| Constructivism and Web 2.0 |
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| Monday, 22 September 2008 05:44 | ||||
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A classroom does not become a “Web 2.0 class” by simply doing a Web 2.0 activity such as blogging, using a wiki, social bookmarking, podcasting, or media sharing. True Web 2.0 begins within the daily pedagogy of the classroom; the use of Web 2.0 tools is an outgrowth of the constructivist nature of the classroom.
Teachers who use the constructivist concept of democratic learning (“shared intelligence” in Web. 2.0) have classroom discussions in which each student contributes and learns from the other. Students do much more than just make their own point, they listen to each other, carefully consider different viewpoints, and are willing to change their viewpoint. Each student's viewpoint is respected. No student dominates the conversation. For example, social studies students discuss the pros and cons of a zoning change on their community. Likewise, the purpose of the class discussion is not to discover the teacher's one answer but to explore diverse possibilities. These discussions can take place in person or in classroom blogs. When constructivist teachers have students do research, they approach the research as an integrated whole (“network effect” in Web 2.0). They have many different research topics that come together to present a big picture for the students. An English teacher has the students explore the context of the novel, "Of Mice and Men," through the pre-reading activity of researching diverse topics such as barley, the role of women, migrants, the Depression, and Soledad. Each student's individual research contributes to the understanding of the background of the novel. Through this big picture, they can better understand the major themes in the novel. A wiki is a natural tool for bring together the students' information. Also, when constructivist teachers have students do Web 2.0 research and projects, the students can approach the learning experience from many different perspectives and groupings to represent their unique nature as learners (“Individual production” in Web 2.0). Science students can showcase their learning about animal habitats and ecology through various formats such as podcasts, digitized drawings, or iMovies.As students find resources in a constructivist classroom, they can share the information with their classmates (“sharing” in Web 2.0). The students do not keep their newfound knowledge/resources to themselves but instead make the information available to other students. They can put this information on sticky notes on the classroom bulletin or they can share their more complete online resources in social bookmarking. Through social bookmarking, the resources are available 24/7 and can be more than words. When constructivist teachers “teach”, they facilitate student learning instead of forcing student learning (“diffusion of authority” in Web 2.0). Students are seen as responsible for their own learning; they are active learners. For example, Health students can find their own relevant examples for concepts covered in class in common media sharing programs such as YouTube and Flickr. They can create their own content about ways to keep healthy in their community and post their materials to YouTube. In constructivist learning, students are engaged in authentic learning (“openness” in Web 2.0). They learn about real world events and engage in conversations with people outside of the classroom through telephones, email and videoconferencing programs such as Skype. They are not limited to the materials in their classroom or school library, nor limited to one person's ideas. A Spanish student may explore her interest in soccer with soccer players from Argentina.When the daily classroom instruction is based on constructivism, then the use of Web 2.0 tools is an natural outgrowth and not an isolated event.
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