There has been discussion on
possibly implementing
constructivist teaching styles into
Liberty Middle School. Before you
pick your side, consider the most
important aspects of your student
or child’s education.
Benefits of Lecture Style:
• Ensures children’s time in class
is used in the most efficient way
•Covers necessary information
for end of year tests
•Does not require money to fund
activities
•Focuses on basics to develop a
strong foundation
•Gives structure to the class and
prevents chaos
References
Titsworth and Kiewra:
http://cyfs.unl.edu/faculty/fakiew
Keep
teacher-
ra.shtml
Snyder and Bambara:
http://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/ds
pace/bitstream/1808/6235/1/SD
11_The%20effects%20of%20peer
focused,
-delivered.pdf
Lecture-
Schwerdt & Wuppermann:
http://www.fcpp.org/publication.
php/3356 style
Bruun and Kerr:
http://sgr.sagepub.com/content/3
Education
9/6/795.full.pdf
Hechinger:
http://www.worcester.edu/SMIP/
Shared%20Documents/Archive/w
sj_math_09_12_06.pdf
For more information about
Liberty Middle School visit: Liberty Middle School
http://www.burke.k12.nc.us/ Morganton, NC
schools/lms/Pages/Home.asp
x
Success in ALL Subjects
We stress the importance of
student achievement and
dedication in all subjects. There
are subjects that build off one
another and are extremely
important in the successful
advancement of higher grade
levels, for example, math and
science classes.
Consider this:
In 1989, Garfield Elementary
School in Massachusetts
implemented constructivist math,
which came to be known as “fuzzy
math”. In the following years math
schools decreased. Then in 2003,
they switched back to lecture
style, focusing on learning the
basics, doing drills to ensure
comprehension, and then
advancing in difficulty as concepts
were mastered. After a year, the
percent of students failing the
state math achievement test fell
from 23% to 7%. (Hechinger)
How can you argue with that?
Motivation & Memory
Researchers, Brofen and Everston,
observed students in both
constructivist and lecture style
classrooms and found:
-Teachers with more business like
style were more successful
-This was successful because students
were able to learn new material and
connect it to information they already
know with the help of the teacher
-Students were more motivated
through academic focused education
over student centered instruction.
A study by researchers, Brunn and
Kerr, found that “Reviews of small-
group performance research indicates
that task-performing groups rarely
achieve their productive
potential.”Keeping students
individually accountable for their own
work will prevent this barrier of
potential from occurring. Motivation
loss is also found to increase with
group work because in groups it is
more difficult to identify each
member’s contribution.
Test Taking & Preparing
for High School
Researchers Snyder and Bambara
found that middle school and
high school teachers have ranked
note taking skills and listening
skills as some of the top skills
that students should be held
accountable for in their classes.
Keep in mind:
A teacher-centered lecturing
style helps to maintain control
and structure in a classroom,
which plays a significant role in
students’ learning. Constructivist
education has students learn at
their own pace and in different
ways, resulting in various levels
of knowledge. Students are
required to take standardized
tests to advance in grade.
Additionally, the results of a
recent study indicate that
traditional lecture-based teaching
is linked with significantly higher
rates of student achievement
(Schwerdt & Wuppermann,
2010).