My Classroom

Management Plan

The following classroom management plan details every aspect of my philosophy, rules, and
expectations for my class. My outline about classroom management is drawn up using the
concept of building your plan on compass points. So the four main directions: Philosophy, Rules
and Routines, Behavior Management and Ideas.

Philosophy on Classroom Management

I believe every student should feel welcomed and respected in the learning environment
and deserves an equal opportunity to learn. When students are learning they are stepping outside
of their comfort zone, so it is essential to provide a safe and positive environment with a teacher
who is supportive, helpful, and enthusiastic. I will incorporate inquiry-based learning and
learning by doing into my teaching because I feel these methods engage students and help them
construct their own knowledge. Higher-level tasks and activities are much more memorable and
enjoyable for students and should be incorporated daily in the classroom.
Rules and procedures for the classroom will be established with students (Marzano). I
will utilize various effective classroom management strategies and be consistent with all rules
and procedures. I carry such a great passion for teaching, helping others, and making a
difference; therefore, I will be enthusiastic and positive when teaching.
As a teacher, it is my goal to provide a safe learning environment for each and every
student. I aspire for students to view my class as a stress-free place to learn. I do not want
students coming to my class worrying about grades or tests; I want them to come ready, willing,
and enthusiastic to learn. Every student is unique and learns in his or her own way; I will
differentiate every lesson to address the diverse types of learners that are present in my class.

It is crucial for a teacher to be passionate, knowledgeable, and prepared for what they
are teaching. This can make the difference of having students engaged or not (Westwood).
Effective learning requires effective relationships with colleagues, students, and parents.
Respect and trust are two main components of an effective relationship. I will work
collaboratively with colleagues by sharing resources and ideas to ensure better instruction
practices. Second, students need to feel like they matter. They should feel welcomed and
accepted in the classroom. Simple but effective gestures (i.e. greeting students) can make a
students day and make a student feel special (Albert).
By showing students I care about their learning, they will be more encouraged to
participate in the learning. Having a professional and respectful relationship with parents is also
imperative. Most parents want what is best for their children and will work with the teacher to
ensure their child is behaving, learning, and achieving.

Classroom Rules
Rules set the climate of the classroom. They ensure that the class is civil and responsible for
their own actions. The following are the rules of my classroom.
Follow directions.
Listen when others are talking.
Keep hands, feet, and objects to yourself.
Work quietly and do not disturb others.
Show respect for school and personal property.
No cheating (this include plagiarism).
Work and play in a safe manner.
If any student misses class, they are responsible for getting their assignments.
Follow dress code policy.
Always come on time and prepared.
Most of all always keep your teacher happy!

Rule Consequences
The above list represents the rules that I expect all of my students to follow. The first time
any of these rules are broken, there will be a warning. The second time a rule is broken; I will
have a personal meeting with the student before or after class. The third time a student breaks the
same rule, I will involve outside parties, such as the principal, counselors, and possibly the
students parents.

Routines and Procedures

Procedures give an understanding to the student of how they are expected to go through
the routines of a day. They allow for order in the classroom, and ensure that everything is done in
the proper manner. After teaching the students the procedures during the first few weeks of
school, they become a natural routine, where reinforcement is used only when necessary.
The following are the routines and procedures of my classroom.
Students are quiet and in their seat when the bell rings: This allows me to get started right
away. It also allows for a signal stating that it is my turn to talk.
When the bell rings, the students will take out any homework from the night before: This
saves time on asking the students to do this every day. They know that as soon as the bell rings I
will start looking/collecting the assignment(s). The assignment is considered late if not out or
handed in at the appropriate time.
Seating: Students are not to leave their seats unless they notify me first by raising their hand
and asking (e.g. getting tissue, bathroom use, or sharpening a pencil).
Lecture: During lectures, students will have their notebooks open and be to ready to take
notes.
Group work: The students are told how to place the desks before and after each session. As a
class, we practice the routine until they understand what is expected.

 Classroom jobs: The students will be given a certain job on keeping the classroom clean and
well ordered. The students will be groups into five and each group will be assign as cleaners in
each day of the week.
Bathroom: Unless its an emergency, it is made clear not to ask until independent/group work
time. If students abuse the privilege, I just stop letting them go.
Locker use: No student can go to their locker to get something they forgot without getting
marked down for a tardy.
Dismissal: The students do not leave their seats until I dismiss them. This is to ensure that I
finish explaining anything that is important for them to hear.
Finishing work early: If students finish work early they have the opportunity to work on
other work, or on the monthly extra credit problem.
Grading: For every assignment I collect, I try my hardest under every circumstance to return
them back to the students within two days. For tests and quizzes my goal is to return them the
next day. Without prompt feedback, education is not as effective.

Room Arrangement

My classroom will be a place where students feel safe. The classroom rules, designed to
assure safety, will be prominently visible in the room. By decorating the classroom with students
work, the room will be welcoming to the students, and will make them feel more at home. I
believe this is important, because it is easier to learn in an environment where you feel safe and
comfortable. Various English materials that further decorate the room will expose students to
English concepts that they will encounter in class. Below I discuss the different components of
my classroom in more detail:
General classroom arrangement:

My desk will be in the back of the classroom. I will only use the desk for administrative
duties, but never during teaching. During teaching, I will either be standing at the black
board or circulating about the classroom. I believe it is important to be close to the
students and to be up and about at all times, not only to discourage unwanted behavior,

but also to show the students that class time is for class business. We have a lot to do this
year, and there is no time to waste - our lessons are the most important thing!

Desk arrangement: I enjoy having the classroom set up in groups or rows of two or four.
I find students work best in these arrangements. Groups of four are best for group work
or projects and groups of two are more efficient for regular instruction, pairing up, and
doing class work. When there is independent work, the students are separate; when its
time for group work the desks get rearranged to adapt to those situations. In the end, the
students are engaged in many different circumstances of learning.

In the back of the classroom are bookshelves and drawers. Students can put their books
and things at the back. They can get their things before and after each respective subject
class. This puts the responsibility for getting missed materials with the students.

Remaining room items: all items are placed where it makes sense to the teaching
environment, and where it works for me.

For the walls:

Clearly posted classroom rules & consequences. Having the rules in clear view should
make the students feel more secure, since they can always see what is expected of them.
(Just as a driver feels more secure when speed limits are clearly posted.) It also can be
useful to point to a specific rule when a student breaks it.

A board where students can post their achievements, whether it be a good test result, or
some great result in an extracurricular activity. The students decide what they want to
post here. It should create a feeling of ownership and a way to create a stronger group,
where students are proud of each others accomplishments.

Word Walls on which (difficult) words we encounter in class will be posted. Whenever
there is English words that are new, this meaning will be emphasized as well. Students
will be tested on these words and on their meaning in and out of English (and the relation
between the two).

Posters and pictures of interesting and relevant english concepts or persons. These posters
are intended to pique students interest. Examples are:
A poster of the figures of speech, which emphasizes the role english plays in
nature and is generally found intriguing by students.
A poster containing a short biography of a famous English writers who can be
seen as a role model by the students; for example - William Shakespeare

Behavior Management
One of our primary responsibilities as teachers is to help our students learn. It is difficult
for learning to take place in chaotic environments. Subsequently, we are challenged daily to
create and maintain a positive, productive classroom atmosphere conducive to learning. On any
given day, this can be quite a challenge. In our attempts to face this challenge, we find ourselves
making common classroom behavior management mistakes. Teachers, students, parents, and
other professionals can be effective partners in behavior management.
Resolving Behavioral Incidents
Teachers and administrators are often called upon to resolve behavioral
incidents involving students who are alcohol-affected. The following suggestions may
be useful to reduce the escalation of behavioral incidents.
Review the incident as soon as possible. Try to deal with the incident as quickly as
possible once the student has calmed down.
Actively listen. Take time for the student to tell you his or her side of the story.
Paraphrase and use eye contact to demonstrate that you are listening. Note that students
who are alcohol-affected may shut down when confronted by an authority figure.
Sometimes, a walk around the school with the student can help him or her to relax and
begin talking. The teacher or administrator may encourage the student to draw his or her
story.
Use non-threatening questions. Ask questions that focus on how and what instead of
why. Students who are alcohol-affected may not remember, understand, or be able to
articulate what happened, or may have acted impulsively. Open-ended questions may be
most useful. Questions should be asked in a calm, quiet tone using slow, short, concise
phrases. A simple problem- solving procedure using graphics or pictures may be helpful
(see p. 5.23).
Try not to blame. Focus on teaching the right behaviour or a replacement behaviour. For
example, ask How can we avoid this problem the next time? or What behaviour would
have worked better than hitting? Consider using role- play, modeling, and rehearsing to
teach a new behaviour. Present new ideas in a concrete way, one at a time. Remember that
ideas may need to be reinforced and re-taught several times.
Show personal interest in the student. End the review of the incident with a positive
comment or a personal question. Follow up with the student and other classroom teachers
in order to reinforce the new skill that is desired.

Special Consequences
Most schools have developed a code of conduct that addresses student behavior. Often
these codes of conduct outline the consequences of particular behaviors (e.g., a suspension for
hitting or fighting). However, students who are alcohol-affected may need consequences to be
modified in order to meet their needs. Consider the following suggestions when handling
exceptions to the code of conduct:

The students support team should discuss with the administration and staff exceptions
that might be required. The communication of special circumstances can prevent issues
from arising at a later time.

An Individual Education Plan documents the plan to address the behavioral difficulties
that have been addressed by the planning team.

Suspension and expulsion for students who are alcohol- affected should be limited to
exceptional circumstances.

Ideas

I am continually learning new teaching techniques and approaches through the my Master
degree Program at Laguna Northwestern College. The insight the Education Program is giving
me toward teaching is allowing me to learn and grow beyond my expectations. My first years of
teaching opened my eyes to the reality of teaching and gave me the opportunity to apply my
newly acquired knowledge of classroom management. I am hopeful to further develop these
skills during my next ten years of teaching. I look forward to teaching and differentiating high
school level English and establishing new relationships with students, staff, and parents. Above
all, I am excited to learn more about being an effective teacher.

