Constructivism of Teaching Idea and Practice
Hong Zhu, Jun-qing Wu, Hui-fang Li, Yong-qin Yuan
Institute of Corporate Governance, Taiyuan Institute of Technology, China
(hollyzu8@163.com)
Abstract - We elaborate eight points of constructivism
and develop three of them in terms of team change,
mechanism of encourage and restriction, and innovation
ability to improve the constructivism idea in teaching.
What’s more, the teaching course of Information User
Service which applies our ideas in Taiyuan Institute of
Technology class 0920931 can be regarded as a case to test its
feasibility and effect.
Keywords - Constructivism; Case analysis; Team
teaching
I. Teaching idea of Constructivism
A. Constructivism points in teaching
Teaching methods is directly related to teaching
effectiveness. Therefore, the reform of teaching methods
is a question to which has always been paid close attention
by administrations and teachers in universities. No matter
how reform of teaching methods goes, it must focus on
two key points: one is how to arouse the students’
enthusiasm participating activities in class; the other is
how to promote teaching effect. Constructivism is born to
solve these problems, and it has already been widely
applied in several majors in universities.
Constructivism educational theory developed by
Piaget, Dewey, Bruner and Vygotsky has a profound
impact to the world’s education [1]. The influence of
constructivism has flowed to fields like education,
sociology, philosophy and so on. However, in terms of its
development and popularity, it is the field of education
that constructivism has the largest influence [2].
Constructivism teaching focus on several points as
followed:
① Learning theory. Constructivism is a kind of
self-learning theory which focus on students’ initiative
inquiry, initiative discovery and initiative construction [4].
② Interchange between teachers and students class.
Constructivism centers on students [3]. The traditional
teaching mode in which students have to listen to
whatever the teacher says has upgraded to a
teacher-students interaction mode in which students can
hold the class and the teacher’s role is to guide them.
③ Teamwork. Constructivism emphasizes fostering
spirit of teamwork by teamwork learning. The team
should be small, whereas the team's structure must be
sound. The leader of a team can be regarded as an
academic leader who organize the team and guide others.
④ The reform of case-based teaching. The team’s
activities should focus on some specific themes which can
also be regarded as a case. The team can understand much
better by case study.
⑤ Class discussion. The theme is often chosen by
teachers. In this way, scientific thinking can be soundly
introduced into class. The combination of science and
teach can be achieved.
⑥Open teaching. Constructivism holds that a colorful
and open learning environment is needed to promote
students’ spirits of independence and innovation.
⑦ The teaching process is an information process.
Students construct their own knowledge from his
background knowledge, experience and external
information [6].
⑧ The reform of exams. The transformation of
teaching method has a great impact on the reform of
exams which is no longer the traditional exams, but a new
type of exams scoring students according to their
performance and speech records in class.
B. Constructivism mode of teaching
According to those teaching points, we assume that
there are two teams. Each team has only two members.
There are two scientific themes for discussion. This
constructivism mode of teaching can be described as Fig1.
II. Constructivism practice of teaching.
To apply constructivism ideas of teaching, we need to
focus on the following aspects:
①Stratified constructivism
There are different teaching targets and tasks between
undergraduate teaching and postgraduate teaching.
Therefore, the constructivism practice of teaching is
stratified. The undergraduate teaching would focus on the
skeleton. Thus teaching can be easily finished by
teamwork.
②Dynamic teamwork
Constructivism teaching should be dynamic. In every
aspect of teaching, themes can change along with the
development of teaching; team can restructure along with
the change of theme; members can return to their own
teams after the discussion.
③In the classroom. Themes
The mechanism of stimulation and restraint. Without
stimulation and restraint, each team is inclined to laziness.
Therefore, constructivism should be built on a compatible
basis of stimulation and restraint, through which teams
can be stimulated to finish learning tasks and some lazy
members can be restrained to cooperate with others.
④Fostering creativity
The ultimate goal of constructivism teaching is to
foster students' creativity through their participation in
class activities. The core of creativity is to cultivate
students’ abilities of discovering and solving problems.
Those qualities such as thinking, psychology, attitude,
trust, communication, leadership, ethics, etc. are also
included. In fact, creativity is a kind of comprehensive
quality.
