Showing papers on "Social constructivism published in 2017"

Science Teacher Education in the Twenty-First Century: a Pedagogical Framework for Technology-Integrated Social Constructivism

Abstract: Changes in our global world have shifted the skill demands from acquisition of structured knowledge to mastery of skills, often referred to as twenty-first century competencies. Given these changes, a sequential explanatory mixed methods study was undertaken to (a) examine predominant instructional methods and technologies used by teacher educators, (b) identify attributes for learning and teaching in the twenty-first century, and (c) develop a pedagogical framework for promoting meaningful usage of advanced technologies. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected via an online survey, personal interviews, and written reflections with science teacher educators and student teachers. Findings indicated that teacher educators do not provide sufficient models for the promotion of reform-based practice via web 2.0 environments, such as Wikis, blogs, social networks, or other cloud technologies. Findings also indicated four attributes for teaching and learning in the twenty-first century: (a) adapting to frequent changes and uncertain situations, (b) collaborating and communicating in decentralized environments, (c) generating data and managing information, and (d) releasing control by encouraging exploration. Guided by social constructivist paradigms and twenty-first century teaching attributes, this study suggests a pedagogical framework for fostering meaningful usage of advanced technologies in science teacher education courses.

Learning through Blogging: Students' Perspectives in Collaborative Blog-Enhanced Learning Communities.

Abstract: Introduction Blogs have been increasingly utilized in higher education to facilitate student learning (Halic, Lee, Paulus, & Spence, 2010; Shana & Abulibdehb, 2015; Top, 2012). They allow users with no advanced programming skills to create an online space through posting, editing, and publishing articles composed of text, images, audio, video, and hyperlinks (Papastergiou, Gerodimos, & Antoniou, 2011). In blog-supported environments, learners learn to and begin to appreciate information sharing, idea exchange, and collaboration, which in turn contributes to student learning or professional development (Top, 2012; Wassell & Crouch, 2008). Research has indicated that blogs can serve as effective teaching and learning tools to (a) support students' active participation through collaboration in a class (Kilic, & Gokdac, 2014; Top, 2012), (b) enhance peer support and interaction (Chang & Chang, 2014; Laal & Laal, 2012), (c) increase students' motivation to learn the subject content (Pursel & Xie, 2014; Shana & Abulibdehb, 2015), and (d) develop students' critical thinking and reflective skills (Li, Bado, Smith, & Moore, 2013; Ellison & Wu, 2008; Xie, Ke, & Sharma, 2008). The majority of studies on blogging in education have been completed in higher education (undergraduate- and graduate-level) and K-12 settings across various disciplines (Shana & Abulibdehb, 2015; Top, 2012; Xie, Ke, & Sharma, 2008), and limited focus has been placed upon non-traditional adult students in continuing education (Park, Helo, & Lee, 2011). Blogs may help create a meaningful learning environment for adult students, and to some degree, blogs may also cater to adult students' learning preferences, including providing for self-direction, practical experiences, and student-centered learning (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007). Blogs can facilitate positive learning experiences among adult learners through reflection-oriented learning processes (Park, Helo, & Lee, 2011). There is little research focusing on minority students' perceptions of learning experiences with blogs. This study involves African American students in continuing education. AfricanAmerican students are considered as high context learners who have a preference to work in groups rather than work independently or individually (White, 1992). Participating in a learning community appears to increase the chance of academic success among African-American students (Duncan & Barber-Freeman, 2008; Gallien & Peterson, 2004). It would be valuable to further explore African-American adult students' learning experiences with blogs. In addition, although previous research indicated that the use of blogs enhances students' collaborative learning experiences and sense of community, little research describes effective strategies to integrate blogs into instruction so as to enhance knowledge acquisition, collaboration and communication skills, belongingness, and affective outcomes in classroom settings (Top, 2012). Presumably, one's confidence in executing bloggingrelevant tasks is important and relevant to an individual's learning experience with blogs. However, blogging self-efficacy was not included in any previous research studies as a predictor of students' perceived learning in blog-enhanced settings. Furthermore, no previous study has investigated blogging self-efficacy, collaborative learning, and sense of community together, as well as the effect of these three factors on students' perceived learning of blogging among African American adult students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between blogging self-efficacy, sense of community, collaborative learning, and perceived learning in blog-enhanced learning settings. Theoretical framework According to the social constructivism embodied by cultural-historical activity theory, knowledge is constructed through social interactions, including conversation, discussion, and negotiation processes (Leont'ev, 1974; Luria, 1976; Rondon-Pari, 2011; Vygotsky, 1978). …