Educational Theories for the Implementation

Of the K-12 Educational System

Education Theory
Educational theory can refer to either speculative educational thought in general or to a
theory of education as something that guides, explains, or describes educational practice.
In terms of speculative thought, its history began with classical Greek philosophers and
sophists, and today it is a term for reflective theorizing about pedagogy, andragogy, curriculum,
learning, and education policy, organization and leadership. Educational thought is informed by
various strands of history, philosophy, sociology, critical theory, and psychology, among other
disciplines.
On the other hand, a theory of education can be "normative (or prescriptive) as in
philosophy, or descriptive as in science." In the first case, a theory means a postulation about
what ought to be. It provides the "goals, norms, and standards for conducting the process of
education." In the second case, it means "an hypothesis or set of hypotheses that have been
verified by observation and experiment." Whereas a normative educational theory provided by a
philosopher might offer goals of education, descriptive "theory provides concrete data that will
help realize more effectively the goals suggested by the philosopher."
A descriptive theory of education can be thought of as a conceptual scheme that ties
together various "otherwise discrete particulars. For example, a cultural theory of education
shows how the concept of culture can be used to organize and unify the variety of facts about
how and what people learn." Likewise, for example, there is the behaviorist theory of education
that comes from educational psychology and the functionalist theory of education that comes
from sociology of education.

In general, there are currently three main ways in which the term "theory" is used in
education:

the obverse of practice--theorizing is thinking and reflecting as opposed to doing;

a generalizing or explanatory model of some kind, e.g., a specific learning theory like
constructivism;

a body of knowledge--these may or may not be associated with particular explanatory

models. To theorize is to develop these bodies of knowledge.

Learning Theory

Learning is one of the most important activities in which humans engage. It is at the very
core of the educational process, although most of what people learn occurs outside of school. For
thousands of years, philosophers and psychologists have sought to understand the nature of
learning, how it occurs, and how one person can influence the learning of another person through
teaching and similar endeavors.
Various theories of learning have been suggested, and these theories differ for a variety of
reasons. A theory, most simply, is a combination of different factors or variables woven together
in an effort to explain whatever the theory is about. In general, theories based on scientific
evidence are considered more valid than theories based on opinion or personal experience. In any
case, it is wise to be cautious when comparing the appropriateness of different theories.

Concepts on Learning

Understanding any theory requires a clear idea of what the theory is trying to explain.
When a particular word is used, people usually assume everyone has a common understanding of
what the word means. Unfortunately, such is not always the case. In trying to understand the
various theories of learning and their implications for education, it is helpful to realize that the
term learning means different things to different people and is used somewhat differently in
different theories.
As theories of learning evolved over the past half-century, definitions of learning shifted
from changes that occur in the mind or behavior of an individual to changes in participation in
ongoing activities with other individuals to changes in a person's identity within a group (e.g., a
change from being a follower to being a leader). Although, most definitions of learning involve a
change in an individual's knowledge, ability to perform a skill, or participate in an activity with
other individuals, there is considerable variation among the theories about the nature of this
change.
Further difficulty in understanding similarities and differences among various theories
results from the frequently overlooked fact that there are different types of learning. In many
cases, the various theories are relevant to different types of learning and are not necessarily
incompatible with one another. Rather, they provide different perspectives on the complex
phenomena of learning and complement one another in their ability to explain different types of
learning situations. Thus, radically different theories are relevant to the classroom by addressing
different aspects of classroom learning, and it is wise to avoid comparing apples with oranges.
Examples of different types of learning are presented later in this entry.

EVOLVING THEORIES OF LEARNING

The modern psychological study of learning can be dated from the work of Hermann
Ebbinghaus (18501909), whose well-known study of memory was published in 1885. Other
early studies of learning were by Edward L. Thorndike (18741949), whose dissertation on
problem solving was published in 1898, and Ivan Pavlov (1849 1936), whose research on
classical conditioning was begun in 1899 but first published in English in 1927.
These theories focused on explaining the behavior of individuals and became known as
behavioral theories. These theories use a stimulus-response framework to explain learning and
dominated psychology and education for over half a century. Because behavioral theories focus
on environmental factors such as reinforcement, feedback, and practice, they conceptualize
learning as something that occurs from the outside in.
Behavioral theories provide very good explanations for certain kinds of learning but poor
explanations for other types of learning. Operant conditioning, for example, is better than other
theories at explaining the rote acquisition of information, the learning of physical and mental
skills, and the development of behaviors conducive to a productive classroom (i.e., classroom
management). In these situations, the focus is on performing behavioral tasks rather than
developing a learner's cognitive structure or understanding. Although classical conditioning
frequently is dismissed as irrelevant to human learning (Pavlov's initial research paradigm

involved dogs salivating), this type of learning provides by far the best explanation of how and
why people, including students, respond emotionally to a wide variety of stimuli and situations.
The many types of emotional reactions acquired through classical conditioning include:
anger toward or hatred for a particular person or group, phobias to a particular subject area or to
school itself, and infatuation with another person. However, they are very poor at explaining how
individuals come to understand complex ideas and phenomena.

But environmental factors are not the only ones that influence learning. Serious
consideration of other perspectives began to enter mainstream psychological thinking about
learning during the 1960s. For example, people clearly learn by observing others, and a learner's
belief about his or her ability to perform a task (i.e., self-efficacy) plays an important role in their
learning. In 1963 Albert Bandura and R. H. Walters published the first formal statement of
social-learning theory in their book, Social Learning and Personality Development. Sociallearning theory has clear roots in behavioral theory but differs from these theories in significant
ways.
During the 1980s the theory became known as social-cognitive theory. Although
essentially the same theory, the new name more accurately reflects the cognitive features of the
theory and aids in differentiating it from behavioral theories of learning.
During the 1970s and 1980s conceptions and definitions of learning began to change
dramatically. Behavioral theories gave way to cognitive theories that focused on mental activities
and the understanding of complex material. An information-processing metaphor replaced the
stimulus-response framework of behavioral theories.
These theories emphasized that learning occurred from the inside out rather than from the
outside in. During the late 1970s John Flavell and Ann Brown each began to study metacognition
the learners' awareness of their own learning, an ability to reflect on their own thinking, and
the capacity to monitor and manage their learning. During the mid 1980s the study of selfregulated learning began to emerge (see Zimmerman & Schunk, 2001).

Then, especially during the later 1980s and the 1990s, these cognitive theories were
challenged by theories that emphasized the importance of social interactions and the
sociocultural context of learning. The work of the Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896
1934) first became available in North America and along with the work of anthropologists such
as Jean Lave began to have a major influence on theories of learning. Individuals were seen as
initially participating in peripheral activities of a group (known as legitimate peripheral
participation)before becoming fully integrated into group activities. Apprenticeship became a
metaphor for the way people learn in natural settings. The notion that people learn by observing
others, first articulated in social-cognitive theory, was expanded in a new context.
Traditionally, learning has been viewed as something that occurs within an individual.
Individuals may participate and learn in groups, but it is the individual person that learns. With
few exceptions, the educational systems in Europe and North America have adopted this
perspective, if not entirely with regard to instructional practices, certainly in the evaluation of
student performance and the assignment of grades.
Many psychologists and educators currently consider learning to be a phenomenon that is
distributed among several individuals and/or environmental affordances (such as calculators,
computers, and textbooks) or situated (existing or occurring) within a community of practice
(or community of learners). Both a social and a material dimension are involved in this
distribution (Pea, 1993). For example, a student may use a calculator to help learn how to solve a
three-digit multiplication problem (the material dimension) and/or work with another student to
understand the proper procedures to follow (the social dimension). In either case, the student is
not learning totally on his or her own but is taking advantages of resources (affordances)
available in the environment. If the student is not able to solve a subsequent problem without the
aid of the calculator or another student, then it is possible to see the distributed nature of
learning. In such situations, participation or activity rather than acquisition becomes the defining
metaphor (Greeno, 2006).
The evolution from behavioral to social to distributed to situated theories of learning was
accompanied by new conceptions of knowledge (for a good discussion of these changes, see
Schraw, 2006). Traditional theories conceive of knowledge as a commodity capable of being

transmitted, more or less intact, from one individual to another. According to these theories,
knowledge is something an individual acquires; when a student successfully learns it, he or she
can reproduce the knowledge in its original form.
In contrast, more recent theories conceive of knowledge as something each learner
constructs or creates afresh rather than something that is assimilated in its preexisting form.
According to current theories, truly objective knowledge does not exist, although something
similar exists in the form of collective knowledge within a particular culture or discipline.

Knowledge resides in the community of learners (individuals) that creates it and is

distributed among members of the community and the various environmental affordances
available to the group. Because each person constructs his or her own understandings, the
knowledge they acquire is unique.
Communities and cultures are composed of individuals with common understandings,
and these groups provide opportunities for new members (e.g., children) to construct similar
knowledge of the world through schools and/or a variety of informal activities.
The 1990s were dubbed The Decade of the Brain, and huge advances were made in
neuroscience and how the brain relates to human behavior and learning. The study of how the
brain relates to learning is in its infancy (for an introduction to some of the issue, see Bransford
et al., 2006). An understanding of how the neurophysiology of the brain affects learning and
cognition will add greatly to our understanding of human learning and have a large influence on
future theories of learning.
Nevertheless, a psychological component to these theories will remain critical for
learning in educational settings.
Education as it is presently understood is based on psychological processes and
interactions capable of being influenced by instruction, and it seems likely that psychological
interventions will continue to be important for the foreseeable future.

