Constructionism and Hypotheses, how do they fit together?

Constructionism relies on students to learn by following a process and creating an artifact. When I think of generating and testing a hypothesis, I automatically think Science. However, in our reading for this week, I have explored hypotheses outside of a Science classroom. Many skills are used when testing hypotheses, with research being one of the biggest skills. Gathering data may be “tedious and error prone” as our text suggests, but as a building block to higher-level skills, I believe teaching students to do the research is productive. It may fit into the behaviorist learning strategy more than the constructionist learning strategy, but it is still a valuable skill, especially for students interested in Science, Math or History based careers.

With that opinion out of the way, let’s focus on constructionism and how it ties into generating and testing hypotheses. Testing hypotheses opens up a technology rich environment for our students to engage in. Through the use of a wide variety of technologies, we are furthering our students’ knowledge and preparing them for the 21st Century. In addition, we are teaching them a process. The more our students are exposed to process learning, the easier it will be for them to assimilate or accommodate new information. Use of the software allows students to focus on generating more solutions in a shorter period of time. It makes the end product more attainable. Hypothesizing allows students to formulate more choices. Any time choice is an option for students, more learning occurs because of the disequilibration that Dr. Orey describes. Once that disequilibration disappears, we as facilitators, have to recreate situations to throw our students out of equilibration and back into disequilibration so that they are making choices to accommodate or assimilate new learning. A good hypothesis where students are required to test what they have learned will do just that.


Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Program five. Classroom management to promote student learning. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Virtual Tours and Concept Mapping Online

Are virtual tours the same as streaming video? If so, I will have difficulty downloading and using the programs. Our Acceptable Use Policy strictly forbids streaming video during class hours. I would run the risk of having my computers pulled from my room, including the teacher computer.

Concept mapping online would be a great addition to the virtual tools but the sites I've looked at require accounts to be set up. Again, this is in violation of the AUP. I have talked to tech services and they are going to investigate several concept mapping sites for me this summer and find one that they will allow through the filters for the students to set up accounts in... Maybe.

Do any other teachers have these problems trying to bring new uses for technology into their districts?

Cognitivism in Practice

From my reading this week, I see technology being used to do the same thing in a different way. However, the virtual field trips do offer a way to do things differently (Thornburg, 2008). I want to do things differently. I want my ELL students to create their own virtual field trip about reservation life next year. Let’s see if I can pull it off.

Now, back to what I am supposed to be writing about. There were several good strategies that I intend to implement next year. As I explore the cognitive learning that takes place in my room, I have to admit that area of teaching is not as strong as I thought it was. But, I am growing. As Dr. Orey says, “Integrating multiple senses in presentations improves learning, but only if the images are relevant.” (Laureate, 2008). We used many pictures this year, some chosen by me, others by my students. We discovered Photo Story 3 and explored all that it has to offer. Now, it is time to take their learning to a deeper level by adding an advance organizer. The perfect one can be found in our text and I will recreate it in Inspiration. I have a unit on Child Labor in which I ask the students to create a photo story as the final project. A problem/solution template would have expanded their thought processes and helped them see the connections to child labor as it exists today. All of my students made the historical connections, but only a few realized that the problem continues today, with very little change from the past. Using a concept mapping tool, either on paper or on the computer, would have allowed my students to elaborate their thought processes, thus moving more information with stronger connections to their long term memory.

One question remains from all of my reading this week. Isn’t an advanced organizer, as defined by our text to include video and pictures, just another way of addressing Madeline Hunter’s anticipatory set?


Hunter, Madeline. Mastery Teaching. Tip Publications: University of California. 2008.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Program five. Classroom management to promote student learning. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Thornburg, D. (2008). Emergence of Educational Technology. Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society. Laureate Education, Inc.

Behaviorism in Practice

Behaviorism has developed unwarranted negative connotations in the education field over the last few years (Orey, 2008). But as I explore the theory behind behaviorism, I realize that it has always had a place in my classroom. I personally may not have been aware of the practice of behaviorism in my classroom, but it has been there in the form of teacher-student conferences about writing, providing immediate feedback about inappropriate behavior, and the computer tutorials that are sometimes used.

My next move toward behaviorism will be evident as I implement the Effort Rubric found in our textbook. If there is negative fallout from the rubric, it will occur because of student choices, not because of me. I see this rubric as a way for students to begin to accept responsibility for their actions, rather than hearing that all too common refrain, “The teacher doesn’t like me.” Another use for charting student effort is it can be used to provide feedback to parents when they ask, “How is my child doing in your class?” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007). Having just conducted this type of meeting with a parent whose child will probably not leave the junior high this year, the rubric has hit close to home. Even with the students doing their own charting and receiving immediate feedback to help change their behaviors, I do see this becoming a valuable piece of documentation for teachers.

The working philosophy behind behaviorism is the immediate feedback, hopefully more positive than negative. The sooner we can let our students know what they are doing incorrectly, the sooner they can alter their own learning. That is what makes peer revision, and even teacher-student revision, so valuable when teaching the writing process. Another way to make behaviorism more effective is for the teacher to write with his/her students and ask for feedback from the students. They get to “reward” the teacher while practicing some very basic skills, if
the teacher plans her writing that way… :P

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). Program four. Behaviorist learning theory [Motion picture]. Behaviorist learning theory. Baltimore: Dr. Michael Orey.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology

Welcome old and new friends! I hope we share and exchange lots of ideas during the next 8 weeks. I think I have everyone added...

Virginia White