotthesubjectbuttheimaginationof[the]teacherand[the]taughtthathastobealivebeforetheinterestcanbefelt(p.63).

Ms.Martinaaskedherstudentstothinkofphotosynthesisasasysteminwhichcertainingredients(carbondioxideandwater)arechangedbyanoutsideenergy source(sunlight)toproduceaproduct(sugar)andabyproduct(oxygen).Theconceptofabyproduct,inandofitself,hadbeenanewideaformoststudentsand wasanimportantprecursortounderstandingthe"system." ItwasimportanttoMs.Martinathatherstudentsconsidertherelationshipsamongplantsandotherlifeformsandtherolethatphotosynthesisplaysinthose relationships.Thedepthtowhichshemighteventuallypursuethechemicalexplanationofthetopicdependsonthestrengthoftheframeworkthestudentsconstructas aresultoftheopeninglessons. ThoughMs.Martina'sstudentsdidn'tconstructabiochemicalunderstandingofphotosynthesis,andtheirexampleswerenotcompletelyanalogoustothesystemof photosynthesisintermsofreversibilityandcomplexity,theydidbegintoappreciatethatonewayoftryingtounderstandphotosynthesisisasasystemicprocess

Page20

yieldingbothaproductandabyproduct.Thisunderstandingcanserveasabasisfortheconstructionofamoresophisticatedunderstandingofphotosynthesisandthe abilitytousetheunit'svocabulary.FormanandKuschner(1977),indiscussingPiaget'sideasontheconstructionofknowledge,write:
Thinkofthechildnotunderstandingsomesystem,suchasthegameofbaseball,tounderstandingthatsystem.Knowingtheentirelistofruleswouldnotbecreditedas knowledge,toPiaget.Knowinghowtonavigatetherules,toinferwhyitmakessensetohittheballlightly,tofigureoutwhytherulesallowyoutorunpastfirstbasebutnot secondtheseexamplesofagenerativeuseoftherulesgiveevidencethatthelisthasbeenconstructedintoawholesystem(p.84).

Ms.Martina'sanalogicactivityservedasaninvitationforstudentstolookatphotosynthesisasawholesystem.Thestudents'owncreationofanalogieshelpedthemto constructaframework.Inordertocompletethetask,studentsaskedquestionsaboutphotosynthesis,nomeanfeatwith7thgraders,andstruggledtoputthe ''answers"intoameaningfulcontext. Let'sconsiderstudents'conceptionsofphotosynthesisinateacherpreparationclassofgraduatesandundergraduateswithbiologyandearthsciencemajors.Inone class,theprofessoraskedthestudentstoexplaintheprocessofphotosynthesisin"simple,"everydayterms.Thefollowingtworesponsesdemonstratethetentative natureoftheirunderstandings:"Ithassomethingtodowithmakingcarbondioxide.""No.it'snot.Theplantusescarbondioxidetomake...tomake...afood molecule...Ithink?" Thesearetwocollegestudentsenrolledinbothabiologycourseandateacherpreparationcourse.Theyacknowledgedembarrassmentatnotbeingabletodescribe photosynthesisconcisely.Infact,theyvolunteeredtoreconsiderthetopicandgivetheclassaminilessonatthenextclassmeeting.Onthatoccasion,theyaccurately, andenthusiastically,describedphotosynthesisonthebiochemicallevel.TheyusedsketchesandmodelsofthelightanddarkstagereactionsandtheCalvincycleand describedindetailthemanymolecularactivitiesthattakeplaceduringphotosynthesis.

Page21

Duringthestudents'descriptionofhowchlorophyllgivesoffelectrons,anotherclassmemberasked,''Doesthechlorophylleverrunoutofelectrons?" Afteracontemplativepause,oneofthepresentersreplied,"No,ithaslotsofthem." Thesetwostudentsofferedtheclassatechnicallyaccuratedescriptionofphotosynthesis.Theydemonstratedthattheyhadtheabilitytomemorizeandrecall information,andthattheycouldeffectivelyarticulatethisinformationtoothers.Buttheydidnotdirectquestionsbacktotheinformationtheyhadmemorized.Inother words,theyhadpreparedtheirpresentationasiftheywereabouttotakeafactbased,multiplechoicetest. Let'slookatanexcerptfromthejournalofanotherstudentinthesamemethodsclass:


Unfortunately,oneofthelastingimpressionsIwillhavefromthisclasswastheseriesofdisappointingresponsesIheardtoyourquestionsaboutphotosynthesis.Clearly,most studentsintheclass,asidefromnotrememberingthedetailsofphotosynthesis(tosomedegreeforgivable),wereapparentlynottaughtormadetoappreciateitssignificanceto lifeonthisplanet,energyflowthroughthefoodchain,atmosphericcomposition,andtheelegantefficiencywithwhichsolarradiationisutilizedbychlorophyll.Idon'tthinkyou intendedtomakephotosynthesisthetopicbywhichyoudemonstratedthedeficienciesofoureducationalsystem.However,that'showitturnedout.Thepeopleinourclassare reasonablyintelligent.Thelimitedunderstandingofabasicconceptlikephotosynthesis,demonstratedthisweek,canonlybetheresultofinadequateteaching.And,Isuppose,it isthisthatwe'vebeenconsideringallalong.(Ferrandino1991)

ChoosingtheConstructivistParadigm Whenteachersrecognizeandhonorthehumanimpulsetoconstructnewunderstandings,unlimitedpossibilitiesarecreatedforstudents.Educationalsettingsthat encouragetheactiveconstructionofmeaninghaveseveralcharacteristics:

Page22

Theyfreestudentsfromthedrearinessoffactdrivencurriculumsandallowthemtofocusonlargeideas. Theyplaceinstudents'handstheexhilaratingpowertofollowtrailsofinterest,tomakeconnections,toreformulateideas,andtoreachuniqueconclusions. Theysharewithstudentstheimportantmessagethattheworldisacomplexplaceinwhichmultipleperspectivesexistandtruthisoftenamatterofinterpretation. Theyacknowledgethatlearning,andtheprocessofassessinglearning,are,atbest,elusiveandmessyendeavorsthatarenoteasilymanaged. Tounderstandconstructivism,educatorsmustfocusattentiononthelearner.But,opportunitiesforlearnerstolearnareheavilycontrolledbythestructureofschools. Thisbook,therefore,oftenchroniclesexamplesofteaching/learninginteractionsfromthepointofviewoftheteacherandthesettingforthepurposeofillustratinghow the''peopleincharge"mightbegintorestructurethelearningopportunitiestheymakeavailableintheirsettings.Butwemustalwaysrememberthatinordertorealize thepossibilitiesforlearningthataconstructivistpedagogyoffers,schoolsneedtotakeacloser,morerespectfullookattheirlearners. References Barzun,J.(1992).BeginHere:TheForgottenConditionsofTeachingandLearning.Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress. Ferrandino,F.(1991).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook. Forman,G.,andD.Kuschner.(1977).TheChild'sConstructionofKnowledge.Belmont,Calif.:WadworthCo. Gardner,H.(1991b).TheUnschooledMind:HowChildrenThinkandHowSchoolsShouldTeach.NewYork:BasicBooks. Heimler,C.,L.Daniel,andJ.D.Lockard.(1984).FocusonLifeScience.Columbus,Ohio:CharlesE.MerrillPublishingCo. Jackson,P.W.(1986).ThePracticeofTeaching.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress.

Page23

3 ComingtoKnowOne'sWorld
Constructivism,asawayofcomingtoknowone'sworld,issupportedbyalongandhonorablebodyofliteratureandresearch,muchofwhichislistedinthisbook's bibliography.Wehighlightheretheworksofafewphilosophers,researchers,andtheoristswhohaveinformedourthinkingandpracticeandwhoseworkunderpins theconstructivistteachingprinciplesanddescriptorswediscussinPartsIIandIII.Thereisclearlyaconnectionbetweenconstructivismasanepistemologicaland philosophicalimageandconstructivismasaneducationalframework. AlthoughsomearguethatthefirstgreatdocumentedconstructivistwasSocrates,ourdiscussiondoesn'tstretchthatfarback.Inthemorerecentpast,several philosophers,psychologists,andeducatorshavestruggledtounderstandtheindividual'srelationshipwithnatureandsocietyandhavehelpedusreformulatemanyof thefundamentalquestionswehaveaskedourselves.Thenatureofknowledge,andthereforeoflearning,hasemergedovertimeasanessentiallineofinquiry. ThephilosopherEmmanuelKant,whoseworkbridgedthe18thand19thcenturies,attemptedtowedtwodisparateviewsofknowledge:theviewthatlogicalanalysis ofactionsandobjectsleadstothegrowthofknowledgeandtheviewthatone'sindividualexperiencesgeneratenewknowledge.Kantcontendedthatbothviews havemerit:analysis,bydefinition,occursafterthefactsensateexperiencesoccurbeforeorduringtheevent.Botharea

Page24

functionofone'sownidiosyncraticmentalfilteringsystem.Kantconcludedthatonecannotinfernewrelationshipsamongobjects,events,oractionsunlessonehasa prioriviewsthroughwhichperceptionscanbeorganized.Theseviewsaffecthowonemakessenseofnewinformation.Bruner(1986,p.96)referredtotheseprior understandingsas''mentalconstructionsprojectedontoan`objectiveworld.'" WhatIsReal? Onecannothaveaninterestinthenotionsofconstructivismwithoutgrapplingwithquestionsofperceptionandreality.Isthereone,fixed,objectiveworldthatweall struggletocometoknow,oraretheremanydifferentworlds,dependentfortheirdefinitionuponindividualperception?ThepsychologistGeorgeKelly(1955)wrote oftherelationshipbetweenperceptionandobjectivereality:


Manlooksatthisworldthroughtransparentpatternsortemplets,whichhecreatesandthenattemptstofitovertherealitiesofwhichtheworldiscomposed.Thefitisnotalways verygood.Yet,withoutsuchpatternstheworldappearstobesuchanundifferentiatedhomogeneitythatmanisunabletomakeanysenseoutofit.Evenapoorfitismorehelpful tohimthannothingatall(pp.910).

Weconcur.Weoncewatchedasevenyearoldchildatthebeachforthefirsttime.Whenshefirststeppedoffoftheboardwalk,sheexclaimedwithgreatsurprise anddiscomfort,"Thesandsticksbetweenmytoes!"Webrushedthesandawayandshehappilytookanotherstep,thendisappointedlysaid,"Itkeepsonhappening." Shemademanyotherdiscoveriesthatday,agoodnumberofwhichdidnot"fit"withherpriorexperiences. Idiosyncraticconstructionsofpriorexperiencesformthebasisoftheparadigms,theframeworksofthinking,weeachusetoperceiveandconsiderthephenomena aroundus.Kuhn(1962),inhisclassicwork,TheStructureofScientificRevolutions,usestheterm"paradigm"todescribethelensthatorders,butalsolimits,our perceptionandthinking.Heusestheterm"paradigmshift"torefertotheprocessthatoccurswithintheindividualwhoisable

Page25

andwillingtochangehislens.Changingthelensisaninternalprocessinitiatedbytheindividualwhencurrentrulesandtheoriesaboutthewayone'sworldworksno longeraccountfortheinformationbeingperceivedorprovideforthejobtobedone. Formanyeducators,becomingaconstructivistteacherrequiresaparadigmshift.Becomingsuchateachermeansmuchmorethanappendingnewpracticestoalready fullrepertoires.Formany,itrequiresthewillingabandonmentoffamiliarperspectivesandpracticesandtheadoptionofnewones. TheInfluenceofPiaget Kuhn'sparadigmshiftissimilartothedescriptionofaccommodationofferedbythewellknownSwissscholar,JeanPiaget,oneofthemostinfluentialproponentsof constructivism.Piagetwas,byhisowndefinition,ageneticepistemologistconcernedprimarilywithcognitivedevelopmentandtheformationofknowledge.His researchledhimtoconcludethatthegrowthofknowledgeistheresultofindividualconstructionsmadebythelearner.Piaget(1971)wrotelateinhiscareer:


Thecurrentstateofknowledgeisamomentinhistory,changingjustasrapidlyasknowledgeinthepasthaschanged,and,inmanyinstances,morerapidly.Scientificthought, then,isnotmomentaryitisnotastaticinstanceitisaprocess.Morespecifically,itisaprocessofcontinualconstructionandreorganization(pp.12).

AlthoughPiaget'scareerspannedover50yearsandgeneratedanextraordinarilysubstantivebodyofresearch,hisworkhasgainedvaryinglevelsofacceptancein Americaneducationcircles.Therearemanyreasonsforthis,nottheleastofwhichisPiaget'sownreluctancetoapplyhisnotionstoeducation.Anotherreasonliesin thestrongrootsofAmericanbehavioralpsychologyinoureducationalsystem,exemplifiedbytheworkofSkinner(1938)andThorndike(1926).Thesetheoristsand researchersdescribedhumanbehavioressentiallybythestimulusresponserelationshipcoupledwithpositivereinforcementofdesiredbehaviorsand

Page26

negativereinforcementofunwantedbehaviors.OtherviewsofhumanbehaviorhavebeenlargelyignoredinAmericaneducation.Wadsworth(1971)writes:
Traditionally,Americanpsychologistsofthebehavioristschooldonotinfertheexistenceofinternalmentalprocesses(ofthought).Piaget'sconcepts,likeassimilation,are entirelyforeigntothebehavioristposition(p.6).

Piagetviewedconstructivismasawayofexplaininghowpeoplecometoknowabouttheirworld.Hebuttressedthisexplanationwithextensivedocumentationof behaviorshewitnessedandwithwellsupportedinferencesaboutthefunctionsofthemind.Piaget(1952)viewedthehumanmindasadynamicsetofcognitive structuresthathelpusmakesenseofwhatweperceive.Thesestructuresgrowinintellectualcomplexityaswematureandasweinteractwiththeworldwecometo knowandaswegainexperience.Throughmaturationandexperience,thegroundworkfornewstructuresislaid.Forexample,thecognitivestructuresrequiredto comprehendthatawoodencubeishardarerudimentaryandfarlesscomplexthanthestructuresnecessarytounderstandthatacubehaslength,width,andheight, andthatthesethreefactorscombinetodeterminethecube'svolume. Aninfant,yetunabletoholdormanipulatethecube,definesitbythesidesvisibletoheratthatpointintime.Whenthechild'smusculatureandmentalstructuresallow hertotouchit,sheispresentedwithnewinformationthatmustbeintegratedintoherthinking.Animportantcognitivestructurehaschangedtheinitial''nongrasping" structurehasbeenrefashionedintoanew"grasping"one.Thisprocessiscalledaccommodation.Thechild'snewlycreatedstructureallowsassimilationofthe experiencetooccurwithinhermind. InPiagetianterms,thetemporarycognitivestabilityresultingfromthebalanceofassimilationandaccommodationiscalledequilibrium.Piagetsuggestedthatthe creationofnewcognitivestructuresspringsfromthechild'sneedtoreachequilibriumwhenconfrontedwithinternallyconstructedcontradictionsthatis,when perceptionand"reality"conflict.ThequestforcognitiveequilibriumisamongthemostcontroversialofPiaget'snotions.

Page27

Bruner(1964)andChomsky(1977)havesuggestedthatfactorssuchaslanguageandpriorexperiencearemorecloselyassociatedwiththedevelopmentofnew structuresthanisthequestforcognitiveequilibrium.Anumberofothecognitivetheoristsandresearchers(Case1985,Haroutunian1983,Gardner1991b)havealso challengedPiaget'sassertionthatthequestforcognitiveequilibriumgeneratesthedevelopmentofnewmentalstructures.Webelievethatneitherhisearliestnotionsof statetheorynorageneralizedviewoftherelationshipbetweenthepersonandhisworlddomuchtoinformeducationalpractice(seeChapter7).However,weare stilldrawntoandhavebeeninfluencedbyhislaterwork.ThemorePiagetcametounderstandhumangrowthanddevelopment,thelesshefocusedongroupdriven conceptionsofhumancognitionandthemoreheofferedtoeducators.Fosnot(inpress)writesofPiaget'slatercareerrefinements:


[Piaget's]theorywentthroughradicalreformulationinthetenyearspriortohisdeath.Inthoseyearshemovedawayfromasimplisticdiscussionofassimilation,accommodation, andstaticequilibrium,offeringinsteadamodelofdynamicequilibriumcharacterizedbysuccessivecoordinationandprogressiveequilibrations.Hemovedawayfromastatic stagetheory(preoperational,concrete,formal)towardadelineationofthesuccessivepossibilitiesandlogicalnecessitiesgeneratedbysubjectsastheyattemptedtoexploreand understandvariousproblems(p.7).

Piaget'sgroundbreakingworkspawnedanavalancheoftheoriesandresearchstudies,greatlyalteringcognitivepsychology.Inourview,thefaceofwhateducation canbehasbeenchangedaswell,buteducatorshavenotbeenlookingintothemirror. DiscrepancyResolution Constructingunderstandingsofone'sworldisanactive,mindengagingprocess(SigelandCocking1977,VonGlasersfeld1981).Whileitistruethat,aslearners,we alltakeinsomeinformationpassively,theconstructivistperspectivesuggeststhateventhisinformationmustbementallyacteduponinordertohavemeaningforthe learner.Copple,Sigel,andSaunders(1984)highlightthe

Page28

roleofdiscrepancyresolutionasperceivedbythelearnerintheconstructionofknowledge.Theydiscussthewellknownexperimentinwhichastudentobservestwo identicalglassesofwaterfilledtothesamepointandthenobservesthecontentsofoneglassemptiedintoatall,narrowbeakerandthecontentsoftheotherglass emptiedintoashort,widebeaker.Youngstudentsusuallyassertthat,eventhoughtheysawthattheamountpouredintoeachofthebeakerswasidentical,thetall, narrowbeakernowcontainsmorewaterthantheshort,wideone.Noamountofteaching,theycontend,willalterthestudents'conceptions.Theyask,rhetorically:


Doesthechildneedtolearntoobservethecontainersmorecarefully,orperhapswatchmorecloselywhenthewaterisbeingpoured?Doessheneedtohavethewaterreversed andthenrepeateduntilsheseestheequivalence(pp.18)?

SigelandCocking(1977)assertthatstudents'fundamentalquestisdiscrepancyresolution.Thestudentwhoperceivesthatthetwoinitialglassesheldequalamounts ofwaterandthetwosubsequentbeakersdidnothasnodiscrepancywithwhichtocontend.Inthisstudent'sworld,defined,inpart,bythecognitivestructures availabletoheratthatpointintime,thereisnothingdiscrepantaboutequalsbecomingunequal.However,thestudentwhorecognizesthatequalsmustremainequal, evenifthereceptaclesinwhichtheyareheldchangeshape,hasadiscrepancytoresolve.Typically,thediscrepancyisresolvedbythestudentincorporatingagreater numberofvariablesandnewinformationintoheranalysis.Thisisnottosaythatshewillnecessarilyconstructtheunderstandingheldbytheteacherorotherthinkersin theclass,justthatthenewunderstandingwilllikelybesomewhatmoresophisticatedthanthepriorone. Whatconstitutessophisticationisquiterelativeandcontextual,however.Considerthefollowingexample.Onecoldwintermorning,sittinginthecarataredlight,a threeyearoldchildnoticedacrossingguardintheintersectionwalkingawayfromhim.Theguardwaswearingaregulationuniformwiththebulkylongcoat,white gloves,andwhite,closefittinghood.Ingreatsurprise,thechildexclaimed,''Look,there'sasnowmancrossingthestreet!"Hethenadded,"Ididn'tknowsnowmen werereal." Thisthreeyearoldhadbroadenedhis"snowman"conceptfromstorybookcharactersandsnowdaysculpturingto"real"ones

Page29

thatwalkacrossstreets.Heexperiencedcognitiveconflict:snowmenaren'talive,butinfrontofhimwasonecrossingthestreet.Hisresolutionoftheconflict,hismore ''sophisticated"ideathatsnowmenarereal,whichsatisfiedhimatthetime,remaineduntilfurtherinformationandexperiencespromptedhisrethinkingofthis understanding.Wasthischild's"realsnowmen"understandingerrant?AccordingtotheAmericanCollegeDictionary(1963,p.408),errantmeans"journeyingor traveling,asamedievalknightinquestofadventure."Inhispublicradiobroadcast,JohnLienhard(1993)said,"Fivehundredyearsago,...[a]personinerrorwasa personsearchingforthetruth." TheNeedtoFindOne'sOwnProblem Many8thand9thgradersthroughoutthenationtakealgebra.Acommonproblemtheyareaskedtosolveis:


PointAandPointBare250milesapart.AtrainleavesPointAheadingforPointBat11:00a.m.travellingat55MPH,andanothertrainleavesPointBheadingforPointAat11:30 a.m.travellingat60MPH.Atwhattimeandatwhatpointwilltheypassoneanother?

Adultswithwhomweworkstillgroanatthementionofthosetrains.As8thgradestudents,mostofthemansweredthissortofquestioncorrectlyonexamsbecause theymemorizedtheappropriateformalequationsandappliedthemwhenconfrontedwiththeproblems.Butformost,nonewunderstandingsoftimeandrate functionswereconstructed,andtheequationswerequicklyforgottenoncetheexamswerecompleted. Althoughdesignedtofosterstudents'algebraicskills,thesetypesoftextbookproblemsofteninterferewithstudents'desiretoengageinfuturemathematicalendeavors and,overtime,erodestudents'confidenceandselfesteem.Thelinebetweencognitivedissonance,whichcanprovokeastudent'sdesiretopersevere,and intrapersonalfrustration,whichinterfereswiththestudent'sdesiretoresolvedissonance,isafineonethatisoftendifficulttorecognize.Tofosterthedevelopmentof students'abilitiestoorganizeandunderstandtheirindividualworlds,teachersneedtoencouragestudentstofindtheirownproblems.

Page30

Comingtoknowone'sworldisafunctionofcaringaboutone'sworld.Caringaboutone'sworldisfosteredbycommunitiesoflearnersinvolvedintryingtoanswer similar,butnotnecessarilyidentical,problems.Theenergynecessaryforconstructionofproblemsolutionsdemandscommitment.Commitment,inturn,emanatesfrom construction.Anengineerwatchesanewlydesignedairplaneexecuteaflawlessperformanceandsays,''That'smybaby!"Anarchitect,afteryearsoflonghours workingonablueprintforacomplexstructure,says,"That'smybaby!"Afather,athisdaughter'sblackbeltkarateexhibitionsays,"That'smybaby!"Whythesame metaphor?Thereisacommitmentinherentinparenting,anactivitythatincludesdesign,investment,joy,andpain.Indeed,otheractivitieshighinthesequalities engendergreatcommitmentaswell. Designing,thinking,changing,evaluatingmostparticularlyinresponsetoafeltneedcreateinterestandenergy.Cognitiveprocessesworktoaddressaffectively drivenissues.Helpingstudentsorgroupsofstudentstoclarifyforthemselvesthenatureoftheirownquestions,toposetheirquestionsintermstheycanpursue,andto interprettheresultsinlightofotherknowledgetheyhavegeneratedistheteacher'smaintask. TheChallenge Piaget(1969)wrote:
Theheartbreakingdifficultyinpedagogy,asindeedinmedicineandinmanyotherbranchesofknowledgethatpartakeatthesametimeofartandscience,is,infact,thatthebest methodsarealsothemostdifficultones:itwouldbeimpossibletoemployaSocraticmethodwithouthavingfirstacquiredsomeofSocrates'qualities,thefirstofwhichwould havetobeacertainrespectforintelligenceintheprocessofdevelopment(p.69).

Aconstructivistframeworkchallengesteacherstocreateenvironmentsinwhichtheyandtheirstudentsareencouragedtothinkandexplore.Thisisaformidable challenge.Buttodootherwiseistoperpetuatetheeverpresentbehavioralapproachtoteachingandlearning.

Page31

References Bruner,J.(1964).''TheCourseofCognitiveGrowth."AmericanPsychologist19. Bruner,J.(1986).ActualMinds,PossibleWorlds.Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress. Case,R.(1985).IntellectualDevelopment:BirthtoAdulthood.Orlando,Fla.:AcademicPress. Chomsky,N.(1977).LanguageandResponsibility.NewYork:PantheonBooks. Copple,C.,I.Sigel,andR.Saunders.(1984).EducatingtheYoungThinker.NewYork:D.VanNostrand. Fosnot,C.T.(inpress)."RethinkingScienceEducation:ADefenseofPiagetianConstructivism."JournalforResearchinScienceEducation. Gardner,H.(1991b).TheUnschooledMind:HowChildrenThinkandHowSchoolsShouldTeach.NewYork:BasicBooks. Haroutunian,S.(1983).EquilibriumintheBalance.NewYork:SpringerVerlag. Kelly,G.A.(1955).ThePsychologyofPersonalConstructs,2Vols.(Vol.1,ATheoryofPersonalityVol.2,ClinicalDiagnosisandPsychotherapy).New York:Norton. Kuhn,T.(1962).TheStructureofScientificRevolutions.Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress. Lienhard,J.(1993).TheEnginesofOurIngenuity,No.781:Error.Houston,Texas:NationalPublicRadio,KUHF. Piaget,J.(1952).TheOriginsofIntelligenceinChildren.NewYork:InternationalUniversitiesPress. Piaget,J.(1969).TheMechanismsofPerception.London:RoutledgeandKegerPaul. Piaget,J.,andB.Inhelder.(1971).ThePsychologyoftheChild.N.Y.:BasicBooks. Sigel,I.E.,andR.R.Cocking.(1977).CognitiveDevelopmentfromChildhoodtoAdolescence:AConstructivistPerspective.N.Y.:Holt,Rinehartand Winston. Skinner,B.F.(1938).TheBehavioralOrganism:AnExperimentalAnalysis.N.Y.:AppletonCenturyCrofts. Thorndike,E.L.(1926).TheMeasurementofIntelligence.Columbia,NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Wadsworth,B.(1971).Piaget'sTheoryofCognitiveDevelopmentAnIntroductionforStudentsofPsychologyandEducation.N.Y.:Longman. vonGlasersfeld,E.(1981)."TheConceptsofAdaptationandViabilityinaRadicalConstructivistTheoryofKnowledge."InNewDirectionsinPiagetianTheory andPractice,editedbyI.E.Sigel,Brodinsky,andGolinkoff.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates.

Page33

PARTII SOMEGUIDINGPRINCIPLESOFCONSTRUCTIVISM
PosingProblemsofEmergingRelevancetoStudents StructuringLearningAroundPrimaryConcepts: TheQuestforEssence SeekingandValuingStudents'PointsofView AdaptingCurriculumtoAddressStudents'Suppositions AssessingStudentLearningintheContextofLearning

Page35

4 Principle#1: PosingProblemsofEmergingRelevancetoStudents
Onecommoncriticismofconstructivismisthat,asapedagogicalframework,itsubordinatesthecurriculumtotheinterestsofthechild.Criticscontendthatthe constructivistapproachstimulateslearningonlyaroundconceptsinwhichthestudentshaveaprekindledinterest.Suchcriticismsmissthemark. Posingproblemsofemergingrelevanceisaguidingprincipleofconstructivistpedagogy.However,relevancedoesnothavetobepreexistingforthestudent.Notall studentsarriveattheclassroomdoorinterestedinlearningaboutverbconstructs,motionandmechanics,biologicalcycles,orhistoricaltimelines,butmoststudents canbehelpedtoconstructunderstandingsoftheimportanceofthesetopics.Relevancecanemergethroughteachermediation. IndiscussingDewey'snotionthateducationoughttotakeintoaccountstudents'interests,Bruner(1971)writes:
...apointofdepartureisnotanitinerary.Itisjustasmistakentosacrificetheadulttothechildastosacrificethechildtotheadult.Itissentimentalismtoassumethatthe teachingoflifecanbefittedalwaystothechild'sinterestsjustasitisemptyformalismtoforcethechildtoparrottheformulasofadultsociety.Interestscanbecreatedand stipulated(p.117).

Page36

Howdoesateacherhelpstudentsconsideratopicrelevant?First,theteachershouldbeginwithagoodproblem.Fornow,let'sconsiderthedefinitionofagood problemsolvingsituationofferedbyJoelGreenberg(1990).
1.Itdemandsthatstudentsmakeatestableprediction(onepreferablytestablebythestudents). 2.Itmakesuseofrelativelyinexpensiveequipment.Fancierequipmentmightbeused(toobtainhigherprecision),buttheproblemshouldworkwellatthelowtechendofthe spectrum. 3.Itiscomplexenoughtoelicitmultipleproblemsolvingapproachesfromthestudents. 4.Itbenefitsfrom(asopposedtobeinghinderedby)groupeffort(p.147).