Educational Theories and Its Implications

In the K-12 educational System

Implications of Pragmatism
In Educational System
One of the most important schools of philosophy of education is pragmatism. Pragmatism
stands between idealism and materialism a sort of compromise. Its origin can be traced from the
Sophists philosophers of ancient Greece who held that man is the measure of all things.
The term pragmatism derives its origin from a Greek word meaning to do, to make, to
accomplish. So the use of words likes action or practice or activity. Action gets priority over

thought. Experience is at the centre of the universe. Everyone is tested on the touch-stone of
experience. Beliefs and ideas are true if they are workable and profitable otherwise false.
Will Durant sums up pragmatism as the doctrine that truth is the practical efficiency of an
idea. It follows there from that pragmatism is not a philosophy but a methodthe method of
experimentation. As a basis for school practice pragmatism opposes pre-determined and preordained objectives and curriculums. The past of the pragmatist is dead.
Values are instrumental only. There are no final or fixed values. They are evolved and are not
true for all times and for all situations. According to an undeviating standard of worth,
pragmatism tends to be individualistic, selfish; has no values; has no ethics and is thus
superficial.
FORMS OF PRAGMATISM

1. HUMANISTIC PRAGMATISMThis type of pragmatism is particularly found in social sciences. According to it the satisfaction
of human nature is the criterion of utility. In philosophy, in religion and even in science man is
the aim of all thinking and everything else is a means to achieve human
satisfaction.
2. EXPERIMENTAL PRAGMATISMModern science is based upon experimental method. The fact that can be ascertained by
experiment is true. No truth is final, truth is known only to the extent it is useful in practice. The
pragmatists use this criterion of truth in every field of life. The human problems can be solved
only through experiment.
3. NOMINALISTIC PRAGMATISMWhen we make any experiment we attend to the result. Our aim is examination of the material.
Some hypothesis about the results invariably precedes every experiment. According to

nominalistic pragmatism, the results of an experiment are always particular and concrete, never
general and abstract.
4. BIOLOGICALPRAGMATISMExperimentalism of John Dewey is based upon this biological pragmatism according to which
the ultimate aim of all knowledge is harmony of the man with the environment. Education
develops social skill which facilitates ones life. The school is a miniature society which prepares
the child for future life.

PRINCIPLES OF PRAGMATISM

1. PLURALISMPhilosophically, the pragmatists are pluralists. According to them there are as many words as
human beings. The ultimate reality is not one but many. Everyone searches truth and aim of life
according to his experiences.
2. EMPHASIS ON CHANGEThe pragmatists emphasize change. The world is a process, a constant flux. Truth is always in the
making. The world is ever progressing and evolving. Therefore, everything here is changing.
3. UTILITARIANISMPragmatists are utility is the test of all truth and reality. A useful principle is true. Utility means
fulfillment of human purposes. The results decide the good and evil of anything, idea, beliefs and
acts. Utility means satisfaction of human needs.
4. CHANGING AIM AND VALUES-

The aim and values of life change in different times and climes. The old aims and values,
therefore, cannot be accepted as they are. Human life and the world is a laboratory in which the
aims and values are developed.
5. INDIVIDUALISMPragmatists are individualists. They put maximum premium upon freedom in human life. Liberty
goes with equality and fraternity. Everyone should adjust to his environment.
6. EMPHASIS ON SOCIAL ASPECTSSince man is a social animal therefore, he develops in social circumstances. His success is
success in society. The aim of education is to make him successful by developing his social
personality.
7. EXPERIMENTALISMPragmatists are experimentalists. They give more importance to action than ideas. Activity is the
means to attain the end of knowledge. Therefore, one should learn by doing constant
experimentation which is required in every field of life.

PRAGMATISM AND
EDUCATIVE PROCESS

Activity lies at the centre of all educative process. The basis of all teaching is the activity
of the child, says Foster. Every continuous- experience or activity is educative and all education,
is fact, resides in having such experience. But continuous growth in experience is not the whole
education. Education is something more.
It is a constant reorganizing or reconstructing of experience. Pragmatism approaches the
problems of education from the progressivits view point progress implies change. Change

further implies novelty, so education cannot be conceived of as acquired once for all. Problem
solving is at the core of all education. The educative process thus becomes empirical,
experimental, and piecemeal: in a word pragmatic.

EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS
1. EDUCATION AS LIFEPragmatists firmly believe that old and traditional education is dead and lifeless. Education is a
continuous re-organizing, reconstructing and integrating the experience and activities of race.
They want to conserve the worthwhile culture of the past, think out the solutions to meet the new
situations and then integrate the two. Real knowledge can be gained only be activity, experiments
and real life experiences.
2. EDUCATION AS GROWTHThus education will be useful if it brings about the growth and development of the individual as
well as the society in which he lives. Education is meant for the child and child is not meant for
education and child is not empty bottle to be filled up by outside knowledge. Each child is born
with inherent capacities, tendencies and aptitudes which are drawn out and developed by
education. One of the aims of education is to develop all the inherent capacities of the child to
the fullest extent.
3. EDUCATION AS A SOCIAL PROCESS-

To pragmatism, man is a social being. He gains more and more knowledge through personal
experiences than he gets from books. According to pragmatism, the education of the child should
be through the medium of society so that develops in him socially desirable qualities which
promote his welfare and happiness. John Dewey rightly speaks out Education is the social
continuity of life.
4. EDUCATION A CONTINUOUS RESTRUCTURING OF EXPERIENCEEducation is a process of development. Knowledge is gained by experiences and experiments,
conducted by the learner himself. One exercise leads to another and so on and the area of
knowledge is widened by the child. The process of reconstruction of experience goes on and
leads to adjustment and development of personality. For pragmatists educational process has no
end beyond itself. In addition to the individual it is continuous reorganizing restructuring and
integrating the experience and activities of the race.
5. EDUCATION THE RESPONSIBILITY OF STATEEducation is the birth right of each individual and may not be within the right of the individual,
so the state should shoulder the responsibility. The refusal of the state to do so may not lead the
nation to suffering. It is for the state to make the child capable and confident to meet the
problems and challenges of life successfully.

AIMS AND PRAGMATISM

Pragmatists do not believe in any pre-conceived aims of education. Aims cannot be

conceived of as final, fixed and immutable. Aims arise out of the ongoing experience and should
lie wholly within the childs experience.
Living as we do, in a changing world with an uncertain and shifting future, human
experience is prone to change. And so the need to reshape our aims to meet the needs of such a
dynamic environment as ours has become where the invention of every machine means a new
social revolution. So it has been said that education has no aims.

Continuing education , says a UNESCO booklet, has become a necessity in almost

every field of life from housekeeping to atomics. Education is a lifelong process and not as
something to discipline the recalcitrant person in to conformity with the pre-existing truth. The
pupil should be able to, as they say, thing through the problems.
Education for Dewey is a process of individual growth and development. But growth
itself, says Brubacher has no end beyond further growth. In other words, he goes on to say
education is its own end. Education means more education.

PRAGMATISM AND CURRICULUM

In the field of curriculum development, the following principles have been prescribed by
pragmatists.
1. PRINCIPLE OF UTILITYAccording to this principle, only those subjects, activities and experiences should be included in
the curriculum which are useful to the present needs of the child and also meet the future
expectations of adult life as well. As such Language, physical well-being, physical training,
Geography, History, Science, Agriculture and Home science for girls should be included in the
curriculum.
2. PRINCIPLE OF INTERESTAccording to this principle, only those activities and experiences where in the child takes interest
should be included in the curriculum. According to John Dewey these interests are of four
varieties namely- (1) interest in conversation, (2) interest in investigation, (3) interest in
construction and (4) interest in creative expression. Keeping these varieties of interests in view,
at the primary stage, the curriculum should included Reading, Writing, Counting, Art, Craftwork, Natural science and other practical work of simple nature.

3. PRINCIPLE OF EXPERIENCEThe third principle of pragmatic curriculum is the childs activity, vocation and experience. All
these three should be closely integrated. The curriculum should consist of such varieties of
learning experiences which promote original thinking and freedom to develop social and
purposeful attitudes.
4. PRINCIPLE OF INTEGRATIONPragmatic curriculum deals with the integration of subjects and activities. According to
pragmatism knowledge is one unit. Pragmatists want to construct flexible, dynamic and
integrated curriculum which aids the developing child and the changing society more and more
as the needs, demands and situation require.
PRAGMATISM AND METHODS OF TEACHING
The whole emphasis of method of teaching in pragmatism is on child, not the book, or
the teacher or the subject. The dominant interest of the child is to do and to make. The method
should be flexible and dynamic. It must be adaptable and modifiable to suit the nature of the
subject matter and potentiality of the students.
The pragmatists curriculum provides for creative and purposeful activities in the
teaching- learning process. Pragmatists regard school is a miniature of society where child gets
real experiences to act and behave according to his interests, aptitudes and capacities.
Project method is a contribution of pragmatist philosophy in education. According to
Kilpatrick a project is a whole hearted purposeful activity carried out in a social environment.
The child learns by doing says John Dewey. All learning must come as a product of action.
Learning by doing makes a person creative, confident and co-operative. They also emphasize the
discovery and enquiry methods. The method like problem solving, play-way, experimental and
laboratory techniques which follow the principle of learning by doing can be used according to
pragmatic view.

TEACHER

Pragmatism regards teacher as a helper, guide and philosopher. The chief function of
pragmatic teacher is to suggest problems to his pupils and to stimulate them to find by
themselves, the solutions, which will work. The teacher must provide opportunities for the
natural development of innate qualities of children. His main task is to suggest problems to his
pupils and to guide them to find out solutions.

DISCIPLINE
To utilize the interest of the pupil is the basis of discipline here. The teacher and pupils
attack a problem jointly. Teachers role is that of a guide and a director; it is the pupil who acts,
learning this becomes a cooperative venture- a joint enterprise. Pursuit of common purposes
enforces it own order. Education becomes a social process of sharing between the members of
the various groups and all are equal partners in the process. That is no rewards also there are no
placing for the martinet so any punishments. The discipline proceeds from the life of the school
as a whole.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF PRAGMATISM TO EDUCATION

Pragmatism provides definite aims of education. The student is prepared to live in

society and learn skills and attitudes. Which are required of him to live as a useful member of
society?

The teaching methods are based on learning by doing. The project method is the

contribution of pragmatism to modern education.

Pragmatism encourages a democratic way of learning

through

purposeful

Utility in the educative process is the first criterion. The school is expected to

and

cooperative

provide learning and experiences that are useful.

projects and activities.