Sport and integration : an exploration of group identity and intergroup relations in Fiji

Abstract: This thesis investigates the topic of sport and integration (SAI) and discusses the role that sport plays in both uniting and dividing groups in lower and middle income settings. In particular, this thesis addresses the effect of sport on ethno-racial division by exploring the effect of sport on intergroup distance. This in-depth study applies rigorous social science to local voices and ways of knowing, to improve understanding of the role of sport in divided societies. In doing so, this thesis proposes a new framework to map the way in which the practice of popular sports can influence intergroup relations. The research draws from three distinct but interrelated areas of literature: identity formation, intergroup relations and the effect of sport on these fields. The first two areas are discussed in relation to the role of ethno-racial and social identity in group relations, along with strategies to reconcile intergroup difference. Sport then emerges as an emblematic site for solidifying identity, hegemonic power relations and group categorisation, while also facilitating positive social change in the form of the sport for development and peace (SDP) field. It is shown that our current understanding of SDP is restricted in its focus on development and/or peacebuilding goals, and that an extension to this field is required: sport and integration (SAI). In short, SAI also encompasses sport for social change but it is not orientated towards meeting specific development goals or curating peace in the wake of violence. The Pacific Island nation of Fiji presents an ideal place for SAI research due to the cultural prominence of sport as well as underlying divisions between Indigenous Fijians and Fijians of Indian descent. Utilising a qualitative mode of enquiry that employs social constructivist logic in its design, the empirical research followed an approach described as ‘Short Term Ethnography’. This approach foregrounds local agency and ways of knowing an immersive research journey designed specifically to gain in-depth knowledge. The research took place in a number of locations across Fiji at the community (micro), institutional (meso) and decision making (macro) levels to develop a holistic impression of Fijian sport and society. The approach I have taken acknowledges that sport is a powerful cultural commodity in Fiji and finds that in some practices, such as rugby sevens fandom and soccer participation, sport serves as a focal point of unity. However, there are other elements of Fijian sport which seem to maintain unequal power relations, perpetuating separatism between Fiji’s two main groups. The framework which was built to research SAI in Fiji therefore, functions to expose the exclusive social, cultural and structural mechanisms within Fijian sport and highlights a locally envisaged agenda for change. Based on the initial insights provided by this thesis, this study points to further application of the SAI framework in other societies troubled with division, in both low and high income settings.

Diffracting mind-body relations: Feminist materialism and the entanglement of physical culture in women’s recovery from depression

Abstract: Finishing our hour-long interview about her insider knowledge of sport policy and the obesity agenda, I turn off my recorder as we leave the meeting room to enter the intimate space of the lift. Descending slowly from the 17th floor I casually mention other research that I am doing on women’s recovery depression and everyday practices. After a long pause she says quietly, “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for sport, my depression became so bad at times. Playing sport kept me going somehow, it kept me alive”. The affective intensity of this research encounter has stayed with me for many years because that particular day I did not think I was doing mental health research. It serves as a reminder of the ontological inseparability and entanglement of mind and body in all research that portends to focus on either mental health or physical practices. To grasp the connectedness of our thoughts, feelings and senses as they are implicated in embodied movement we need more nuanced ways of thinking sport and physical culture as phenomena that materialize through complex biopsychosocial relations (as distinct from biopsy models of illness and treatment). In this chapter I take up the question of how embodied movement matters in mental health with respect to the materiality of all knowledge practices (science and social science, qualitative and quantitative research). I draw upon feminist and critical posthumanist scholarship to explore the material-discursive relations of depression and recovery (Blackman, 2012; Braidotti, 2013; Barad, 2007; Wilson, 2015). Such questions about matter require a thorough rethinking of the onto-epistemological assumptions that inform both naturalistic scientific and social constructivist research on physical activity. Understanding this complexity means staying with the embodied trouble (Lather, 2015) to move with different ways of (un)knowing beyond dualistic and reductionist categories of thought – mind/body, masculine/feminine, culture/nature, social/biological, objective/subjective. The value of new materialist feminisms lies with the relational questions that reorient our thinking about what gendered bodies can “do”, how matter “acts” and what “effects” are produced through the production of difference. This approach stands in contrast to the pursuit of truth about what is a body or locating the source of meaning in unmediated experience or an essentialised notion of womanhood (Braidotti, 2013; Coole & Frost, 2010; Barad, 2007; Grosz, 1994). There are, of course, nuanced lines of thinking within new materialism and critiques of supposed newness have importantly been raised by feminist and post-colonial, Indigenous scholars (see Barad, 2014; Ahmed, 2008).