Thesecriteriaareconsistentwithconstructivistpedagogyandspeaktobothsocialandcognitiveneedsintheclassroom,whetherthestudentsarekindergartners, teenagers,oradults. WewouldaddafifthrequirementtoGreenberg'slist.Forasituationtobeconsideredagoodproblemsolvingsituationinaclassroom,atsomepoint,theproblem solversmustviewtheproblemasrelevant.Problemswithlittleornoinitialrelevancetostudentscanbemaderelevantthroughteachermediationbeforeorafterthe problemisposed.Forexample,itisararehighschoolstudentwhoindependentlygrappleswiththenotionsofmomentumandenergyfortheintellectualthrillofit.But, withveryfewexceptions,thefollowingproblemofmomentumandenergy(whichmeetsGreenberg'sfourcriteria)hasengagedthediversegroupswithwhomwehave worked. Asetoffivehangingpendulawithequalsizemetalballsalltouchingeachotherinarestingpositionispresentedtostudents(seeFigure4.1onpage33).Theteacher raisesoneball,releasesit,andletsthestudentsnotethatoneballswingsoutontheotherside.Theteacherthenraisesandreleasestwoballsandthestudentsobserve thattwoballsswingoutontheotherside.Thentheteacherraisesthreeballsandasksthegrouptopredictwhatwilloccurwhenthethreeballsarereleased. Wehaveconductedthislessonwithmanygroups:highschoolstudents,collegestudents,schooladministrators,andteachersofeverygradelevelandsubjectarea. Theresponsesfromeverygroup

Page37

Figure4.1

areconsistent,andinclude:(1)oneballwillgoout,buthigher(2)twoballswillgoout,buthigher(3)threeballswillgoout(4)theballswill''gocrazy"(5)theballs willstopand(6)theballswillswingtogether.Someclaimthatatwoballswingstartedbythethreeballimpactwillquicklybecomeatwoball/twoballswing.Some claimthatitwillresultinatwoball/threeballswing.Withoutexception,atleastfouroftheaboveresponsesarearticulatedbyeverygroupso,withoutindicatingthe "right"answer,wealwaysaskthestudentstoexplaintheirresponses,reacttoothers'responses,andindicatewhethertheyhavechangedtheirmindsuponhearing others'predictions.Withinahalfhour,thegroupsdemandthatwereleasethethreeballssotheycantesttheirtheories. Didanyofthepeoplewithwhomwe'vesharedthisactivitywakeupthatmorningponderingthevariablesthataffecttheswingofapendulum,ortryingtoremember thedefinitionofmomentum,orconsideringhowbothenergyandmomentumareconservedinthesamesystem?Probablynot.Infact,mostoftheadultswithwhom wehaveworkedacknowledgethatsuchponderingshavebeenfrighteningandalientothem.Sowhydidtheapparatusandthequestions,foratleastthedurationof thelesson,proveengaging?Whatmadetheproblemrelevant? Foronething,theapparatusoffersimmediatefeedback.Thisfeatureisa"hook"formanystudents.Butteachermediationisthekeyfactor.Thestructuringofthe lessonaroundquestionsthatchallengestudents'originalhypothesespresentsstudentswiththeinitialsparksthatkindletheirinterest.Studentsmustbegiventime

Page38

andstimulationtoseekrelevanceandtheopportunitytorevealtheirownpointsofview.Studentsneedopportunitiestoponderthequestion,formtheirown responses,andaccepttheriskofsharingtheirthoughtswithothers. Thestudents'receptivenesstowardstudyingthevariablesinherentinthependulaapparatussetsthestageforsubsequentlessons,theprimaryaimofwhichisto encouragestudentstogenerateunderstandingsofhowtoquantifymomentum,force,andacceleration,andrecognizeitsexistenceinothersettings.Theteacheroffers, forexample,labsandexperiencesthatfocusexplicitlyonthestudents'thinking. Tothestudentswhoclaimthattwoballswillswinghigherwhenthreeballsarereleased,theteachercanassignalabinwhichstudentsdeterminethevariablesthat influencetheswingofapendulumusingbobsofdifferentweightsandstringsofdifferentlengths.Thestudentscanthendeterminehowtogetapendulumtoswing higher. Tothestudentswhoclaimthatoneballwillgoout(thetypicalreasonofferedisthatenergyneedsamediumthroughwhichtotravelinthiscase,aball),theteacher canassignalabinwhichcollisionsofdifferenttypesareexamined.Workingwithsteel,clay,andwoodenballs,studentscandesigndifferentcollisionsandreflecton whattheoutcomesofthosecollisionsmightmean. Thestudentswhoconservedbothmomentumandenergyintheinitiallessonmightbeaskedtoconsiderconservationofmomentumbeyondthoseinteractionsinwhich themomentumiscarriedbymaterialobjects,suchasinthehangingpendulasystem.Whataboutlight?Canmomentumbecarriedbylight?Thiscanbeafascinating question,butnotnecessarilyforeveryone. Mosthighschoolstudents,aswellasmostadults,conceptualizeforcesintermsoftheoutcomesthatthoseforcesproduce.Moststudentsdon'tunderstandthe conservationsandcancellationsofforceswellenoughtomakeameaningfulinquiryaboutlightarrivingonearthfromasupernovainspace.Forotherstudents,such challengesarenecessarytomaintainanengaginginquiryaboutmomentum.Theinquiringteachermediatestheclassroomenvironmentinaccordancewithboththe primaryconceptshehaschosenfortheclass'inquiryandhergrowingunderstandingofstudents'emerginginterestsandcognitiveabilitieswithintheconcept.

Page39

Whenposingproblemsforstudentstoconsiderandstudy,it'scrucialtoavoidisolatingthevariablesforthestudents,toavoidgivingthemmoreinformationthanthey needorwant,andtoavoidsimplifyingthecomplexityoftheproblemtooearly.Complexityoftenservestogeneraterelevanceand,therefore,interest.Itis oversimplificationthatstudentsfindconfusing. TimeVersusCoverage Constructivistteachersoftenaskstudentstothinkaboutquestionstheywouldnotordinarilyconsiderontheirown.Ofcourse,highlydidacticteachersdothesame thing.Sowhat'sthedifference?Asignificantdifferenceisthatconstructivistteachersseektoaskonebigquestion,togivethestudentstimetothinkaboutit,andto leadthemtotheresourcestoanswerit.Thisisquitedifferentfromaskingthemanyspecificquestionsthatspringfromtheprescribedsyllabusand,whenthequestions arenotquicklyoraccuratelyanswered,answeringthemforthestudentstokeepthepaceofthelessonbrisk.Mostpackagedandstateordistrictendorsed curriculumshaveascopeandsequenceandfairlyrigidtimelines.Thesetimelinesarenotestablishedinservicetotheintellectualdevelopmentofthelearner.Theyare createdtostandardizeinstructionalpracticesandensurebroadcoverageofthewholecurriculum. Constructivistteachershavediscoveredthattheprescribedscope,sequence,andtimelineofteninterfereswiththeirabilitytohelpstudentsunderstandcomplex concepts.Rigidtimelinesarealsoatoddswithresearchonhowhumanbeingsformmeaningfultheoriesaboutthewaystheworldworks(Duckworth1986),how studentsandteachersdevelopanappreciationofknowledgeandunderstanding(Eisner1985),andhowonecreatesthedispositiontoinquireaboutphenomenanot fullyunderstood(Katz1985).Mostcurriculumssimplypacktoomuchinformationintotoolittletimeatasignificantcosttothelearner. Teacherseverywherelamenthowquicklystudentsforgetandhowlittleofwhattheyinitiallyrememberedtheyretainovertime.Ourpresentcurricularstructurehas engineeredthatoutcome.Studentshaven'tforgottentheyneverlearnedthatwhichwe

Page40

assumedtheyhad.Indemandingcoverageofabroadlandscapeofmaterial,weoftenwinthebattlebutlosethewar.Weexposestudentstothematerialandprepare themforthetests,butwedon'tallowthemtolearntheconcepts. Theimportanceofstructuringlearningopportunitiesinservicetostudents'conceptformationiswelldocumented(Lochhead1985,HuntandSullivan1974).Ifthe conceptionspresentlyheldbystudentsarenotexplicitlyaddressed,newinformationisfilteredthroughalensthatmaycloud,ratherthanclarify,thatinformation. Collegestudentsinphysicsclassesmightunderstandnotionsofquantummechanics,yetsimultaneouslyholdanAristotelianviewoftheforcesinvolvedwhenballsroll downplanksormagnetspullonanailorcelestialbodiesstayinorbit.Thisdistinctionbetweenhowindividualsconstruethe''nonschool"worldandhowtheythink aboutschoolrelatednotionsisalsowelldocumented(Perrone1991,Dykstraetal.1992,Driveretal.1985).Whydostudentshavesuchdifficultytransferring, generalizing,andconstructinganessentialunderstandingofasubject?Blais(1988),inadiscussionofstudentslearningalgebra,speakstoanissuethatsurfacesin everysubjectarea:


Consideredinisolation,conventionalinstructionappearstobesensibleandhelpful.Butwecannotfairlyjudgeaninstructionalapproachunlessweconsiderwhatoccurswithin thenovice.Theavailableevidenceindicatesthatnovicessabotagegoodconventionalinstructionbyselectingfromitonlytheminimumnecessarytoachievecorrect,mandated performance.Theyresistlearninganythingthatisnotpartofthealgorithmstheydependonforsuccess.Thus,drawings,estimation,abstraction,connectionstosimpleexamples, informalEnglish,learningtoreadwell,andsoon,areviewedasunnecessaryembellishments.Novicesfeeltheyknowwhatisimportantdespitetheirnotperceivingessence.They donotunderstandshallownessbecausetheydonotexperiencedepth(p.627).

LearningforTransfer Justasit'simportanttolookforandvaluethepointsofviewofthestudentswithwhomwework,we,aseducators,mustalso

Page41

lookforandvaluethepowerofourownperspectivesasadults.Doingsobothclarifiesandcomplicates.Itclarifiesourunderstandingsofhowpeoplelearnand complicatesourunderstandingsofhowtoteach. It'scommonforeducatorstobeaskedtoadoptanewperspectiveoninstruction(forexample,toadoptthepracticeoflookingforandvaluingthestudents'pointsof view)whilesimultaneouslybeingrebukedforseekingtoreconsiderassessmentpractices,managementdesigns,classroomprotocols,andthemyriadothervariables thatdefineteachingandlearning.Ineffect,educatorsarebeingtoldtorespondtoexternalstimuliwhilestiflingtheirowninnerperspectives.Thisfragmentedapproach torestructuringoftencreatessettingsinwhichcontradictorypracticescoexist.Inattemptingtoencourageintellectualautonomy,schoolsoftensetupelaboratereward andpunishmentsystemstocontrollearning.Inattemptingtoencouragestudentstoappreciatetheinterrelatednessofpeople,phenomena,andideas,schoolsoffera seriesofcoursesunconnectedtooneanotherforexample,scienceandhistoryclasses.Wefilteroutmosthistoricalperspectivesfromscienceclassesbecausethere justisn'tenoughtimetocovereventhe''science"information.Then,wefilteroutsciencefromhistoryclassesbecausewehavesomehowconcludedthatpoliticalwars aremoreimportanttostudythanintellectualleaps.Indoingso,welosesightofouroriginalaims:toencouragestudents'intellectualdevelopmentandtofostertheir acquisitionoftheskillsnecessarytoservethatpurpose. Thefragmentationofthecurriculumandthepressuresoftimehavemadeintellectualinquirysohighlyspecializedthat,by7thgrade,mostcurriculumsare departmentalizedandheavilyladenwithinformationtobememorized.Duringtheirsixhoursinschooleachday,studentscanseesevenoreightdifferentteachers, eachchargedwithteachingadifferentcurriculum.Withinthisstructure,studentsquicklycometoperceiveknowledgeasseparate,parallelstrandsofunrelated information.Manyteachersassumethattransferoccursautomaticallyafterasufficientbaseofinformationisacquired.Surveysofhighschoolgraduates,however, indicatethattheinformationbaseisshorttermandtransferoccursonlysporadically(RavitchandFinn1987).

Page42

Learningfortransferisanintellectualactivitythatmustbenurturedandmodelledinstitutionallyinschools,classrooms,andfamilies.Toomanymodelsoflearningare basedonassumptionsthatarefoundtobefaultyyearafteryearforlargesegmentsofthestudentpopulation.Constructivistsettingsarebasedondifferentassumptions andoffernewpractices.Learningtobeaconstructivistteacherisimportant,butnoteasy.Regularreflectionandanalysisofpersonalperspectivesonlearninghelpto clarifyandassessthoseperspectivesandtoalignteachingpracticesinaccordancewiththem. TheValueofChangingOne'sMind Theterms''naivebeliefs"(McCloskyetal.1980)and"misconceptions"(Lochhead1988)areusedincognitiveresearchtodiscusstheideaofhelpingstudents"change theirminds"abouthowtheyinterpretthephenomenaaroundthem.Changingone'smindisaninvaluableelementofthelearningprocess.Takethefollowingasan example. Studentsinan8thgradeEnglishclassputtogetherindividualmagazinesonselfselectedtopics.Themagazineassignmentwasintendedtobeinterdisciplinaryinnature, incorporatingavarietyofresearchandwritingskills.Onestudentchosethetopicofsneakers.Heneededhelpindevelopingasciencerelatedarticleforhismagazine. Throughinquiryanddiscussion,heandtheteacheragreedthatasneakerhastoabsorbshock,whilesimultaneouslyaffordingalittlebounce.Ithastogriptheroad, butnotenoughtomakethewearertrip.Thestudentindicatedthathowwellasneakerservesthesetwofunctionsdependsonitsdesign,buthedidnotinitiallyview thematerialsfromwhichthesneakerwasmadeasaffectingthosefunctions.Whileuncoveringthestudent'spointofview,theteacherbegantoformulatethenextday's lesson. Duringthenextday'sclass,theteacherconvenedthe"sneakers"investigator,the"racingcars"enthusiast,andthe"skateboards"fan.Shegavethestudentstworubber ballsandtoldthemthatexperimentingwiththeballsmayhelpthemputtogethersomethoughtsonhowsneaker,car,andskateboardmanufacturersdecidewhat blendsofmaterialstouseintheirsoles,tires,or

Page43

wheels.Theteacherencouragedthestudentstoexaminethepropertiesofthetwoballs.Shetoldthemtorolltheballssimultaneouslydownaninclinedplaneandnote whathappens. Theballswerethe''happy"and"unhappy"ballsavailablefromsciencesupplyhouses.Oneismadefromthewidelyusedsyntheticrubberknownasneoprene.The otherisformedfromaproprietaryrubbercompounddevelopedandmanufacturedunderthetradenameNorsorextm.Althoughtheylookalmostidentical,theballs differinanumberofways.Thestudentsfirstnoticedthatoneball(theneoprene)rollsfaster.Fromthrowingtheballandmissingthecatch,theynextdiscoveredthat the"slow"ballhadnobounce.Afterthestudentsspentabout15minutesrollingandbouncingtheballs,sharingreasonsforwhatwashappening,andsuggestingterms like"friction,""bounciness,"and"force,"theteacherrejoinedthegrouptohelpthemconsiderthenotionthatblendingmaterialsofdifferentattributescancreatedesired newattributes. Beforethisexperiment,thestudentsviewedrubberasasingularnoun.Anitemeitherwasrubberorwasnot.Thisviewchangeddramatically.Afterexperimenting,the studentswereanimatedintheirreformulatedideasthatthevastarrayofsneakersfeaturedinshoestoresandsportsshopscouldalsobedistinguishedbythe "bounciness"ofmaterialsusedintheirmanufacturing,andthatthe"bounciness"wasnotonlyrelatedtothedesign,butwasafunctionofthesneaker'smaterial propertiesaswell.Theteachertoldthegroupwhentheywerewritinguptheirexperimentsthattherewasa"fancy"wordfor"bounciness."Noneofthemaskedwhatit was.Infact,theycontinuedinterruptinghertocommentonthe"bounciness"oftennisballs,basketballs,andtypesofracingtires. Thisexampleillustratesonlyonesmallareaofthestudents'knowledgebase.Butitisofinteresttonotethatthesethreestudents,inothersubjectareasandother classes,didnottypicallyaddressnuanceorsubtletiesintheirwritingordiscourse.It'salsointerestingtonotethatnoneofthesestudentsconsideredthistopicrelevant attheunit'sonset.Inmanyaspectsoftheirthinking,theyexhibitedan"either/or"frameofreference.Therelevanceemergedforthesestudentsinitiallythroughthe teacher'smediationofthetaskandsubsequentlythroughtheirowndesiretosolvewhatGreenberg(1990)calls"agoodproblem."

Page44

<><><><><><><><><><><><> Thenotionofemergingrelevancewasoneofourfirstgenerateduniversalsorwhatwecallguidingprinciplesofconstructivistteaching.Aswestudiedthis principle,werealizedthatthenatureofquestionsposedtostudentsgreatlyinfluencesthedepthtowhichthestudentssearchforanswers.Posingproblemsofemerging relevanceandsearchingforwindowsintostudents'thinkingformaparticularframeofreferenceabouttheroleoftheteacherandabouttheteachingprocess.Itcannot beincludedinateacher'srepertoireasanaddon.Itmustbeabasicelementofthatrepertoire. References Blais,D.M.(November1988).''Constructivism:ATheoreticalRevolutionforAlgebra."MathematicsTeacher624631. Bruner,J.(1971).TheRelevanceofEducation.N.Y.:Norton. Driver,R.,E.Guesne,andA.Tiberghien,eds.(1985).Children'sIdeasinScience.Philadelphia:OpenUniversityPress. Duckworth,E.(November1986)."TeachingasResearch."HarvardEducationalReview56,4:481495. Dykstra,D.,Jr.,C.F.Boyle,andI.A.Monarch.(1992)."StudyingConceptualChangeinLearningPhysics."ScienceEducation76,6:615652. Eisner,E.,ed.(1985)."AestheticModesofKnowing."LearningandTeachingtheWaysofKnowing,84thYearbookoftheNationalSocietyfortheStudyof Education.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,pp.2336. Forman,G.,andP.B.Pufall,eds.ConstructivismintheComputerAge.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates. Greenberg,J.(1990).ProblemSolvingSituations,VolumeI.GrapevinePublications,Inc. Hunt,D.E.,andE.V.Sullivan.(1974).BetweenPsychologyandEducation.Hinsdale,Ill.:TheDrydenPress. Katz,L.G.(1985)."DispositionsinEarlyChildhoodEducation."ERIC/EECEBulletin18,2.Urbana,Ill.:ERICClearinghouseonElementaryandEarlyChildhood Education. Lochhead,J.(1985)."NewHorizonsinEducationalDevelopment."ReviewofResearchinEducation.Washington,D.C.:AmericanEducationalResearch Association. Lochhead,J.(1988)."SomePiecesofthePuzzle."InConstructivismintheComputerAge,editedbyG.FormanandP.Pufall.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaum Associates.

Page45

McClosky,M.,A.Caramazza,andB.Green.(December1980).''CurvilinearMotionsintheAbsenceofExternalForces:NaiveBeliefsAbouttheMotionof Objects."Science210:11391141. Perrone,V.(1991).ALettertoTeachers.SanFrancisco:JosseyBass. Ravitch,D.,andC.Finn.(1987).WhatDoOur17YearOldsKnow?:AReportontheFirstNationalAssessmentofHistoryandLiterature.NewYork: Harper&Row.

Page46

5 Principle#2: StructuringLearningAroundPrimaryConcepts:TheQuestforEssence
Structuringcurriculumaroundprimaryconceptsisacriticaldimensionofconstructivistpedagogy.Whendesigningcurriculum,constructivistteachersorganize informationaroundconceptualclustersofproblems,questions,anddiscrepantsituationsbecausestudentsaremostengagedwhenproblemsandideasarepresented holisticallyratherthaninseparate,isolatedparts.Muchoftraditionaleducationbreakswholesintopartsandthenfocusesseparatelyoneachpart.Butmanystudents areunabletobuildconceptsandskillsfrompartstowholes.Thesestudentsoftenstoptryingtoseethewholesbeforeallthepartsarepresentedtothemandfocuson thesmall,memorizableaspectsofbroadunitswithoutevercreatingthebigpicture.Think,forexample,ofassemblingabicycle.Thepackagecontainsprecisewritten directionsinsequentialorder,butmostofuscontinuallyrefertothepictureofthebicycleonthebox.Weneedtoseethe''whole"beforeweareabletomakesenseof theparts. InthenowdefunctChicagoMasteryLearningSystem,readingwaspresentedtostudentsasapproximately300discreteskillstobemasteredinsequentialorder. Mostskillscamewiththeirowntestsformastery.Studentsworkedoneachskillinsequenceuntilitwasmastered.Insucharrangements,theforestgetsobscuredby thetrees,andeachseparateskillbecomesitsownwholetobemastered.Somestudentsareabletomasterindividualreadingskillswithoutbecomingveryproficient readerswhilesomecom

Page47

petentreadershaveadifficulttimewiththeseparateskills.Inotherwords,theparttowholeapproachisnotnecessarilypredictiveofstudentsuccess. Whenconceptsarepresentedaswholes,ontheotherhand,studentsseektomakemeaningbybreakingthewholesintopartsthattheycanseeandunderstand. Studentsinitiatethisprocesstomakesenseoftheinformationtheyconstructtheprocessandtheunderstandingratherthanhavingitdoneforthem.Withcurricular activitiesclusteredaroundbroadconcepts,studentscanselecttheirownuniqueproblemsolvingapproachesandusethemasspringboardsfortheconstructionofnew understandings.Inahighschoolsocialstudiesclass,forexample,ateacherstructuredaunitonconflictaroundthreeconflictsinvolvingAmericantroops:the RevolutionaryWar,theCivilWar,andWorldWarII.Theteacherwrotethenamesofthethreewarsonthechalkboardandthenaskedstudentstoreflectonwhat theyalreadyknewaboutthesewars,toselecttwoofthethreewars,andtocomparethembyillustratingtheirsimilaritiesanddifferences. Ratherthanpresentingfactstothestudentsabouteachofthethreewars,theteacherchoseanactivitythatencouragedstudentstoreflect,analyze,compare,and contrast.Hecreatedasettinginwhichstudentscouldlearnfactsfromeachotherandtheirtextbookwhileconstructingtheirownnewconceptualunderstandingsof thebroaderthemeofconflict.OnestudentinterpretedtheRevolutionaryWarandtheCivilWaraswarsfoughttoachievefreedom,whileseeingWorldWarIIasa warfoughttoprotectit.AnotherstudentdifferentiatedbetweentheCivilWarandtheothertwowarsbyfocusingonthenationalityofthesoldiers:theCivilWarpitted AmericanagainstAmerican.AthirdstudentreportedthatthecolorsoftheuniformswornbysoldiersduringtheRevolutionaryWarandWorldWarIIweredifferent. Shethoughtthattheywouldhavebeenthesame,sinceshenotedtheflaghadchangeddesign,butnotcolors. Allthreestudentsrespondedtothetask,butaretheirresponsesexamplesofbitsofinformationoraretheyexamplesofnewlyconstructedknowledge?Thestudents' facialexpressions,tonesofsurprise,andpauseswhileengaginginthetasksuggestedthattheywerestudentconstructions.This''material"couldhavebeen"covered" inalecture.But,inthatcase,thenewunderstandings

Page48

wouldn'thavebeen''aha's"atall.Theylikelywouldhavebecomenewbitsofinformationinalongstringofpreviouslydisseminatedbits. ConceptualClusters Let'slookbrieflyattwootherapproachestostructuringcurriculumaroundprimaryconcepts.First,theNationalCenterforImprovingScienceEducation,after considerabledeliberationoverwhatisimportantinscienceeducationforadolescents,generatedalistof"conceptualthemes":causeandeffect,changeand conservation,diversityandvariation,energyandmatter,evolutionandequilibrium,modelsandtheories,probabilityandprediction,structureandfunction,systemsand interaction,andtimeandscale(Bybeeetal.1989).ThesethemesrepresenttheCenter'squestforessenceinscienceeducationthe"bigideas"ofscience. Asasecondexample,Melchior(1992),ajuniorhighschoolprincipalonLongIsland,discussesstructuringcurriculumaroundconceptsthattwigstudentreflection.He identifiesthemas"polarconflicts"andinvitesstudentstoreflectontheirrelationships.Thelistofconceptsincludes:independence/interdependence/dependence impulsivity/reflectionindividual/groupfantasy/realismfreedom/responsibilityreactive/proactiveinhumanity/sensitivitychaos/cosmosobjective/subjectiveand static/dynamic.Teachersintheschoolselectandusetheseconflictsinexploringthecurriculum.An8thgradeEnglishteacher,forexample,usedthefantasy/reality dichotomytoengageherstudentsinadiscussionofPoe's"TheTellTaleHeart,"whileaphysicaleducationteacherselectedtheimpulsivity/reflectiondichotomyto initiatediscussionsaboutsportsmanship.Thesepolarconflictscanbeappliedinallsubjectareas,servingasthe"bigideas"aroundwhichexplorationsofcontent specifictopicsarewoven.Theseexplorationscreateopportunitiesforstudentstostructurallyshifttheirthinkingaboutthephenomenaaroundthem.Thefactsthat accompanytopicsbecomemorerelevantforstudentsoncethestudentsbecomeengagedinreflectiononthebigconcepts. Learnersofallagesaremoreengagedbyconceptsintroducedbytheteacherandconstructedbythelearnerfromwholetopart,

Page49

ratherthanparttowhole.It'smoreeffective,forexample,topermitbuddingwriterstoinventtheirownspellingandpublishtheirmaterialforotherstoreadandfor themselvestorereadthantoteachtherulesofgrammarandconventionalspellingandthenaskstudentstoputtheskillstogetherinanoriginalpieceofwriting. Problemsstructuredaround''bigideas"provideacontextinwhichstudentslearncomponentskills,gatherinformation,andbuildknowledge.Attemptstolinearize conceptformationquicklystiflethelearningprocess. Who'sinChargeofLearning? Weareallresponsibleforourownlearning.Theteacher'sresponsibilityistocreateeducationalenvironmentsthatpermitstudentstoassumetheresponsibilitythatis rightfullyandnaturallytheirs.Teachersdothisbyencouragingselfinitiatedinquiry,providingthematerialsandsuppliesappropriateforthelearningtasks,and sensitivelymediatingteacher/studentandstudent/studentinteractions.But,theteachercannottakesoleresponsibilityforthestudents'learning. Inarecentsurveyofresidentundergraduatesatalargestateuniversity,studentsreportedthattheirareasofleastgrowthwere"changingviews,""writing,"and "mathematicalability"(Ludwig1992,p.24).Theareasinwhichtheyreportedhavinggrownthemostwere"meetingnewanddifferentpeople","makingdecisions independently,""leadership,"and"socialconfidence."Althoughthedifferencesatfirstseemstartling,theyarereallyquitepredictable.Residentlifenecessitatesthe constructionofone'sownroleinthenewsocialorderofdormitories.Theenvironmentrequiresindependence.Becausestudentsareresponsiblefortheirown socialization,theymatureinthisarea.But,intraditionalacademicdomains,theinstructordetermineswhatistobelearned,howitistobelearned,andthepaceand rhythmofthelearning.Thelearner,toalargedegree,losescontrol.Withsomeoneelseincharge,personalgrowthdiminishes. "Lessismore"isanunderlyingthemeofScienceforAllAmericans(AAAS1989).Thisthemeisanimportantnotionforteacherstoexplore.Itprovocatively encouragesreorganizationofconcepts

Page50

andinformation.Teacherscanenhancethelikelihoodofstudentlearningbydecreasingthenumberoffactsandspecificbitsofinformationtheywantstudentsto ''cover."Throughreflectiononandattentiontotheprimaryconceptsteachershaveculledfromtheirownexperiences,theycanprovidematerialsandquestionsthat guidestudentsinidentifyingtheirownconcepts. Wenowprovidetwodetailedexamplesofcurriculumdesignedaroundsome"bigideas":theconceptualthemesofclassificationandofpositiveandnegativespace. ConceptualTheme: Classification Ataconferenceafewyearsago,welearnedofanactivityRalphAdamsdesignedforhischemistryclassattheVernonVeronaSherrillHighSchoolinNewYork State.WeadaptedthisactivitytoillustratetheguidingprinciplesofconstructivismandhaveuseditincollegelevelteacherpreparationprogramsandK12inservice staffdevelopmentworkshops. Inthisactivity,smallgroupsofparticipantsexaminealistof95booktitles,eachwithaclassificationnameandanumber,andarrangethebooksonasevenshelf bookcasewithspaceforthirtytwobookspershelf,accordingtoagivensetofrules(seetheexampleinFigure5.1onp.51). Therulesfortheactivityarethat(1)thebooksmustbegroupedverticallybytheirclassificationnames,and(2)thebooksmustbeplacedontheshelvesinconsecutive orderhorizontally.Thestudentsquicklygettowork,frequentlyclarifyingtheinstructionswiththeteacherorfacilitatorwhentheyfindthatthetaskisnotaseasyasit originallyappears.Thegroupsworkindependentlyforoveronehour. Somegroupscutthefivepagesofbooktitlesintostripsandworkwiththosestripsastheyspreadthemoutoverthetabletopsandacrossthefloor.Othergroups focusonthebooknumbersandworkdirectlyonthebookshelf,askingformoreshelvesastheyrepeatedlychangetheirapproach.Othergroupsseekmathematical relationshipsamongthebooknumbersandthenumberofbooksineachclassification,andtheydelaythetaskofputtingthebooksontheshelvesuntiltheycan generatesomepredictablepatterns.It'sinterestingtonotethateachgroup'sinvestmentinitsapproachisusuallysostrongthatthereisvirtuallynopeering

Page51

Figure5.1

Page52

aroundtheroomandwhenonegroupcompletesthetask,theothergroupsdonotseektheirhelp.Eachgroupsimplywantstimetofinishtheirarrangementofthe books. Afterthegroupsfinishtheactivitywiththebooks,thetaskisreintroducedasametaphorfortheperiodictableofelements.Thoughthestudentsaren'texplicitlygiven themetaphoraheadoftime,thenewtaskprovidesthemanopportunitytoconsidertheclassificatorynatureoftheperiodictable.Themetaphoremerges.Thebooks representtheperiodicelementsthenumbersrepresenttheatomicnumbers,andtheclassificationsrepresentthechemicalfamilies.Consideranexample:theGroupO Familyofelementsisatthefarrighthandcolumnoftheperiodictable.Itincludestheinertgases:helium,neon,argon,krypton,xenon,andradon,originallythoughtto benonreactive,stableelementsthatdonotcombinewithanyotherelementstoformcompounds.Let'slookatthebooktitlesassociatedwiththeseelements.The bookclassificationisMysteryClassics,somewhatreminiscentofthemysteriousqualityoftheinertgases,whicharenotoftenfoundinnature.Book2,TheCaseof theLonelyRecluse,ishelium,withanatomicnumberof2.Heliumisarecluse.Heliumatomsalwaysexistseparately.Theyareneverpartofamolecule,nordothey formcompounds.Book10,RedLightatDawn,iselement10,neon,whichglowsbrightredwhenhighvoltageelectricityispassedthroughit.Book18,ABulb BrokeatMidnight,iselement18,argon,thegasinanordinarylightbulb.Thepuns,referencestoeverydaylifeandliterature,andunusualdescriptionsoftheelements continueforeachelementintheperiodictable.Thislessonconsistentlygeneratesenormousinterestinlearningmoreaboutthepropertiesandcharacteristicsofthe elements,asubjectmanypeoplemayfindintimidatingormaynotfindinitiallyrelevant.Withsomanyreferencestoliteratureandhistory,thelessonalsogenerates lamentsfromparticipantswhoclaimthattheyarenot''wellread"enough,butwhoexpressinterestinreadingsomeofthebooks. Thefollowingjournalexcerpt(Hees1992)fromapreservicescienceteacherwhohadjustcompletedthebookshelftaskspeaksofthedesiretoknowmore:
Mymostpersistentthought:Amongthefourofusfuturescienceteachers,weknewvirtuallynothingabouttheproper

Page53 tiesoftheelements.Wehavenobasicfamiliaritywiththeelementswhattheylooklike,whattheysmelllike,theirstateatroomtemperature,theirparticularusesinindustry. Wewereadeptatmaneuveringsymbols,butsymbolsforwhat?Weknewlittleaboutthem.Whatlittlewedidknowwasmostlysecondhandinformation.Itstruckmethatyou couldlay94differentelementalblocksinfrontofme,andIcouldpositivelyidentifyperhapsfivetoten.Whilenotachemist,Idon'tthinkI'mcomparativelyignorantinthesubject either.Somewherealongthewayinoureducationweshouldbeallowedtoexperiencethepurestuffoutofwhicheverythingismade.Whenwelearntheperiodictable,itwould thenbeatableofelements,notatableofsymbols.

