ALTERNATE TEACHING PARADIGMS

1. ALTERNATE TEACHING PARADIGMS • Methods that are developmentally appropriate, meet students’ diverse learning needs, and recognize the importance of learning that occurs in social contexts. • Constructivist teaching • Multiple intelligences

2. Constructivist Teaching • Incorporates Social and Information Processing Strategies such as: • Cooperative learning • Concept formation • Critical thinking • Inquiry learning • Project-based learning

3. Concept Teaching and Learning in Literacy-Based Social Studies--A Constructivist Approach • Which of these pictures will qualify as examples of the concept “family”? • How do you know that each of the pictures you have chosen is a “family”? • What would you need to know if you are not sure whether the picture depicted a family? • What does “family” mean?

5. How many of you would like to know what the pictures are really? • Equilibration and Disequilibration • Scaffolding is the type of assistance that constructivist teachers provide.

6. Lee Mong Kow family, Victoria, B.C. Canada. Arctic hares family Leporidae Hutterite family, Alberta Quatsino Indians at a potlatch Group of East Indians at North Pacific Lumber Co., British Columbia. A.G. Johnson, proprietor of Poplar Creek Store, British Columbia The pictures are:

7. Concepts, Generalizations and Discriminations • “All higher order thinking is based on the thinker’s possession and use of concepts, generalizations and discriminations” (M. Hunter, 1994).

8. Constructivist Teaching Practice • What is Constructivism? • A theory about knowledge and learning based on the notion that humans construct their own knowledge on the basis of their own experiences.

9. What is constructivist teaching? • Helps learners to: • construct their own knowledge • focus on what they currently know • be receptive to new information • fit the new information into current knowledge structure or revise the current knowledge structure, and • become aware of what they know and use their knowledge.

10. Five Basic Elements • Activating prior knowledge • Acquiring knowledge • Understanding knowledge • Using knowledge • Reflecting on knowledge

11. Will this orange sink or float? • What do you think will happen if I peel the orange? Will it still float or will it sink? • What happened? • Why do you think the unpeeled orange floats? • Why do you think the peeled orange sinks? • What properties of the peel do you think are important?

12. Why do you think? • The focus of the learning activity is the crucial “Why do you think?” questions. • “Why do you think questions lead to: • discussion that draws out students’ intuitive beliefs • forming hypotheses, and • setting students on the road of experimentation that will follow.

13. Activating Prior Knowledge • Schema Theory (Schemata) • Individuals understand what they read only as it relates what they already know. • Prior knowledge is crucial to the successful construction of meaning for all learners.

14. How can you activate prior knowledge? • Predicting the consequences of a demonstration or experiment. • Brainstorming elements of phenomenon or causes of events. • Performing actual skill, procedure or process prior to instruction. • Simply asking students what they know about the topic.

15. Activating and assessing prior knowledge Fig. 1: The K-W-L Strategy (Ogle 1986)

16. Acquiring knowledge different groups refer to members of groups refer to Families are relationships have e x a m p l e s ? provide Nuclear Extended Single-parent ? Fig. 2: Semantic Map for Families

17. Acquiring knowledge • Students encounter knowledge that fits their existing knowledge structures. • Students need to see the “big picture” (wholes) and its related parts. • Focusing on wholes (concepts and generalizations) means to identify a few major ideas and to make them the center of instruction.

18. Understanding knowledge What is it? What is it like? something frozen that you eat cold ? ? smooth strawberry peach chocolate What are some examples? Fig. 3: Concept of Definition Procedure (Word Maps) Schwartz & Raphael (1985).

19. GROUP WORK category Properties WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS IT LIKE? General concept member member Comparisons Illustrations WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES?

20. Using knowledge • Problem-solving activities that are authentic, interesting, holistic, long-term, and social.

21. Using knowledge: Semantic Feature Analysis Grid

22. Using knowledge: Venn Diagram (common properties) (properties) (properties)

23. Activities to use knowledge: • construction projects • research proposals • research papers • proposals for action • data gathering investigations • decision-making tasks • policy development, etc.

24. Reflecting on knowledge • Reflection--metacognition (understanding what one knows). • Becoming aware of strategies that lead to solutions. • Reflection results in self-control and autonomous behavior. • Reflection permits students to set goals and make plans to achieve them.

25. Activities stimulating metacognition (reflection) • journal writing • presentations • simulation or role-playing • planning or proposal writing, e.g. field trips • comparing and evaluating one’s processes with others’.

26. Formative Assessment Ongoing assessment--information through observation, questioning, viewing students’ journals, KWL charts, etc., during instruction. “Authentic” assessment--teacher assesses student knowledge based on experiences that are as realistic as possible. Summative Assessment Student journals, direct observation, questioning and by formal tests (when necessary). Student Assessment

27. Assignment due next period • Choose a concept that you would like to teach at a particular grade level. Using the theme outline handout, provide an outline of your theme in various subject areas. Explain how you will approach your social studies outline using the 5 elements of constuctivist teaching.

28. Integrated Curriculum Approach to Teaching--Theme Outline Writing Listening/Speaking Reading Science Theme Social Studies Special Activities Math Art/Music