Education is not bound to tradition. Pragmatic philosophers advise us to test

everything through our own experience.

The teacher has to play a very challenging role in the educative process under

pragmatism and he has to be very alert and watchful.

DEMERITS OF PRAGMATISM

1. OPPOSITION TO ETERNAL TRUTHS

Pragmatism is opposed to pre-determined truth. According to it, truth changes according to a
change in circumstances, times and places and is created by the consequences of our actions and
experiences. Pragmatists hold that if the results of an activity are satisfying, then it is true
otherwise not.
2. OPPOSITION OF PRE-DETERMINED IDEAS AND VALUESThis emphasizes that ideals and values are man-made and change according to changes in
circumstances, times and places. But all noble things have entered into this human world by the
efforts of those great persons who were inspired by the great ideals namely- truth, beauty and
goodness.
3. NO PRE-DETERMINED AIMS OF EDUCATION
There are no set and pre determined aims of education as well. In the absence of definite aims of
education, all educational plans and efforts may go astray and achieve nothing.
4. NEGATIONS OF SPIRITUAL VALUES-

Pragmatists deny the existence of spiritual values. Negligence of spiritual value is a great
blunder. Without developing spiritual values achieving human welfare, peace and satisfaction is
simply to cry for the moon.
5. OPPOSITION OF INTELLECTUALITYPragmatists believe that a mans intelligence is subservient to his innate tendencies. This makes
him only an animal.

6. NEGATION OF POST
Agmatists, emphasizing only the present and future, and neglects the past. Without the
knowledge of past one cannot understand the present and without knowing the present
thoroughly nothing can be predicted for the future.
7. DIFFICULTY IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF CURRICULUM
Pragmatism emphasize that all knowledge is to be gained from experiences of life. Selecting a
project and construction of curriculum to gain all knowledge from life experiences is very
difficult.
8. PRAGMATISM IS A METHOD ONLY
Unlike other philosophical doctrines, pragmatism does not lay down any aims, ideals and values
of life to be pursued by human beings. Hence, pragmatism cannot be termed as a philosophy of
life.

MERITS OF PRAGMATISM
1. CONSTRUCTION OF PROJECT METHOD

In the field of methods of teaching, pragmatism has given birth to project method. This method, a
child indulging in various creative activities, is able to solve many problems which cater to his
natural progress and development.
2. IMPORTANCE OF CHILDOpposing bookish knowledge and formal education, pragmatism lays great stress upon the
development of childs individuality by his own efforts.
3. EMPHASIS ON ACTIVITY
Pragmatism emphasizes upon activity. The principle of learning by doing is the main
contribution of pragmatism
4. FAITH IN APPLIED LIFEPragmatism emphasizes the practical life of child. Pragmatic education prepares the child for
future life in a very effective manner.
5. SOCIAL AND DEMOCRATIC EDUCATIONPragmatism develops in the child love for democratic values and social efficiency which bring
harmonious adjustment and development of personality.
6. INFUSION OF NEW LIFE IN EDUCATIONPragmatism has revolutionized the process of education to a very great extent. This has infused a
new life and zest in education.

CONCLUSION
The foregoing discussion shows that pupils immediate experiences, felt needs and
purposes play a prominent part in the determination of educational programmed and policies.
This confirms the faith in the worth and improvability of individuals. Pragmatism puts emphasis
on free flow of ideas, spirit of inquiry of investigation and discussion. Pragmatism upholds the
supreme value of man and prescribes freedom of thinking, experimenting and experiencing for

him. Not only this, it lays emphasis upon flexibility, utility and adjustment in all fields of human
activity promoting the continuous development of individual and society to the fullest extent.
Pragmatic philosophy is a practical philosophy, having no fixed or absolute standards.
Man always creates new values and education should help him in doing so. Being practical and
utilitarian school of philosophy, pragmatism has influenced education to the maximum extent. It
has tried overcoming the limitations of other schools like idealism and naturalism and has
influenced world in a great deal

Implications of Idealism
In Educational System

Idealism is a very old philosophical thought and it has exercised a potent influence on the
mind of man throughout the ages. Even in modern times when people are not inclined towards
accepting any dogmatic creed or philosophy, idealism has certain attractions which appeal to the
human mind and thereby exercise a great influence on human thinking.
In education the influence of idealism has gone a long way to restrict some of the radical
thinking and establish the worth of the eternal ideals and values of life.
The word idealism is derived from two distinct sources-the idea and the ideal. Idea
means true and testified knowledge. The word ideal stands for the perfected form of an idea or
ideas. An idealist does not have considerations for material values of life. A thinker who idolizes
Mind and Self is an idealist. Idealism is one of the oldest schools of philosophy.

TYPES OF IDEALISM

(a) ABSOLUTE IDEALISM

It is the one type which has found its way into educational philosophy. This lays down
that the heart of reality is to be found in thought or reason. Reason is absolute; in fact it is the
absolute. Being absolute, it is also one i.e., monistic. Everything, thus, is interrelated and all
contradictions reconciled. Furthermore the complete cause of any single occurrence involves the
whole of reality. The cosmos is great thought process, and the absolute is god thinking.
Everything happens as a result of the self-willed idea i. e. absolute. The absolute is already
complete, and self-realized. Nature is the medium through which the absolute progressively
reveals itself in external form.
Mind of man however, is a part of the absolute whole. The absolute being the whole and
education being a part thereof, it may be that study of the fragment may reveal important facts of
the totality.
The centralistic approach to idealism on the whole has committed this educational
philosophy to the prominent importance of consciousness. Mind is ultimately spiritual, not
materialistic. Human nature is to be viewed, as more than a behaving organism, responding to
the stimuli of its environment. Man is too atomistic. Idealism stresses certain wholeness. Nothing
happens in any part of the system that does not affect the
rest.
On religious and moral education, the definition of the absolute is unmistakably of
theistic characteristics. Since the aim of education is the increasing realization of the absolute, all
education appears tinged with religious significance. This includes moral education. Reason
being the absolute, the universe is one of law and order. So too there is a oral law in the universe
backed by the authority of the absolute. Thus lays an inescapable moral imperative on education.

(b) MODERN IDEALISM

It has given a different tune to educational philosophy. In this concept idealism more to
do this idea as metal state. n this idealism might be called a philosophy of idealism. The `I` of
idealism being interested for euphony. The knowledge one has of his environment is idea of it.

The environment in itself cannot be known through intermediate idea of it. The environments in
itself cannot be known directly. It can only be known through intermediate idea of human
knower. From which the learners knowledge takes, therefore, is bound to be in part the product
of his human way of apprehending it. Such concepts are supplied by the mind of human learning.

FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF IDEALISM

The fundamental principles of idealism are:
(1) TWO FORMS OF THE WHOLE WORLD
Idealism believes in two forms of the world- Spiritual world and Material world, Idealists gives
more importance to spiritual world in comparison to the material world. They believe that
spiritual world is real and the ultimate truth whereas the material world is transitory and moral.
According to Horne- Idealism holds that the order of the world is due to the manifestation in
space and time of an eternal and spiritual reality.
(2) IDEAS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN OBJECT
According to Idealists, knowledge of mind and soul can be obtained through ideas only. Hence,
they have given more importance to ideas over the objects and material or later. In the words of
Plato Ideas are of the ultimate cosmic significance. They are rather the essences or archetypes
which give form to cosmos. These ideas are eternal and unchanging.
(3)IMPORTANCE OF MAN OVER NATURE
To Idealists, man is more important than material nature. It is because man can think and
experience about material objects and material phenomena. Hence, the thinker or the one who
experiences is more important than the object or the phenomena experienced. Man is endowed

with intelligence and a sense of discrimination. Thus, he is not a slave of the environment as
animals are but the moulds and transforms the environment for his own good and welfare of the
society. In short, he creates his own world of virtue and his creativity achieves higher and higher
levels of art in many areas.
(4)FAITH IN SPIRITUAL VALUES
According to Idealists, prime aim of life is to achieve spiritual values-Truth, beauty and
goodness. These spiritual values are undying and permanent. The realization of these values is
the realization of god. In the pursuit of these absolute values man rises higher and higher in the
moral plane till he attains divinity. For the achievement of these spiritual values all the capacities
of man are to be harnessed to the full. These capacities are- knowing, feeling and willing.
(5)IMPORTANCE OF PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT
Idealists give much importance to the self of the individual. Hence they insist upon the fullest
development of the personality of an individual. According to them the development of
personality means achievement of perfection. Plato rightly speaks that each individual has an
ideal self. He tries to develop that ideal self more and more.
His self-realization is the true sense of the term. It may be noted that self-realization means
knowledge of the self or soul. This self-realization can only be achieved in society. Hence,
development of social qualities is very essential for self-realization as it expresses itself in the
form of love, sympathy, fellow-feeling and co-operation for the good of all and discrimination
among human beings on any basis of caste, creed, sex, race or status etc. It clears the fact that
Idealism advocates the concept of universal education. In short Idealism believes in the welfare
of whole human community.

(6)FULL SUPPORT TO THE PRINCIPLE OF UNITY IN DIVERSITY

Idealists give full support to the principle of Unity in Diversity. They believe that is of spiritual
nature. This may be called Universal Consciousness or Divinity. This underlying divine force

maintains the existence and working of all entities. Idealists call this power as God, the Supreme
Force which is omnipotent and omnipresent.

IDEALISM AND AIMS OF EDUCATION

Idealism prescribes certain fundamental aims of education which are directly influenced
by the aims and principles of life. In this context Ross puts forth the view, The function of
education is to help us in our exploration of the ultimate universal values so that truth of the
universe may become our truth and give power to our life.
Some of the important aims of education as laid down by idealists are given below:
(1) SELF REALIZATION.
According to idealism man is the most beautiful creation of god-His grandest work.
It lays great stress on the exaltation of human personality it is self-realization The aim of
education is to develop the self of the individuals higher till self-realization is achieved It is in
fact making actual or real the highest potentialities of the self.
(2) UNIVERSAL EDUCATION.
Education according to idealism should be universal in nature. The universe is
regarded as a thought process. Education should be based on the teaching of Universal truth from
the stand-point of rationality of the Universe

(3) SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT.

