Daniel A.

Chapman Field Notebook Journal #3 Constructivism works to explain how knowledge is constructed by the student by connecting newly attained information with existing knowledge developed through experience. Most often this theory is implemented into classrooms by encouraging a student-centric classroom! in comparison to the teacher-centric means of organi"ation as perviously discussed in #ournal $%. &n a constructivist classroom the teacher would be placed primarily in a facilitator-like role! where he'she will oversee the students as they learn together and on their own. &nstruction in a constructivist classroom is organi"ed in a way that values discovery! experiences! and collaboration. (he implications of this organi"ational system! are that the students will be applying the course content actively and socially! through group work! pro#ect based curriculum! and a lot of hands-on work. )ut of the educational theories and philosophies that we have studied thus far! this is definitely the theory and the learning environment that & find myself connecting with and agreeing with most. At *pward +ound! my summer placement! & haven,t noticed much constructivist instruction! although & strongly believe that it would be extremely profitable within their program. All of the three classes that & help out with at *pward +ound -+iology! Chemistry! and .eometry/ are solely lecture based. &n all three classes! three of the four students in my cohort are struggling to keep up with the material! and only one of the four is keeping up and scoring well on his tests! homework! and 0ui""es. All three learners are very different in personalities and learning styles! and the teachers haven,t done anything to really complement their individual abilities and inclinations. 1hile one student may learn best one way! the other three students may -and & believe they do/ learn best through other means. (hrough my observations at *+! & have noticed the students reactions to doing their homework and working through their in-class problems in study hall! either by themselves! as a group! or with me! and they have all been so positive2 (hey en#oy doing the work! they en#oy the rigor! they en#oy the collaboration! and they love the internal reward of answering a 0uestion correctly. &f *+ were to take these factors into account! implementing them into the classroom! allowing the students to learn on their own through asking and answering their own 0uestions! collaborating with peers and instructors! and through actually putting their pencils to the paper and working through problems and exercises in class! as a class! we would see student interest and student achievement increase dramatically. Constructivist practices! if executed thoughtfully! can be a great way to bring a new energy into the classroom3 and in my classes! could be a way to take the students out of their daily head on the desk and verbatim power point slide transcription routine. (he student that & have been watching very closely for the past couple weeks has been Mark! the

pupil who seems to be thriving while his peers continue to struggle. At first glance! one might ask! how could switching up the classroom dynamic encourage Mark4 5e,s doing great! why change anything4 Mark on paper has an impeccable grasp on the information that he is being taught! although & believe that by applying this information hands-on! or working through this material in a group setting could significantly aid his ability to comprehend and apply course information. & have noticed that Mark,s content knowledge is contained completely within the context of the lectures. &f you ask him to explain something in his own words! to draw analogies! or to help teach a concept to another student! he struggles. Allowing Mark to work on his own in the classroom! pushing him to ask and answer his own 0uestions! while also encouraging Mark to work beside his peers and engage in content driven conversations and pro#ects! Marks level of knowledge and comprehension would 0uickly ascend to the next level.