Thequestionarises:arenotthebooksintheaboveexamplejustanothersetofsymbolsthestudentsareexpectedtomaneuver?Thestudentsarrangealargenumber ofbooks,ataskthat,insomesmallway,offersthemthechancetorecapitulateaspectsoftheexperienceswellknownchemistshadwhilepiecingtogetherthe periodiclawsofnature.Manyadultswithwhomwehavesharedthisactivityadmitthatalthoughtheymanagedtopasschemistryclasses,theyneverunderstoodthe classificatorynatureoftheperiodictable.Theyweresimplytoldtomemorizeit.Asadults,inthecontextoftryingtobetterunderstandconstructivistpedagogy,they havereacquaintedthemselveswithaformerfieldofstudyandforthefirsttimehavebeguntoseeorderinsomethingthatwasinaccessibleinearlieryears.These revelationsillustrateforthemtheimportanceofstructuringlearningaround''bigideas." Thefollowingjournalentry(Ferrandino1991)fromanotherpreserviceteacherillustratesthetypeofthinkingthatopenendedactivitiesfocusedon"bigideas"can foster:


IhavetoadmitthatasmuchasIcametoappreciatetheexerciseofrecreating,sotospeak,theperiodictableofelements,Ifounditdifficulttoinitiallybecomeengagedbythis task.Atfirstglanceitseemedoverwhelmingandwithoutpurpose(althoughIshouldhaveknownbetter!).Fortunately,mygrouppartnersattackedtheproblemrightawayandI wasjustcontenttoobservetheirprogress.Theydecidedtolisteachcategory.Nexttoeachcategory/subject,thebooknumbersthatbelongedtoeachcategorywerelistedin ascendingorder.Veryquicklytheydecidedtolookfora"formula"thatmightdescribethesequenceofbooksineachcategory.Tomy

Page54 amazement,theirhunchwascorrectandwequicklyestablishedameanstopredictthenumericalsequenceforanycategory.Istilldon'tknowwhytheyevensuspectedsucha sequencemightexist,butitdid,andwefounditquickly.AtthispointIwassimultaneouslyengagedanddistractedbecauseInoticedthesequenceinvolvedadding2,8,18,and 32topreviousbooknumberstoobtainthenextbooknumberintheseries.TheseIrecognizedasthemaximumnumberofelectronspermittedtooccupyeachshellofanatom.I wasdistractedbytryingtorecreatetheexpressionthatgeneratesthisseriesaswellastheseriesthatpredictsthemaximumnumberofelectronsallowableineachsubshell.

Inordertounderstand,studentsmustsearchformeaning.Inordertosearchformeaning,studentsmusthavetheopportunitytoformandaskquestions.Flannery (1991)quotesArbor,whostatesthat:
...ametaphorisgoodandusefulaslongasitsimperfectionsarekeptinmind.Theimperfectionsarethedissimilaritiesthatexistbetweentheprincipalandsubsidiarysubjects. Despitedangers,theseimperfectionsareimportanttothefunctioningofmetaphorsbecause''itistheirimperfectionswhichsetthemintheboundaryregionofscientificthought wheretheycanexercisetheiruniquepowerofactingasconnectinglinkswithotherworldsofexperience."

Mostadultscanmaketheconnectionbetweenbooksorganizedtofitontoshelvestoconveytheirthematicrelationships,andelementsorganizedinasymbolicarrayto conveytheirchemicalrelationships.Themetaphorneednotbe"perfect"tobeagoodteachingtool.Infact,asthelearnerssearchtomeasurethe"fit"betweenthe bookshelfandtheperiodictable,theyaskcriticalquestionsaboutthestudyofchemistry,andtheyformprovisionalanswers.Theylearnthattheperiodictableof elementsisacarefullycraftedmethodofclassifyingtheelementsthatcompriseourphysicalworld.Theyalsolearnthatit'snottheonlymethod. ConceptualTheme: PositiveandNegativeSpace Curriculumscanbedesignedaroundconceptualthemesinalltypesofclassesatallgradelevels.Thenextexampleisfromamiddleschoolartclass.It'sanexampleof ateacherdirectedsetof

Page55

lessons.Theclasswasaheterogeneousmixof7thand8thgradestudents.The''drawingnegativespace"unitwasdesignedtoenhancestudents'abilitiestolookatand drawthreedimensionalobjectsfromdifferentperspectives."Positivespace"isthenamegiventothespacetakenupbyanobject."Negativespace"isthenamegiven tothespacearoundtheobject.Forexample,Figure5.2illustratesthetwodifferentsketchesthatcanbedrawnofatriangle.Inpicture1,thepositivespacehasbeen thatched.Inpicture2,thenegativespacehasbeenthatched.

Figure5.2

Activity1 Thefirstactivityinthisunitaskedstudentstodrawsimpleshapesthatconnecttotheedgeofthepaper.Then,theycutoutthespacearoundtheshapeandplacediton apaperofacontrastingcolor.Studentsfoundthatthefirstshapecanberedrawnbydrawingthenegativeshape.Thisphenomenonoccursbecausepositiveand negativespacesshareedges.Inthisactivity,thestudentswerenotaskedtoseethenegativespacebeforetheydrewit.Theconceptsofnegativeandpositivespace wereonlydiscussedandexploredafterthestudentshadproducedtheproduct.Figure5.3illustratesthreeexamplesofstudents'work.

Page56

Figure5.3

Activity2 Next,theteacheraskedthestudentstolookthroughaviewfinderatawoodenstool.Theviewfinderwasapieceofconstructionpaperwitharectangularpeepholeof proportionsidenticaltothepaper.Thestudentsheldtheirviewfinderssothatthestooltoucheditsedgesataminimumoftwopoints.Theywerethenaskedtodirect theirgazesatonenegativespaceuntiltheycouldseeit,astheyhaddonewiththecutoutshapes.Theywereaskedtoimaginethatthestoolvanishedandonlythe negativespacesremained.Whenthestudentsdrewtheshapesofthespaces,theobjectwasinadvertentlydrawn,butwithgreatereasebecausethestudentswere facingonlyoneproblematatimewhattheysaw,notwhatthey''knew."ThethreedrawingsinFigure5.4representsomestudentresponses.

Figure5.4

Page57

Activity3 Theteacherthenassignedanewtaskofdrawingnegativespacebysettingupaplantandaskingthestudentstolookatitthroughthesameviewfinder.Theteacher, onceagain,askedthestudentstogazeatthespacessurroundingtheobjectuntilthosespacestookshape.Then,thestudentsdrewthespacesaroundtheplant.

Figure5.5

Thesesetsofdrawingsdocumentthestudents'progressinlookingatobjectsfromvariousperspectivesandrecognizingdifferences.Thelessonstheteacherdesigned invitedstudentstolookatboundariesfrommultipleperspectives,askillthatspillsoverintosocialstudiesdiscussions,geometricprinciples,andthedomainofartand design,amongothers. Thefirsttwoactivitiesminimizedthenumberofvariablesthestudentshadtoconsider.Thefirsttaskdidn'taskstudentstoseenegativespace.Itsimplyhelped studentscategorizenegativespaceandpositivespace.Thus,theprimarycognitivedemandofthelessonwasoneofclassification.Inthesecondactivitythestudents focusedonnegativespace,buttheviewfinderlimitedthecomplexityofthetaskbydefiningandlimitingthenegativespace.Inchapter4,weaskededucatorsnotto reducethecomplexityofissuesprematurelyforstudents.What'sthedifferenceinthisexample?Here,theteacherwantedthestudentstoconsidertheconceptof perspectivewithoutstrugglingwiththefrustrationsmanystudentsexperiencewhenattemptingto''capturereality"in

Page58

twodimensionsonpaper.Theteacherwantedtominimizethestudents'evaluationoftheirowndrawing''competence"andfocustheirenergiesonexploringthe conceptofperspective.Beingcontainedintheviewfinder,negativespaceapproximatedthecharacteristicsofpositivespace.Suchanapproximationhelpedthe studentsbegintoseenegativespaceasifitwerepositivespace,aperspectivethattheteacherfoundhelpfulininformingthemiddleschoolstudents'perspectivetaking abilities. Theseactivitiesrequiredecentration,thecognitiveacknowledgmentthatone'sownviewisnottheonlyonenornecessarilythe"correct"one,butisoneofmany.It's interestingtonotethatthestudentswhofoundactivities2and3"boring"and"nofun"werestudentswho,inotheractivities,evidencedalimitedabilitytodecenter.A teacherlisteningcarefullycanusesuchcommentswhendesigningfutureactivities. TheChancetoSeeMore Structuringcurriculumaround"bigideas"andbroadconceptsprovidesmultipleentrypointsforstudents:somebecomeengagedthroughpracticalresponsesto problems,someanalyzetasksbasedonmodelsandprinciples,andothersinterpretideasthroughmetaphorsandanalogiesfromtheiruniqueperspectives.The environmentandtheuseofbroadconceptsinviteeachstudenttoparticipateirrespectiveofindividualstyles,temperaments,anddispositions. Studentengagementisafunctionofmanyvariables,twoofwhichareone'sinterestinthetopicandone'sperceptionofpersonalcompetence.Anideawon't automaticallyengagestudentssimplybecauseitis"big."Classification,aswehavediscussed,isa"bigidea."However,presentingclassificationasadittothatrequires studentstogroupitemsbytheirinitialconsonantsoundtrivializestheconceptandcontributeslittletothedevelopmentofunderstanding.Theteacher'sabilitytofoster collegialinteractionamongstudents,mediatetheemergenceofrelevance,andmatchcurricularquestionstothestudent'spresentsuppositionsencouragesthestudent's searchforunderstanding.

Page59

References AmericanAssociationfortheAdvancementofScience.(1989).ScienceforAllAmericans.Washington,D.C.:AAAS. Bybee,R.,C.Buchwald,S.Crissman,D.Heil,P.Kuerbis,C.Matsumoto,andJ.McInerney.(1989).ScienceandTechnologyEducationfortheElementary Years:FrameworksforCurriculumandInstruction.Andover,Mass.:TheNationalCenterforImprovingScienceEducation. Ferrandino,F.(1991).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook. Flannery,M.C.(1991).BittenbytheBiologyBug:EssaysfromTheAmericanBiologyTeacher.Reston,Va.:NationalAssociationofBiologyTeachers. Hees,B.(1992).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook. Ludwig,J.(September1992).''ClosingtheGap:GettingandUsingFeedbackfromStudents."InAssessmentatSUNY:Principles,Process,andCaseStudies. StonyBrook,N.Y.:UniversityFacultySenate:SUNYCentralAdministration. Melchior,T.(Summer1992)."TheDisparateNatureofLearningOrTeamTeachingIsNotEnough."TeachingThinkingandProblemSolving.Philadelphia: ResearchforBetterSchools14,3.

Page60

6 Principle#3: SeekingandValuingStudents'PointsofView
Seekingtounderstandstudents'pointsofviewisessentialtoconstructivisteducation.Themorewestudythelearningprocess,themoreweunderstandhow fundamentalthisprincipleis.Students'pointsofviewarewindowsintotheirreasoning.Awarenessofstudents'pointsofviewhelpsteacherschallengestudents, makingschoolexperiencesbothcontextualandmeaningful.Eachstudent'spointofviewisaninstructionalentrypointthatsitsatthegatewayofpersonalized education.Teacherswhooperatewithoutawarenessoftheirstudents'pointsofviewoftendoomstudentstodull,irrelevantexperiences,andevenfailure.Huntand Sullivan(1974)state:
Ifaneducationalsystemhasonlyuniversalgoalsandalimitedvarietyofeducationalapproaches,itisnotsurprisingthattheresultsformanystudentswillendinfailure.Thisis becausethesestudentsdidnotfitthesystem.Itisnotentirelythestudentswhoarefixedandunchangeableitisalsothesystem(p.45).

Wehaveallbeentoworkshopsormeetingsinwhichthepresenterhasbegunthesessionbyaskingtheparticipantswhattheyhopetolearnoraccomplish.Often, people'sresponsesaremadeintoalistontheboard.Thenthepresenterstartsthesessionandneveragainreferstothelist.Thismightbeanexampleoflookingforthe students'pointsofview,butit'sdefinitelynotan

Page61

exampleofvaluingthem.Valuingstudents'pointsofviewmeansnotonlyrecognizingthembutalsoaddressingthem. AcknowledgingRelativity Inaphilosophicalsense,thenotionofrelativityisembeddedwithinthesearchtounderstandanotherperson'spointofview.Theacknowledgementthatother perspectivesexistimpliesrelativityofimportanceandmerit,andcastsdoubtonsomeofthemanyother''truths"weoftenacceptwithoutreflection.Agoodexampleof multipleperspectivescanbefoundinalmostanyfacultyloungeinalmostanyschoolinAmerica.Thinkaboutthefacultyloungeinyourschool,aboutwhathappens thereandaboutthesignificancevariousoccupantsattachtothosehappenings.Thefollowingjournalentry(Schlopp1993)isfromayoungwomanpreparingto becomeateacher.


Mr.Feldmangreetedmeandbroughtmetotheteachers'lounge.Tome,thiswasalwaysasacredplacewhereIwasneverallowedtogoasachild.IstillfeltIdidn'tbelongthere.I was10yearsoldalloveragain.Theteachers'loungewasaplaceofmystery,andnowthatmysterywasabouttounfoldbeforemyeyes.ItwasnotatallwhatIexpected.There wasfurnitureleftoverfromthe1960swithsomereallybadcurtains.Teachersweretherecomplainingaboutsomestudents.Oneteacherhadastudentthrowupinclass,andall werecomplainingaboutthestudentwhopulledafirealarm.Therewereafewteachersactuallyplayingcards.Thepledgeofallegiancecameontheloudspeakeranditfeltso weirdnottostandup,butIfoughttheurgeandjustsatthere.

ThatfacultyloungeonachillywintermorninginFebruarywasanunfoldingmysterytothispreserviceteacher.It'sunlikelythatanyotheroccupanttherethatday perceivedtheroom'seventsinthesamemanner.Thisindividualityofperceptionandmeaningisrepeatedoverandoveragainwithstudentsineveryclassroominthe school.Ms.Scholppsharesanotherstoryaboutdifferingperspectives:


IncollegeIwasanenvironmentalsciencemajor,andformyfieldbiologyfinalIhadtolearn100birdcalls.Ilistenedto

Page62 thattapemorning,noon,andnight.Myroommatewasanursingmajorandthoughtthewholethingwasstupid.(Iwasdrivinghercrazy.)Everythingisrelevantfromsomeone else'spointofview.

TheTeacher'sRole: TalkingandListening Whenwethinkoftheteacher'srole,mostindividualsevokeanimageofsomeonetalkingandpassingoninformationtosomeoneelse.''Gettinginformationacross"is viewedasateacher'sprimaryresponsibility.Whileitiscertainlytruethatvirtuallyallteachersdoagooddealoftalkingtoandwiththeirstudents,listeningisatleastan equallyimportantcomponentofaconstructivistteacher'srepertoire.Let'sexploreakindergartenclassroomtoseewhy. ItwasthemiddleofMarch.Inthiskindergartenclass,asinmostkindergartenclassesthroughoutthenation,themiddleofMarchmeanstheappearanceofgreen constructionpaperandpicturesofleprechauns.Thetaskonthisparticulardaywastocutoutthetennumberedleprechaunsfromthedittosheetandpastethemonthe greenpaperinconsecutivenumericalorder.Onelittleboy,Nicholas,begantheprojectinthefollowingmanner:

Figure6.1

Page63

Hecontinuedinthetypicallefttoright,toptobottomfashion.

Figure6.2

Afterplacingthefirsteightleprechaunsintwoevenlyspacedrows,hehadtwoleprechaunsleftoverbutnoroomonthegreenpapertobeginathirdrow.Aftera moment'sthought,hesolvedhisprobleminthefollowingmanner:

Figure6.3

ThenextdaytheteacherreturnedNicholas'papertohimwiththeword,''backwards,"writtenonit.WhenNicholaswenthome,

Page64

heaskedhismotherwhatthewordonthegreenpapermeant.Whenhismothertoldhim,Nicholaslookedsurprised.''It'snotbackwards,"hesaid.Hepointedand counted,"1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.ThenIdidn'thaveanyroom,soIdid9and10."Nicholas'mothersuggestedthathetakethepaperbacktohisteacherandexplainhis reasoning.Thenextmorning,however,Nicholastookthepaperoutofhisbackpackandleftitonthekitchentable.Whenhismotheraskedhimwhyhewasn'ttaking ittoschool,heshruggedandsaidhedidn'twanttotakeit.Whenhismotheragainencouragedhimtodoso,Nicholassaid,"No.Itdoesn'tmakeadifference."He boundedoutofthehousetowardthebusstopanddidn'tmentionthegreenpaperwiththetenleprechaunsagain. Whenhesaidthatbringingthepaperbacktotheteacherdidn'tmakeadifference,wedon'tknowwhataspectofthesituationNicholashadinmind.Wasthewhole assignmentnotworthfurtherdiscussionfromhisperspective?Wastryingtoexplainhispointofviewnot"worthit"?Wedon'tknow. Ofcourse,wealsodon'tknowwhattheteacherhadinmindwhenshewrotetheword"backwards"onthegreenpaper.Didtheteacherthinkthatwriting "backwards"onhispaperwasgoingtohelphimseriatethenumbers"better"or"correctly"thenexttime?BecauseNicholasdidnotyetreadindependently,didshe thinkthathercommentwasgoingtogenerateadiscussionbetweenparentandchildathomethatwouldhelpNicholaslearnthelefttoright,toptobottom,in consecutiveorderformatusedinreadingreadinessprograms?ForwhomdidshewritethecommentNicholas,hisparents,orherself?And,givenwhatshesawon thepaper,whatareherownconceptionsoftheword"backwards"? Clearly,thereismuchthinkingunderpinningthisinteractionthateludesus.Theteacher'smotivesingivingtheassignmentandwritingtheword"backwards"and Nicholas'reasonsfornotbringingthepaperbacktoschoolareunknowntous.However,wedoknowthatNicholaslearnedalesson,anditwasprobablynotthe lessontheteacherhadintended.Thelessonheprobablylearnedhasmoretodowiththesocialcontextoftheclassroom.Andifthatlessonisrepeatedoftenenoughin thisandotherclassrooms,Nicholaswillsoonlearnthatarticulatinganddefendinghisownpointofviewisnotasvaluedasferretingoutandrecitingbacktheteacher's pointofview.

Page65

Also,inthiscase,thejudgmenttheteacherreachedaboutNicholas'reasoningwasbasedonsuppositionsthatturnedouttobefaulty.Let'slookatoneresponsethat mighthaveconfirmedordeniedtheteacher'ssuppositionsandmayhaveservedNicholasbetter.Theteachermighthaveaskedthebeautifullysimplequestion:''Can youtellmehowyouputtheseleprechaunsinthisorder?"ShemayhavediscoveredNicholas'initialreasoningandalsoofferedhimtheoptionofrethinkinghisinitial ideas.Hadshedonethis,Nicholascouldhavebeenchallengedtoreexaminehiswork,animportantactivityinhiscognitivedevelopmentanactivitythatdependson theteacher'swillingnesstoaskgoodquestionsandlisten. OpportunitiestoExpressOne'sPointofView Wedon'tintendtominimizetheenormoustaskoftheteacherbyimplyingthateveryutteranceorartifactrenderedbyastudentcanbegivencarefulattention.They cannot.Seekingstudents'pointsofviewisanoftenparadoxicalendeavor.Thetimingandcontentofteachers'mediationsgreatlyaffectsthewillingnessofstudentsto revealtheirthinking. Sohowdoteachersmaximizeopportunitiesforstudentstoexpresstheirpointsofview,torevealtheirconceptions,toreflectontheirconceptions,andtogrow intellectually?Teachers'abilitytouncoverstudents'conceptionsis,toalargedegree,afunctionofthequestionsandproblemsposedtostudents.Forexample,asking studentstoplacethefourseasonsinchronologicalorderbeginningwithwinterwillelicitadifferentsetofresponsesthanaskingstudents"Whyarethereseasons?"The firsttaskwillhelptheteacherjudgeifthestudentsknowthe"right"answertothespecificquestionasked.But,sometimes,asinNicholas'case,eventhe"right"maybe obscured.Thesecondtaskwilllikelyprovideawindowintothestudents'conceptionsoftheearth'srotations,revolutions,anddistancefromandangleinrelationship tothesun. Differenttypesofcurricularproblemsgiverisetodifferenttypesofstudentresponsesandclassroominteractions.Iftheteacher'squestiscoverageofthecurriculumin preparationfora

Page66

multiplechoicetest,perhapsthefirsttaskwillservethatpurposemoredirectly.However,ifstudentunderstandingistheteacher'squest,thesecondtaskwillbemore significantinassessingthoseunderstandingsandstructuringensuingactivities. AskingStudentstoElaborate It'simportanttonotethatmoststudentshavebeentrainedtoviewbothateacher'saskingforelaborationandateacher'schallengetotheirideasassuresignsthattheir responsesareincorrect.Generallyspeaking,ateacherasksasecondquestionofastudentonlywhensheconsidersthefirstresponseincorrect.Becauseofthis,both thechallengingofideasandtheseekingofelaborationautomaticallythreatenstudents.However,whenthesetwopracticesbecomearegularclassroomcustom, studentsovercometheiringrainedaversiontothedreadedsecondquestion,andcometounderstandthattheteacherisgenuinelyinterestedinknowingmoreabout whattheythinkandwhy. Ina6thgradeclassroom,agroupofstudentswerestudyingbuoyancy.Sittingaroundatubofwater,theteacherheldapaperclipinonehandandaplasticunifixcube intheother.Shegavethetwoitemstoonestudent,Jane,andaskedtheotherstopredictwhatwouldhappenwhenJanedroppedthembothintothewater.Bob quicklyindicatedthattheunifixcubewouldfloatandthepaperclipwouldsink.Theteachersaid,''Telluswhyyouthinkthat."Bobthenimmediatelychangedhis predictionandsaidthatthepaperclipwouldfloatandthecubewouldsink.Theteacherresponded,"Pleasetelluswhyyouthinkthat."Theteacherhadchallenged bothofBob'sresponses,andhewasnowthoroughlyconfused.Helookedtoherandasked,"Whichoneisit?"Sheasked,"Whatdoyouthink?"Hethoughtfora momentandthen,returningtohisinitialhypothesis,explainedwhyhethoughtthatthepaperclipwouldsink(itwasmadeofmetal)andwhyhethoughtthecubewould float(itwasmadeofplastic).AfterJanereleasedtheitems,Bobsawthathisinitialimpulsehadbeenaccurate.TheteacheraskedBobifhethoughtthesameresult wouldoccurifheweretorepeatwhatJanehadjustdone.Hesaid,"Yes.Ithinkso.Letmetry." Theteacher'sfollowupquestiontoBob's"correct"responsehadmadehimabandonhisinitialperspective.Herfollowup

Page67

questiontohissecondresponseledhimtorethinkthewholeissueand,equallyimportantly,revealhispointofview.Theteachernowhadinformationaboutthe variablesheconsideredwhenthinkingaboutbuoyancy. WhatReallyCounts? Acommunitynewspaperrecentlyranaseriesofarticlesrelatingtoasurveyconductedatthelocalhighschool.Manypeopleinthecommunityareconcernedabout whatisdescribedinthesearticlesas''rampantcheating."Thefirstsurveyquestionforthehighschoolstudentswasworded:"Haveyouevercopiedahomework assignmentthatcounted?"Itisinterestingthatthesurveydeveloperswerespecificallyinterestedinthehomeworkthat"counted."Oneislefttowonderwhich homework"counts"andwhichhomeworkdoesn't,andhowstudentscometoknowthedifference.Fromourperspective,itwouldbeinterestingtofindoutwhy studentswouldcopyhomeworkthatdoesn't"count"andwhyteacherswouldassignsuchwork.Focusingsomuchattentiononcheatingandcountingcertainlyhasthe potentialtodivertattentionfromtheprocessesofteachingandlearning.Andaren'tteachingandlearningwhatreally"count"? Focusingonwhetherornotstudentsareawareofcertaininformation,orcancomputewithcertainalgorithms,orcanrecitecertainverses,impliesalinearmodelof knowledgebuilding.Inthismodel,thereislittlereasontoaskforstudents'pointsofviewbecausetheirpointsofviewarenotasvaluedasaretheir"right"or"wrong" answers.Butknowledgeisnotlinear,noristheprocessoflearning.Learningisajourney,notadestination.Eachpointofviewisatemporaryintellectualstopalong thepathofeverincreasingknowledge. Studentstryto"steal"others'pointsofviewbecauseschoolshavesomehowsubordinatedtheformationofconceptsandthebuildingofideastohighstakesgamesof "right"and"wrong"answersthatproducewinnersandlosers.Thesystemitselfgivesstudentsthemessagethatit'sbettertobe"right"thantohaveinterestingideas. Facedwiththissortofpressure,manystudents

Page68

97percentbytheirownacknowledgement,morethanmostpeopleinourcommunityexpectedchoosetocopy. We'renotcondoningcheating,butwedothinkit'simportantforeducatorstoexplorethedynamicsofasystemthatplacessomuchemphasison''rightness"and "wrongness."Onmosttestsandhomeworkassignments,studentsaren'taskedtorevealandelaborateontheirpointsofview.Theyareaskedinsteadtobe"right." Being"right"oftendivertsenergyawayfromthegenerationofnewviews.WemustrememberthatthePtolemaicviewofthesolarsystemwasaconceptualstopona paththatledtotheCopernicanviewspresentlyheldbymostastronomers.WethinktodaythatPtolemywasnot"right,"buthispointofviewcertainlycounted. References Hunt,D.E.,andE.V.Sullivan.(1974).BetweenPsychologyandEducation.Hinsdale,Ill.:TheDrydenPress. Schlopp,K.(1993).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook.