Social media use, collaborative learning and students’ academic performance: a systematic literature review of theoretical models

Abstract: This research provided a systematic literature review of theoretical models on interaction and collaborations regarding Information system (IS) and Information Technology (IT). This paper conducted an review of studies dedicated to (IS & IT) on the basis of certain dimensions namely, research theories, review of constructivist theories, definitions of constructivism, social constructivism, theoretical of constructivism, active collaborative learning theory, technology acceptance model (TAM), theory of reasoned action, technology acceptance model and Its extensions, and finally research models and frameworks. The discussion of this research obtained revealed that the interest on the topic has shown an increasing trend over recent years that it has ultimately become a well-known topic for academic research in the future via theories use. From review of theoretical models and related theories we recommend to use constructivism, active collaborative learning theory with (TAM) to measurement performance and satisfaction with social media use as the mediator. However, to boost and enhance the IT continuance intention, it is important that future studies apply considerable use of theoretical and methodological approaches like the qualitative methods to examine the IT continuance intention. © 2005 – ongoing JATIT & LLS.

Transformative agency as social construction: Overcoming knowledge constraints in science, art and technology:

Abstract: A core problem of social constructivist theories of knowledge is the lack of theoretical clarity about the role of knowledge constraints and how they are overcome in practice, by what type of socia...

Social Constructivism: Does it Succeed in Reconciling Individual Cognition with Social Teaching and Learning Practices in Mathematics?

Abstract: This article examines the literature associated with social constructivism. It discusses whether social constructivism succeeds in reconciling individual cognition with social teaching and learning practices. After reviewing the meaning of individual cognition and social constructivism, two views –Piaget and Vygotsky’s- accounting for learning from social constructivist perspectives including the differences and similarities between them are argued. This paper also reviews some research that is conducted from a social constructivist perspective. Keywords: mathematics education, social constructivism, teaching and learning, educational psychology.

Learning Management System and the Underlying Learning Theories

Abstract: The problems of most Learning Management Systems (LMS) are first of all of a pedagogical nature and then of a technical one. Studying these problems, which are interrelated, provides a useful conceptual reference that enables us to design a new model for a more relevant solution. In this paper, a conceptual model of an LMS is presented, based on the hybridization between four learning theories, namely the traditional pedagogy, the behaviorism, the cognitivist, and the social constructivism. We will present at first each of these learning theories by discussing both their advantages and limits. Then, together the main principles of these learning theories and the technical functionalities of the proposed LMS that result from the hybridization of these principles are outlined, fit the needs of their final users, in particular learners.

Educational modeling of a learning management system

Abstract: The problems of most Learning Management Systems (LMS) are first of all of a pedagogical nature and then of a technical one. Studying these problems, which are interrelated, provides a useful conceptual reference that enables us to design a new model for a more relevant solution. In this paper, a new conceptual model of an LMS is presented. The model is based on the hybridization between four learning theories, namely the traditional pedagogy, the behaviorism, the cognitivism, and the social constructivism. We will present at first each of these learning theories by discussing both their advantages and limits. Then, together the main principles of these learning theories and the technical functionalities of the proposed LMS that result from the hybridization of these principles are outlined. We finally discuss the implications of the new conceptual model for how to design and develop new LMS that fit the needs of their final users, in particular learners.