Fig.1. Constructivism Teaching Model
As a conclusion, in view of undergraduate students,
we introduce dynamic teamwork, the mechanism of
stimulation and restraint and creativity fostering into the
constructivism practice of teaching (see Fig 2).
Fig.2. Based on the improvement of the teaching idea of constructivism
III. Case analysis on teaching Information user service in
Taiyuan Institute of Technology
This article takes the course of Information User
Service in class 0920931 major Information Management
and Information Systems in the first semester of the
2011-2012 academic year as a case, and concludes the
experiences and results of constructivism practice of
teaching.
A. The characteristics of the course of Information user
service
① In the view of informational decision, teaching
should be developed into advisory. Based on some
specific decisional target, decision-maker should gather,
regulate, reconstruct and analyses information to work out
one or several alternatives, according to which he can
make choices. The advisory services range from
decisional target to alternatives. Thus teaching should
change its content according to social needs [7].
② From the perspective of the user service , the
teaching should move towards innovative services. China
Social Science Information Society held in Shanghai in
2010 academic year which based on three elements of
“knowledge
•
services
•
Innovation”[8],the knowledge applies in
the service, thus causes the innovation,
the development direction of the
intelligence
is
necessarily
a
knowledge-based to provide users with
innovative services.
③From the
perspective
of
personnel training , the teaching
should move towards the applied
talents. Unlike the engineering
education of social sciences applied
talents equal attention , on the one
hand, the application of the results of
social science is a long process , on the
other hand, the social scientific talent
is relatively small, therefore , the
social sciences should be more training
applied talents. Information management and information
system itself is a practical discipline, the cultivation of
talents is facing the decision-making consultation service
innovation[9].
B. 《 Information user service 》 course teaching
needs
①The determination of research topics. A
scientific research topic selection is a
consulting service theme .According to
consulting service theme of teacher for
school[10]l , government and business, we
determine the research topics.
② Grouping. In accordance with the
voluntary combination of the principle of
grouping , each group is a learning team. Each
group in accordance with the interest to select a
research topic , as a course of study content.
C. 《 Information user service 》course Teaching practice
①Learning forms
By retrieving relevant information to complete the
speech. Each team member should tell their speech as the
keynote speaker in the classroom and other students ask
questions, keynote speaker answer. If the keynote speaker
can not answer the problem, the panel members can give
help[11].
②Learning content
The research theme is learning content. By external
stimuli in the environment , when a new topic appears, we
does not disrupt the original group and will re-screen the
students to the newly formed team of dynamic learning.
They will return to their respective team after completing
the study topic and dissolute, we call it a matrix model
teams.
③The role of the teacher
The teacher and the student role
exchange, the student leads the classroom,
the teacher coaches pupils in the middle of
the entire learning process. The teacher
plays the role of guide , the host , comment
and controls the favorable development of
the entire teaching and order. Thus, the
teacher who can play the role of good
teacher, teachers must have some
experience and quality in leadership,
management , research, teaching.
④ The encouragement and constraint
mechanism
In order to develop students to
participate in team learning enthusiasm
and creativity, we also need some incentive
and restraint mechanisms to motivate
students toward the desired direction of
teachers learning and restrict inert students
with team learning[12].
⑤Effectiveness
Under the guidance of the teacher , the
interaction between teachers and students,
students and students produced an
unexpected effect , they has completed the
scientific research subject proof and the
deliberation activity smoothly through
adjusting the research subject unceasingly
and taking advantage of the strength in
student's wisdom.
D. 《 Information user service 》
curriculum teaching experience
According to the practice of
constructivism teaching of Taiyuan
Institute of Technology 0920931 class ,the
lessons learned is as follows:
① From the student perspective, experience is to
choose a research topic in accordance with the interest on
the basis of the voluntary combination of learning team,
have a collecting, collating, processing information, to
speak in class, discussion after class and finally get
comprehensive course examination results.
② From the perspective of teacher, experience is
mainly according to the present research situation of
teachers' scientific research team ,proposing the
alternative scientific research subject, adopting motivation
and restraint accommodating mechanism, enhancing
enthusiasm of the student team study, and finally giving
full range of course examination results[14].
③Ability perspective , mainly students in accordance
with the interest to choose the research topic and cultivate
teamwork skills through team-based , mutual aid [15]; the
ability to access information through the collection,
sorting , processing information and the skill to identify
problems and solve problem through classroom to speak
and the way of discussion.