Page69

7 Principle#4: AdaptingCurriculumtoAddressStudents'Suppositions
Learningisenhancedwhenthecurriculum'scognitive,social,andemotionaldemandsareaccessibletothestudent.Therefore,somesortofrelationshipmustexist betweenthedemandsofthecurriculumandthesuppositionsthateachstudentbringstoacurriculartask.Thisnotionleadsustoourfourthguidingprincipleof constructivistteaching:theneedforteacherstoadaptcurriculumtaskstoaddressstudents'suppositions.Ifsuppositionsarenotexplicitlyaddressed,moststudentswill findlessonsbereftofmeaning,regardlessofhowcharismatictheteacherorattractivethematerialsmightbe. Overtheyears,ourviewofthisguidingprincipleofconstructivistteachinghasevolved.Therootsofourunderstandingsofconstructivismtookholdintheideaof matchingthecurriculum'scognitivedemandstostudents'cognitiveabilities.Ourinitialconceptionofthisprocesswassomewhatlinear:ifthesuccessfulcompletionofa curriculartaskrequired,forexample,studentstoconservediscontinuousquantity,andthestudentsintheclasswerenotyetabletodoso,wefeltthatthetaskought notbegiven.Wehavecometorealize,however,thatrequiringaonetoonematchbetweenthecognitivedemandsofcurriculartasksandstudents'cognitiveabilities (asweperceivethem)canbelimitingforstudents,andcanresultinthefailureofschoolstoexposestudentstoappropriatelychallengingconcepts.

Page70

AddressingSuppositions Abriefhistoryofthisprinciple'sderivationillustratesitscentralitytocreatingconstructivistclassrooms.TheseminalworksofJeanPiagetformedtheframeworkon whichwebasedthefoundationalpremiseofthisprinciple.Piagetobservedpatternsinthedevelopmentofhisownchildren'sreasoningandthenobservedand reportedthesamepatternsinotheryoungchildren.Ashisownchildrengrew,healsoreportedconsistenciesinolderchildren'sresponsestointellectualtasks.These patternshavebeensupportedbymanyotherscholarsandresearchers(Inhelder,Sinclair,andBovet1974Elkind1974SigelandCocking1977Wadsworth1978 andLowery1974a,b,c).Inbrief,Piagetandotherspostulatethatatdifferentperiods,childrenusedifferentmentalstructurestothinkaboutandmakesenseoftheir world.Thestructuresavailabletochildrenaredeterminedbytheirbiologicalreadinessandlifeexperiences. Piaget'smostwidelyknownconceptualizationofcognitivedevelopmentidentifiesfourstagesatwhichmentalstructuresappeartoemerge:(1)thesensorimotorperiod, theperiodbetweenbirthandabouttwoyearswhentheinfantlearnsbyphysicallyactingontheenvironmentandaccommodatingnewschemes,learningthatobjects haveconstantshapesandthatbodilymovementscanbecoordinatedwithotherobjects(2)thepreoperationalperiod,theperiodroughlybetweentheagesoftwo andsevenyears,whenthechildlearnslanguageandotherformsofrepresentation,andbeginstorelateobjectsandideastooneanotherintimeandspace(3)the concreteoperationalperiod,theperiodroughlybetweentheagesof7and11years,whenthechild'sreasoningprocessesbroadentoincludewhatisknownaslogic, butlogicmostlyintermsofwhatistangibleandobservableand(4)theformaloperationalperiod,theperiodthatbeginssometimeduringorbeyondadolescence, whenanindividualcanuseabstractlogicalstructuresindiverseproblemareas. Atfirstblush,Piaget'sstagetheoryplacesintocontextmuchofwhatweseestudentsdoinschool.EvenmorecompellingarePiaget'sideasincombinationwithother theoriesofdevelopment,suchasErikson's(1950)conceptualizationsofthepsychosocialdilemmasweencounteratdifferenttimesofourlives,Elkind's

Page71

(1970)explanationsofcognitiveconquests,Kohlberg's(1969)notionsofmalemoraldevelopment,andGilligan's(1982)extensionofKohlberg'sworkhighlighting howfemalesrespondtomoraldilemmasandchoices.Thesetheories,togetherwithPiaget'swork,addmuchrichnesstoourobservationsandunderstandingsof developinghumanbeings. Butultimately,asweindicateinChapter3,stagetheoriesdon'tprovetobeveryhelpfulinexplainingtherelationshipbetweenteachingandlearning.Infact,a superficialunderstandingofstagetheorygivesteacherslittlemorethannewlabelstousewhendescribingstudents.Achildcaneasilybecomeknownas''only concreteoperational,"andbeviewedasincapableoflearningmuchfromanactivitydesigned,forexample,togeneratereasonswhycertainobjectsfloat.Butachild doesnothavetodemonstrate,apriori,theabilitytoengageinproportionalreasoningtobeabletolearnbyobservingfloatingorsinkingobjectsinapoolofwaterand generalizingrulestoexplainwhathesees. Categorizingstudents'generalabilitiesdoesnothelpteachersindevelopingappropriateinstructionalstrategiesforparticulartopicsandconceptsbecauseatanyone pointintime,peopleuseseveraldifferentcognitivestructures.Thewidelyknownconservationtasksprovideanexample:achildconcludesthatthequantityofbeans pouredfromawidejartoanarrowjarremainsconstant,whilequestioningwhetherornotthequantityofwaterpouredfromjartojarremainsconstant(Piagetand Szeminska1965).Whilebothareconservationtasks(thegroupofindividualbeansrepresentdiscontinuousquantityandthewaterrepresentscontinuousquantity),the childconservesinonedomainandnottheother.Thisisknownasdcalage.Dcalagereferstothegapbetweenanindividual'suseofacognitivestructureinone domainandlackofimmediatetransferofthatstructuretootherdomains. Inanotherexample,achildstatesthatwaterpouredfromonejartoanotherjarofadifferentshapeisunchanged,whilequestioningwhetherornotcoffeebeansweigh thesamebeforeandaftergrinding(SigelandCocking1977).Again,bothareconservationtasks,butthechildthinksaboutconservationusingdifferentmental structureswhenthecontent(continuousordiscontinuous

Page72

quantity)isdifferent.Thus,ourunderstandingsofthenotionofdcalagecautionusagainstusingbroadlabelswithstudents.

Constructivistteachersdesignlessonsthataddressstudents'suppositions.Thisdesignprocessisinformedandenhancedbyanunderstandingofthecognitivedemands impliedbycertaincurriculartasks.Forexample,alessononthemanipulationoffractionscaninvitestudentsintoaconfrontationwiththeirpreviousconstructionsof partwholerelationships.Similarly,lessonsaskingstudentstoconsiderreasonsthatboththealliedandaxisnationsengagedinWorldWarIIcanhelpstudents considermultipleframesofreference.Theadaptationofcurriculartaskstoaddressstudentsuppositionsisafunctionofthecognitivedemandsimplicitinspecifictasks (thecurriculum)andthenatureofthequestionsposedbythestudentsengagedinthesetasks(thesuppositions).Bruner(1971)usestheterm''mismatch"toreferto thedelicaterelationshipbetweenastudent'squestions,whicharereflectiveofcurrentmentalstructures,andtheideaswithinimmediatereach:


Theteacherneedstohaveproceduresfordetermining"appropriatemismatches"andtheextenttowhichthechild'slearningisdependentonfigurativeand/oroperativeprocesses (p.67).

Thepertinentmessagehereforeducatorsisthatwedon'tknowwhatideasarewithinstudents'reachunlesswedosomethingspecifictofindout.Thatiswhyourfirst threefoundationalprinciplesposingproblemsofemergingrelevance(Chapter4),structuringlearningaroundprimaryconcepts(Chapter5),andseekingandvaluing students'pointsofview(Chapter6)aresoimportant.Theyarepracticesthatguideteachersinadaptingcurriculardemandstostudents'suppositions.


1

ReaderswantingamoredetaileddiscussionofcognitivedevelopmentaltheorycanrefertoPiaget'sgroundbreakingworks(1952,1967,1974,1987),themanyexcellentbooksthat describedPiaget'sconceptualizationsofmentalstructuresandhiscarefullyarticulatedclinicaltasks(GinsburgandOpper1969Wadsworth1971,1978Cowan1978Labinowicz 1980,1985),andsomeofthecritiquescitingthelimitationsofPiaget'stheories(Haroutunian1983,Gardner1991b,Case1985,1991).Seethebibliographyofthisbook.

Page73

Thefollowingfiveclassroomexamplesillustratehowteachersthinkaboutcurriculumadaptationandanalyzeclassroomevents. 1stGradersStudyMath Duringa1stgrademathlessononmeasurementandequivalency,childrenwereaskedtouseabalancetodeterminehowmanyplasticlinksequaledonemetalwasher inweight.Theteacherrecognizedandseizedanopportunitytohelponeparticularlyeagerchild,Anna,begintoconstructarudimentarynotionofratioandproportion.


Teacher:Howmanylinksdoesittaketobalanceonewasher? Anna:(Afterafewsecondsofexperimenting)Four. Teacher:IfIplacedonemorewasheronthisside,howmanymorelinksdoyouthinkwewouldneedtobalanceit? Anna:One. Teacher:Tryit.

Annaplacedonemorelinkinthebalancetrayandnoticedthatbalancewasnotachieved.Shelookedconfusedandplacedanotherlinkinthetrayandthenathird. Stillnobalance.Sheplacedonemorelinkinthetray.Balancewasachieved.Shesmiledandlookedattheteacher.
Teacher:Howmanycubesdidittaketobalanceonewasher? Anna:Four. Teacher:Andhowmanytobalancetwowashers? Anna:(counting)Eight. Teacher:IfIputonemorewasheronthisside,howmanymorelinkswillyouneedtobalanceit? Anna:(Ponderedandlookedquizzicallyattheteacher)Four. Teacher:Tryit. Anna:(aftersuccessfullybalancingwithfourlinks)Eachwasheristhesameasfourlinks. Teacher:Now,letmegiveyouareallyhardquestion.IfItookFourlinksoffofthebalance,howmanywasherswouldIneedtotakeoffinordertobalanceit? Anna:One!

Page74

When,how,anduponwhichcontentateacherasksstudentstoengageinsuchactivitiesisadynamicdecisionmadebytheteacher,andinformedbyanunderstanding ofthestudent'ssuppositions.Eachanswerastudentofferstoateacher'squestionsrevealssuppositionsthestudentismakingabouttheissueathand.Knowingthe student'ssuppositionsenablestheteachertoadaptthecurriculumtoaddressthem.Forexample,anotherchildinthisclass,Melissa,indicatedthatthree,notfour, plasticlinksequalledonewasher.Theteacher'sfirstresponsewas''Tryagain,"butwhenheapproachedMelissa'sdeskandaskedhertoshowhimhowshegotthree, Melissahappilytookthewasheroutofthebalance,placeditonherdesk,andsurroundeditwiththreechainlinksinatriangularshape(seeFigure7.1).

Figure7.1

Melissawasnotattemptingtofindequivalencyintermsofweight.Rather,thespatialarrangementwassalientinhermind,andsheansweredcorrectlythequestionshe wasaskingherself.Withoutusinggeometricterms,shetriedtoequatethecircumferenceoftheoutsidecircleofthewasherandtheinsideshapecreatedbytheringof links.Pursuingelaborationofhernotionofcircumferenceorredirectingthechild'sfocustoweightorothertypesofteachermediationthatvalidatedMelissa'scurrent ideasandusedthemtohelphersegueherthoughtsintootherdomainsareallexamplesofadaptingthecognitivedemandsofthecurriculumtoaddressastudent's suppositions. Inthiscase,theteacherrethoughthisinitialresponse"Tryagain,"andchosetohelpMelissamovefromequalityinthespatial

Page75

realmtoequalityofweight.HeaskedMelissatoplaceachainlinkinonehandandawasherintheother. ''Whichoneisheavier?"heasked.Melissarepliedthatthewasherfeltheavier.TheteacherthenaskedMelissatotrytofigureouthowmanychainlinksweighedabout thesameasonewasher,usingherhands.Thoughthelessonendedshortlybecausethestudentsmovedtomusicclass,theteacherendedwithabeginning,knowing howhewasgoingtoworkwithMelissaatthenextopportunity.Hewouldcontinuetohelphermakethetransitionfromspacetoweight. Originally,theteacherwasseekingonlythe"right"answer.LostinthissearchwastherichnessofMelissa'sperspective...untiltheteachersoughtit.Thebeautyof multipleperspectivesandtheenergyofcreativethoughtareoftenlostinclassrooms.Studentsinclassroomsthatemphasize"rightness"and"wrongness"ceasetooffer theirviewsonissuesunlesstheyfeelconfidentthattheirviewsaresharedbytheteacher.Ineffect,onlyoneperspectivegetsacknowledgedanddiscussed,andthe classroombecomesanacutelyparochialsetting. 2ndGradersStudyScience Inthe1stgradeexample,theteacheradaptedthelessonbecauseatleastonestudentbroughttothetaskasuppositionquitedivergentfromtheoneaddressedbythe curriculumguide.Two2ndgradeteacherslearnedtheimportanceofconstantlymonitoringstudentunderstandingandadaptinglessonsaccordinglywhentheir44 studentscompletedataskinasurprisingway.Inthesetwo2ndgradeclassrooms,studentswerestudying"ChangesinFall."Theteachersencouragedthestudentsto considerthetopicthroughquestionssuchas:Whatmakesatreeinthefalllookdifferently?Areallleavesthesame?Arealltreesthesamecolor?Whatdoesaleaf looklike?CanIdescribesomechangesIobserve?DoIseepatterns? Afterseeingfilmstrips,takinganaturewalk,collectingleaves,makingleafrubbings,observingtreesaroundtheschool,anddrawing,laminating,andclassifyingfall leaves,theteachersfeltthattheexperiencehadbeen"concretized"sufficientlytoallowthechildrentogeneralizetosimilarsituations.Yet,whenaskedto

Page76

''paintafallpicture,"andgivenafullrangeofpaints,everychildintheclasspaintedgreentrees. Theteachersconcludedthattheactivitiesinwhichthestudentshadjustengagedhadnotinfluencedtheirconceptionsofhowonepaintsapictureofafalltree.They realizedthatforthese2ndgraders,lookingatindividualleavesandlookingatawholetreegeneratedseparateunderstandings.Thisledtheteacherstothinkabouthow teachersreallyknowwhattheirstudentslearnfromvariouslessons?Theywereremindedthat,intheirwords,"teachersmustconstantlyquestionthechildrenasto whattheyaredoingandobserving...dialoguemustconstantlyoccur"(JehleandReynolds1983). Thesefirsttwoexamplesillustratethenecessitytoprovidebothprecursorandextensionactivitiestolessonssuggestedbythecurriculumpublisherordesignedbythe teacher. 6thGradersStudySocialStudies AnotherexampleofhowlearningopportunitiesareenhancedbydifferentiatedcurriculumexperiencesinvolvesMan:ACourseofStudy(MACOS),an interdisciplinarycurriculumdesignedfor10yearoldstudentsbyJeromeBrunerandhiscolleaguesinthe1960sandstillusedtodayinsomeschools.Inone6thgrade class,studentsusingMACOSexploredthebiologyandlifecycleofthesalmon.Thestudentswereaskedtothinkaboutexperimentsdesignedandimplementedby scientistswhostudythehabitsandbehaviorofsalmon.Thestudentswerepresentedwithdatarevealingthatalmostallsalmonreturntotheirhomestreams,butthat onlyonequarterofsalmonwithpluggednostrilsreturntotheirhomestreams.Theywerethenaskedquestionssuchas:"Whatinnateabilityofsalmonhelpsthemfind theirhomestreams?" Oneapproachtoansweringthisquestionrequiresproportionalandcorrelationalreasoning.Correlationalreasoningistheabilitytoconcludethatthereisorisnota relationship,whethernegativeorpositive,betweentwoormoresetsofdata.Studentsstudyingthesalmoncandistinguishbetweenandcomparetheratiooffish whosenaturalolfactorysensehadbeenaffectedwiththeratioofthosefishwhosesensehadnot.Veryfewofthestudents,however,werethenabletocomparethe differentialratiostodataaboutwhetherornotthefisharrivedbackattheir

Page77

homestreams.Butsomeofthestudentswereabletogeneratecorrelationswithteachermediation. Theteacheraskedthestudentstodescribetheirthinking.Sherealizedthattheyhadtroublekeepingtheir''if...then"statementsclear.Theteacherviewedtheir grapplingwiththelanguageastheirwayofcomingtounderstandtheconcept.Forthesestudents,theteacherprovidedcurriculumthataddressedtheirsuppositionsas revealedbythequestionstheywerereadytopose.However,forthemajorityofstudentsintheclass,nocorrelationscouldbededuced.Theirsuppositionsaboutfish behaviorandsensorydeprivationdidnotallowthemtogeneratemuchnewknowledgefromthe"scientific"datapresented. Theteacherhadtoadaptthecurriculumtomaximizethelikelihoodthatitwouldfacilitatethedevelopmentofcorrelationalreasoning,ortheprecursorstoit,orhelp studentsgeneratesomenewknowledgeoffishbehavior.Shedidthissimplybyreflectingquestionsbacktostudents.Onestudentaskedhowthescientistpluggedthe salmon'snostrils.Theteacherreflectedthequestionbacktotheclass,thenorchestratedstudenttostudentdialogues.Subsequentquestionsandhypothesesbeganto fly:Didtheyusepolesornets?Whydidn'tthefishdiewhiletheywereoutofthewater?Howlongcanfishstayoutofthewater?Howcouldtheybreatheiftheir nostrilswereplugged?Dofishbreathethroughtheirnostrils?Blankstaresturnedtodirectedgazesandunderstandingsbegantoemerge.Theteacherstayedwithinthe generalconcept,adaptedherlessonplans,andfosteredtheemergingrelevanceoftheconceptforherstudents.Oncesomerelevancewasestablished,thestudents engagedinthecurriculumwiththecommitmentthatfostersunderstanding. 7thGradersStudyEnglish/SocialStudies Let'scontinueourdiscussionofadaptingcurriculumtoaddressstudents'suppositionsbylookingata7thgradeEnglish/socialstudiesclassbeginningaunitonGreek mythology.Muchliteratureinthefieldofcognitivedevelopmentstatesthatstudentsneedarichrepertoireofexperiencesandactions(Arlin1975)inordertodevelop abstractthoughtstructuresinspecificcontentareas.Thisdoesn'tmeanthatstudentsmustnecessarilyhaverepertoiresofexperiencesandactionsrelatingdirectlytothe topic

Page78

beingstudied(inthiscase,Greekmythology),butrathertothelargeconceptsthatunderliethetopic.Inkeepingwiththispremise,taskswithinthisGreekmythunit required7thgraderstoseriateevents,classifycharacterbehavior,andconservecharacterintentionsevenwhenbehaviorschanged.Thesestructuresareprecursorsto thestructuresofinductionandpropositionallogic,abilitiesthatthese12and13yearoldstudentswerejustdeveloping. Thefirstactivityinvolvedsequencing.TheteacherinvitedstudentstorevealtheirunderstandingsoftheHeramyththroughdiscussionofmaineventsandthe transformationofthoseeventsintosimplesentencesthegroupssharedinflowchartsofvaryingdesigns.Studentswereencouragedtoembellishtheflowchartswith illustrationsoftheevents.Somegroupsdesignatedaspecificcolorforeachcharacter,aswellasspecificdesignstoindicatethecharacters'emotions. Thefollowingflowchartwascreatedbyonegroupofstudents:

Figure7.2

Thenextassignmentinvitedthestudentstoconsiderbeginningnotionsofhypotheticalreasoning.ThisactivitywasinspiredbyEdwardPackard'sseries,DesignYour OwnAdventure.Packardsequenceshisplotsthroughlogicalpossibilities.Hisinitialsetting

Page79

canyieldasmanyas30or40storylinesbyhavingreaderschoosefromvariousalternativesatcriticaltimes.Forinstance,inoneseries,themaincharacterentersa westerntown.Thereadermustdecidewhetherheshouldgotothesheriff,tothehotel,ortothenewspaperoffice.Foreachchoice,Packarddevelopsadifferent sequenceofeventsthatfitslogicallywithsubsequentsetsofchoices. AfterhavingreadseveralPackardbookstoeachotherinclass,thestudentsaskediftheycouldtrytowritetheirownstories.Theteacherhadplannedtousethe PackardstoriesasmodelsforthestudentstofollowindescribingtheHeramyth.But,theirenthusiasmforthehypotheticalpremiseofthebookswassostrong,she changedheroriginalfocus. Somegroupschosetocreatenewstoriesandcharactersotherthanthegods,somechosetheGreekgods.Hereisonegroups'response:

Figure7.3

Page80

Fewstudentshadproblemswiththeformat,althoughsomestruggledwiththeimaginativedemandsofthetask.Thestudentseventuallyproduced16to20page booksoncoloredconstructionpaper,illustratedwithpictures,andboundwithdesignedcovers.Studentswereeagertoreadoneanother'sstoriesandalthoughthe teacherhadspentallyearcoachingthemonnonjudgmentalfeedback,theycommentedtoeachotherindecidedlyevaluativetones,generallypositive. Duringthislesson,studentswhowereabletoreasonhypotheticallywereencouragedtodoso.Forthemajorityofthestudents,whodidn'texhibitevidenceofthis typeofreasoning,guidancewasprovidedbytheteacherwhenrequested.Forsomegroups,theteacherreducedthecomplexityofthehypotheticalportionofthetask byhavinganestablishedpatternthatstudentscouldfollow.Sheevenpresentedtosomegroupsablankflowchartmodel,althoughsheworriedthatshemightbe robbingthemoftheopportunitytocreatesomethingthemselvesforthepurposeofexpeditingthefinalproduct.Whatsurprisedherwasthestudents'eagernessto receivethehelp.Showingsomestudentsanexampleofa''final"productbeforetheystruggledtoolongmadetheirgoalamoreattainablereality,ratherthanan overwhelmingtasktheycouldn'tvisualizecompleting. Inasubsequentlesson,thestudentswerepresentedwith25to30differentcommonhouseholdobjects,includingabattery,apotholder,ashoelace,andacontainer ofsuntanlotion.Thestudentswereaskedtogenerateasmanycategoriesaspossibleutilizingatleastthreeobjectspercategory.Someofthestudentgenerated categorieswere:games,redobjects,plastic,medicinalitems,kitchentools,andsquareobjects.Bycoincidence,theassistantprincipalenteredtheroomduringthis lessonand,uponseeingthestudentsbusilyexaminingtheoddarrayofitemsonthefrontdesks,asked,"What'sgoingonhere?"Thestudentsusedtheterm "categorizing"astheyexplainedtheirassignment. ThestudentswerethenaskedtodothesameactivityfortheGreekgodsandgoddesses.Thisactivityrequiredthestudentstounderstandthemythsandthe characteristicsofthegodsandgoddessessufficientlyenoughtoalignthemincategories.Someofthecategoriesthestudentsdevisedwere:godsandgoddesses withoutchildren,childrenofZeus,godswhosenamesbeginwith

Page81

theletterH,andgodsandgoddesseswhohadtemplesbuiltforthem. Theintroductionofthistaskinvolvedthecognitivestructurecalledclassification.Studentswereaskedtospontaneouslygeneratetheclassificationcategoriesandapply thosecategoriestothelistofitems.Judgingthecharacteristicsofgodsandgoddesses,basedmostlyorsolelyonreadingmaterial,isanabstractprocessthroughwhich studentswereaskedtoreasoninductively.Althoughtheframeworkofthetaskwasclassificatory,theteachermadetheframeworkmoreaccessibletothestudents throughtheuseofcommonmaterials.Suchactivitieschallengestudents.Theelementofnoveltyattractsthem,yetthesecurityoftheirbeingabletouseanintact cognitivestructuregivesthemasenseofconfidence. 8thGradersStudyScience Let'sexamineKatie'sexperiencewitha''WeightsandPulleys"unitinher8thgradescienceclass.Theintroductorylessoncalledforgivingthestudentssingleand doublewheeledpulleys,weights,andstringandaskingthemto"play"inpairs.Duringthistime,whileotherstudentseagerlycreatedsimplemachines,Katietalked withherpartner. Thesecondlessonbeganwithaworksheetexplainingsequentialsteps,achartonwhichstudentsweretokeepnotes,andconsiderableteacherdirectionforweighing variousobjectsandtesting"forcetotypeofpulley"relationships.Katiemadeonlythefirstmachine.Shecouldweightheobjectwithaspringscale,butcouldnot understandhowtodiscoverforce. Aspartofthethirdlesson,thestudentswereaskedtoconsidertwopictures,oneofasinglepulleywitha100lbs.bucketservingasaweightandoneofamore complexpulleysystemwitha100lbs.blockservingasaweight.TheteacherusedthisopportunitytoascertainthenatureofKatie'sunderstandingoftheconcepts exploreduptothispoint.TheteacheraskedKatie,"Inwhichpicturedoyouthinkitwouldbeeasiertolifttheobject?" Katiechosethecomplexpulley.Theteacheraskedwhy.Katierespondedthatthebucketwasheavier.Althoughshechosethepictureherteachersuspectedshe would,theteachercouldn'tunderstandherreasoning.Theteacher,unsurethatKatiecompre

Page82

hendedthattheweightineachsystemwasthesame,drewthelabel''100lbs."oneachpicture.Thefollowingdialogueensued:
Teacher:Theyeachweigh100lbs.Dotheyweighthesame? Katie:Yes. Teacher:Whichoneisheavier? Katie:Thebucket. Teacher:Why? Katie:Becausethebucket'sheavier. Teacher:Buttheyeachweigh100lbs. Katie:Butthebuckethassandinitanditlooksheavier.

Atthispoint,itbecamecleartotheteacherthatalessondesignedtohelpfosteranunderstandingofthemechanicaladvantageofvariouspulleysystemswas inappropriateforKatiebecauseherreasoningwithregardtothesetasksappearedtobeperceptionbound.TheteacherconcludedthattheopportunityforKatieto weighwithsomepeersanumberofobjectsvaryingindensityandrelativesizewouldencouragehertoformulateadefinitionofweightandwouldofferhergreater opportunitiesforgrowththandidthepulleyassignment. TheRoleofErrorsinCognitiveDevelopment Cognitivedevelopmentalliteratureidentifiescertainbehaviorsassociatedwithvariousegocentricstatesinchildren(Coppleet.al1984,Labinowicz1980).The perceptualboundednessofthepreschoolchildandthelackofdifferentiationbetweenfactandassumptionseenintheelementaryschoolchild(Elkind1974)have observablebehavioralcorrelates.Thechildeffectivelymediatesexperiencesthroughtheobservationofhisownactionsandmovesthebehaviortoanotherplane,that ofthought.Reflectiveabstraction(GinsburgandOpper1979)isthechild'sconsiderationofhisownactionsasthemeansforlearningtooccur.

Page83

Intheclassroom,theoperantexpressionofthechild'sabstractionsmayappeartobe''incorrect"ifoneusesadultlogicasthecriterionbywhich"correctness"is judged.Dewey(1902)wrote:
Thefundamentalfactorsintheeducativeprocessareanimmature,undevelopedbeing,andcertainsocialaims,meanings,andvaluesincarnateinthematuredexperienceofthe adult(p.4).