Effects of Social Constructivist Mobile Learning Environments on Knowledge Acquisition: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract: This meta-analysis has two aims: a) to address the main effects of social constructivist mobile learning environments on learners’ knowledge acquisition and their academic achievements b) to address potential factors regarding design principles and instructional methods for successful social constructivist mobile environments in a blended learning context. We selected 24 articles that meet the inclusion criteria: empirical studies implementing mobile learning in a blended environment using social constructivism approach. The selected studies are not identical in terms of instructional strategies, tools and devices, period and student’s expertise level. These factors lead to variations in the magnitude of the effect sizes. The review reveals that there is a positive effect of mobile learning on the knowledge acquisition, learners’ achievements, attitudes and motivation despite the high cognitive load. This is shown through the combined effect size. A last remarkable finding related to retention is that students in such environments fulfill their academic tests, but remember less the acquired knowledge after a retention period.

Purposes, processes and parameters of continuing professional learning

Abstract: ................................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter

Managerial Skills for Managing Construction Safety

Abstract: Previous research has suggested that self-awareness, visioning, and sincerity are foundational managerial skills for delivering positive safety outcomes in construction projects. This paper aims to verify this finding and to suggest learning approaches for developing these skills in practice. Interviews with experienced construction practitioners were analysed thematically to find common themes. The thematic analysis confirms the necessity of the mana­gerial skills identified in the previous research for managing construction safety and provides directions for construction organisations to improve safety learning. Existing approaches, which mainly adopt the cognitivism learning philosophy, may not be sufficient because the nature of learning in practice aligns with social constructivism, showing that learning occurs informally through interactions with people and artefacts at work instead of in a classroom-structured environment. Furthermore, although learning methods to develop safety skills have been suggested, there remains a need for better statistical evidence of the effectiveness of these methods in delivering safety outcomes.

Investigating Indonesian teachers' experience, motivation, and confidence in English-medium content teaching through a professional development blended learning environment

Abstract: A blended learning approach has been adopted in many English language learning environments in secondary and higher education because it is seen as having the potential to maximise the benefits of both face-to-face and online learning. This research investigated a blended learning approach for the professional development of teachers working at Indonesian vocational schools who learned English so they could teach their subject in that language. This research was prompted by the lack of preparedness and confidence among Indonesian teachers in vocational high schools to use English as a medium of instruction in the classroom, even though they had attended training courses in a face-to-face mode. The face-to-face training programme was a one-off brief course with limited capacity, able to accommodate only one teacher from one school. After the training programme was concluded, teachers returned to their home schools; were isolated from their peers in the training course; and consequently the learning interaction was not maintained. To understand the teachers’ learning and thinking in the blended learning programme, the conceptual framework for the research was developed based on social constructivist and adult learning theories that were applied in the blended learning course. The development of teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in an English-medium teaching environment, the quality principles of a blended learning approach, and the concepts of motivation and confidence were considered to better understand the complexities involved in the blended learning model. As this research sought to discover the subjective experiences and multiple perspectives perceived by the teacher participants undertaking a blended learning course, a qualitative case study approach was adopted. A case study method allowed me to work closely with the teacher participants to obtain their perspectives and was helpful to understand complex phenomena such as motivation and confidence. Sixteen teachers from three Indonesian vocational schools participated in an English language-learning course using a blended learning approach. Data were collected through pre- and post-surveys, semi-structured interviews, teachers’ reflective journals, classroom observations, and documents, and analysed using thematic data analysis and an inductive approach. The findings of the research were categorised according to the research questions. Teacher participants reported that peer interaction and collaboration both in face-to-face and online sections of the blended learning course were the technology-mediated learning activities that contributed to the enhancement of their teaching skills in an English-medium content teaching environment. Teacher participants also reported that their motivation to learn and confidence to use English for content teaching increased. The teachers’ self-reports were consistent with observation data. Factors that contributed to the increased motivation and confidence were reported, including the learning experiences of the teacher participants, peers feedback, and positive responses from students subsequently taught by teachers who undertook the course. Online cohort-based interaction was reported as having contributed to the gradual increase of using English for content teaching. The learning experience in the blended learning course inspired the teachers to integrate social networking sites such as Facebook and Edmodo in their teaching practice. This discussion of blended learning practice is structured around several key themes and topics. The first looks at how mediated interaction occurred in the blended learning course, including social mediation, self-mediation, and artefact mediation. The second examines factors that made collaboration occur in the blended learning course. A third theme is that of the increased confidence of the teachers involved. The transformation of instrumental into integrative motivation through factors such as social interaction is a fourth topic of interest. The fifth is how teachers developed their PCK in an English-medium content teaching environment. How English language learning was sustained through online interaction, in relation to important issues of behavioural change and social presence, constituted the sixth topic. Lastly, the research will discuss the social constructivist perspectives involved in the blended learning course. The research suggests a blended learning design has the potential to enhance the teaching skills, motivation, and confidence of Indonesian teachers in an English-medium content teaching environment. The design of a blended learning course should promote peer interaction and collaboration.