Fig.3. Taiyuan institute of industrial 0920931 class constructivism
teaching mode
E. The educational model of《 Information user service》
curriculum
According to the summary experience, this article has
constructed Taiyuan Institute of Technology 0920931
class constructivism teaching model , as shown in Fig 3.
F. The teaching feedback of《 Information user service》
curriculum
After the course, we have a survey for the students of
class of 0920931 to get the feedback information of the
students for the teaching mode of constructivism.
①Teaching activities that teachers organized.
32 students thought the difficulty of teachers teaching
increases many or increase..It shows that the majority of
students approve the reform of constructivism educational
model , the performance of teachers in teaching of
constructivism is also approved.
Table I
Taiyuan Institute of Technology class 0920931 constructivism educational
about questionnaire content
About the difficulty of the options set forth in the
research topic , one student chose the difficult, 19 students
chose the more difficult. Obviously on the basis of
difference among students' scientific research literacy ,
alternative research topics are generally biased to some
degree of difficulty , it is quite applicable to the
constructivism teaching.
About the implementation of encourage and restraint
mechanism,18 students thought that it is very essentia.
Obviously in constructs in the middle of the principle
teaching ,the drive and restraint
mechanism adopting is very
essential. At present, obviously
regarding the drive and
restraint mechanism which
adopts, the majority of students
approve, also it has quite part
of students do not satisfy with
it, analyzing the reasons, it is
possible related with that this
kind of educational model,
benefit many students occupy
proportion little, also possible
related with the mechanism
which itself adopts to wait for
the improvement
Inspects the result about
the comprehensive course
giving, the way they adopt is
the speech result, the inquiry
result, the actual effect result
synthesis. 3 students thought
are very good, 19 students
thought well. The results are
more accord with actual
situations. Generally speaking,
it receives the majority of
students to approve.
② Students participate in
teaching activities
25 students chose a will or
more
willing
to
accept
constructivism teaching mode.
It shows that only about 50%
of the students agree with
constructivism teaching mode,
there are quite a big part of the
students hold on the fence,
although not against, and also
not really sure. It is high
related with that constructivism
teaching mode reform practice
is relatively short, in addition,
increasing study difficulty also
related, 37 students thought
that the difficulty of study
increases many or increases.
However, the teachers’ attitude
to the effect is quite satisfied.
In the study team combines in the question, 23
students chose that it has related with group. Obviously,
majority of students pay more attention to the team’
concordance, but not the interest, this had certain
deviation with the constructivism according to the interest
choice subject's original intention, and finally caused the
dynamic sub-team's actual effect to be bigger than the
fixed group, because the dynamic sub-team is completely
according to the interest of the combination of the team.
In the scientific research topic selection, 12 students
are interested in it. Obviously, Students’ attention in the
application of is more than the attention on points of
interest, analyzing the reason, it is possible that as the
engineering college of Taiyuan Institute of Technology
takes more attention to application.
28 students thought that the function of the speech in
the classroom is very big or big. 31 students thought the
classroom discussion displays the function is very big or
big. 32 students thought that the function of the inquiry in
the classroom is very big or big. Obviously, regarding the
classroom speech, the discussion, the interactive link,
Students are recognized it.
③The cultivation of the innovative ability of students
27 students thought that the ability of collecting the
information enhanced. 31 students thought that the ability
of analyzing information enhanced. It indicated that the
students’ ability of information collection, reorganization,
processing, analysis has obtained the big enhancement.
23 students thought that the ability of finding the
problem got bigger rise or more. 24 students thought that
the ability of solving the problem gets bigger rise or more.
Obviously through the construction principle educational
model's reform, majority of schoolmates’ ability of finding
the problem, solving the question have the certain extent
enhancement.
23 students thought their teamwork ability has been
greatly or improved. It shows that although the team
cooperation ability has been enhanced, it also has quite a
part of students have not received good results.
31 students thought that the reform of constructivism
teaching mode is useful or more for the enhancement of
their innovation, nine students chose the general. It shows
that most students endorse teaching effectiveness of
constructivism teaching model ,at least in the innovation
ability cultivation of several issues, only two students had
a poor choice in solving problem skills.
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