Therefore,it'simportantnottoimposeadultexpectationsonachild'sthoughtprocesses,but,rather,tolookatthechild'sbehaviorasamanifestationofmovementto anensuingwayofreasoning."Achild'serrorsareactuallynaturalstepstounderstanding"(Labinowicz1980).Theabilitytolisteneffectivelyandgatherinformation regardingcognitiveandaffectivefunctioningandthesubsequentabilitytoadaptteachingmethodologiesaretheheartofwhatwe,aseducators,canprovidefor students. Adaptingcurriculumdoesn'tnecessarilyimplyeditingoutcertaincurricularmaterialsorchangingtheorderofthematerials'presentation.Nordoesitnecessarilyimply thatmaterialwellmatchedtothechild'spresentsuppositionswillautomaticallybelearned.Theprocessisnotsosimple.Teachermediationisakeyfactorinthis complexequation.Theteachercanobstructstudentlearningorhelpstudentsbuildtheirownbridgesfrompresentunderstandingstonew,morecomplex understandings.Althoughit'stheteacherwhostructurestheopportunity,it'sthestudents'ownreflectiveabstractionsthatcreatethenewunderstanding. Dewey(1902),indiscussingtheimportanceofseekingtouncoverthestudent'sperceptionsandinterestswrote:


Selected,utilized,emphasized,[activitiesofinteresttostudents]maymarkaturningpointforgoodinthechild'swholecareerneglected,anopportunitygoes,nevertoberecalled (p.14).

References Arlin,P.K.(1975)."CognitiveDevelopmentinAdulthood:AFifthStage?"DevelopmentalPsychology11,5:602606. Bruner,J.,(1971).TheRelevanceofEducation.N.Y.:Norton. Copple,C.,ISigel,andR.Saunders.(1984).EducatingtheYoungThinker.NewYork:D.VanNostrand.

Page84

Cowan,P.(1978).Piaget:WithFeeling.N.Y.:Holt,RinehartandWinston. Dewey,J.(1902).TheChildandtheCurriculum.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress. Elkind,D.(1970).ChildrenandAdolescents:InterpretiveEssaysonJeanPiaget.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Elkind,D.(1974).ASympatheticUnderstandingoftheChild,BirthtoSixteen.Boston:AllynandBacon,Inc. Elkind,D.(1976).ChildDevelopmentandEducation:APiagetianPerspective.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Erikson,E.H.(1950).ChildhoodandSociety.NewYork:Norton. Gilligan,C.(1982).InaDifferentVoice.Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress. Ginsburg,H.,andS.Opper.(1979).Piaget'sTheoryofIntellectualDevelopment:AnIntroduction.EnglewoodCliffs,N.J.:PrenticeHall. Haroutunian,S.(1983).EquilibriumintheBalance.NewYork:SpringerVerlag. Inhelder,B.,H.Sinclair,andM.Bovet.(1974).LearningandtheDevelopmentofCognition.Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress. Jehle,H.,andC.Reynolds.(1983).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:ShorehamWadingRiverSchools. Kohlberg,L.(1969).StagesintheDevelopmentofMoralThoughtandAction.NewYork:Holt,Rinehart&Winston. Labinowicz,E.(1985).LearningfromChildren:NewBeginningsforTeachingNumericalThinking.MenloPark,Calif.:AddisonWesley. Labinowicz,E.(1980).ThePiagetPrimer:Thinking,Learning,Teaching.MenloPark,Calif:AddisonWesley. Lowery,L.(1974a).LearningAboutInstruction:Questioning.Berkeley:UniversityofCalifornia. Lowery,L.(1974b).LearningAboutLearning:ClassificationAbilities.Berkeley:UniversityofCalifornia. Lowery,L.(1974b).LearningAboutLearning:ConservationAbilities.Berkeley:UniversityofCalifornia. Piaget,J.,andC.Szeminska.(1965).TheChild'sConceptionofNumber.NewYork:Norton. Sigel,I.E.,andR.R.Cocking.(1977).CognitiveDevelopmentfromChildhoodtoAdolescence:AConstructivistPerspective.N.Y.:Holt,Rinehartand Winston. Wadsworth,B.(1978).PiagetfortheClassroomTeacher.NewYork:Longman.

Page85

8 Principle#5: AssessingStudentLearningintheContextofTeaching
Wehaveallbeeninclassroomswheretheteacherposesaquestiontothestudentsandhandsshootupexcitedly.Theteacherthenpeersabouttheroomandcallson astudent.Thestudentanswers,andtheteachersays,''No."Theteacherthencallsonasecondstudent.Thatstudentanswers,andtheteacher,shakinghisheadfrom sidetoside,says,"Uhuh."Theteacherthencallsuponathirdstudent,andassheanswers,theteachersays,"Close,butnotquite."Afourthintrepidstudentraiseshis hand.Uponanswering,theteachershakeshisheadaffirmativelyandsays,"Yes,THAT'Stherightanswer!" Whatimplicitlessonsdosuchteacherbehaviorsconveytostudents?Probablyseveral.First,studentslearnthatthereisonecorrectanswertoeachquestionposedby theteacher,andthattheirchallengeistocomeupwiththatanswer.Second,theylearnthattheyplacethemselvesatsomeriskiftheyraisetheirhandsbeforebeing certainthattheyhavefiguredouttheone,rightanswer.Theteacherisnotapttosay,"Gee,Ineverthoughtaboutitthatway.Canyousaymoreaboutthat?"or"That's acreativewayoflookingattheissue.Howdidyouarriveatthatanswer?"Instead,theteacher'slikelyresponseis"No"unlessthestudentoffersthepreciseanswer beingsought. Theproblemwithsuchlessonsisclear."No"hurtsandmakesstudentsfeelinvalidatedandfoolish."No"communicatestostudentsthattheiridiosyncraticthinking aboutissuesisnotpar

Page86

ticularlyvalued.Iterodestheirdesiretothinkaboutandexploreissues,whichleadsthemtobepreoccupiedinsteadbythefarlessvaluableactivityofpredictingthe answertheteacherwants. Studentspayapriceinsuchsituations,andsodoteachers.Posingnarrowquestionsforwhichoneseeksasingularanswerdeniesteacherstheopportunitytopeer intostudents'minds.Creativityandrisktakingarenotattributesthatcanbeturnedonandoff.Bothneednurturing,encouragement,andsupport.Creativethinkingis notsomethingthatcanbescheduledduringaparticularsegmentoftheschoolday,separatedfromtherestoftheacademicprogram.Thereiswidespreadbeliefthat thestudyofmathandscienceseeksrightanswers,whilethestudyofliteratureandthehumanitiesacceptscreativity.Studentswholearninsettingsthatencourage individualconstructionofknowledgedonotseethecontentareaboundariessoclearly.Learningaboutourworldisinherentlyinterdisciplinary.Solvingourworld's problemsrequirescreativethought.Thebigpricepaidbyteacherswhoemphasize''rightness"islosingtheabilitytoevokecreativestudentwork.Bruner(1971) writes:


Itismyhunchthatitisonlythroughtheexerciseofproblemsolvingandtheeffortofdiscoverythatonelearnstheworkingheuristicsofdiscoverythemoreonehaspractice,the morelikelyoneistogeneralizewhathasbeenlearnedintoastyleofproblemsolvingorinquirythatservesforanykindoftaskencounteredoralmostanykindoftask.Ofonly onethingamIconvinced:Ihaveneverseenanybodyimproveintheartandtechniqueofinquirybyanymeansotherthanengagingininquiry(p.94).

Bruner'shunchisconsistentwithPiaget'sfoundationaltheoryandtheoperatingpremiseofconstructivistteaching.Realinquiryisinherentlyinterdisciplinary,and interdisciplinaryproblemsareinherentlybroadandopenended.Suchproblemsrarelyhaveone,easilyaccessiblerightanswer. RightnessandWrongness Whatexactlyarerightandwronganswers?Tothequestion,"CanyounameoneofthethreeshipsinvolvedinColumbus'voyage

Page87

totheIndies?''"Pinta"isrightand"Merrimac"iswrong.Thisseemsreasonablystraightforward,butitisactuallyquitecomplex. Studentsoftencorrectlyhearthequestionsposedbyteachers,buttheysimplydon'tknowtheanswers.Itisalsotruethatstudentsoftencorrectlyanswerthequestions theyaskthemselvesthequestionstheythinktheyheartheirteachersask.Itwouldbeinterestingtoknowwhatquestionthestudentthoughthewasansweringwhen stating"Merrimac."Ifthestudentwasansweringadifferentquestionfromtheonetheteacherposed,knowingthatquestionwouldhelptheteachertoreorientthe studenttotheexplorerathandandtoassessthestudent'spresentunderstandingofthetimeperiod.Ifthestudentunderstoodthequestioninthesamemannerthe teacherhadinmind,theteacherwouldknow(1)thatthestudenthadn'tyetassimilatedcertainspecificinformation,and(2)that"Merrimac"meanssomethingtothe studentandcouldbeawindowintothestudent'spointofview. "Rightness"and"wrongness,"then,relateasmuchtothefilteringsystemusedbyadultstosortthroughstudents'responsesastothestudents'conceptionsoftheissues andquestionstowhichtheyrespond.Toteachers,inaccurateresponsesare"wrong."Tostudents,inaccurateresponsesoftenrepresentthestateoftheircurrent thinkingabouttopics. Thinkofhowdifferentthelearningandassessmentprocessesinschoolwouldbeifteacherscametoviewthemselvesascognitivelylinkedwiththestudentstheyteach. Ratherthanusingassessmentresultsasindicesonlyofindividualstudentknowledge,suchinformationmightshedlightontherelationshipbetweenthestudentandthe teacher.Inthisparadigm,thestudentisnotassessedinisolation,butinconjunctionwiththeteacher,andbothlearnasaresultofassessment.Newman,Griffin,and Cole(1989)speaktothispoint:
Insteadofgivingthechildrenataskandmeasuringhowwelltheydoorhowbadlytheyfail,onecangivethechildrenthetaskandobservehowmuchandwhatkindofhelpthey needinordertocompletethetasksuccessfully.Inthisapproachthechildisnotassessedalone.Rather,thesocialsystemoftheteacherandchildisdynamicallyassessedto determinehowfaralongithasprogressed(pp.7778).

Page88

Inthisapproach,theteacherisabletomonitorsimultaneouslythecognitivefunctioningofthestudent,thedispositionofthestudent,andthestatusofthe teacher/studentrelationship.Studentconceptions,ratherthanindicating''rightness"or"wrongness,"becomeentrypointsfortheteacher,placestobeginthesortsof interventionthatleadtothelearner'sconstructionofnewunderstandingsandtheacquisitionofnewskills. Howdoestheteacherofferinterventionofthatnature?Byusingassessmentasatoolinservicetothelearner,ratherthanasanaccountabilitydeviceandnotasa teachereffectivenessmeasure,teacherscanbegintorethinkthedynamicrelationshipbetweenteachingandassessment.Let'sgettoknow12yearoldGreg,andsee ifthatacquaintanceclarifiestheconnectionbetweenteachingandassessment. AssessmentinServicetotheLearner: ACaseStudy Gregisa7thgraderinachildcenteredmiddleschool.Heachievesminimalacademicsuccessanddemonstratesanoticeablysubduedaffect.Hejustisn't"makingit" inschool.Throughouthisacademicfolder,thereareteachercommentssuchas:"Greghasfailedtocompletefiveassignmentsandhasnotacceptedoffersofextra help."Duetolimitedacademicsuccess,GreghasbeenputinremedialmathandEnglishclassessincetheprimarygrades.Affectively,heevidenceslethargy,apathy, andisolation.Hechoosesseatsperipheraltotheotherstudentsandteacher,frequentlycommentsonbeingtired,andoversleepsmanymornings.Priormedical examinationshaverevealednophysicalailments. Greg'sapparentindifferenceisespeciallyevidentinhisSpanishclass.Seekingawayofreachinghim,theteacherdecidedtofocusmoreofherattentionsonGregin ordertodeterminespecificallythetypesofproblemsolvingskillshedemonstratesinthecontextoflanguagetranslation. Ononeparticularmorning,anotherstudentwaspresentingareportdescribinghistermproject,astudyoftheinternational,littlespokenlanguage,Esperanto.The studentgavehispeersoneparagraphinEnglishandasecondonetranslatedintoEsperanto

Page89

Aprofessorofzoologydidnotlikeitverymuchwhenhisstudentsenteredlateat thebeginningofhislecture,andatthattime,interruptinghisreading,healways expressedhisannoyancetothetardystudents.Ononeoccasion,whenthe professorwasreadingaboutahorse,acertaintardystudententeredthe classroom.Totheamazementofthestudents,contrarytohiscustom,the professorsaidnothingtothestudentandcontinuedhisreading.Finishinghis readingaboutthehorse,hesaid,''Now,gentlemen,afterthehorseletusturnto thedonkey,"andturningtowardthelatecomer,hesaid,"Ibegyousitdown." "Donotgetexcited,Mr.Professor,"repliedthestudent."Icanlistentoadonkey standing,too." Profesorodezoologiotreneamis,kiamlastudentojmalfruisallakomencodela lekciokajtiam,interrompantesianlegadon,liciamesprimadissianmalplezuronal lamalfruintastudento.Unfojon,kiamlaprofesorolegispricevalo,enirisenla legejoniumalfruintastudento.Allamirodelastudentoj,kontrausiakutimola profesoroneniondirisallastudentokajdaurigissianlegadon.Finintelalegadon pricevalo,lidiris:Nun,sinjoroj,postla"cevalo"nitransirualla"azeno,"kaj, turnintesinallamalfruinta,lidiris:Mipetas,sidigu.Nemaltrankviliguvin, sinjoroprofesoro,respondislastudento,mipovasauskultiazenonankau starante.

Figure8.1

andaskedtheclasstoselecttheEsperantoequivalentfor10Englishwords(seefigure8.1). GregattemptedtofindtheEsperantowordbymatchingthelineonwhichtheEnglishwordappearedwiththelineonwhichtheEsperantowordappeared.Butjustas PiagetandSzeminska(1965,p.143)foundthatinfantswhoemployedanewstrategyanddidnotmeetwithimmediatesuccessrevertedtoearlier,more

Page90

primitivestrategies,sodidGregforsakehisnewstrategieswhentheywerenotimmediatelysuccessful.WhenGreg'sfirstattemptattranslationprovedunsuccessful,he putdownhispencilandsaid:''Idon'tknowhowtodothis."Thefollowingdialogueensued:
Teacher:Thewaythatyoutrieddidn'twork.Whatcanyoudonow? Greg:Idon'tknow. Teacher:Youstartedoutcounting.Canyouchangeitsomehowtomakeitwork? Greg:No. Teacher:Youfirstcountedthelines.Iwonderifitwouldworkouttocountthesentences? Greg:Oh,yeah.(liftinghisbodyclosertothetable)

Gregsuccessfullyusedthesentencecountingtechniqueandmodifieditasheworked.Tofindawordattheendoftheparagraph,hesaid:"Iknow,I'lldoit backwards.It'sthe2ndtothelastsentence." Onlongersentences,heidentifiedacriterionrelatingtothepositionoftheEnglishwordsrelativetothecommas. WhentheEsperantoequivalentwasaphrase,andthusnotawordtowordmatch,Gregrevertedtostating"Idon'tknow"aftertwoorthreeattemptstoisolatethe onewordforwhichhewaslooking.Thefollowingdialogueshowshisreadinesstoemployandunderstandfurtherstrategiesthatwereoriginallyhiddenbyhisinitially indifferentresponses.


Teacher:Nowwehaveawholesentence.ThisoneistougherWhatdoyouthinktheansweris? Greg:Idon'tknow. Teacher:HowmanywordsarethereintheEnglishsentence? Greg:(Counting)Eight.(HethenimmediatelybeginstocountthewordsintheEsperantosentence.)Six.Someofthemcanbetogetherlike"sitdown"(referringtoaprevious item.) Teacher:Ithinkyou'reontosomething.Keepgoing.

Page91

Gregcontinuedtomakeinferencesbasedoncriteriaotherthansentencepositionalone.Hesuggestedthat''standing,too"couldberewordedas"alsostanding." Therefore,theEsperantowordbeginningwith"st"couldmean"standing,"althoughitwasthelastwordintheEsperantosentence.Gregcontinuedtoapplyandinfer certainsyntacticalandgrammaticalrulesoncetheteacheracknowledgedthathewas"ontosomething."HisteacherreasonedthatGregperceiveshimselfaswasting time,andasallowinghimselftobehurt,whenheperseveresonassignmentsthatarereturnedtohimhighlycorrected.BecauseGreg'sconceptsabouthimself,like otherconceptualizations,areinfluencedbythefeedbackhereceivesfromothers,hislackofprogressinSpanishclassseemstohavemoretodowithhisgraphicskills (unconventionalspellingandcrypticsentences),coupledwithlowselfesteem,thananinabilitytosuccessfullyreasonoutthetranslationprocess. Inthisexample,Gregwasn'tinitiallywillingtotakeriskswhenconfrontedwithproblemsforwhichhehadnoimmediatesolution.However,whenhewasofferedways ofmodifyinghisownstrategies,heappearedmorewillingtotakerisksandrevealhisthoughtprocesses.Eveninachildcenteredschoolthatexplicitlyvalues intellectualautonomy,Greghasbeeninanumberofclassroomswithmany"right"answers,andhehasn'toftenknownmanyofthoseanswers.Greg'sSpanishteacher doubtsthathetakeshisownthinkingveryseriously.Indeed,whenperiodicallygivenfeedbackfocusedontheparticulartaskathand,Gregoftenchoosesnotto engagehimselfinthedialogue. ManyfactorsareinvolvedinGreg'sfunctioning,severalofwhichmaybefarbeyondthatwhichtheschoolcanaffect.However,whenGregwaspresentedwith nonjudgmentalfeedbackthatimplicitlyvaluedhisideasandcomments,heappearedwillingtotakerisksandengageinthetask.It'simportanttonoteherethat,inthe processofassessingGreg'sunderstandingoflanguageconstructs,theteacherwasalsoabletohelpGregtolearnaboutsomeofthosesameconstructs.Assessment andteachingmergedinservicetothelearner.

Page92

NonjudgmentalFeedback Let'sconsiderthedifficultiesinprovidingnonjudgmentalfeedbackbylookingatauniversitypreserviceteachereducationclass.Theclasswasdividedintogroups, givenaproblemtosolve,andthenaskedtowriteupandposttheirapproachesandconclusions.Eachgrouphadtothenrespondtoothergroups'workandprovide feedbackofanaturethatwouldinvitefurtherworkbythegroup.TheproblemwastakenfromtheVermontAssessmentProgram(VermontDepartmentofEducation 1991):


CarsandTrees Amaturetreecanutilize13lbs.ofcarbondioxideayear.Theaveragecarspewsout4000lbs.ofCO2peryear.HowmanymaturetreeswouldyouneedtoutilizethismuchCO2? Thereareapproximately183millioncarsintheUnitedStates.Usingthesedata,howmanytreeswouldbeneededtoutilizealltheCO2spewedoutbyallthecarsintheUnited Stateseachyear? Carbondioxideemissionsaredirectlyrelatedtocarefficiency.DoublingthefuelefficiencyroughlyhalvesCO2emissions.Theaveragecarontheroadaverages18milesper gallon.Atthisefficiencyratingacaremitsapproximately58tonsofCO2initslifetime. Makealinegraphthatshowswhathappensasthefuelefficiencyisdoubled.Then,usethegraphtodeterminetheamountofCO2emittedatefficiencyratingsof:30mpg35mpg 40mpg50mpgand60mpg.

Belowisajournalentryillustratingthechallengeinofferingnonjudgmentalfeedback.Thisentrywaswrittenbyapreserviceteacher,butitrepresentsthesame sentimentsofferedtousbyteachersatvariousexperiencelevels.
ThefirstthingthatInoticedwasthedifficultyinfindingdescriptionsthatwerenonevaluative.''Good"wasjustasforbiddenas"bad."Ilookedup"evaluate"inthedictionary. Thedefinitionwas:todetermineorfixthevalueoftodeterminethesignificanceorworthof.Todeterminethesignificanceorworthof!Howdoesateacherdeterminewhatis significantinanotherperson'slearning?Isanyone'sabilitytocommunicate"worth"lessthananyoneelse's?However,eventhoughIfeelthatIunderstandwhyevaluatinga person'swork

Page93 isnotreallyavalidmeansofassessingwhattheyhavelearned,toactuallywriteanonevaluativeassessmentwasverydifficult. Mygrouptried.Writingtheevaluationwithoutdenigratingtheworkwastough.Weweretornbetweennotwantingtohurtthefeelingsoftheothergroupmembersandwanting toshowthemhow''inferior"theirworkwasnexttoours(weknewourwrittenreportsweresomuchbetter).Muchtooursurprise,theothergroupfoundourreportstobepretty faulty.Wewerenotclearonmanypoints(Ithinkthe"collectiveunconscious"mighthavebeensomewhatresponsible).Theyhadjustashardatimeunderstandingour conclusions,aswehadwiththeirs.HowdidIfeel?Mortified.Insulted.Embarrassed.Mostofalldefensive.IwantedtoprovehowwrongtheywereandhowrightIwas,when actuallyitwasn'taquestionofwrongorrightitwasaquestionofclarity.Weallunderstoodwhattheassignmentwas.Wealldidthesamebasicthingandcametothesame basicconclusions.Nobodywasrightorwrong.Yetwewereallgettingverydefensiveinexplainingourwork,anddenigrativewhentalkingabout"their"work.Itmademerealize howdamagingitcouldbetosomeone'sselfesteemifyouratedthembasedonyourunderstandingandnottheirs(Griffin1992).

Asecondjournalentryillustratesthelinkbetweenwhatateacherasksstudentstoconsiderandhowtheteacherstructuresclassroominteractions.Thispreservice physicsteachercontinuedtoreflectontheproblemofexcessCO2emissionsaswellasthechallengeofnonjudgmentalteacher/studentinteractions:
IjustgothomeandrealizedIhadgame5oftheWorldSeriesonthecarradiowhiledrivingandIdon'tknowwhathappened.Why?BecauseIwasrealizingthatmyselectionofa quadraticfittodescribetherelationshipbetweenexhaustemissionsandfuelefficiencywasn'tworking.Me,themostavidbaseballfanofalltime,missinganinningoftheWorld SeriesbecauseIwaspreoccupied.WasI"engaged"orwhat? It'sfunnybecausemy"paper"fromtheactivitycamebackwithaquestionastowhyIchosetouseaquadratic.IdidbecauseIhaddeterminedthreepointsonagraphandwith threesetsofcoordinatestheonlynonlinearexpressionIcouldfitwasquadratic.Icouldn'tseewhy"they"couldn'tappreciatethishavingseenitandhavingusedalinearmodel themselves,whichprovidedatmorethanonepointnegativeemissions.Anyway,IrealizedasIleftclassthatwhatwasreallyneededwasadyingexponentialfunction(e.g.,ex)

Page94 similartotheexpressionusedforradioactivedecayorheatloss.So,ineffect,Ihadmodifiedmyresponsetwice,fromlineartoquadratictoexponential,butthe''criticism"was justifiedsinceIdidnotrationalizetheuseofaquadratic.Ionlyindicatedwhylinearwasnotacceptable. Anyway,themostdifficultaspectofassessingtheworkofsomeoneelseistofindnonjudgmentaldescriptors.Ifounditrelativelyeasytoposequestions,althougheventhenit wasnecessarytocomposethequestioninsuchawayasnottoimplyjudgments.Forexample,"whydon'tyou..."isnotagoodwaytophraseaquestionbecauseitimpliesthat theotherpersonshouldhavebeendoingsomethingelseandwasthereforewrong.Youhadmentionedaseriesofdescriptors,whichwererichinlanguage.Outsideofusing questions,Ireallycouldnotcomeupwithneutraldescriptors.Doyouhaveexamples? Whilewetriedtobenoncriticalinourremarks/questionsonthepapersweevaluated,westillreceiveda"strong"reactionfromthesubmitters.Ihavetotakeitthatwestill,onour comments/questions,impliedtoomuchjudgmentof"rightness"or"wrongness."Itwouldseemthisisaskillthatwilltakemoretimeandefforttodevelop.Actually,whenIreflect onit,itmakessensewhenyouconsidertheritualthatmostteachersgothroughaftereachtest.Theymoreorlessgetsurroundedbystudentsbringingtheirtestsup,lookingfor afewextrapoints,claimingtheywerewrongfullymarkedforvariousreasons(Ferrandino1991).

Thinkingaboutnonjudgmentalfeedbacktostudentsprovokesanumberofquestionsaboutmanytraditionalschoolpractices.Whydowegivetests?Whydowegive grades?Doesdoingsuchfacilitatelearning?Ordoesitcreateanexternalfactorthatdivertsstudents'mindsfromtheintellectualdemandsof"real"learningontothe emotionalconcernsofone'scomparativeratingintheclass? It'sdifficulttostructureassessmentaroundnonjudgmentalfeedbackbecauseweareallsoacculturatedtouseevaluativewordsandexpressions."No,""good,""right," and"wrong"arejustafewofthewordsusedoverandoverinschools.Uponhearingthesewords,studentseithercontinueoraltertheirthinking,notbecauseofsome internalrealizationbutbecauseofanexternalprompt.Overtime,thissortoffeedbackmakesstudentsteacherdependent. Ferrandino'sjournalentry(1991)askedforsomeexamplesofnonjudgmentalfeedback.Teachersseekingtooffernonjudgmental

Page95

feedbackmightthinkaboutrespondingtostudents'questionswithadditionalquestions,tostudents'assertionswithplausiblecontradictions,tostudents'requestsfor assistancewithrequestsforexplanationsoftheirthinkingtodate,andtostudents'argumentswithresponsessuchas''Icanseethatthisisimportanttoyou,"or"That's somethingIhaven'tstudiedverymuch,"or"You'veconvincedme,"or"Yourideamakessensetomewhatdoyourclassmatesthinkofit?"Suchreactionsplacethe responsibilityonstudentsforassessingtheefficacyoftheirownefforts,andmakepleasingtheteacherfarlessimportant.Considerthefollowingdiscussionabouta writingsamplebetweena10thgradeEnglishteacherandastudent:


Student:Iknowthatthepieceflows,butdoyouthinkthatitreadswell? Teacher:Whydoyouthinkitflows? Student:Well,Imeanthatitworksforme.IfeelgoodaboutwhatIwrote. Teacher:Why?Whataboutthestorytouchesyou? Student:Uh,itwasa,youknow,adifficulttimeinmylifeandIwasconfusedand,youknow,hurtalot.Ithinkthatthestorysaysthat,don'tyou? Teacher:Well,Ihearnowthatyouwereconfused,butwhenIreadthissectionIsensedthatyouwereassured.Youusedstrongwordstodescribeyouractions. Student:Well,IfeltthatIwasrightandnoonegavemethebenefitofthedoubt.MaybeI'lltakeoutthepartaboutbeingconfused.Ireallywasangry,notconfused.

Theteacher'sskillatrespondingtorequestsforevaluativefeedbackwithquestionsandpossiblecontradictionshelpedthestudenttoclarifyinherownmindthetrue emotionsshewantedtocaptureinherstory.Itisalsousefultonotethatthestudent,intheabsenceofevaluativefeedbackfromtheteacher,assessedthepieceof writingherself,andfoundittobetoherliking.

Page96

AuthenticityandContext Authenticassessment,likelearning,occursmostnaturallyandlastinglywhenitisinameaningfulcontextandwhenitrelatestoauthenticconcernsandproblemsfaced bystudents.Encouragingteacherstoteachinamannerthatfostersindividualconstructionofknowledgeandthenrequiringthemtoassessstudentsinatraditional, testorientedmannercommunicatesmixedmessagestoteachersandstudents.Inaddressingthisphenomenon,Mayer(1961)discusses


therushoftestsandexaminationsandweeklyquizzes,ofworkbooksandhomework,ofrecitationsandcatechismsbywhichchildreneverywherebutespeciallyinAmericaare madetoprovethattheyhavelearnedtheirlessons.Ifthechildcannotgivebackondemandwhathehasbeentaught,itisassumedthathehasnotlearnedit(p.87).

Becausetestingdrivesteaching,mostteacherswilleventuallyceasemuchoftheirteachingandpreparetheirstudentsfortherealityofhavingtopassamultiplechoice test.Bruner(1971)reinforcesthedangersofthissortofapproachtoeducation:
Amethodofinstructionshouldhavetheobjectiveofleadingthechildtodiscoverforhimself.Tellingchildrenandthentestingthemonwhattheyhavebeentoldinevitablyhas theeffectofproducingbenchboundlearnerswhosemotivationforlearningislikelytobeextrinsictothetaskpleasingtheteacher,gettingintocollege,artificiallymaintaining selfesteem.Thevirtuesofencouragingdiscoveryareoftwokinds.Inthefirstplace,thechildwillmakewhathelearnshisown,willfithisdiscoveryintotheinteriorworldof culturesthathecreatesforhimself.Equallyimportant,discoveryandthesenseofconfidenceitprovidesistheproperrewardforlearning(pp.123124).