Idealists give greater importance to spiritual values in comparison with material
attainments. According to Rusk, Education must enable Mankind through its culture to enter
more and more fully into the spiritual realm, and also enter more and more fully into the spiritual
realm, and also enlarge the boundaries of spiritual realm.
(4)TRANSMISSION AND PROMOTION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
The aim of idealistic education is the preservation ; enrichment and transmission of culture,
Education must contribute to the development of culture .It should help in enlarging the
boundaries of spiritual realm

(5)CULTIVATION OF MORAL VALUES

According to idealism, man is essentially a moral being. Therefore, moral,
intellectual and aesthetic aspects of his personality should be promoted. According to
Dr.Prem Nath The process of education must lead to the deepest spiritual insight and to the
highest moral and spiritual insight and to the highest moral and spiritual insight and to the
highest moral and spiritual conduct .
(6) PREPARATION FOR A HOLY LIFE
Idealism prepares an individual for a holy life. Froebel says.The object of education is
the realization of a faithful, pure, inviolable and hence holy life.
(7) DEVELOPMENT OF INTELLIGENCE AND RATIONALITY
Idealism wishes that education should develop the mind fully. It makes a person
rational as well. Only the highly developed mind can understand the all pervading force.
The idealists believe that education must help in the full evolution of mind , the
emancipation of spirit, self realization and the realization of higher values of life and to
train the whole man completely and fully for manhood and not some part of man.

IDEALISM AND CURRICULUM

While developing curriculum, idealists give more importance to thought, feelings, ideals
and values than to the child and his activities. They firmly hold that curriculum should be
concerned with the whole humanity and its experiences. It must consist of humanities.
The curriculum should give good mental experience of all types.
So cognition (knowing) affecting (feeling) and conation (striving) should find due
place. Sciences and art should be taught as fully integrated. Since the main aim of
education according to the philosophy of idealism is
to preserve and advance the culture of human race ,so subjects like Religion, Ethics,
philosophy, History, Literature etc,

should be provided

in the curriculum. Healthy mind

is found in healthy baby only. So health, hygiene, games and sports should find an important
place in the curriculum.

IDEALISM AND METHODS OF TEACHING

Idealism has not prescribed specific methods of teaching. According to idealism, classroom is a temple of spiritual learning, a meeting place of human minds- a place for self
education. For this no particular method has been suggested.However, the following methods
have been advocated by different idealists:

Learning through reading

Learning through lecturing

Learning through discussion

Learning through imitation

Descrates employed the device of simple to complex

IDEALISM AND DISCIPLINE

Naturalism provides unrestricted freedom to the child whereas Idealism wants to

keep the child under discipline. Idealists believe that there can be no spiritual development of the
child without discipline. This leads to inner discipline. The discipline is not to be imposed on
pupils. The teacher has only to help them to develop self discipline and through that self
knowledge
Self-insight and self analysis are the main disciplinary factors. The main task of
education is the cultivation of higher values of life through moral and religious education. It
requires the teacher to present a good example and exercise lasting impact upon the pupils mind.
A teacher is an ideal person to be emulated by this pupil.

IDEALISM AND TEACHER

Idealism assigns a special role to the teacher. It considers teacher as a spiritual guide
for the child. The teacher serves as a living model for the student. He sets the environment in
which education takes place. He carries the child from darkness to light. He is to guide the
student towards utmost possible perfection
Idealism regards the teacher as the priest of mans spiritual heritage. He is a co-worker
with God in perfecting man. An idealist teacher is a philosopher, friend and guide. According to
Gentle- A teacher is a spiritual symbol of right conduct. He is thus, an indispensable necessity.
According to Froebel, the school is a garden, the teacher is a cautious gardener and the
child is a tender plant. The plant can grow, no doubt, without help but the good gardener sees that
the plant grows to the finest possible perfection. Through teachers guidance the child can make
his natural development into a process leading to perfection and beauty.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF IDEALISM TO EDUCATION

Idealistic philosophy in education emphasizes the exaltation of personality, which is the

result of self-realization, achieved by spiritual knowledge, self-discipline and dignified teacher.
Idealism assigns a very important place to the teacher who is respected as a guide, and
philosopher. They emphasize the importance of moral and spiritual education and points out the
values of humanities, social sciences, art and literature. It emphasizes mans perfection in various
facets of life-physical, spiritual, intellectual, moral, esthetic and social.

EVALUATION OF IDEALISM
(1)The common criticism regarding Idealism is that it is an abstract and vague doctrine. It
avoids the present realities and prepares the child for the next world.
(2) Idealism is concerned with the ultimate end of life. It avoids the real problems day to day
living. Education should be such as to make individuals capable to solve the problems that
confront them from time to time able to lead a happy and contented life.
(3) Idealism lays more emphasis on thinking and mental activities. This increases the
importance of intellectualism unnecessarily.
(4) Idealistic education gives more importance to teacher in relation to the child. Modern
psychology emphasizes the prime and central importance of child.
(5) Idealistic methods of teaching emphasize cramming and rote memory. In modern
education, these methods are given little importance.

CONCLUSION

Idealism may be considered to be outmoded in the prevailing scientific world view.

Idealistic concepts like spirit, mind, soul, and the cosmos have little relevance in the classroom teaching. There is too much emphasis on good manners and modesty which may be
mistaken. It neglects childs psychological nature.
Idealism does not contribute to methods of teaching. It sets unobtainable goals. Idealistic
scheme of education, by and large, pays attention to physical, industrial, social and electronic
environment of today. It neglects social aspects of life. It over emphasizes humanity and under
rates science and technology. In all, we can say that idealistic approach to education has its own
merits and shortcomings. It should, therefore, be supplemented by other philosophy or
philosophies of education.

Implications of Idealism
In Educational System

Behaviorism is primarily concerned with observable and measurable aspects of human

behavior. In defining behavior, behaviorist learning theories emphasize changes in behavior that
result from stimulus-response associations made by the learner. Behavior is directed by stimuli.
An individual selects one response instead of another because of prior conditioning and
psychological drives existing at the moment of the action (Parkay & Hass, 2000).
Behaviorists assert that the only behaviors worthy of study are those that can be directly
observed; thus, it is actions, rather than thoughts or emotions, which are the legitimate object of
study. Behaviorist theory does not explain abnormal behavior in terms of the brain or its inner
workings. Rather, it posits that all behavior is learned habits, and attempts to account for how
these habits are formed.

In assuming that human behavior is learned, behaviorists also hold that all behaviors can
also be unlearned, and replaced by new behaviors; that is, when a behavior becomes
unacceptable, it can be replaced by an acceptable one. A key element to this theory of learning is
the rewarded response. The desired response must be rewarded in order for learning to take place
(Parkay & Hass, 2000).
In education, advocates of behaviorism have effectively adopted this system of rewards
and punishments in their classrooms by rewarding desired behaviors and punishing inappropriate
ones. Rewards vary, but must be important to the learner in some way. For example, if a teacher
wishes to teach the behavior of remaining seated during the class period, the successful student's
reward might be checking the teacher's mailbox, running an errand, or being allowed to go to the
library to do homework at the end of the class period. As with all teaching methods, success
depends on each student's stimulus and response, and on associations made by each learner.

This chapter introduces behaviorism's principal advocates and their distinct approaches to
the theory. Some implications for classroom management are also presented, along with methods
for maintaining and eliminating behaviors. This paper presents information useful to
instructional designers, media developers, and, especially, classroom teachers.

Behaviorism Advocates

John B. Watson (1878-1958) and B. F. Skinner (1904-1990) are the two principal
originators of behaviorist approaches to learning. Watson believed that human behavior resulted
from specific stimuli that elicited certain responses. Watson's basic premise was that conclusions
about human development should be based on observation of overt behavior rather than
speculation about subconscious motives or latent cognitive processes. (Shaffer, 2000).

Watson's view of learning was based in part on the studies of Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936).
Pavlov was studying the digestive process and the interaction of salivation and stomach function
when he realized that reflexes in the autonomic nervous system closely linked these phenomena.
To determine whether external stimuli had an affect on this process, Pavlov rang a bell when he
gave food to the experimental dogs. He noticed that the dogs salivated shortly before they were
given food. He discovered that when the bell was rung at repeated feedings, the sound of the bell
alone (a conditioned stimulus) would cause the dogs to salivate (a conditioned response).
Pavlov also found that the conditioned reflex was repressed if the stimulus proved "wrong" too
frequently; if the bell rang and no food appeared, the dog eventually ceased to salivate at the
sound of the bell.
Classical Conditioning

Figure 1. This illustration shows the steps of classical conditioning.

1. Food= salivation
2. Food + Stimulus = salivation (conditioned stimulus)
3. Bell alone produces salivation (conditioned response)
Expanding on Watson's basic stimulus-response model, Skinner developed a more
comprehensive view of conditioning, known as operant conditioning. His model was based on
the premise that satisfying responses are conditioned, while unsatisfying ones are not.
Operant conditioning is the rewarding of part of a desired behavior or a random act that
approaches it. Skinner remarked that "the things we call pleasant have an energizing or
strengthening effect on our behavior" (Skinner, 1972, p. 74). Through Skinner's research on

animals, he concluded that both animals and humans would repeat acts that led to favorable
outcomes, and suppress those that produced unfavorable results (Shaffer, 2000).
If a rat presses a bar and receives a food pellet, he will be likely to press it again. Skinner
defined the bar-pressing response as operant, and the food pellet as a reinforcer. Punishers, on
the other hand, are consequences that suppress a response and decrease the likelihood that it will
occur in the future. If the rat had been shocked every time it pressed the bar that behavior would
cease. Skinner believed the habits that each of us develops result from our unique operant
learning experiences (Shaffer, 2000).
Operant Conditioning

Figure 2. This illustration illustrates operant conditioning. The mouse pushes the lever and
receives a food reward. Therefore, he will push the lever repeatedly in order to get the treat.

