There are two main camps of constructivism: radical constructivism and social constructivism. A comparison of both can be found in the table below, along with their key researchers.

Fig. 1. Two Camps of Constructivism. Information adapted from Kimmons, 2022.

Regardless of their differences, both camps believed in the inadequacy of behaviorism in explaining what goes on in the learning process. Moreover, compared to behaviorism, ideas from both camps originated from classroom experiences and not the sterile environment of laboratory experiments. This commonality between the two sides is seen in the progressive ideas of John Dewey. (Kimmons, 2022) 

Connections to Teaching & Learning 

Constructivism views the role of the instructor as a facilitator who helps students arrive at their own understanding of content, instead of simply explaining the material. Below are some examples on how constructivism concepts connect to teaching and learning:

• Provide opportunities for students to apply their existing knowledge to real world problems and scenarios.

• Consider limiting the size of working groups to 3 to 5 students to ensure equal active participation among all members. 

• Encourage cooperative learning in the classroom. Examples of how this can be done:
  1. Reciprocal questioning - students work together to ask and answer questions (e.g., in discussion groups)
  2. Jigsaw classroom - students become experts on one part of the project and teach about their part to the rest of the group
  3. Structured controversies - students work together to research a particular controversy 

• Motivation plays a key role in fostering active learner engagement, thus leading to effective learning. Instruction must be designed with the learner's motivation in mind. 

Constructivism's implications to ID concentrate on strategies whose purpose it is to (1) increase the individual's active role in the learning process, and (2) to increase social interaction in the learning process. The following are ways that constructivism can be applied to instructional design and online learning: 

1. Provide opportunities for online collaborative learning. 

2. Communities of practice (CoP)- building communities of learners who work together to improve skills on a common interest or goal. 

3. Strive to incorporate motivational elements using the ARCS model of motivation (Pappas, 2015)

   • Grab and sustain attention through a variety of media, active participation (e.g., in the form of games, role-play, and hands-on practice), presenting real-world examples, introducing conflict.

   • Show learners the relevance of the material by helping them to see how the material can be applied to current or future real-life problem scenarios.

   • Build a learner's confidence by clearly communicating the objectives and expected outcomes of the course, breaking these objectives down into smaller steps, and providing feedback along the way. Providing learners control over the learning method also helps to build on confidence.

   • Increase learner satisfaction through praise and rewards. Likewise provide problem-solving opportunities for them to immediately apply new learning to their current situation.

For further applications refer to the article below:
Pappas, C. (2015, May 20). Instructional Design Models and Theories: Keller’s ARCS Model of Motivation. eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/arcs-model-of-motivation  

Below are my reflections on the strengths and  weaknesses of applying constructivism to instructional design, with examples given in the context of Prekindergarten and K-12 education:

Strengths: 

•  A constructivist approach when used correctly can encourage the development of higher-order thinking skills over rote learning. Students can practice skills such as collaboration, analysis, and problem solving--which are critical skills needed in the work place.

• The concept of scaffolding and differentiation of instruction have helped affirm and support the diverse needs of students within the classroom. 

• The emphasis given to intrinsic motivation and showing students how school learning is relevant to the real world are important if we are to develop independent life-long learners. 

• Through cooperative learning, students take a more active stance in their own learning. 

Limitations:

• Students with special needs and cognitive challenges may benefit from more direct instruction rather than a constructivist approach, which tends to be less structured. In the same way, novice students who are just learning the basic concepts of a particular subject, may benefit from explicit instruction to catch up with their more expert peers. 

• More complex methods from that of standardized testing will be needed to evaluate student progress., since constructivism focuses on process and understanding and less on rote memorization. 

• Constructivist strategies such as collaborative learning, exploratory learning, and reflection require a greater time commitment, which will be challenging to implement when time is limited in the classroom. 

Overview of the Scenario

This learning scenario involves small groups of graduate students in early childhood education working together as a team to create a positive behavior support plan for a child in the early grades. 

A child with challenging behaviors in an actual prekindergarten classroom is the subject of the behavior plan. The task has real-world relevance in that students may need to do similar behavior plans when they enter into their chosen teaching career. 

Fig. 2. Joyful learning moment (Source: Stockcake.com, n.d.)

Three Skills & Knowledge Areas Within the Learner's Zone of Proximal Development

The task requires students to acquire knowledge and skills in the following three areas:

1. How to make objective observations of the child. This involves:
   a. Identifying the problem behavior
   b. Determining the antecedents of the behavior.
   c. Recording the consequences of the behavior.

2. Developing a hypothesis for the behavior--i.e., a possible explanation for the behavior's function or purpose

3. Brainstorm specific ways a teacher can: 
   a. Prevent the challenging behavior
   b. Teach an appropriate behavior to replace the inappropriate behavior
   c. Respond to both the child's appropriate and inappropriate behaviors

Scaffolding Strategies to Support Learners in Knowledge & Skill Development

1. Break down the complex task into manageable steps. Students will be provided with an overview of the purpose for and the steps involved creating a support plan. 

2. Model problem-solving. The instructor as the "More Knowledgeable Other" (MKO) can first model the process to the students, and then gradually release support to have student practice on a new scenario.
   The instructor will first show a video of the child displaying the problem behavior. After which the instructor models the process of objectively defining the problem behavior based on the shared observation of the child in the video. The instructor can provide reflective questions to highlight important elements of the observation--specifically to assist students in describing the events that led up to the behavior (i.e., antecedent) and the events the happened as a consequence of the behavior. Finally, the instructor will model the task of utilizing these observations to create a hypothesis for the problem behavior.

3. Students will collaborate in groups afterward to apply their knowledge of this process using another video of a new scenario with a different child. They will also work in groups to brainstorm actionable steps that can be taken by the classroom teacher and included in the positive behavior support plan for the child in question.  

Strategies from a Social Constructivist Approach 

1. Situated Learning. In situated learning, graduate students will pair up with a classroom teacher to tackle a real-world scenario of developing a positive behavior support plan for one student in the teacher's class who is exhibiting challenging behaviors. 

2. Cooperative Learning. In cooperative learning, the classroom teacher stands in as the expert peer who can provide guidance to the novice graduate student. Together they will discuss and come up with actionable steps to decrease the child's problem behavior. They will also engage in a process of trial-and-error as they strive to implement these steps, observe the results, and make the necessary adjustments to the behavior plan. 

Differentiating Instruction

The following are ways that instruction can be differentiated for diverse learners: 

1. Participants have the freedom to select a child in the classroom as their focus for this project. They have the freedom to develop and test out strategies to address the problem behavior. 

2. Provide a visual checklist of steps participants must go through when developing a positive behavior plan. This can also include guiding questions to focus student attention on important aspects of the task.

3. Provide a visual observation chart template where participants can keep an organized record of a child's behavior. Afterwards, they can use this same completed template to look for patterns and draw out the antecedents and consequences associated with the behavior. 

4. Provide enough time to allow meaningful observation of the target behavior.

5. Participants who continue to struggle in the task can sign up for individual consultations with the instructor on Zoom to ask questions and seek further support. 

Images

•  Joyful learning moment. AI image generated by Stockcake. https://stockcake.com/i/joyful-learning-moment_577992_310953.
  
  

Text

• Kimmons, R. (2022). Education Research Across Multiple Paradigms. https://doi.org/10.59668/133 

• Pappas, C. (2015, May 20). Instructional Design Models and Theories: Keller’s ARCS Model of Motivation. eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/arcs-model-of-motivation  

• Peck, D. (2022, June 28). The ARCS model of motivation by John Keller [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQnWcWorJjg