Constructivism
Construct Knowledge!
When we ask kids if they are ready to go back to school we often get this daunting and dual response back. Why are kids uninterested in going to school? They automatically know that they are going to school to learn something and they assume learning is boring or sometimes difficult. It upsets me when I hear that students think school is boring or difficult. Who's fault is that? We could argue that it's the students' fault for not putting effort into their education, but I would contend that teachers hold the responsibility of creating engaging, innovative and motivating lessons. Possibly we need to put forth more effort into their education. Teachers are wonderful and I know they do in fact put in much time and effort into their classrooms. As an upcoming student teacher I am beginning to see just how much work this is! It is not an easy task. Yet still I am challenged in my classes to add variety to my lessons and think about how I can create lessons that develop 21st century skills in my students. I am convinced that I need to create different teaching strategies and activities that get my students out from behind their desks, engaged in their learning and help them to construct their own knowledge.
Problem based learning is an opportunity to encourage this higher level of thinking in your classroom. From the reading this week I was able to pick out a description of constructivism that ties in well with problem based learning. It said "The philosophy of constructivism is that students construct knowledge from personal experiences, rather than passively absorbing information presented by teachers and others." This immediately makes me think of experiential learning. Learn by actually experiencing it! One of Dewey's philosophies was that "learning from experience helps people solve future problems." I feel as though this should be a huge part of my goals for my students. I want students to be involved in learning experiences where they will gain the necessary skills to allow them to solve problems in the future or make positive decisions.
Of course we all know that implementing a teaching strategy like problem based learning is not something we can just throw together last minute. There are multiple steps involved in problem based learning we need consider each step and how we might facilitate them as the teacher. It's important on our part to design appropriate learning experiences that allow students to be successful. This doesn't necessarily mean that students reach positive outcomes. They can find negative results and still gain a positive learning experience from it. What is important that a problem is clearly identified to them and they understand the steps needed to reach a solution(s).
Are problems really problems? In problem based learning, no! In fact problems are key to problem based learning. This type of learning allows students to work through a problem and come up with probable solutions. Students gain skills that will allow them to work through problems in the future too! This type of learning is important to Ag education and can easily be incorporated into our lessons because it is applicable to our content; however, in order to be effective we must make sure we as teachers are creating appropriate scenarios that allow students to gain these needed skills.
Additional Resources on PBL:
I found this really neat organization that focuses on helping teachers prepare students for successful lives through problem based learning. How awesome! It's called the Buck Institute for Education (BIE). Bellow is a video they put on YouTube about PBL, but I would also encourage you to check out their website for awesome resources and materials you can use in your classroom!
Link to website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMCZvGesRz8#t=23
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