Educational Implications

Behaviorist techniques have long been employed in education to promote behavior that is
desirable and discourage that which is not. Among the methods derived from behaviorist theory
for practical classroom application are contracts, consequences, reinforcement, extinction, and
behavior modification.

Contracts, Consequences, Reinforcement, and Extinction

Simple contracts can be effective in helping children focus on behavior change. The relevant
behavior should be identified, and the child and counselor should decide the terms of the
contract. Behavioral contracts can be used in school as well as at home. It is helpful if teachers
and parents work together with the student to ensure that the contract is being fulfilled. Two
examples of behavior contracts are listed below:

A student is not completing homework assignments. The teacher and the student design a
contract providing that the student will stay for extra help, ask parents for help, and complete
assigned work on time. Teacher will be available after school, and during free periods for
additional assistance.

A student is misbehaving in class. The teacher and student devise a behavioral contract to
minimize distractions. Provisions include that the student will be punctual, will sit in front of
the teacher, will raise hand with questions/comments, and will not leave his seat without
permission.

Consequences occur immediately after a behavior. Consequences may be positive or negative,

expected or unexpected, immediate or long-term, extrinsic or intrinsic, material or symbolic (a
failing grade), emotional/interpersonal or even unconscious. Consequences occur after the
"target" behavior occurs, when either positive or negative reinforcement may be given.
Positive reinforcement is presentation of a stimulus that increases the probability of a response.
This type of reinforcement occurs frequently in the classroom.

Teachers may provide positive reinforcement by:

Smiling at students after a correct response.

Commending students for their work.

Selecting them for a special project.

Praising students' ability to parents.

Negative reinforcement increases the probability of a response that removes or prevents an

adverse condition. Many classroom teachers mistakenly believe that negative reinforcement is
punishment administered to suppress behavior; however, negative reinforcement increases the
likelihood of a behavior, as does positive reinforcement. Negative implies removing a
consequence that a student finds unpleasant.
Negative reinforcement might include:

Obtaining a score of 80% or higher makes the final exam optional.

Submitting all assignments on time results in the lowest grade being dropped.

Perfect attendance is rewarded with a "homework pass."

Punishment involves presenting a strong stimulus that decreases the frequency of a particular
response. Punishment is effective in quickly eliminating undesirable behaviors.
Examples of punishment include:

Students who fight are immediately referred to the principal.

Late assignments are given a grade of "0".

Three tardies to class results in a call to the parents.

REINFORCEMENT

PUNISHMENT

(Behavior Increases)

(Behavior Decreases)

Positive Reinforcement

Positive Punishment

POSITIVE

Something is added to increase

Something is added to decrease

(Something is

desired behavior

undesired behavior

added)

Ex: Smile and compliment student Ex: Give student detention for
on good performance

Negative Reinforcement
NEGATIVE

Something is removed to increase

(Something is

desired behavior

removed)

Ex: Give a free homework pass for

turning in all assignments

failing to follow the class rules

Negative Punishment
Something is removed to decrease
undesired behavior
Ex: Make student miss their time in
recess for not following the class
rules

Extinction decreases the probability of a response by contingent withdrawal of a previously

reinforced stimulus. Examples of extinction are:

A student has developed the habit of saying the punctuation marks when reading aloud.
Classmates reinforce the behavior by laughing when he does so. The teacher tells the
students not to laugh, thus extinguishing the behavior.

A teacher gives partial credit for late assignments; other teachers think this is unfair; the
teacher decides to then give zeros for the late work.

Students are frequently late for class, and the teacher does not require a late pass,
contrary to school policy. The rule is subsequently enforced, and the students arrive on time.

Modeling, Shaping, and Cueing

Modeling is also known as observational learning. Albert Bandura has suggested that
modeling is the basis for a variety of child behavior. Children acquire many favorable and
unfavorable responses by observing those around them. A child who kicks another child after
seeing this on the playground, or a student who is always late for class because his friends are
late is displaying the results of observational learning.
"Of the many cues that influence behavior, at any point in time, none is more common than the
actions of others" (Bandura, 1986, p.45)

Shaping is the process of gradually changing the quality of a response. The desired
behavior is broken down into discrete, concrete units, or positive movements, each of which is
reinforced as it progresses towards the overall behavioral goal. In the following scenario, the
classroom teacher employs shaping to change student behavior: the class enters the room and sits
down, but continue to talk after the bell rings. The teacher gives the class one point for
improvement, in that all students are seated. Subsequently, the students must be seated and quiet
to earn points, which may be accumulated and redeemed for rewards.

Cueing may be as simple as providing a child with a verbal or non-verbal cue as to the
appropriateness of a behavior. For example, to teach a child to remember to perform an action at

a specific time, the teacher might arrange for him to receive a cue immediately before the action
is expected rather than after it has been performed incorrectly. For example, if the teacher is
working with a student that habitually answers aloud instead of raising his hand, the teacher
should discuss a cue such as hand-raising at the end of a question posed to the class.
Behavior Modification

Behavior modification is a method of eliciting better classroom performance from reluctant

students. It has six basic components:
1. Specification of the desired outcome (What must be changed and how it will be
evaluated?) One example of a desired outcome is increased student participation in class
discussions.
2. Development of a positive, nurturing environment (by removing negative stimuli from
the learning environment). In the above example, this would involve a student-teacher
conference with a review of the relevant material, and calling on the student when it is
evident that she knows the answer to the question posed.
3. Identification and use of appropriate reinforcers (intrinsic and extrinsic rewards). A
student receives an intrinsic reinforcer by correctly answering in the presence of peers,
thus increasing self-esteem and confidence.
4. Reinforcement of behavior patterns develop until the student has established a pattern of
success in engaging in class discussions.
5. Reduction in the frequency of rewards--a gradual decrease the amount of one-on-one
review with the student before class discussion.
6. Evaluation and assessment of the effectiveness of the approach based on teacher
expectations and student results. Compare the frequency of student responses in class

discussions to the amount of support provided, and determine whether the student is
independently engaging in class discussions (Brewer, Campbell, & Petty, 2000).

Classroom Importance

Using behaviorist theory in the classroom can be rewarding for both students and
teachers. Behavioral change occurs for a reason; students work for things that bring them
positive feelings, and for approval from people they admire. They change behaviors to satisfy the
desires they have learned to value. They generally avoid behaviors they associate with
unpleasantness and develop habitual behaviors from those that are repeated often (Parkay &
Hass, 2000). The entire rationale of behavior modification is that most behavior is learned. If
behaviors can be learned, then they can also be unlearned or relearned.

Implications of Constructivism
In Educational System

Constructivism has emerged as one of the greatest influences on the practice of education
in the last twenty-five years. Teachers have embraced constructivist-based pedagogy with an
enthusiasm that is rare in these days of quick fixes and a shopping mall approach to school
improvement (Powell, Farrar & Cohen, 1985). For many teachers, the focus on constructing
meaning in the teaching-learning process resonates with prior beliefs because constructivistbased instruction firmly places educational priorities on students' learning.

Constructivism in Education
The recent interest in constructivism in education follows an almost religious dedication
to behaviorist pedagogy by administrators and educational psychologists in the United States
(Duit & Treagust, 1998; Jenkins, 2000). Constructivism's success may be due in part to the
frustrations that educators experienced with behaviorist educational practices. Beginning in the
1960s, behaviorism swept from the arena of psychology into education with an air of authority
that was startling.
Schooling became structured around the premise that if teachers provided the correct
stimuli, then students would not only learn, but their learning could be measured through
observations of student behaviors. The behaviorist movement led to a long series of strategies
for schools such as management by objective, outcome-based education, and teacher
performance evaluation systems.

Behaviorism in schools placed the responsibility for learning directly on the shoulders of
teachers. Teachers were led to believe that if learning was not occurring, then it was their
responsibility to restructure the environment, determine the most appropriate reinforcement to
promote the desired student behavior, or provide a negative reinforcement to extinguish
unwanted behaviors.
After years of implementation, behaviorism fell short of producing positive effects within
the complex context of the classroom and left teachers feeling shortchanged and cheated by a
system that placed the guilt for students' failure to learn in their hands. We experienced the
impact of behaviorism while working as teachers in public schools when all teachers were
required to participate in two behaviorist-based programs:
Effective Teacher Training and the Teacher Performance Appraisal System. The first
program was a series of behaviors that teachers were expected to perform in the classroom.
Although the Effective Teacher Training program was based on research of effective practices
(e.g. wait time of at least 4 seconds between asking questions during class discussions raises
achievement), the program failed to take into account the complexity of student cognition and
the dynamics of modern classrooms.
The Teacher Performance Appraisal System was an evaluation system that principals
used to evaluate teachers. A principal would observe a teacher during instruction while checking
off a series of behaviors that demonstrated effective teaching (e.g. teacher movement around the
room). Like Effective Teacher Training, the teacher evaluation program was based on discrete
studies of effective teaching practices, but the sum of the behaviors did not necessarily make one
a good teacher.
It became commonly known that a teacher could exhibit the desired behaviors, get good
ratings on the instrument and the corresponding positive evaluation by the principal, but not
necessarily teach a lesson where students would develop meaningful understandings. Teachers
knew that the programs failed to explain why students weren't learning and why instruction
wasn't effective. Following the legacy of behaviorism, constructivism has been welcomed as
a theory of knowing that more fully explains the complexity of the teaching-learning process.

Defining Constructivism
The meaning of constructivism varies according to one's perspective and position.
Within educational contexts there are philosophical meanings of constructivism, as well as
personal constructivism as described by Piaget (1967), social constructivism outlined by
Vygtosky (1978), radical constructivism advocated by von Glasersfeld (1995), constructivist
epistemologies, and educational constructivism (Mathews, 1998). Social constructivism and
educational constructivism (including theories of learning and pedagogy) have had the greatest
impact on instruction and curriculum design because they seem to be the most conducive to
integration into current educational approaches. Table 1 shows the variation of definitions for
constructivism in education.
Table 1. Defining Constructivism
____________________________________________________________________
(The mind can) "put together those ideas it has, and make new complex ones." (Lock, 1947, p.
65).
"It is assumed that learners have to construct their own knowledge-- individually and
collectively. Each learner has a tool kit of concepts and skills with which he or she must
construct knowledge to solve problems presented by the environment. The role of the
community-- other learners and teacher-- is to provide the setting, pose the challenges, and offer
the support that will encourage mathematical construction." (Davis, Maher, Noddings, 1990, p.
3)
"Constructivism is not a theory about teachingit is a theory about knowledge and learning
the theory defines knowledge as temporary, developmental, socially and culturally mediated, and
thus, non-objective." (Brooks & Brooks, 1993, p. vii)

"(K)nowledge, no matter how it be defined, is in the heads of persons, and that the thinking
subject has no alternative but to construct what he or she knows on the basis of his or her own
experience." (von Glasersfeld, 1995)
"The doctrine itself holds that 'language users must individually construct the meaning of words,
phrases, sentences and texts.'" (Suchting, 1998, p. 61-62; von Glasersfeld, 1989, p. 132)
"Constructivists allege that it is we who constitute or construct, on the basis of our theorizing or
experience, the allegedly unobservable items postulated in our theories." (Nola, 1998, p. 32)
"The central principles of this approach are that learners can only make sense of new situations
in terms of their existing understanding. Learning involves an active process in which learners
construct meaning by linking new ideas with their existing knowledge." (Naylor & Keogh, 1999,
p.93)
"(C)onstructivists of different persuasion (hold a) commitment to the idea that the development
of understanding requires active engagement on the part of the learner." (Jenkins, 2000, p.601)
______________________________________________________________________
One of the common threads of constructivism that runs across all these definitions is the
idea that development of understanding requires the learner actively engage in meaning-making.
In contrast to behaviorism, constructivists argue that "knowledge is not passively received but
built up by the cognizing subject" (Von Glasersfeld, 1995). Thus, constructivists shift the focus
from knowledge as a product to knowing as a process.
Within constructivist theory, knowledge isn't something that exists outside of the learner.
According to Tobin and Tippins (1993), constructivism is a form of realism where reality can
only be known in a personal and subjective way. Von Glasersfeld notes that constructivist theory
acknowledges reality but he goes on to say, "I define to exist only within the realm of our
experiential world and not ontologically" (Tobin, 1993, p. 4). While constructivism takes on
different philosophical meanings with different theorists and contexts, the over arching concept
hinges itself upon the nature of knowing and the active role of the learner.

Although the roots of constructivism are most often attributed to the work of Jean Piaget,
constructivist tenets emerged much earlier in history as seen in the writings of Giambattista Vico,
who declared in 1710, "The human mind can know only what the human mind has made" (von
Glasersfeld, 1995, p. 21). Noddings (1990) maintains that constructivism also emerged from the
work of Neisser (act psychology), and Chomsky (innate linguistic structures of mind). Noddings
argues that constructivist emphasis on the learner as central emerges from Chomsky's and
Piaget's theories of an epistemological subject: "an active knowing mechanism that knows
through continued construction" (Noddings, 1990, p. 9).
Although Piaget's theories tended to focus primarily on the development of the individual
while ignoring the greater socio-cultural context, the roots of constructivism are clearly present
in Piaget's focus on the active role of the individual in learning: " all knowledge is tied to
action, and knowing an object or an event is to use it by assimilating it to an action scheme"
Piaget, 1967, pp. 14-15).
For Piaget, knowledge construction takes place when new knowledge is actively
assimilated and accommodated into existing knowledge. Furthermore, Piaget's constructivist
stances are seen in his belief that our understandings of reality are constantly being revised and
re-constructed through time and with respect to exposure to new experiences. "What remains is
construction as such, and one sees no ground why it should be unreasonable to think it is ultimate
nature of reality to be in continual construction instead of consisting of an accumulation of
ready-made structures" (Piaget, 1970, pp. 57-58).
One of the misconceptions of constructivism is the notion that because individuals make
meaning based on their prior experiences, that anything and everything counts equally as
knowledge. Von Glasersfeld effectively points out the inadequacy of this perspective: "truth in
constructivism. . . . is replaced by viability" ( von Glasersfeld, 1998, p. 25). In other words,
Viability. . . . is relative to a context of goals and purposes. But these goals and purposes
are not limited to the concrete or material. In science, for instance, there is, beyond the goal of
solving specific problems, the goal of constructing as coherent a model of the experiential world
as possible. (von Glasersfeld, 1992, p. 7)

Social constructivists take von Glasersfeld's concept of viability further defining viability
as that which fits not only the individual's scheme of the world, but also fits within the larger
social context. It is through checking out our understandings and perspectives with others that
we develop a sense of the viability of ideas. This process of idea testing can be seen in the
classrooms of teachers who value students' ideas and promote the process of critical thinking.

Constructing Meaning
Constructivism's perspectives on the role of the individual, on the importance of
meaning-making, and on the active role of the learner are the very elements that make the theory
appealing to educators. Teachers are typically acutely aware of the role of prior knowledge in
students' learning, recognizing that students are not blank slates or empty vessels waiting to be
filled with knowledge. Instead, students bring with them a rich array of prior experiences,
knowledge, and beliefs that they use in constructing new understandings.
To illustrate, we recently asked fifth-graders to construct concept maps of the concept
"heat" prior to instruction on convection currents (Jones, Carter, & Rua, 1999). The resulting
student maps reflected a huge array of experiences and prior knowledge. For example, the term
"heat" elicited descriptions of colors that represent heat (like red or orange), objects that generate
heat (furnaces, microwaves, cars, curling irons, and grills), processes associated with heat (such
as boil, melt, fever), products of heat (sweat, smoke, melted metal, evaporated water), events
associated with heat (summer, pool party, ice cream, swimming), objects used with
heat (lemonade, light clothes, suntan lotion, peaches) and hot places (Mexico, topics, volcanos,
and Satan's home).
The diversity of students' prior concepts of heat in this one example provides evidence
that students do not enter instruction as blank slates, but instead possess a variety of preconceptions tied to prior experiences that teachers must take into account during curriculum
planning and instruction.

Student preconceptions, or nave conceptions, have been shown to be very resistant to

change (Driver, 1989; Osborne & Freyberg, 1985). Preconceptions are typically based on a
child's early experiences, are intuitive, and form a filter for later learning. For example, research
has shown that children in different parts of the world believe the world is flat (Mali & Howe,
1980). Although teachers may tell children the world is round, children often cling to their nave
belief of the world as flat even after instruction. This mismatch between what is taught and what
is learned is evidence of the need for constructivist pedagogy that considers the student's
conceptual ecology.
In order for understanding to take place, teachers must not only elicit students' prior
concepts, but must also build on these concepts during instruction. Several instructional
strategies (such as the learning cycle, e.g., Atkin & Karplus, 1962; Rubba, 1992) advocated by
educators start with finding out what students know, then providing educational experiences that
will confront prior conceptions (or provide a cognitive conflict) in order to promote conceptual
development.
The use of a cognitive conflict involves "placing a student in a position in which the
application of his or her own understanding of a problem leads to cognitive difficulties which the
student must then resolve" (Jenkins, 2000, p. 605). Strike and Posner (1985) argued that in order
for conceptual change to take place at all the learner must first be dissatisfied with the current
conception. It is this dissatisfaction (that sometimes arises from cognitive conflict) that drives
the learner to consider alternative conceptual views. So "telling" has limited value for students,
meaningful classroom experiences require much more of teachers.
Research has also shown that students do not always replace preconceptions with new
conception. Instead, there is evidence that students may hold original intuitive views
simultaneously with newly constructed formal science concepts (Hewson & Hewson, 1992;
Scott, 1992; Strike and Posner, 1985).
More recent work by Strike and Posner (1992) suggests that conceptual change is less a
case of replacement and more a part of a developmental process that involves concepts
embedded within a broader conceptual ecology that consists of "anomalies, analogies,

metaphors, epistemological beliefs, metaphysical beliefs, knowledge from other areas of inquiry,
and knowledge of competing conceptions" (Strike & Posner, 1992, p. 150).

Constructivism offers teachers instructional approaches that are congruent with current
research on learning. By viewing learning as an active process, taking students prior knowledge
into consideration, building on preconceptions, and eliciting cognitive conflict, teachers can
design instruction that goes beyond rote learning to meaningful learning that is more likely to
lead to deeper, longer lasting understandings.

The Role of Language in Knowledge Construction

Language forms the foundation of an individual's conceptual ecology as well as the
means of conceptual growth. Furthermore, Vygotsky's argument that language serves to mediate
higher order thinking (Vygtosky, 1978; Wertsch, 1979) has challenged educators to reconsider
the critical role of language in the teaching-learning process.
According to Vygotsky, language serves as a psychological tool that causes a
fundamental change in mental functions. Signaling, significative, social, individual,
communicative, intellectual, nominative, and indicative are all functions of spoken language
according to Vygotsky (Wertsch, 1985). But of all of these language functions, those related to
the intellectual functions of language have provided educators, particularly mathematics and
science educators, with the greatest insight.
Vygtosky believed that speech served not only as a way for children to communicate
about their actions, but also served to direct active learning.A child's speech is as important as the
role of action in attaining the goal. Children not only speak about what they are doing; their
speech and action are part of one and the same complex psychological function, directed toward
the solution of the problem at hand. (Vygtosky, 1978, p. 25)

Long before the emergence of current educational research on students' misconceptions,

Vygotsky recognized that children simultaneously hold different concepts for the same
phenomena. He described the formal or scientific concepts that children hold as well as the
informal or spontaneous concepts that children develop through experience. "Vygtosky argued
that experience in educational activity is an important force that guides the development of
genuine concepts, hence his distinction between the genuine or 'scientific' concepts learned as a
result of schooling and the 'everyday' or 'spontaneous' concepts learned by the child elsewhere."
(Wertsch, 1985, p. 102). The link between formal and informal concepts, according to Vygotsky,
takes place through the use of thepsychological tool of language. Wertsch (1985) stated:
For Vygotsky, a further criterion that distinguishes scientific from everyday concepts is
the fact that the former are learned in formal schooling setting whereas the latter emerge on the
basis of children's experience in the everyday world. He argued that schooling's emphasis on
using language to talk about language (that is, on decontextualized, metalinguistic reflection), as
opposed to talking about nonlinguistic reality, is an important force in the emergence of scientific
concepts. (Wertsch, 1985, p. 103)
Constructivism's emphasis on the role of language in learning, in contrast to
behaviorism's focus on language as a stimulus, has shifted educators' teaching strategies toward
the use of language as a tool in students' meaning-making processes.

Social Constructivism
Vygotsky's work has formed the foundation of social constructivism in educational
settings. In particular, Vygotsky's emphasis on the role of others, or the social context, in
learning has pushed educators to re-examine the extent to which learning is an individual
process. As explained earlier, prior to the recent interest in social construction of knowledge, the
attention was placed almost exclusively on the individual through behaviorist and Piagetian
educational applications.

Vygotsky's theories have turned this focus upside down by emphasizing the role of the
greater community and the role of significant others in learning. Vygotsky argues that language is
first interpersonal, between the child and the external world, and then becomes intrapersonal:
The greatest change in children's capacity to use language as a problem-solving tool takes
place somewhat later in their development, when socialized speech (which has previously been
used to address an adult) is turned inward. Instead of appealing to the adult, children appeal to
themselves; language thus takes on an intrapersonal function in addition to itsinterpersonal use.
(Vygtosky, 1978, p. 27)
Furthermore, Vygotsky argues that the path between objects and thought is mediated by
other people through the use of signs or the symbols of language (Veer & Valsiner, 1993).
Human history is, then, on the one hand the history of mans growing domination over nature
through the invention of tools and the perfection of technology, and on the other hand, it is the
history of mans gradual control of the self through the invention of the cultural technique of
signs. (Veer & Valsiner, 1993, p. 220)
In addition, Vygotsky extended the emphasis on culture and society in his argument that
all higher mental functions are social in origin and are embedded in the context of the
sociocultural setting. From the very first days of the child's development, his activities acquire a
meaning of their own in a system of social behavior and, being directed towards a definite
purpose, are frequently refracted through the prism of the child's environment.
The path from object to child and from child to object passes through another person.
This complex human structure is the product of a developmental process deeply rooted in the
links between individual and social history. (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 30)
The higher mental functions that Vygotsky refers to are primarily interpsychological
(group, dyad) processes and originate between and among individuals. These functions move to
an intrapsychological (individual) plane by a series of mechanizations determined by the
individual's mental processes. That is, learning may be viewed as being first developed in small
group settings that are precursors to the intrapsychological, that is, individual processes
(Wertsch, 1979).

Learning, according to Vygtosky, is best understood in light of others within an

individual's world. This continual interplay, between the individual and others, is described by
Vygotsky as the zone of proximal development (ZPD) (Vygotsky, 1978). He defined the zone of
proximal development as the intellectual potential of an individual when provided with
assistance from a knowledgeable adult or a more advanced child.
During this assistance process, an individual is "other regulated" by a more capable peer
or an adult. "Other regulation" refers to cues and scaffolding provided by the more capable peer
or adult. The individual, by means of this assistance, is able to move through a series of steps
that eventually lead to "self-regulation" and intellectual growth. Vygotsky stressed the
importance of the zone of proximal development because it allows for the measurement of the
intellectual potential of an individual rather than on what the individual has achieved.
For social constructivists, the process of knowing has at its roots social interaction (von
Glasersfeld, 1992). That is, an individual's knowledge of the world is bound to personal
experiences and is mediated through interaction (language) with others (von Glasersfeld, 1989).
Thus, learning from a social constructivist perspective is an active process involving others:
Knowledge is never acquired passively, because novelty cannot be handled except
through assimilation to a cognitive structure the experiencing subject already has. Indeed, the
subject does not perceive an experience as novel until it generates a perturbation relative to some
expected result. Only at that point the experience may lead to an accommodation and thus to a
novel conceptual structure that reestablishes a relative equilibrium. In this context, it is
necessary to emphasize the most frequent source of perturbations for the developing cognitive
subject is the interaction with others. (von Glasersfeld, 1989, p. 136.)

Constructivism in Educational Practices

The influence of constructivism in education today can be seen in a variety of published

curricula as well as instructional practices. Social constructivist applications are commonly
found in schools through the widespread use of cooperative and collaborative teaching strategies
such as: Teams-Games-Tournament, Student Teams Achievement Division, Jigsaw, Numbered
Heads Together, and Peer-Peer Tutoring (e.g. Slavin, 1980; 1990). In each of these, the emphasis
is on having students working together while sharing ideas and challenging each other's
perspectives.
The emphasis on "significant others" has led some educators to question the usefulness of
homogeneous ability grouping (Carter & Jones, 1994). Grouping by ability has come under fire
as a traditional strategy that fails to build on the strengths of diverse student abilities and
perspectives. As a result, teachers are increasingly using older student tutors, adult tutors, and
more advanced students in instruction.
One of the most obvious places that the impact of social constructivist theories can be
seen is in the design and organization of classrooms. Gone are the individual study carrells that
appeared with behaviorism. Teachers today tend to recognize the power of peer-peer interactions
and the greater classroom community in learning. Many classrooms in the United States have
designated spaces for small group work, as well as arrangements for whole class discussions.
Elementary classrooms often include small group reading areas, mathematics centers, and
science stations. Middle and high schools have moved away from unmovable desks to seating
arrangements that are flexible and allow for small group work.
The impact of constructivism has extended into national reform documents that are
produced by professional education groups such as the National Council of Teachers of

Mathematics and the National Research Council. For example, the National Science Education
Standards state:
An important stage of inquiry and of student science learning is the oral and written
discourse that focuses the attention of students on how they know what they know and how their
knowledge connects to larger ideas, other domains, and the word beyond the classroom. . . .
Using a collaborative group structure, teachers encourage interdependency among group
members, assisting students to work together in small groups so that all participate in sharing
data and in developing group reports. (National Research Council, 1996, p.36)
This statement reflects the constructivist values of small group work, cooperative
development of ideas, and the role of written and spoken language in learning. In a similar
manner, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (1991) includes a focus on other
students as part of the Professional Standards for Teaching, Standard 5: The Learning
Environment:
This standard focuses on key dimensions of a learning environment in which serious
mathematical thinking can take place: a genuine respect for others' ideas, a valuing of reason and
sense-making, pacing and timing that allow students to puzzle and to think, and the forging of a
social and intellectual community. (NCTM, 1991). Embedded within this mathematics standard
are beliefs in the value of the ideas of others, as well as the importance of the larger social
community in learning mathematics.

Conclusion
Constructivism in education emerged after the behaviorist movement as a welcome and
refreshing view of learning that centers on the active learner within the teaching-learning
process. This emphasis on the individual (within the greater social context) during instruction
has drawn attention to the prior beliefs, knowledge, and skills that individuals bring with them.
Prior knowledge has been shown to significantly influence the ways individuals make meaning
out of instruction.

The constructivist focus on the social context and larger community of learners has
resulted in a major shift away from individually-based instruction to instruction that incorporates
and embeds teaching within the larger community of peers, younger students, as well as those
who are older. Finally, contructivism's greatest contribution to education may be through the
shift in emphasis from knowledge as a product to knowing as a process. This legacy of
constructivism will likely prove to be a lasting and meaningful shift in the structure of
schooling.

Implications of Cognitivism
In Educational System

Cognitivism - Origins
1960s - cognitivist revolution replaced behaviorism in as the dominant paradigm.
Mental processes such as thinking, memory, knowing, and problem-solving need to be
explored (Snelbecker, 1983).
Knowledge can be seen as schema or symbolic mental constructions.
Learning is defined as change in a learners schemata.
A response to behaviorism, people are not programmed animals that merely respond to
environmental stimuli; people are rational beings that require active participation in order to
learn, and whose actions are a consequence of thinking. Changes in behavior are observed, but
only as an indication of what is occurring in the learners head. Cognitivism uses the metaphor
of the mind as computer: information comes in, is being processed, and leads to certain
outcomes.

Focus - inner mental activities

Ulric Neisser coined the term 'cognitive psychology' in his book, Cognitive Psychology,
published in 1967
The term cognition refers to all processes by which the sensory input is transformed,
reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used. It is concerned with these processes even when
they operate in the absence of relevant stimulation, as in images and hallucinations...
The main issues that interest cognitive psychologists are the inner mechanisms of human
thought and the processes of knowing. Cognitive psychologists have attempted to throw light on
the alleged mental structures that stand in a causal relationship to our physical actions.
Cognitivism investigates the internal mental processes of thought, such as:
Visual processing
Memory
Problem solving
Language
Opening the black box of the human mind is valuable and necessary for understanding how
people learn.

How does learning occur?

Learning is equated with discrete changes between states of knowledge, rather than with
changes in the probability of response
Cognitive theories stress the acquisition of knowledge and mental structures
Focus on students conceptualization of learning processes
Address the issues of how information is received, organized stored and is retrieved by the
mind
Concerned not so much with what learners do, but with what they know and how they come
to acquire it
Knowledge acquisition is described as a mental activity that requires internal coding and
structuring by the learning. The learner is a very active participant in the learning process.

Information processing model

Explanations for how cognitive processes work are known as information processing theories or
models. The three-component model of information processing is taught in Educational
Psychology

Which factors

influence

learning?
Environmental conditions play a role (like in Behaviourism)
Teacher
Instructional explanations
Demonstrations
Illustrative examples
Practice
Corrective feedback
Student (mental activities of the learner)
Mental planning
Goal-setting
Organisational strategies
The way learners attend to, code, transform, rehearse, store and retrieve information
Learners thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and values are influential in learning process
Focus of cognitive approach is on changing the learner by encouraging him/her to use the
appropriate learning strategies (to cope with unstructured domains)

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