Memorandum 2
Wheatley, Grayson H. (1991). Constructivist perspectives on science and mathematics learning. Science Education, 75, 9-21.
Wheatley examines constructivism as a basis for math and science instruction in schools. His two tenets of constructivism are that knowledge is actively built up by individuals, not passively received; and cognition is adaptive and serves the organization of the experiential world rather than one true reality. Students work together on problems that force them to come up with ideas for a possible solution, explain and discuss those ideas, and then reflect on how those ideas fit in with their knowledge up to that point. The class eventually reaches some consensus on the problem and solutions. Communication is the process through which we give meaning to something, so the social aspect of learning is vital. Wheatley contends that instead of the behaviorist view of learning prevalent in the schools, where only skills are identified as important, there needs to be a shift towards creating environments where children construct math and science by sharing their ideas with peers, including the teacher, and talk math and science with each other.
Implementing problem centered learning would require reorganization of the curriculum into fewer, broader topics, plus a reconstruction of most educators’ schemes of knowledge, as well as assessment models. Besides the changes in teacher roles in a classroom, from the “giver of knowledge” to a nonjudgmental facilitator who helps empower the students to learn for its own sake, a great deal of time would have to be dedicated to developing meaningful problems and activities that build upon students’ knowledge and also challenge them.
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Your article brings up another point- at which point can you begin constructivist techniques? If the class does not have the same basic understanding in math and science, how can they begin a dialog together. Peer learning aside- are their times where we need to disseminate vs. facilitate?
Isn't Wheatly, in advocating project-centered work saying that if you enter the classroom with a Constructivist mindset (or with your constructivist light on), it seems that you create a context for learning where learners grapple with problems, and make sense of the world, or at least the little part of the world with which they are engaged. The issues of people being in different places will be addressed in two ways: 1) activity is structured to allow for a variety of entry points; and 2) by design, people in the group are not different enough that dialogue is impossible.
No?
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