Tests,then,particularlymultiplechoicetests,arestructuredtodeterminewhetherstudentsknowinformationrelatedtoaparticularbodyofknowledgeusuallya curriculumguideorsyllabus.Thefocusisoutward,notinward,onmaterial,notpersonalconstructions.Therefore,theoverarchingquestionaskedbythetestis''Do youknowthismaterial?"Authenticactivities(tasksandproblemsalreadyrelevantorofemergingrelevancetostudents)

Page97

alsorelatetoaparticularbodyofknowledge,butratherthanstructuringassessmentaroundspecificbitsofinformation,theyinvitestudentstoexhibitwhattheyhave internalizedandlearnedthroughapplication.Theoverarchingquestionposedbysuchactivitiesis''Whatdoyouknow?"Thesetwooverarchingquestionsarequite different. Thisbookillustratesassessmenttasksthatstudentsandteachershavefoundmeaningful.However,wedonotrefertothemasassessmenttasks,butratheras problems,broadconcepts,bigideas,learningtasks,andclassroomlessons.Thepointis:Differentiatingbetweenteachingandassessmentisbothunnecessaryand counterproductive.Assessmentthroughteaching,throughparticipatinginstudent/teacherinteractions,throughobservingstudent/studentinteractions,andthrough watchingstudentsworkwithideasandmaterialstellsusmoreaboutstudentlearningthantestsandexternallydevelopedassessmenttasks. Assessmentthroughteachingisnatural,butnotparticularlyeasy.Indeed,fromtheteacher'sperspective,constructingauthenticclassroomactivitiesandassessing studentlearningthroughthemrepresentsamoredifficultchallengethanadministeringamultiplechoicetest.Mostmultiplechoicetestsarereadilyaccessible,come withtemplates,andareeasytoadministerandscore.It'salmostalwayseasiertoteachandtestthecurriculumthantomediateandassesslearning.Meaningfultasks aremoredifficulttoconstructandrequirethemindfulengagementoftheassessor.Buttheadvantagesofmeaningful,contextboundassessmentaremanifest.First, learningcontinueswhileassessmentoccurs.Workingthroughcomplexproblemsrequiresstudentstoapplyaprioriunderstandingstonewsituationsandtoconstruct newlymodifiedunderstandings.Inthetraditionaltestteachtestmodel,theprocessoflearningallbutshutsdownwhileassessmentoccurs.Second,becauseauthentic assessmenttasksrequirestudentstoapplypriorknowledgetonewsituations,theteacherisabletodistinguishbetweenwhatstudentshavememorizedandwhatthey haveinternalized.Third,contextboundassessmentmakesmultiplepathstothesameendequallyvalid.Indiscussingwhattheycall"assessmentwhileteaching," Newman,Griffin,andCole(1989)note:

Page98 Manyinstructionalunitsdonotdecomposethemselvesintoaneatsequenceoflevelstobemasteredinaninvariantsequencewithasinglecorrectroutetomastery.Infact, appropriablechildbehaviorscomeingreatvariety,requiringflexibleexpertiseontheteacher'sparttoweavethemintoaproductiveinstructionalinteraction(pp.80).

Aweaver,anexplorer,ananalyst...wehavedescribedtheteacherinmanyways.Now,let'slookatthespecificbehaviorsthatcomprisethesediversefunctions. References Bruner,J.(1971).TheRelevanceofEducation.N.Y.:Norton. Elkind,D.(Spring1969).''PiagetianandPsychometricConceptionsofIntelligence."HarvardEducationalReview39,2:319337. Elkind,D.(1970).ChildrenandAdolescents:InterpretiveEssaysonJeanPiaget.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Elkind,D.(1976).ChildDevelopmentandEducation:APiagetianPerspective.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Ferrandino,F.(1991).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook. Griffin,M.(October24,1992).Unpublishedmanuscript.NewYork:SUNYatStonyBrook. Kant,E.(1965).TheCritiqueofPureReason,trans.byN.K.Smith.NewYork:St.Martin'sPress. Kuhn,D.,J.Langer,L.Kohlberg,andN.S.Haan.(1977)."TheDevelopmentofFormalOperationsinLogicalandMoralJudgment."GeneticPsychology Monographs95:97188. Mayer,M.(1961).TheSchools.NewYork:DoubledayandCompany. Newman,D.,P.Griffin,andM.Cole.(1989).TheConstructionZone:WorkingforCognitiveChangeinSchool.Mass.:CambridgeUniversityPress. Piaget,J.,andC.Szeminska.(1965).TheChild'sDevelopmentfromChildhoodtoAdolescence:AConstructivistPerspective.N.Y.:Holt,Rinehartand Winston. Sigel,I.E.(1978)."ConstructivismandTeacherEducation."TheElementarySchoolJournal78,5. Sigel,I.E.(May1986)."HumanDevelopmentandTeacherEducationorWhatTeachersAreNotTaughtAboutHumanDevelopment."Paperpresentedatthe InternationalConferenceonEducation,ChapelHill,N.C. VermontDepartmentofEducation.(September1991).VermontMathematicsPortfolioProjectTeacher'sGuide.Burlington,Vt.:DOE.

Page99

PARTIII CREATINGCONSTRUCTIVISTSETTINGS
BecomingaConstructivistTeacher PursuingMeaningfulVictories

Page101

9 BecomingaConstructivistTeacher
Mostteacherswithwhomwe'vemet,regardlessoftheapproachestheyhaveusedinthepast,viewconstructivismasthewaythey've''alwaysknownpeoplelearn." Mostoftheseteachersbelievethattheyhavebeenpreventedfromteachinginaccordwiththatknowledgebyacombinationofrigidcurriculums,unsupportive administrators,andinadequatepreserviceandinserviceeducationalexperiences.Onceofferedtheopportunitytostudyandconsidertheroleofconstructivismin educationalpractice,theytendtoviewtheinclusionofsuchteachingpracticesasnaturalandgrowthproducing.Onceteachersareexposedtothesepractices,they enthusiasticallyexperimentwithconstructivistpedagogyuntilitbecomespartoftheveryfabricoftheirclassrooms. Still,someteachersresistconstructivistpedagogy.Theyusuallydosoforoneofthreereasonscommitmenttotheirpresentinstructionalapproach,concernabout studentlearning,orconcernaboutclassroomcontrol.Someteachershavetoldusthat,althoughtheyarecompelledbythepowerandpromiseofconstructivist teaching,theyaretoodeeplyintotheirteachingcareerstoconsidertearingdownandrebuildingtheirinstructionalpractices.Othersseenoreasontochangebecause theircurrentapproachesseemtoworkwellfortheirstudentsthatis,theirstudentstakecomprehensivenotesandpassimportanttestsperformwellonworksheets completeassignmentsneatlyandontimewritewellstructuredandwellresearchedindividualor

Page102

groupreportsandreceivegoodgradesfortheirwork.Stillotherteachers,whilefocusedtovaryingdegreesonhowwelltheyperceivetheirapproacheshaveworked forstudents,aremoreconcernedabouthowwelltheirapproacheshaveworkedforthem.Theseteacherstendtobemoreconcernedwithbehaviormanagement issuesthanwithstudentlearning,andtheyarefearfulthattheconstructivistapproachtoteachingwillerodesomeoftheircontrol.Whenateacherarrangesclassroom dynamicssothatsheisthesoledeterminerofwhatis''right"intheclassroom,moststudentslearntoconformtoexpectationswithoutcritique,torefrainfrom questioningteacherdirectives,toseekpermissionfromtheteachertomoveabouttheroom,andtolooktotheteacherforjudgmentalandevaluativefeedback.The restdisengage.Empoweringstudentstoconstructtheirownunderstandings,therefore,isperceivedbytheseteachersasathreateningbreakfromtheunwrittenbut widelyunderstoodhierarchicalcovenantthatbindsteachersandstudents. Becomingateacherwhohelpsstudentstosearchratherthanfollowischallengingand,inmanyways,frightening.Teacherswhoresistconstructivistpedagogydoso forunderstandablereasons:mostwerenotthemselveseducatedinthesesettingsnortrainedtoteachintheseways.Theshift,therefore,seemsenormous.And,if currentinstructionalpracticesareperceivedtobeworking,thereislittleincentivetoexperimentwithnewmethodologiesevenifthepedagogyundergirdingthenew methodologiesisappealing. Butbecomingaconstructivistteacherisnotasoverwhelmingasmanyteachersthink.Wehavefoundthatthefollowingsetofdescriptorsofconstructivistteaching behaviorsprovidesauseableframeworkwithinwhichteacherscanexperimentwiththisnewapproach.Thissetofdescriptorspresentsteachersasmediatorsof studentsandenvironments,notsimplyasgiversofinformationandmanagersofbehavior.Itisbasedonourowninteractionswithstudentsandobservationsinthe classroomsofmanyotherteachers.Thedevelopmentofthesedescriptorshasalsobeeninformedbytheworkofseveralresearchersandtheoreticians,includingSigel, Elkind,Kuhn,andArlin(seebibliography).

Page103

1.Constructivistteachersencourageandacceptstudentautonomyandinitiative. Whilethephilosophiesandmissionstatementsofmanyschoolspurporttowantstudentstobethinking,exploringindividualswhogeneratehypothesesandtestthem out,theorganizationalandmanagementstructuresofmostschoolsmilitateagainstthesegoals.So,ifautonomy,initiative,andleadershiparetobenurtured,itmustbe doneinindividualclassrooms. Autonomyandinitiativepromptstudents'pursuitofconnectionsamongideasandconcepts.Studentswhoframequestionsandissuesandthengoaboutansweringand analyzingthemtakeresponsibilityfortheirownlearningandbecomeproblemsolversand,perhapsmoreimportant,problemfinders.Thesestudentsinpursuitof newunderstandingsareledbytheirownideasandinformedbytheideasofothers.Thesestudentsaskfor,ifnotdemand,thefreedomtoplaywithideas,explore issues,andencounternewinformation. Thewayateacherframesanassignmentusuallydeterminesthedegreetowhichstudentsmaybeautonomousanddisplayinitiative.Forexample,studentsina12th gradeEnglishclassreadOedipusRex.TheteacheraskedthestudentstowriteanessaydescribingthebookasOliverStone,thecontroversialfilmdirector,might thinkaboutit,andthentocomparethatinterpretationtotheirunderstandingsofSophocles'views.Totwigtheirinterest,theteacheraskedonegroupofstudentsif theycouldfindproofinthetextthatOedipushadactuallysleptwithhismother.Afterporingoverthetext,thisgroupconcludedthat,accordingtothechronologyof events,Oedipuscouldnotpossiblyhavedoneso.ThestudentsthenwroteessaysdefendingtheirpositionsandretoldthestoryastheyimaginedOliverStonemight have. Conscientiousstudentswhoareacculturatedtoreceivinginformationpassivelyandawaitingdirectionsbeforeactingwillstudyandmemorizewhattheirteacherstell themisimportant.Robbingstudentsoftheopportunitytodiscernforthemselvesimportancefromtriviacanevoketheconditionsofawellmanagedclassroomatthe expenseofatransformationseekingclassroom.

Page104

2.Constructivistteachersuserawdataandprimarysources,alongwithmanipulative,interactive,andphysicalmaterials. Concepts,theorems,algorithms,laws,andguidelinesareabstractionsthatthehumanmindgeneratesthroughinteractionwithideas.Theseabstractionsemergefrom theworldofphenomenasuchasfallingstars,nationsatwar,decomposingorganicmatter,gymnastswhocanhurltheirbodiesthroughspace,andalltheotherdiverse happeningsthatdescribeourworld.Theconstructivistapproachtoteachingpresentstheserealworldpossibilitiestostudents,thenhelpsthestudentsgeneratethe abstractionsthatbindthesephenomenatogether.Whenteacherspresenttostudentstheunusualandthecommonplaceandaskstudentstodescribethedifference, theyencouragestudentstoanalyze,synthesize,andevaluate.Learningbecomestheresultofresearchrelatedtorealproblemsandisthisnotwhatschoolsstriveto engenderintheirstudents? Forexample,studentscanreadhistoricalaccountsoftheeffectsofthesocialpoliciesoftheearly1980sontheeconomicandeducationalprofileoftheAfrican AmericanpopulationintheUnitedStates.Or,studentscanbetaughttoreadthecensusreportsandallowedtogeneratetheirowninferencesaboutsocialpolicies. Theformerreliesontheauthorityofastranger.Thelatterreliesontheingenuityoftheindividualstudent.Listsoffiguresandpagesofchartsareprobablynotthefirst imagesevokedwhentheterms''handson"or"manipulative"areheard.Butthecensusdatacantellaloudstoryiftherightpagesandlistsarehighlightedinthecontext ofagoodquestion. 3.Whenframingtasks,constructivistteachersusecognitiveterminologysuchas"classify,""analyze,""predict,"and"create." Thewordswehearanduseinoureverydaylivesaffectourwayofthinkingand,ultimately,ouractions.Theteacherwhoasksstudentstoselectastory'smainidea fromalistoffourpossibilitiesonamultiplechoicetestispresentingtothestudentsaverydifferenttaskthantheteacherwhoasksstudentstoanalyzetherelationships amongthreeofthestory'scharactersorpredicthowthestorymighthaveproceededhadcertaineventsinthestorynotoccurred.Analyzing,interpreting,predicting, andsynthesizingare

Page105

mentalactivitiesthatrequirestudentstomakeconnections,delvedeeplyintotextsandcontexts,andcreatenewunderstandings. Ina3rdgradeclassroom,ateacherreadastorytoherstudentsaboutthreechildrenwhobecamelostinaforest.Afterstrugglingmightily,yetunsuccessfully,tofind theirway,oneofthethreechildren,abraveanddaringyoungster,volunteerstogooffaloneinsearchofhelpwhiletheothertwowaitinaclearing.Atthispoint,the teacherstoppedandaskedthestudentstopredicthowthestoryislikelytoendandtorevealthereasonsbehindtheirpredictions:ifastudentpredictsthathelpwillbe foundandtheothertwochildrenrescued,sheisaskedtoindicatewhy.Theoverwhelmingmajorityofstudentspredictedjustthatthatallthreewouldberescued andtheyexplainedtheirpredictionsbypointingtothecompetenceofthechildwhowentoffinsearchofhelp.Thestudentsuseinformationandimpressionsgarnered fromthetexttopredicthowthestorywaslikelytoend.Framingtasksaroundcognitiveactivitiessuchasanalysis,interpretation,andpredictionandexplicitlyusing thosetermswithstudentsfosterstheconstructionofnewunderstandings. 4.Constructivistteachersallowstudentresponsestodrivelessons,shiftinstructionalstrategies,andaltercontent. Thisdescriptordoesnotmeanthatstudents'initialinterest,orlackofinterest,inatopicdetermineswhetherthetopicgetstaught,nordoesitmeanthatwholesections ofthecurriculumaretobejettisonedifstudentswishtodiscussotherissues.However,students'knowledge,experiences,andinterestsoccasionallydocoalesce aroundanurgenttheme.SuchwasthecaseduringthePersianGulfWar.Studentsatallgradelevelswerecompelledbytheimagestheysaw,thereportstheyheard, andthefearstheyexperienced.ThesocialstudiesteacherattemptingtocontinuediscussionsontheRenaissance,thescienceteachermovingaheadwiththeKrebs Cycle,andtheartteacherinthemiddleofaunitonsymmetryallexperiencedasimilarphenomenonthestudentswerepreoccupiedwiththewar.Whenmagnetic eventsoccurthatexertanirresistiblepullonstudents'minds,continuingwithpreplannedlessonsisoftenfruitless. Thisdescriptordoesaddressthenotionof''teachablemoments"throughouttheschoolyear.Aseducators,wehaveeach

Page106

experiencedmomentsofexcitementintheclassroom,momentswhenthestudents'enthusiasm,interest,priorknowledge,andmotivationhaveintersectedinwaysthat madeaparticularlessontranscendentalandenabledustothinkwithprideaboutthatlessonforweeks.Werecallthegleaminourstudents'eyes,theirexcitement aboutthetasksanddiscussions,andtheirextraordinaryabilitytoattendtothetaskforlongperiodsoftimeandwithgreatcommitment.Ifwewerefortunate,we encounteredahandfuloftheseexperienceseachyear,andwonderedwhytheydidnotoccurmorefrequently. It'sunfortunatethatmuchofwhatweseektoteachourstudentsisoflittleinteresttothematthatparticularpointintheirlives.Curriculumsandsyllabidevelopedby publishersorstatelevelspecialistsarebasedonadultnotionsofwhatstudentsofdifferentagesneedtoknow.Evenwhenthetopicsareofinteresttostudents,the recommendedmethodologiesforteachingthetopicssometimesarenot.Littlewonder,then,whymoreofthosemagnificentmomentsdon'toccur. Althoughsometeachersmaynothavemuchlatituderegardingcontent,allgenerallyhaveagooddealofautonomyindeterminingthewaysinwhichthecontentis taught.Forexample,acertainelementarysciencecurriculumcalledforstudentstobeginlearningaboutthe''scientificmethod"andtoconductsomerudimentary experimentsusingthismethod:askaquestion(developanhypothesis),figureoutawaytoanswerthequestion(setupanexperiment),tellwhathappens(recordyour observations),andanswerthequestion(supportorrefutetheinitialhypothesis).One5thgradeteacheraskedherstudents,inpreparationforthisassignment,totalk abouttheirfavoritethingsathome.Onestudent,Jane,spokeabouthercat.Aclassmate,Eric,discussedhishouseplants.Capitalizingontheirresponses,theteacher askedJaneandErictothinkofquestionseachhadaboutthecatandtheplants.Janewantedtoknowifhercatwouldlikeothercatfoodsasmuchashelikedthe brandhenormallyate.Ericwantedtoknowhowplantsgrow. Throughtheteacher'smediation,Janeorganizedanexperimenttoanswerherquestionaboutcatfood.Shearrangedfourdifferentbrandsofcatfoodinfourdifferent bowlsandplacedthemonthefloor.Whenthecatenteredtheroom,sheobservedwhich

Page107

bowlhewenttoinitiallyandfromwhichbowlheate.Janechangedthepositionsofthebowlsandtriedtheexperimentagain.Ultimately,sheconcludedthathercat preferredonebrandovertheothers. Withhisteacher'smediation,Ericfocusedhisquestion:Doesthehumanvoiceaffectthegrowthofaplant?Ericplantedfourbeanseedsinfourdifferentpotsand placedthemallonthesameshelfnearawindow.Eachdayhetookeachpot,oneatatime,intoanotherroom.Hespokedailytooneofthebeanplants.Hesang dailytoasecondplant.Heyelleddailyatathirdplant.Andhecompletelyignoredthefourth.Herecordedhisobservationsoverfourweeksandconcludedthatthe plantstowhichhespokeandsanggrewthemost. Thestudents'thinkingdrovetheseexperiments,andtheteacher'smediationframedtheprocessesthatfollowed.Thecurriculumcontentexplorationofthescientific methodwasaddressedfaithfullyinadifferentmannerforeachstudent. 5.Constructivistteachersinquireaboutstudents'understandingsofconceptsbeforesharingtheirownunderstandingsofthoseconcepts. Whenteacherssharetheirideasandtheoriesbeforestudentshaveanopportunitytodeveloptheirown,students'questioningoftheirowntheoriesisessentially eliminated.Studentsassumethatteachersknowmorethantheydo.Consequently,moststudentsstopthinkingaboutaconceptortheoryoncetheyhear''thecorrect answer"fromtheteacher. It'shardformanyteacherstowithholdtheirtheoriesandideas.First,teachersdooftenhavea"correctanswer"thattheywanttosharewithstudents.Second, studentsthemselvesareoftenimpatient.Somestudentsdon'twantto"wastetheirtime"developingtheoriesandexploringideasiftheteacheralreadyknowsthatthey are"onthewrongtrack."Soteacherssometimesfeelgreatpressurefromstudentstoofferthe"right"answer.Third,someteachersadheretotheoldsawabout knowledgebeingpower.Teachersstrugglingforcontroloftheirclassesmayusetheirknowledgeasabehaviormanagementdevice:whentheysharetheirideas,the studentsarelikelytobequietandmoreattentive.Andfourth,timeisaseriousconsiderationinmanyclassrooms.Thecurriculum

Page108

mustbecovered,andteachers'theoriesandideastypicallybringclosuretodiscussionsandmovetheclassontothenexttopic. Constructivistteachers,thecaveatspresentedintheprecedingparagraphnotwithstanding,withholdtheirnotionsandencouragestudentstodeveloptheirown thoughts.Approximated(orinvented)spellingisagoodexampleofthisapproach.Asveryyoungstudentsarelearninghowtoputwordsintowriting,theybeginto approximatetheconventionalspellingsofwords.Akindergartenstudenttitledasignlanguagebookshehadillustratedbywritingonthecover''Mysinlngebk."The teacherchosenottocorrectherspellingbut,instead,topermithertocontinueapproximatingthespellingofwords.Interestingly,whenreadingthebookathometo herparentsonlyonedayafterwritingthistitle,thegirlsaid,"Oh,Ileftthetwoo'soutofbook."Noonetoldthegirlthatherspellingwasincorrect.Shereformulated herownworkintheprocessofsharingit.Herreformulationwasaselfregulatedevent.Theteacher'splantoshareherunderstandingoftheconventionalspelling,in thiscase,becameunnecessary. 6.Constructivistteachersencouragestudentstoengageindialogue,bothwiththeteacherandwithoneanother. Oneverypowerfulwaystudentscometochangeorreinforceconceptionsisthroughsocialdiscourse.Havinganopportunitytopresentone'sownideas,aswellas beingpermittedtohearandreflectontheideasofothers,isanempoweringexperience.Thebenefitofdiscoursewithothers,particularlywithpeers,facilitatesthe meaningmakingprocess. Overtheyears,moststudentscometoexpecttheirteacherstodifferentiatebetween"good"and"bad"ideas,toindicatewhenresponsesare"right"and"wrong,"and totransmitthesemessagesinafairlystraightforwardfashion.Dialogueisnotatileinthemosaicofschoolexperiencedbymoststudents. Consequently,moststudentslearntoofferbriefresponsestoquestions,andtospeakonlywhentheyarereasonablycertainthattheyaresupportingeithera"good" ideaorthe"right"answer.Theseclassroomsoundbytesmayassistteachersinmovingspeedilythroughthecurriculum,buttheydon'thelpstudentsconstructnew understandingsorreflectonoldones.

Page109

Agroupof8thgradeteachersdecidedtheywantedtoofferawiderliteratureselectiontotheirstudentsandtoengagethestudentsinmorethoroughanalysesof importantideas.TheyorganizedaseriesofBooktalks.InaBooktalk,agroupofabouteightstudentsandanadultreadanddiscussthesamebook.Thestudents selectthebooktheywishtoreadfromamasterlistcompiledbytheteachers,andtheschool'sscheduleisalteredsothatthegroupscanmeettwicefor45minutes duringathreeweekperiod.Duringthefirstmeeting,theadultdistributesthebookstothestudents,setsthecontextforthebookbyaskingquestionsaboutstudents' priorexperiencesthatrelatetothestoryline,andbeginstoreadthebookaloudtothestudents.Thesecondmeetingisdevotedtoadiscussionaboutthebook. InoneBooktalk,studentshadreadSteinbeck'sOfMiceandMen.Theissuesraisedbystudentsduringthepostreadingdiscussion,issuesgeneratedbyquestions andcontradictionsposedbytheteacher,includedtreatmentofpeoplewithdisabilities,sexism,thedistributionofwealthandpowerinournation,friendship,and death.Theteacherorchestratedthediscussionsothatquietstudentsalsohadachancetospeak,buttheideasthatdrovethediscussionbelongedtothestudentsand werefueledbystudenttostudentdialogue. Studenttostudentdialogueisthefoundationuponwhichcooperativelearning(Slavin1990)isstructured.Reportsstatethatcooperativelearningexperienceshave promotedinterpersonalattractionamonginitiallyprejudicedpeers(Cooperetal.1980),andsuchexperienceshavepromotedinterethnicinteractioninboth instructionalandfreetimeactivities(Johnsonetal.1981). Thebenefitsofpeertopeerdialogueamongteachersreinforcesitspotentialforstudents.Preserviceteachersinonesciencemethodscoursewereaskedtodesign,in cooperativelearninggroups,asystemforafamilytogenerateelectricityforitshome,usingwindmills.Thestipulationthatnobatteriescouldbeusedwasincludedin theinstructions.Duringawholeclassdiscussionofeachgroup'sworkinprogress,theissueofenergystorageledquicklytoadiscussionofbatteries.Moststudents defined''battery"intermsofwhatonetypicallypurchasesinastore:anelectrolyticcellsuchasthetypeusedintoysandflashlights,orlargercellssuchasthoseused topowerautomobiles.Threestu

Page110

dents,however,demurred,anddefinedabatteryasanydevicethatcanstoreenergy,suchasanexpandedballoonoratankofhotwater.Thedialoguesthatensued resultedin,forsomestudents,thetransformationofperspectivesand,forothers,theonsetofreflectiononanewtopic. Twoweekslater,whilethissameclassgrappledwithanother,seeminglysimpleproblemhowtoredrawsilhouettesinhalftheoriginalsizeonestudent,aftermuch considerationofthequestion,declared:''Nowwe'retryingtofigureoutwhat`hal'reallymeans.Istillwanttoknow:Whatisabattery!"Ineachofthesesessions,the studentsaddressedtheirquestionsandstatementstooneanother.Theteacherclarifiedthequestionstheyraisedofoneanotheranddemandedaccuracyofword choice,butthecommunicationcurrentswerebetweenandamongthestudentsandledtodeeperunderstandingsofthetopicsathand. 7.Constructivistteachersencouragestudentinquirybyaskingthoughtful,openendedquestionsandencouragingstudentstoaskquestionsofeach other. Ifwewantstudentstovalueinquiry,we,aseducators,mustalsovalueit.Ifteachersposequestionswiththeorientationthatthereisonlyonecorrectresponse,how canstudentsbeexpectedtodevelopeithertheinterestinortheanalyticskillsnecessaryformorediversemodesofinquiry?Schoolstoooftenpresentstudentswith oneperspective:ColumbuswasacourageousexplorerwhodiscoveredAmerica(WhatdoesthatimplyabouttheNativeAmericansherewhenhecameashore?) andPi=3.14(ButC/dcircumference/diameteryieldsanothernumberandifPiiscomputedasthequotientoftwointegers,howcanitbeconsideredirrational?). Complex,thoughtfulquestionschallengestudentstolookbeyondtheapparent,todelveintoissuesdeeplyandbroadly,andtoformtheirownunderstandingsofevents andphenomena.Knowing,forexample,thatColumbus'shipscarriedwiththemdiseasesforwhichNativeAmericanshadnoantibodiesandthatColumbusandhis menenslavedNativeAmericansforthereturnvoyagehomeenablesstudentstoviewthehistoricaldevelopmentofournationintermsofColumbus'calculatedand uncalculatedrisks,andtheNativeAmericans'subsequentoppression.Similarly,

Page111

knowingthattherearedifferentwaystocomputewithandconceptualizePi,andthatthesearchforPi'sprecisevaluehasinfluencedmodernresearchrelatingtothe scienceofchaos,enablesstudentstoformimportantquestionsthatmayleadtodeeperunderstandingofgeometryandmathematicalfunctions.Fosteringappreciation foramultiplicityoftruthsandoptionsisthe''real"missionofeducationbecause"real"problemsarerarelyunidimensional. Inone3rdgradeclassroom,ateacherformed"consultantgroups."Eachstudentbecameaconsultantonaselfselectedtopicandwasresponsibleforkeepingtherest oftheclassinformedaboutthattopic.Eachconsultantbelongedtoasmallgroupofstudentswhowerechargedwithquestioningeachotherinordertolearnaboutthe chosentopics. Onestudentbecamequiteknowledgeableaboutvolcanoessomuchso,infact,thathegave"lectures"onthetopictootherclasses.Oneday,thestudentwas describingtohisgrouphowvolcanoesdevelopincertainregions.Ashisgroupmembersconsideredthisnewinformation,onestudentaskedhimaboutwhethera volcanocouldbedevelopingunderneaththeschool.Ifitwerepossible,hewantedtoknowhowtheywouldknowifoneweredeveloping.Thestudentconsultant carefullyponderedthisquestionandsaid,"Idon'tthinkthatvolcanoescoulddevelophere,butI'mnotsure.But,Ithinkwewouldknowifavolcanoweredeveloping here." "How?"oneoftheotherstudentsasked. "Well,"thestudentconsultantresponded,"ifavolcanowereundertheschool,thegrasswouldbeturningbrownfromtheheat.Aslongasthegrassisgreen,Ithink we'resafe." Discoursewithone'speergroupisacriticalfactorinlearninganddevelopment.Schoolsneedtocreatesettingsthatfostersuchinteraction. 8.Constructivistteachersseekelaborationofstudents'initialresponses. Initialresponsesarejustthatinitialresponses.Students'firstthoughtsaboutissuesarenotnecessarilytheirfinalthoughtsnortheirbestthoughts.Through elaboration,studentsoftenreconceptualizeandassesstheirownerrors.Forexample,onemiddle

Page112

schoolmathematicsteacherassignedhisclassproblemsinatextbook.Astudent,lookingquiteconfused,askedtheteacherifherapproachtosolvingoneofthe problemswasappropriate.Theteacheraskedthestudenttoexplainwhatshehaddone.Asshewasexplainingherapproachinastepbystepmanner,she recognizedherownproceduralerror.Shesmiledandsaid,''Iforgottomultiplybothsidesoftheequationby"x ."Theteacherbasedhisresponsestothestudenton thepremisethathecouldlearnmoreaboutwhatteachingstepstotakeinsubsequentlessonswiththestudentthanhecouldlearnfromsimplyfixingthemistakefor her. Occasionally,perhapsoften,theadultfilterthroughwhichteachershearstudentresponsesfailstocapturethestudents'meanings.Studentelaborationenablesadultsto understandmoreclearlyhowstudentsdoanddonotthinkaboutaconcept.Forexample,acolleagueofourswashavingadiscussionwithhisfiveyearolddaughter abouttherelativemeritsoflivinginthesuburbsversusNewYorkCity.TheirfamilyhadvisitedNewYorkseveraltimes,andtheyounggirlwascuriousaboutwho livedthere.Afterafewminutes,shementionedthat42ndStreetwasinNewYork.Herfatheragreed,andaskedherifshecouldnameotherstreetsinNewYork. Shementioned52ndStreetand62ndStreet.Herfatheraskedherwhatstreetwasabove62ndStreet. "72ndStreet,"shereplied.Then82ndStreet,92ndStreet,and102ndStreet.Herfatherwasnowconvincedthathisdaughterwasabletocountbytens,andheasked herwhatwasbelow42ndStreet. "Thesubway,"shereplied. Studentsandteachersoftendiscoverhowdisparatetheirperspectivessometimesare.It'sonlythroughthatdiscoverythatindividualscanengageintheprocessof tryingtoreconcilethetwo. 9.Constructivistteachersengagestudentsinexperiencesthatmightengendercontradictionstotheirinitialhypothesesandthenencouragediscussion. Cognitivegrowthoccurswhenanindividualrevisitsandreformulatesacurrentperspective.Therefore,constructivistteachersengagestudentsinexperiencesthatmight engendercontradictionstostudents'currenthypotheses.Theythenencouragediscussionsofhypothesesandperspectives.Contradictionsareconstructedbylearners. Teacherscannotknowwhatwillbeperceivedasacontradictionbystudentsthisisaninternalprocess.

Page113

Butteacherscanandmustchallengestudents'presentconceptions,knowingthatthechallengeonlyexistsifthestudentsperceiveacontradiction.Teachersmust, therefore,useinformationaboutthestudents'presentconceptions,orpointsofview,tohelpthemunderstandwhichnotionsstudentsmayacceptorrejectas contradictory. Studentsofallagesdevelopandrefineideasaboutphenomenaandthentenaciouslyholdontotheseideasaseternaltruths.Eveninthefaceof''authoritative" interventionand"hard"datathatchallengetheirviews,studentstypicallyadherestaunchlytotheiroriginalnotions.Throughexperiencesthatmightengender contradictions,theframeworksforthesenotionsweaken,causingstudentstorethinktheirperspectivesandformnewunderstandings.Considerthefollowingexample: Duringan11thgradediscussionaboutthecausesofWorldWarI,onestudentcontendedwithgreatconvictionthattheassassinationoftheArchdukeFerdinandof Austriacausedthewar.Theteacherthenasked,"IftheArchdukehadnotbeenassassinated,canyoutelluswhatwouldhavehappenedwiththeeconomyandpolitics oftheregion?" Afteramoment'sthought,thestudentsaid,"Iguesstheywouldn'thavechangedthatmuch." Theteacherthenasked,"Wouldanythingelsehavechanged?HowaboutGermany'squesttoruleEurope?" Thestudentreplied,"Ican'tthinkofanythingthatwouldhavechanged,exceptthatmaybetheArchdukewouldstillbealive." "Then,"continuedtheteacher,"whatwasitthatmadethiseventthecauseofthewar?" Thestudent,nowquiteenmeshedinthought,said,"Iguessthatmaybeit[thewar]couldhavehappenedanyway.But,thekillingofAustria'sArchdukegavethe GermansanexcusetobegintheirplantoconquerallofEurope.WhenRussiaandFrancejumpedintohelpSerbia,theGermansdeclaredwaronthem,too.But,I thinkIseewhatyoumean.Itwasprobablygoingtohappenanyway.Itjusthappenedsooner." Notethatthiselaborateexplanationdidn'tcomefromtheteacher.Itcamefromthestudent.Notealsothatthestudentsaid,"IthinkIseewhatyoumean,"asifthe meaningcamefromtheteacher.Butitdidnot.Themeaningwasconstructedbythestudent

Page114

whowasreadyandabletounderstandadifferentpointofview.Whenthestudentrevealedhisoriginalperspective,theteacherwaspresentedwiththeopportunityto intervenebutthecontradictionwasconstructedbythestudent. Inthisexample,theteacherchallengedthestudent'sthinkingwithquestions.Thequestionsprovidedamechanismforthestudenttorevealverysophisticated understandingsoftheeventsandpoliticalsubcurrents.Theteacherneverdirectlytoldthestudenttolookattheassassinationasacatalystratherthanacause.She simplywantedtopresentawayforthestudenttoconsiderthisperspectiveasanoption.Thestudentquicklyembracedthisview.Someotherstudentsintheclass didn'tdistinguishbetweenacatalyticeventandacausalevent.Theydidn'tconstructthesame''contradiction"thatthisstudentconstructed.Theteacherthendirected theclassdiscussiontootherstudentswithsubsequentquestionssuchas:"Whoalsothinksthatwarwouldhavejusthappenedsooner?""Why?""Whodisagrees?" "Forwhatreason?"Withoutacknowledgingoneanswerasbetterthananother,everyonecanparticipateandlistentoothers. 10.Constructivistteachersallowwaittimeafterposingquestions. Severalyearsago,aspartofitsprofessionaldevelopmentefforts,aschooldistricthiredagraduatestudenttotapescriptlessonsinindividualclassrooms.Theproject wasorganizedtoprovidefeedbacktoteachersabouttheirinstructionalpractices:severaloneminutesnippetsweretaperecordedduringalesson,andthen transcribedintowritingfortheteachers'reflection.Oneteacher,generallyacknowledgedtobehighlyskilled,wasappalledtodiscoverthatsheaskedandanswered questionsinvirtuallythesamebreath.Studentshadnotimetothinkaboutthequestionssheaskedandquicklylearnedsimplytowaitforhertoanswerherown questions. Similarly,anotherteacherfoundoutthatshehadinadvertentlyorchestratedcompetitioninherclassroom.Thefirsttwoorthreestudentstoraisetheirhandswere,by andlarge,theonlyonesevercalledon.Ifstudentsdidn'tgettheirhandsintheairimmediately,theywereeffectivelylockedoutofthe"discussion."

Page115

Thesetwoexamplesillustratetheimportanceofwaittime.Ineveryclassroom,therearestudentswho,foravarietyofreasons,arenotpreparedtorespondto questionsorotherstimuliimmediately.Theyprocesstheworldindifferentways.Classroomenvironmentsthatrequireimmediateresponsespreventthesestudents fromthinkingthroughissuesandconceptsthoroughly,forcingthem,ineffect,tobecomespectatorsastheirquickerpeersreact.Theylearnovertimethatthere'sno pointinmentallyengaginginteacherposedquestionsbecausethequestionswillhavebeenansweredbeforetheyhavehadtheopportunitytodevelophypotheses. Anotherreasonstudentsneedwaittimeisthat,aswehavediscussed,thequestionsposedbyteachersarenotalwaysthequestionsheardbythestudents.TheGatling gunapproachtoaskingandansweringquestionsdoesnotprovideanopportunityfortheteachertosensethemannerinwhichmostofthestudentshaveunderstood thequestions.Besidesincreasingwaittimeafterquestioninginlargegroupformats,wehavehadsuccesswithposingquestionsandthenencouragingsmallgroupsof studentstoconsiderthembeforethewholegroupisinvitedbacktogethertoreportonthedeliberations.Thisformatallowstheteachertocallonstudentstodeliver thegroup'sinitialresponseswithoutputtinganyoneonthespot.Inaddition,anystudentinthegroupcansubmita''minorityreport."Thus,teacherstakesensitive leadershipovertheorchestrationofclassroomdialogueandprovideopportunitiesforallstudentstoparticipateindifferentwayswhileencouragingstudents'intellectual autonomywithregardtoconceptformation. 11.Constructivistteachersprovidetimeforstudentstoconstructrelationshipsandcreatemetaphors. Inone2ndgradeclassroom,studentsweregivenmagnetstoexplore.Inashorttime,almostallofthestudentshaddiscoveredthatoneendofamagnetattractedthe othermagnetwhiletheoppositeendrepelledit.Soon,mostofthestudentsdiscoveredthatifoneofthemagnetswereturnedaround,themagnetsthathadattracted eachothernowrepelledeachother.Thisactivitytooknearly45minutes,duringwhichsomestudentswentbeyondtheseinitialrelationshipsandjoinedforceswith theirpeerstocreate

Page116

magnetic''trains,"andtocreatepatternswithironfilings.Agreatnumberofrelationships,patterns,andtheoriesweregeneratedduringthisactivity,andnoneofthem camefromtheteacher.Theteacherstructuredandmediatedtheactivityandprovidedthenecessarytimeandmaterialforlearningtooccur,butthestudents constructedtherelationshipsthemselves. Encouragingtheuseofmetaphorisanotherimportantwaytofacilitatelearning.Peopleofallagesusemetaphorstobolstertheirunderstandingsofconcepts.One kindergartenstudent,afterafieldtriptopickstrawberriesatalocalfarm,ranhometohisparentssaying"Youshouldhavebeenthere.Itwasaredheaven." Ataninserviceseminarofferedtoexperiencedteachersandadministratorsonthetopicofeducationalchange,participantswereaskedtothinkofmetaphorsforthe processofchangeintheirworksettings.Oneparticipantlikenedchangetothemakingofwine:Theseedsmustbeplantedinfertilegroundthegrapesmustbe harvestedattherightmomentandthewinethenmustbeagedinvatsorbottles.Anotherparticipantthoughtofeducationalchangeasasymphonyorchestra:There mustbeaconductorwhodecideswhatpiecesshallbeplayedandwhohelpsallthemusicianstoplaytogether.Athirdparticipantsawchangeasakintopreparinga meal:Thereisachefwhoselectsthemenu,choosescomplementarycondiments,appliesthemaccordingtoarecipe(orwhim),andletsthefoodcookuntilitisready forconsumption.Metaphorshelppeopletounderstandcomplexissuesinaholisticwayandtotinkermentallywiththepartsofthewholetodeterminewhetherthe metaphorworks.Andallofthistakestime. 12.Constructivistteachersnurturestudents'naturalcuriositythroughfrequentuseofthelearningcyclemodel. Thelearningcyclemodelhasalonghistoryinscienceeducation.ThemostpopulardescriptionofthismodelwaspublishedbyAtkinandKarplus(1962).Highlighting theimportantroleofselfregulationinthelearningprocess,themodeldescribescurriculumdevelopmentandinstructionasathreestepcycle. First,theteacherprovidesanopenendedopportunityforstudentstointeractwithpurposefullyselectedmaterials.Theprimarygoalofthisinitiallessonisforstudents togeneratequestionsandhypothesesfromworkingwiththematerials.This

Page117

stephashistoricallybeencalled''discovery."Next,theteacherprovidesthe"conceptintroduction"lessonsaimedatfocusingthestudents'questions,providingrelated newvocabulary,framingwithstudentstheirproposedlaboratoryexperiences,andsoforth.Thethirdstep,"conceptapplication,"completesthecycleafteroneor moreiterationsofthediscoveryconceptintroductionsequence.Duringconceptapplication,studentsworkonnewproblemswiththepotentialforevokingafresh lookattheconceptspreviouslystudied. Notethatthiscyclestandsincontrasttothewaysinwhichmostcurriculum,syllabi,andpublishedmaterialspresentlearning,andthewaysinwhichmostteachers weretaughttoteach.Inthetraditionalmodel,conceptintroductioncomesfirst,followedbyconceptapplicationactivities.Discovery,whenitoccurs,usuallytakes placeafterintroductionandapplication,andwithonlythe"quicker"studentswhoareabletofinishtheirapplicationtasksbeforetherestoftheclass. Let'stakealookathowthiscycleevolvedina9thgradeearthscienceclassroom.Inthisclassroom,theteachertoldthestudentsabouttheChinookwinds,thewarm, dry,fastwindsthatblowdownfromtheRockyMountainsintotheregionjusteastofthemountains.Thewindscanbe4050warmerthanthesurroundingair.In thisexample,thematerialmadeavailablefordiscoverypurposeswasascenarioforthestudentstoconsider.Theteacheraskedthestudentstoworkinsmallgroups togenerateadiagramthatcouldexplainwhythisoccurrencemighthappen.Asthegroupsbegantowork,theteacherlistenedtohisstudents'deliberations,intervening indifferentwaysdependentonthecourseofthedialogueoccurringamongthestudents.Heaskedagroupthatwas"stuck"tobeginbydrawingthevegetationonthe sidesofthemountain.Whiletryingtodothedrawing,thestudentsbegantotalkaboutrainfall,whereitcomesfrom,thepatternsofcloudmovement,andsoon.At thatpoint,theteachermovedtoagroupofstudentshavingaconversationabouthowhotairrises.Theteacheraskedanothergroup,"Whydoesthewarmwindmove downifhotairrises?" Onegirlinthegroupsaidemphatically,"That'swhatIdon'tunderstand?"Musictoaconstructivistteacher'sears!

Page118

Theteachersaid:''Youknowwhatyourproblemisnow.Don'tforgetthatthewindisfast,too."Andtheteachermovedontostudentswithwhomhehadnotyet interactedthatday. Whatwastheconceptintroductiontofollowthisdiscoveryopportunity?Theteacherwantedtointroducetheconceptofadiabaticpressureamostsophisticated conceptthatwithoutconsiderationofheatgainandheatloss,windspeed,andmoistureconditionsislargelyinaccessible.TheChinookwindsactivityallowedthe teachertoassesswhatelementsoftheconceptarewithinthestudents'intellectualreach. <><><><><><><><><><><><> These12descriptorshighlightteacherpracticesthathelpstudentssearchfortheirownunderstandingsratherthanfollowotherpeople'slogic.Thedescriptorscan serveasguidesthatmayhelpothereducatorsforgepersonalinterpretationsofwhatitmeanstobecomeaconstructivistteacher. References Atkin,J.M.,andR.Karplus.(1962)."DiscoveryorInvention?"ScienceTeacher.29,5:45. Cooper,L.,D.Johnson,R.Johnson,andF.Welderson.(1980)."TheEffectsofCooperative,Competitive,andIndividualisticExperiencesinInterPersonal AttractionsAmongHeterogeneousPeers."TheJournalofSocialPsychology111:243252. Johnson,D.,andR.Johnson.(1981)."EffectsofCooperativeandIndividualisticLearningExperiencesonInterethnicInteraction."JournalofEducational Psychology73,3,444449. Slavin,R.(1990).CooperativeLearningTheory,ResearchandPractice.EnglewoodCliffs,N.J.:PrenticeHall.

Page119

10 PursuingMeaningfulVictories
Beashamedtodieuntilyouhavewonsomevictoryforhumanity. HoraceMann

Five7thgradestudentswereworkingwiththelibrarianaftertheirsocialstudiesclassreactedtotheU.S.Constitution's''threefifthsrule,"whichstipulatedthatfive votesbyAfricanAmericanmalescountedasthreevotesbywhitemales.Oneofthefivestudentsseemedratherimpatientandpreoccupied.Thefollowingdialogue ensued:


Librarian:Ava,youseemfaraway.Isanythingwrong? Ava:Whydowehavetospendsomuchtimetalkingaboutthis? Librarian:We'retalkingaboutitsothatyou'llunderstanditbetter.Iwantyoutolearnaboutit. Ava:Wedon'thavetimetolearnit.Wehavetogettheassignmentdone.Mr.Smithisgoingtocollectit.

SchoolsthroughoutAmericaarefilledwithstudentslikeAva,studentswhohavebeenacculturatedtodevaluethinking,tofeeluneasyaboutindepthanalysis,andto viewanythingotherthan

Page120

rapidcoverageofthecurriculumaswastingtime.Thesestudentsarefrequentlysuccessfulinschool.Theystudy,completetheirassignments,passtheirtests,and receivegoodgrades.Yet,thesearenotmeaningfulvictories.Theyarethevictoriesofformoversubstance,ofsuperficialityoverengagement,ofcoverageoverdepth. Everyday,millionsofstudentsenterschoolwantingtolearn,hopingtobestimulated,engaged,andtreatedwell,andhopingtofindmeaninginwhattheydo.And everydaythatwe,aseducators,stimulateandchallengeourstudentstofocustheirmindsonmeaningfultasks,tothinkaboutimportantissues,andtoconstructnew understandingsoftheirworlds,weandtheyachieveameaningfulvictory. BoldActionsandChanges Meaningfulvictoriesrequireboldactions.Manyrecentschoolreforminitiativesarebuiltonthetimehonoredbutterriblyflawedtestteachtestmodelofinstruction. Thecallfornationalstandardsandnationalexaminationsandthecallformorestringentexitoutcomesatalllevelsarestructuredaroundthismodel.Ironically,these initiativesareyokedtotheveryapproachesthathavebroughtabouttheneedforschoolreforminthefirstplace.Theyareattemptstostandardizegoalsanddevelop assessmentdevices.Theyarejourneysdownthesameoldroads,andare,therefore,familiar,timid,andsuperficialasreforminitiatives.Thecoreofthematterisstill notbeingaddressed. Assessmentandstandardsareundeniablyimportantissues,buttheyhavealwaysbeenandremainthetailthatwagsthedog.Meaningfulschoolreformmustaddress thecentralunitoftheentireenterprise,theclassroom,andmustseektoalterthewaysteachingandlearninghavetraditionallybeenthoughttointeractinthatunit. Creatingconstructivistclassroomsrequiresboldchangesinstitutionaladaptationsthatbreaksignificantlyfrompastandcurrentpracticestocreatenewstructuresand normsfortheinstitutionsundergoingchange.Wehavesixsuggestions.

Page121

1.Structurepreserviceandinserviceteachereducationaroundconstructivistprinciplesandpractices. Educatorsneedinformationregardingdevelopmentalprinciplesandstrategiesforenablingstudentstoconstructtheirownunderstandingsofimportantconcepts.So muchofwhataspiringandpracticingteachersaretaughtisrootedinthebehavioralsoilofstimulus/responsetheory.Butthissoilhasbeenusedfortoomanyyears, andisbecomingmorewidelyseenasnutrientdeficient.It'stimetoreplantourideasaboutteachingandlearninginricherfields. RatherthanpresentingSkinnerandThorndikeintheeducationalpsychologycourserequiredofundergraduates,exposestudentstotheresearchofPiaget,Vygotsky, Elkind,Dewey,andGardner.RatherthanteachingundergraduatesaboutmasterylearningandtheHunterModelintheirmethodscourses,exposethemtothe importantmethodologicalworkofSigel,Fosnot,Forman,Wadsworth,Labinowicz,Duckworth,Karplus,andJoyceandWeil. Thephilosophicalunderpinningsofthetheoriesandpracticestowhichpreserviceteachersareexposedhavealastingimpactontheirperceptionoftheteachingrole. Oncepracticing,teachershaveanevenrichercontextinwhichtodevelopandapplytheirnewlyemergingtheoriesandmethodologies.Bothpreserviceandinservice teachereducationmustpromoteteachingpracticesthatmediatestudentconstructionoftheirownunderstandings,therefore,teachereducationprogramsmust themselvesbeconstructivistbased(Brooks1984,BrooksandBrooks1987,LoucksHorsleyetal.1990,Fosnot1989inpress). Wehavefoundthatteachersmorereadilyunderstandandpracticeconstructivistmethodologieswhen(1)theyareexposedtospecificprogramsandapproacheswith constructivistframeworks,suchaswholelanguageteachingapproaches,manipulativemathematicsprograms,handsonsciencemodels,cooperativelearning techniques,andinteractive/flexiblegroupingparadigms,and(2)theyhaveclassroomsupportforalteringtheirpractices,suchaspeercoaching,scripttapingof lessons,andteamteaching.Butunlessteachersaregivenampleopportunitiestolearninconstructivistsettingsandconstructforthemselveseducationalvisionsthrough whichtheycanreflectoneducationalpractices,

Page122

theinstructionalprogramstheylearnwillbetrivializedinto''cookbook"procedures. 2.Jettisonmoststandardizedtestingandmakeassessmentmeaningfulforstudents. InChapter1,weindicatethatoverhaulingassessmentproceduresisapromisingreformproposalthat,byitself,doesnotgofarenough.Inconjunctionwith restructuredteachingpractices,however,therestructuringofassessmentprocedurescanbehighlysignificant.(SeeChapter8forseveralclassroomstrategies.) Bythetimemoststudentsenter3rdgrade,theyhavetakenseveralhighstakes,standardizedtestsandarealreadyviewedaseitheracademicallysuccessfulor unsuccessfulbytheadultsintheschoolstheyattend.Testresultsbecomenotthemeanstoassessmovementtowardendsandtoshiftdirectionsifnecessary,butthe endsthemselves.Schoolsoveremphasizetestresultsteachersgaugetheirownefficacybythem,parentsfixateonthem,andstudentscometofearthem.Ultimately, testresultsobscureopportunitiestohonorandvalueindividualdifferencesandinsteadtranslatedifferencesintoclassificationsthatplace,eventrap,studentsinarange ofsettingssuchasremedialandgiftedprograms. Further,mosttests,particularlyfactbased,multiplechoicetests,areunreliableasindicesofwhatstudentsdoordonot"know."Inpreparingforsuchtests,students mustguesswhichdiscretebitsofinformationtheteacherorthestateconsidersmostimportant.Conceptsareoftencompletelylostinthewhirlofactivitythat surroundspreparingstudentstotaketests. Worstofall,inmostschoolsettings,testingisnotpartoftheinstructionalprogram.Itisaseparateevent,apartfrominstruction,withalifeofitsown.Teachingoften ceasescompletelyinpreparationfortesting. Inaconstructivistsetting,assessmentofstudentlearningisdonenaturallywithinthecontextoflessonsandactivities.Teachersanalyzestudentproductsandexhibitions asbenchmarksandgarnerinformationforuseindevelopingfutureactivitiesandinformingongoingpractice. Beforemovingon,twopointsneedtobemade.First,wearenotcallingforanationalsetof"authentic"tasksforallstudentsin

Page123

aparticulargrade.Authenticityisintheeyeofthebeholder,andwhatisauthentictotheadulttaskdevelopermaynotbeespeciallyauthentictomanystudents.And, whatisauthenticinonesettingmaynotbeauthenticinanother.Undersuchconditions,wewillhavesimplyreplacedoneaccountabilityparadigmthatdrivesinstruction (testing)withanotherthatdoesthesamething(''authentic"taskassessment). Second,ifassessmentmeasureslearning,andlearningisidiosyncratic,thenitisunlikelythatonetask,oneportfolioprotocol,oronemodeofexhibitioncouldbe appropriateforallstudents.Somestudentsarestillbeingdeniedtheopportunitytodemonstratewhattheyhavelearnedinthemosteffectivemannerforthem.Thisis whywereiteratetheimportanceofstudent/studentandteacher/studentinterplayinrevealingwhathasbeenlearned:teachersmuststructuretheenvironmentto recognizeandacceptmultipleformsofexhibition,andstudentsmustselectthosethatareappropriateforthem. 3.Focusresourcesmoreonteachers'professionaldevelopmentthanontextbooksandworkbooks. Formanyyears,therehasbeengrowingpressurefrompoliticians,legislators,stateleveladministrators,andevenlocalschoolboardstomakeeducation"teacher proof."Thethinkingisthatbecausesometeachersarelesscompetentthanothers,theexperienceforstudentsmustbestandardizedbyrequiringallteacherstousethe samematerialsandteachingmethodologies.Theprimaryproblemwiththislineofreasoningisthattheteacherswhowereunabletostructuretheirownmaterialsand methodologiesinacompetentfashionaretheverysameteacherswhohavedifficultyimplementingstandardizedcurriculumsandapproaches.Thestudentsintheir classescontinuetosuffer,asdostudentsinallclassesrequiredtouseteacherproofmaterialsandslavishlyfollowteacherproofsyllabi. Welleducatedandsupported,teachersaremediatorsbetweenstudentsandtheenvironmentasstudentscometounderstandcomplexconcepts.Theseteachers structuretheenvironmentandsettheintellectualandsocialtoneintheclassroom.Illeducatedandunsupported,teachersmerelydisseminateinformationanddistribute suppliesasstudentsmovethroughafixedcurriculum.

Page124

Thepurchaseofteacherproofmaterialsdivertsresourcesfromprofessionaldevelopment. Schoolsystemsthatviewtheirmissionasfittingthecurriculumtothechildgenerallygiveteachersmuchfreedominselectinginstructionalmethodologiesandmaterials. Schoolsystemsthatviewtheirmissionasfittingthechildtothecurriculumgenerallyholdthecurriculumassacrosanctandrequireuniformityofmaterialsand methodologies.It'sourviewthattheprofessionaldevelopmentofteachersultimatelyhasafargreaterimpactonstudentlearningthandostandardizedcurriculums. Thetermprofessionaldevelopmentrefersnotonlytoinserviceeducationbuttotheformationoffocusedteachersupportgroups,theschedulingofcommonplanning time,conferenceattendance,theuseofexternalandinhouseconsultants,andsustainedpeercoaching.Alloftheseactivitiesneedtobeboundtogetherbyacommon thread,orvision,relatingtotheeducationofstudents. 4.Eliminateletterandnumbergrades. Justastestingdrivesinstruction,gradingdrivestesting.Wehaveaskedmanyteacherswhytheygivefactbasedmultiplechoiceteststotheirstudents.Mostteachers, particularlysecondaryschoolteachers,indicatethattestresultsenablethemtogive''objective"gradestotheirstudents.Manysecondaryteachersalsoreportthatthey feelcompelledtogivegradesbecausecollegesanduniversitieswanttobeabletodifferentiateamongstudentswhoapplyforadmission. Ourconcernhastodowiththeinvidiouseffectsofgrading,bothovertandsubtle.Overtly,gradescommunicatethatsomestudentsare"smarter"thanothers.Grades areusedtoplacestudentsintotracks,whichusuallyhaveaprofoundeffectonstudents'optionsforcollege,career,andincome.Subtly,gradesbecometherewards andpunishmentsforschoolperformance.Thepursuitoftherewardsandavoidanceofthepunishmentsoverwhelmthesearchforunderstanding.Forexample,several elementaryschoolreadingprogramsacrossthenationrewardstudentswithtrinkets,pizzas,orstickersforthenumberofbooksread:themorebooks,thelargerthe reward.Theintrinsicvalueofreadingbecomesobscuredintheseprogramsbythequestfortherewards(Kohn1986).Theimportanceoflearningand

Page125

understandingisdemeaned.Naturally,thishasacorrelativeeffectonclassroomdynamics.ReturningtotheinteractionbetweenAvaandthelibrarian,therealmessage inAva'scommentswas:''let'scoverthematerialsothatIcanhandinmyassignmentandgetagoodgrade."Studentscometoviewthestruggletoconstruct understandingasanimpedimenttotheachievementofgoodgrades. 5.Formschoolbasedstudygroupsfocusedonhumandevelopmentalprinciples. Anunderstandingofhumandevelopmentisveryimportant.Mosteducatorshavelearnedaboutcurriculumandinstructionalmethodologiesbydesigningandcreating theirown.Feweducators,however,havelearnedmuchaboutdevelopmentthroughtheirownresearchanddesign.Mostinformationaboutdevelopmenthasbeen "handeddown"inlargelectureclassestakentoearnthenecessarycreditsforteachercertification. Tocreateschoolsthatrecognize,value,andrespondtothecognitive,social,andemotionalneedsofstudents,educatorsneedtocarefullystudythosefactorsinthe contextoftheirownsettingsonanongoingbasis.Schoolsareresearchinstitutions.Schoolshaveaccesstoimportantdataonstudentdevelopmentalldaylong.We needtostartsystematicallycollecting,analyzing,andusingthesedatatoinformclassroompractices. Studygroupscomprisedofinterestedcoreparticipantsneedtotakeonleadershiprolesindefiningthatwhichtheywanttostudy.Itmightbeapolicythatdoesn't seemtowork,astudentwhoisn'tmakingit,aconceptthatnoonelearns,ormyriadotherissues.Together,themembersofthestudygroupguideeachotherin formulatingabetterunderstandingofhowtheycanmaketheirschool,intheparticulardomainunderstudy,amorehumane,growthproducingsetting.Wehavefound thatasthestudygroupmatures,sodoesitsoutreachtootherpartsoftheschool. 6.Requireannualseminarsonteachingandlearningforadministratorsandschoolboardmembers. Administratorsdirectlysuperviseandevaluateteachers,andboardsofeducationsettheeducational"missions"fortheirdistricts.Teachersinterestedinteachingfor understandingwillbe

Page126

placedingreatconflictiftheiradministratorswritelessonobservationsandendoftheyearevaluationsthatsuggestamoretraditionalapproachandiftheirboardsof educationviewstandardizedtestscoresastheprimaryindicatorsofstudentlearning. Severalyearsago,abuildingprincipalobservedafairlytraditional2ndgradelessononspelling.Studentswereaskedtoplaceeachofthe15wordsfromtheirspelling listsintosentences.Thiswassupposedtodemonstrateboththestudents'abilitytospellthewordsandtheirunderstandingofeachword'smeaning.Manystudents appeareddisinterested. Inthepostobservationconference,theprincipalandteacherfocusedonstudentbehaviorsandproductsandtogetherexploredoptionsforengagingstudentsin writinggroupsandwordstudygroups.Theysettleduponintroducingspellingthroughwriting.Administratorsandteachersabletoengageinsuchdiscussionscan favorablyaffectthetypeofeducationalprogramofferedtostudents.Onewaytofosterthisisthroughtheestablishmentofannualseminarsthataddresspedagogical issuesforadministratorsandboardofeducationmembers.Theseseminarshelpteachers,administrators,andboardofeducationmembers''speakthesamelanguage" andfocusonstudents. NewImages Boldchangesrequiretheestablishmentofnewnormsandstructuresforschoolsandschoolsystems.Thisisnoeasytask.Butthealternativeisthestatusquoornew versionsofit. Whatimagesareevokedinmostpeople'smindsuponhearingtheword"school"?Raisingone'shandbeforeansweringquestions,listeningtoteachersandtaking notes,takingtests,luggingtextbooksfromclasstoclass,writingbookreports,standinginstraightlines,seekingpermissiontovisittherestroom.Thesearethevery images,practices,andexpectationsuponwhichschoolinghasbeenstructuredsincethefirstcommonschoolswereerectedwelloveracenturyago.Theyareimages ofcontrol,notlearning. Anewsetofimages,reflectiveofnewpractices,isneededimagesthatportraythestudentasathinker,acreator,andaconstructor.Schoolscanbecomesettingsin whichstudentsare

Page127

encouragedtodevelophypotheses,totestouttheirownandothers'ideas,tomakeconnectionsamong''content"areas,toexploreissuesandproblemsofpersonal relevance(eitherexistingoremerging),toworkcooperativelywithpeersandadultsinthepursuitofunderstanding,andtoformthedispositiontobelifelonglearners. Theoldimagesofschooldonotspeakdirectlytothecentralissueofschoolreformwaystoevokestudentlearningthroughtheirsearchforunderstanding.The imagesofconstructivismdo. References Brooks,M.(1984)."AConstructivistApproachtoStaffDevelopment."EducationalLeadership42,3:2327. Brooks,M.G.,andJ.G.Brooks.(Fall1987)."BecomingaTeacherforThinking:Constructivism,Change,andConsequence."TheJournalofStaffDevelopment8, 3:1620. Cremin,L.A.,ed.(1957).TheRepublicandtheSchool:HoraceMannontheEducationofFreeMen.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Fosnot,C.T.,(inpress)."RethinkingScienceEducation:ADefenseofPiagetianConstructivism."JournalforResearchinScienceEducation. Fosnot,C.T.(1989).EnquiringTeachers,EnquiringLearning:AConstructivistApproachforTeaching.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Joyce,B.,andM.Weil.(1972).ModelsofTeaching.NewYork:PrenticeHall. Kohn,A.(1986).NoContest:TheCaseAgainstCompetition.Boston,HoughtonMifflin. LoucksHorsley,S.,J.G.Brooks,M.O.Carlson,P.Kuerbis,D.Marsh,M.Padilla,H.Pratt,andK.Smith.(1990).DevelopingandSupportingTeachersfor ScienceEducationintheMiddleYears.Andover,Mass.:TheNationalCenterforImprovingScienceEducation.

Page128

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Arlin,P.K.(1985).''TeachingThinking:ADevelopmentalPerspective."IMPACTonInstructionalImprovement19,3. Athey,I.J.,andD.O.Rubadeau,eds.(1970).EducationalImplicationsofPiaget'sTheory.Waltham,Mass.:Ginn&Co. Atkin,J.M.,andR.Karplus.(1962)."DiscoveryorInvention?"ScienceTeacher29,5:45. Bamberger,J.,E.Duckworth,andM.Lampert.(1981)."AnExperimentinTeacherDevelopment."UnpublishedManuscript.FinalReportforNIEGrant#G78 0219,WashingtonD.C.:NationalInstituteofEducation. BarattaLorton,M.(1976).MathematicsTheirWay.MenloPark,Calif.:AddisonWesley. Beilin,H.(1965)."LearningandOperationalConvergenceinLogicalThoughtDevelopment."JournalofExperimentalChildPsychology2:317339. Berman,P.,andM.W.McLaughlin.(1974).AModelofEducationalChange:FederalProgramsSupportingEducationalChange,VolumeI.SantaMonica, Calif.:RandCorporation. Bettelheim,B.(1966).TheEmptyFortress.NewYork:Macmillan. Bobbitt,F.(1918).TheCurriculum.Boston:HoughtonMifflin,Co. Brainerd,C.J.(1978)."TheStageQuestioninCognitiveDevelopmentalTheory."TheBehavioralandBrainSciences2:173213. Brearley,M.,ed.(1969).TheTeachingofYoungChildren,SomeApplicationsofPiaget'sLearningTheories.NewYork:SchockenBooks. Brooks,M.,andJ.G.Brooks,eds.(1985)."TeachingforThinking."IMPACTonInstructionalImprovement19,3. Brooks,M.,andJ.G.Brooks,eds.(1985)."TeachingforThinking:II."IMPACTonInstructionalImprovement19,4. Brown,A.L.(1985)."MotivationtoLearnandUnderstand:OnTakingChargeofOne'sOwnLearning."CognitionandInstruction5,4:311322. Brown,F.K.,andD.P.Butts.(1983).ScienceTeaching:AProfessionSpeaks,NSTAYearbook.WashingtonD.C. Bruner,J.(1985)."ModelsoftheLearner."EducationalResearcher14,6. Bruner,J.S.(1968).TowardaTheoryofInstruction.NewYork:Norton.

Page129

Bybee,R.W.(1986).''TheSisypheanQuestioninScienceEducation:WhatShouldtheScientificallyandTechnologicallyLiteratePersonKnow,ValueandDoAs aCitizen?"1985NSTAYearbook.Washington,D.C.:NSTA. Case,R.(1973)."Piaget'sTheoryofChildDevelopmentanditsImplications."PhiDeltaKappan55:2025. Copeland,R.W.(1970).HowChildrenLearnMathematicsTeachingImplicationsofPiaget'sResearch.NewYork:MacMillanCo. DeVries,R.,andL.Kohlberg.(1987).ProgramsofEarlyEducation:TheConstructivistView.NewYork:Longman. Dewey,J.(1974)."TheChildandtheCurriculum."InJohnDeweyonEducation,editedbyR.D.Archambault.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress. Dewey,J.(1933).HowWeThink.RevisedEd.NewYork:Heath. Dewey,J.(1974)."TheChildandtheCurriculum."InJohnDeweyonEducation,editedbyR.D.Archambault.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress. Dewey,J.(1979).SourcesofScienceEducation.NewYork:Liveright. Driver,R.(1983).ThePupilScientist?Philadelphia:OpenUniversityPress. Duckworth,E.(August1979)."EitherWe'reTooEarlyandTheyCan'tLearnItorWe'retooLateandTheyKnowItAlready:TheDilemmaof`ApplyingPiaget.'" HarvardEducationalReview49,3. Duckworth,E.,J.Easley,D.Hawkins,andA.Henriques.(1990).ScienceEducation:AMindsOnApproachfortheElementaryYears.Hillsdale,N.J.:Lawrence ErlbaumAssociates. Eisner,E.(1982).CognitionandCurriculum:ABasisforDecidingWhattoTeach.NewYork:Longman. Elkind,D.(1974).ChildrenandAdolescents:InterpretiveEssaysonJeanPiaget.N.Y.:OxfordUniversityPress. Flannery,M.C.(1991).BittenbytheBiologyBug:EssaysfromTheAmericanBiologyTeacher.Reston,Va.:NationalAssociationofBiologyTeachers. Flavell,J.H.(1963).TheDevelopmentalPsychologyofJeanPiaget.Princeton,N.J.:D.VanNostrand. Forman,G.,andD.Kuschner.(1977).TheChild'sConstructionofKnowledge:PiagetforTeachingChildren.Belmont,Calif.:WadworthCo. Forman,G.,andP.B.Pufall,eds.(1988).ConstructivismintheComputerAge.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates. Forman,G.E.(1985)."HelpingChildrenAskGoodQuestions."InTheWonderofIt:ExploringHowtheWorldWorks,editedbyB.Neugebauer.Exchange Press,2125. Forman,G.(1989)."HelpingChildrenAskGoodQuestions."InTheWonderofIt:ExploringHowtheWorldWorks,editedbyB.Neugebauer.Redmond,Wash.: ExchangePress,Inc.

Page130

Forman,G.(1987).''TheConstructivismPerspective."InApproachestoEarlyChildhoodEducation,editedbyJ.L.Roopnarine,andJ.E.Johnson.Columbus, Ohio:MerrillPublishingCo.,pp.7184. Foshay,A.W.(Summer1991)."TheCurriculumMatrix:TranscendenceandMathematics."JournalofCurriculumandSupervision6,4:277293. Frazier,R.(1988)."BeginningWithoutaConclusion."TheScienceTeacher55,5. Fuller,M.(1982).TheMeaningofEducationalChange.NewYork:Teachers'CollegePress. Furth,H.G.,andH.Wachs.(1974).ThinkingGoestoSchool.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress. Furth,H.G.(1970).PiagetforTeachers.EnglewoodCliffs,N.J.:PrenticeHall. Furth,H.G.(1980).TheWorldofGrownups:Children'sPerceptionsofSociety.NewYork:Elsevier. Gardner,H.(1983).FramesofMind.NewYork:BasicBooks. Gardner,H.(October9,1991a)."MakingSchoolsMoreLikeMuseums."EducationWeek,p.40. Ginsburg,H.P.,andB.S.Allerdice.(1984)."Children'sDifficultieswithSchoolMathematics."InEverydayCognition:ItsDevelopmentinSocialContext,edited byB.RogoffandJ.Lave.Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress,pp.194219. Goodlad,J.(1975).TheDynamicsofEducationalChange.NewYork:McGrawHill. Goodman,K.(1986).What'sWholeinWholeLanguage?Portsmouth,N.H.:Heinemann. Graves,D.H.(1983).Writing:TeachersandChildrenatWork.Portsmouth,N.H.:Heinemann. Grennon,J.(1984)."MakingSenseofStudentThinking."EducationalLeadership42,3:1118. Groen,G.(1978)."TheTheoreticalIdeasofPiagetandEducationalPractice."ImpactofResearchonEducation:SomeCaseStudies.NationalAcademyof Education. HaroutunianGordon,S.(1991).TeachingtheSoul:TeachingThroughConversationintheHighSchool.Chicago:TheUniversityofChicagoPress. Harris,K.R.,andM.Pressley.(March/April1991)."TheNatureofCognitiveStrategyInstruction:InteractiveStrategyConstruction."ExceptionalChildrenpp. 392403. Hawkins,D.(February1965)."MessingAboutinScience."ScienceandChildren2,5. Hawkins,D.(Spring1983)."NatureCloselyObserved."Daedalus112,2:6589.

Page131

Hills,G.L.C.(1989).''Students'UntutoredBeliefsaboutNaturalPhenomena:PrimitiveScienceorCommonSense?"ScienceEducation3,2:155186. Hunt,J.McV.(1961).IntelligenceandExperience.NewYork:RonaldPress. Inhelder,B.,andJ.Piaget.(1958).TheGrowthofLogicalThinkingfromChildhoodtoAdolescence.NewYork:BasicBooks. Jacob,S.(Winter1982)."PiagetandEducation:AspectsofaTheory,PartI."TheEducationalForum. Jalongo,M.R.(1991).TheRoleoftheTeacherinthe21stCentury:AnInsider'sView.Bloomington,Ind.:NationalEducationalService. Johnson,D.W.,andR.T.Johnson.(1984).CirclesofLearning:CooperationintheClassroom.Alexandria,Va.:ASCD. Kamii,C.,ed.(1990).AchievementTestingintheEarlyGrades:TheGamesGrownUpsPlay.Washington,D.C.:NationalAssociationfortheEducationof YoungChildren. Kamii,C.,andB.A.Lewis.(May1991)."AchievementTestsinPrimaryMathematics:PerpetuatingLowerOrderThinking."ArithmeticTeacherpp.49. Kamii,C.,andR.DeVries.(1980).GroupGamesinEarlyEducation:ImplicationsofPiaget'sTheory.Washington,D.C.:NAEYC. Kamii,C.(September1985)."LeadingPrimaryEducationTowardExcellence:BeyondWorksheetsandDrill."YoungChildren40,6:39. Kamii,C.,M.Manning,andG.Manning,eds.(1991).EarlyLiteracy:AConstructivistFoundationforWholeLanguage.Washington,D.C.:NationalEducation Association. Kamii,C.,S.Jones.,andL.Joseph.(April1991)."WhenKidsMakeTheirOwnMath,TheyCanMakeMathTheirOwn."PowerLine1,2:12. Kamii,C.(1985).YoungChildrenReInventArithmetic.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Kant,I.(1960).Education,translatedandreprinted.AnnArbor,Mich.:UniversityofMichiganPress. Karplus,R.(1964)."TheScienceCurriculumImprovementStudyReporttothePiagetConference."JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching2,3. Katz,J.,andH.Mildred.(1988).TurningProfessorsintoTeachers:ANewApproachtoFacultyDevelopmentandStudentLearning.MacMillan. Katz,L.,andS.Chard.(1986).EngagingChildren'sMinds:TheProjectApproachtoEducation.Norwood,N.J.:AblexPublishers. Kohlberg,L.,andR.Mayer.(1972)."DevelopmentastheAimofEducation."HarvardEducationalReview42,4:449496. Kohlberg,L.(1976)."MoralStagesandMoralization:TheCognitiveDevelopmentalApproach."InMoralDevelopmentandBehavior:Theory,Researchand SocialIssues,editedbyT.Lickona.NewYork:Holt,Rinehart&Winston.

Page132

Kohn,A.(March1991).''TeachingChildrentoCare."PhiDeltaKappan72,7:497506. Lambert,M.,(1984)."TeachingAboutThinkingandThinkingAboutTeaching."JournalofCurriculumStudies16. Langer,J.(1964)."ImplicationsofPiaget'sTalksforCurriculum."JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching2,3. Lavatelli,C.(1973).Piaget'sTheoryAppliedtoanEarlyChildhoodCurriculum.Boston:AmericanScienceandEngineering. Lawrence,F.(December1986)."MisconceptionsofPhysicalScienceConceptsamongElementarySchoolTeachers."SchoolandScienceMathematics,86,8: 654660. Lawson,A.E.,andJ.W.Renner.(September1975)."PiagetianTheoryandBiologyTeaching."TheAmericanBiologyTeacher37,6:336343. Lieberman,A.,andL.Miller.(1984).Teachers,TheirWorldandtheirWork.Alexandria,Va.:ASCD. Loevinger,J.(1976).EgoDevelopment.SanFrancisco:JosseyBass. Lombard,A.S.,R.D.Konicek,andK.Schultz.(1985)."DescriptionandEvaluationofanInserviceModelforImplementationofaLearningCycleApproachinthe SecondaryScienceClassroom."ScienceEducation69,4:491500. Lombard,A.S.,R.D.Konicek,andK.Schultz.(July1985)."DescriptionandEvaluationofanInserviceModelforImplementationofaLearningCycleApproachin theSecondaryScienceClassroom."ScienceEducation69,4:491500. LoucksHorsley,S.,J.G.Brooks,M.O.Carlson,P.Kuerbis,D.Marsh,M.Padilla,H.Pratt,andK.Smith.(1990).DevelopingandSupportingTeachersfor ScienceEducationintheMiddleYears.Andover,Mass.:TheNationalCenterforImprovingScienceEducation. Lowery,L.(1974a).LearningAboutInstruction:QuestioningStrategies.UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley. Lowery,L.(1974b).LearningAboutLearning:ClassificationAbilities.UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley. Lowery,L.(1974c).LearningAboutLearning:ConservationAbilities.UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley. Mallon,E.J.(January1976)."CognitiveDevelopmentandProcesses:ReviewofthePhilosophyofJeanPiaget."TheAmericanBiologyTeacher38,1. Maxwell,N.(May1987)."Wanted:ANewWayofThinking."NewScientist14:63. McNally,D.W.(1977).Piaget,EducationandTeaching.Hassocks,Sussex:HarvesterPress. Melvin,M.P.(December1985)."HowDoTheyLearn?"PhiDeltaKappan67,4:306307.

Page133

Montemayor,R.,andM.Eisen.(1977).''TheDevelopmentofSelfConceptionsfromChildhoodtoAdolescence."DevelopmentalPsychology13,44:314319. Murray,D.M.(1982).LearningByTeaching:SelectedArticlesonWritingandTeaching.UpperMontclair,N.J.:BoyntonCook. Narode,R.,andJ.Lochhead.(1985)."WhatDoYouThink?"IMPACTonInstructionalImprovement19,3. NationalCouncilofTeachersofMathematics.(1989).ExecutiveSummaryofCurriculumandEvaluationStandardsforSchoolMathematics.Reston,Va.: NCTM. Noddings,N.(1982)."WhyisPiagetsoHardtoApplyintheClassroom?"JournalofCurriculumTheorizing5,2. Noddings,N.,andP.Shore.(1984).AwakeningtheInnerEye:IntuitioninEducation.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress. Palmer,E.L.(1970)."TheEquilibrationProcess:SomeImplications."InEducationalImplicationsofPiaget'sTheory,editedbyIreneAthey.Waltham:Ginn Blaisdell. Papert,S.(1980).Mindstorms:Children,ComputersandPowerfulIdeas.NewYork:BasicBooks. Peel,E.A.(1971).TheNatureofAdolescentJudgment.NewYork:JohnWiley&Sons,Inc. Perrone,V.(1991).ExpandingStudentAssessment.Alexandria,Va.:ASCD. Piaget,J.(1928).JudgmentandReasoningintheChild.NewYork:Harcourt. Piaget,J.(1930).TheChild'sConceptionofPhysicalCausality.NewYork:Harcourt. Piaget,J.(1950,reprinted1966).ThePsychologyofIntelligence.London:RoutledgeandKeganPaul. Piaget,J.(1954).TheConstructionofRealityintheChild.NewYork:BasicBooks. Piaget,J.(1955).LanguageandThoughtoftheChild.NewYork:NewAmericanLibrary. Piaget,J.(1964)."DevelopmentandLearning."JournalofResearchinScienceTeaching2,3. Piaget,J.(1967).TheChild'ConceptionoftheWorld.Totowa,N.J.Littlefield,Adams&Co. Piaget,J.(1969a).TheChild'ofTime.London:RoutledgeandKegerPaul. Piaget,J.(1969b).TheMechanismofPerception.London:RoutledgeandKegerPaul. Piaget,J.(1970).GeneticEpistemology.NewYork:ColumbiaUniversityPress. Piaget,J.(1970).Structuralism.NewYork:BasicBooks.

Page134

Piaget,J.(1970).TheScienceofEducationandthePhysiologyoftheChild.NewYork:OrionPress. Piaget,J.(1973).ChildandReality.NewYork:Grossman. Piaget,J.(1974).ToUnderstandIsToInvent:TheFutureofEducation.NewYork:Grossman. Piaget,J.(1987).PossibilityandNecessity:TheRoleofNecessityinCognitiveDevelopment.Minn.:UniversityofMinnesotaPress. Piaget,J.,andB.Inhelder.(1967).TheChild'sConceptionofSpace.NewYork:Norton&Co. Piaget,J.,andB.Inhelder.(1969,1971).ThePsychologyoftheChild.N.Y.:BasicBooks. Pope,M.L.,andT.R.Keen.(1981).PersonalConstructPsychologyandEducation.London:AcademicPress. Popkewitz,T.,R.Tabachnick,andG.Wehlage.(1982).TheMythofEducationalReform:AStudyofSchoolResponsestoaProgramofChange.Madison, Wisc.:UniversityofWisconsinPress. Poplin,M.(1988).''HolisticConstructivistPrinciplesoftheTeaching/LearningProcess:ImplicationsfortheFieldofLearningDisabilities."JournalofLearning Disabilities21,7:401416. Pulaski,M.A.(1971).UnderstandingPiaget.NewYork:Harper&Row. Renner,J.W.,D.G.Stafford,A.E.Lawson,J.W.McKinnon,E.F.Friot,andD.H.Kellogg.(1976).Research,TeachingandLearningWiththePiagetModel. Norman,Okla.:UniversityofOklahomaPress. Resnick,L.(1987).EducationandLearningtoThink.Washington,D.C.:NationalAcademyPress. Resnick,L.(1984).EducationandLearningtoThink.London:TheFalmerPress. Rogers,C.R.(Winter1987)."OntheShouldersofGiants."TheEducationalForum51,2. Rowland,S.(1984).TheInquiringClassroom:AnApproachtoUnderstandingChildren'sLearning.London:FalmerPress. Sarason,S.(1972).TheCreationofSettingsandtheFutureSocieties.SanFrancisco,Calif.:JosseyBass. Sarason,S.(1971).TheCultureoftheSchoolandtheProblemofChange.Boston:AllynandBacon. Scardamalia,M.,andC.Bereiter.(1983)."ChildasCoinvestigator:HelpingChildrenGainInsightintoTheirOwnMentalProcesses."InLearningandMotivation intheClassroom,editedbyS.G.Paris,G.M.Olson,andH.W.Stevenson.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates. Schifter,D.,andC.Fosnot.(1992).ReconstructingMathematicsEducation:StoriesofTeachersMeetingtheChallengeofReform.NewYork:Teachers CollegePress.

Page135

Schoenfeld,A.(1988).''WhenGoodTeachingLeadstoBadResults:TheDisastersof`WellTaught'MathematicsCourses."EducationalPsychologist23,2:145 166. Schon,D.(1983).TheReflectivePractitioner.NewYork:BasicBooks. Schwebel,M.,andJ.Raph.(1973).PiagetintheClassroom.NewYork:BasicBooks. Shapiro,B.L.(1989)."WhatChildrenBringtoLight:GivingHighStatustoLearners'ViewsandActionsinScience."ScienceEducation73,6:711733. Shayer,M.,D.E.Kuchemann,andH.Wylam.(1976)."TheDistributionofPiagetianStagesofThinkinginBritishMiddleandSecondarySchoolChildren."British JournalofEducationalPsychology46:164173. Shayer,M.,andP.Adey.(1981).TowardsaScienceofScienceTeaching.London:HeinemannEducationalBooks. Sigel,O.E.,andF.H.Hooper.(1968).LogicalThinkinginChildren.NewYork:Holt,RinehartandWinston. Sizer,T.(1984).Horace'sCompromise:TheDilemmaoftheAmericanHighSchool.Boston:HoughtonMifflin. Slavin,R.E.(1990).CooperativeLearningTheory,ResearchandPractice.EnglewoodCliffs,N.J.:PrenticeHall. Smock,C.D.(1981)."ConstructivismandEducationalPractices."InNewDirectionsinPiagetianTheoryandPractice,editedbyI.E.Sigel,D.M. Brodzinsky,andR.M.Golinkoff.Hillsdale,N.J.:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates. Thorndike,R.,andE.F.Hagen.(1977).MeasurementandEvaluationinPsychologyandEducation,4thEdition.N.Y.:JohnWileyandSons. vonGlasersfeld,E.(1981)."TheConceptsofAdaptationandViabilityinaRadicalConstructivistTheoryofKnowledge."InNewDirectionsinPiagetianTheory andPractice,editedbySigel,Brodzinsky,andGolinkoff. Vygotsky,L.(1962).ThoughtandLanguage.Cambridge,Mass.:MITPress. Weber,L.,andH.Dyasi.(1985)."LanguageDevelopmentandObservationoftheLocalEnvironment:FirstStepsinProvidingPrimarySchoolScienceEducationfor NonDominantGroups."ProspectsXV,4. Wertsch,J.(1985)."TheConceptofInternalizationinVygotsky'sAccountoftheGenesisofHigherMentalFunction."InCulture,CommunicationandCognition, editedbyJ.Wertsch.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,pp.162182. Willoughby,S.(1970).MathematicsEducationforaChangingWorld.Alexandria,Va.:ASCD. Zumwalt,K.(1982)."ResearchonTeaching:PolicyImplicationsforTeacherEducation."InPolicyMakinginEducation:EightyFirstYearbookoftheNational SocietyfortheStudyofEducation,PartI,editedbyA.LiebermanandM.McLaughlin.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress.

Page136

Zumwalt,K.(1987).''Tomorrow'sTeachers:Tomorrow'sWork."TeachersCollegeRecord88,3.

Page137

ABOUTASCD
Foundedin1943,theAssociationforSupervisionandCurriculumDevelopmentisanonpartisan,nonprofiteducationassociation,withinternationalheadquartersin Alexandria,Virginia.ASCD'smissionstatement:ASCD,adiverse,internationalcommunityofeducators,forgingcovenantsinteachingandlearningforthesuccess ofalllearners. MembershipinASCDincludesasubscriptiontotheawardwinningjournalEducationalLeadershiptwonewsletters,EducationUpdateandCurriculum Updateandotherproductsandservices.ASCDsponsorsaffiliateorganizationsinmanystatesandinternationallocationsparticipatesincollaborationsand networksholdsconferences,institutes,andtrainingprogramsproducespublicationsinavarietyofmediasponsorsrecognitionandawardsprogramsandprovides researchinformationoneducationissues. ASCDprovidesmanyservicestoeducatorsprekindergartenthroughgrade12aswellastoothersintheeducationcommunity,includingparents,schoolboard members,administrators,anduniversityprofessorsandstudents.Forfurtherinformation,contactASCDviatelephone:18009332723or7035789600fax: 7035755400oremail:http://www.ascd.org. ASCD'sExecutiveDirectorisGeneR.Carter. 19992000ASCDExecutiveCouncil President:JoannaChoiKalbus,LecturerinEducation,UniversityofCaliforniaatRiverside,Redlands,California PresidentElect:LeRoyE.Hay,AssistantSuperintendentforInstruction,WallingfordPublicSchools,Wallingford,Connecticut ImmediatePastPresident:ThomasJ.Budnik,SchoolImprovementCoordinator,HeartlandAreaEducationAgency,Johnston,Iowa BettyeBobroff,ExecutiveDirectorNewMexicoASCD,Albuquerque,NewMexico MarthaBruckner,ChairandAssociateProfessor,DepartmentofEducationalAdministrationandSupervision,UniversityofNebraskaatOmaha,Nebraska JohnW.Cooper,AssistantSuperintendentforInstruction,CanandaiguaCitySchoolDistrict,Canandaigua,NewYork MichaelDzwiniel,HighSchoolChemistryTeacher,EdmontonPublicSchools,Edmonton,Alberta SharonA.Lease,DeputyStateSuperintendentforPublicInstruction,OklahomaStateDepartmentofEducation,OklahomaCity,Oklahoma LeonLevesque,Superintendent,LewistonSchoolDistrict,Lewiston,Maine FrancineMayfield,Director,ElementarySchoolBasedSpecialEducationPrograms,SeigleDiagnosticCenter,LasVegas,Nevada AndrewTolbert,AssistantSuperintendent,PineBluffSchoolDistrict,PineBluff,Arkansas RobertL.Watson,HighSchoolPrincipal,Spearfish402,Spearfish,SouthDakota SandraK.Wegner,AssociateDean,CollegeofEducation,SouthwestMissouriStateUniversity,Springfield,Missouri PeytonWilliamsJr.,DeputyStateSuperintendent,GeorgiaStateDepartmentofEducation,Atlanta,Georgia DonaldB.Young,Professor,CurriculumResearch&DevelopmentGroup,UniversityofHawaii,Honolulu,Hawaii

Вам также может понравиться