Conversion Narratives in Context: Muslims Turning to Christ in post-Soviet Central Asia

Abstract: ly about conversion, but in toto it is too complex to apply to field data. Thus when a researcher in the field attempts to work with Rambo ’s model, they are left to try some sort of piecemeal approach, using bits and pieces of the th eory as they fit the situation; therefore, the theory loses some of its explanatory power, which i s based on the whole. One way to remain closer to the field data, yet pu sh into higher orders of thinking about the text, is through the use of metaphors. Miles an d Huberman have emphasized the importance of using metaphors as “decentering devices.” They c an help the researcher step back from the avalanche of observations and data, and ask themsel ves important questions like, “what is going on here?” and “what is this telling me about the bi g picture?” Metaphors force us to go beyond simple description and move up to a more inferentia l level of thinking about the data. A

Learning outdoors and living well? Conceptual prospects for enhancing curriculum planning and pedagogical practices

Abstract: In aiming to support school-based outdoor learning opportunities, this paper critiques the extent to which Deweyan and neo-Aristotelian theorising is helpful in highlighting how personal growth and practical wisdom gains can be realised. Such critique is necessary, as there are signs of an implementation gap between practice and policy, which is made worse by a lack of conceptual clarity about how educational aspirations can be dependably achieved. Dewey’s habit-forming social constructivist emphasis on learning and problem-solving is reviewed and the prospects of a neo-Aristotelian conception of human flourishing, which recognises that virtues are nurtured as moral sensitivities, are then considered. Concerns that Dewey’s writings are often vague on how ideas can be operationalised and criticisms that Aristotle’s educational thoughts rather over-privilege cognition relative to emotions are also addressed. The article concludes by teasing out suggestions on how Deweyan and neo-Aristotelian ideas o...

The Effect of Dynamic Web Technologies on Student Academic Achievement in Problem-Based Collaborative Learning Environment*

Abstract: Some of the 21st proficiencies which are expected from people are determined as collaborative working and solving problem. In gaining these proficiencies, using collaborative solving problem based on social constructivism theory, which is among learning-teaching approaches is shown as a method. The importance of collaborative solving problem is that it is one of the the methods that allows for social constructivism in the class. In the education systems in which constructivist education programs are common, dynamic WEB technologies which support the teacher and students in learning and teaching processes have an important contribution to be BT integration process. In this study, ‘’Semi-Experimental Design model with First test-Lost test Control group’’ was used. The aim of this research is to determine the effect of dynamic web technologies on the academic achievement in problem-based collaborative learning environment. In the research, ‘’Academic Success Test’’ was applied as first test-last test as a data collecting tool. This research was conducted during the application periods of 8 weeks in 2012-2013 spring. The working group of the research was formed from 104 teacher candidates, 53 of whom were in second teaching (evening classes) and 51 of whom were in first teaching (day-time classes) in the 3rd class of Education Faculty Computer and Teaching Technologies Teaching department of a state university which is located in a metropolitan city. As a result of research, it was observed that students who learned with dynamic web technologies are more successful.

Teaching beliefs and learning beliefs in translator and interpreter education: an exploratory case study

Abstract: Since 2000, translator and interpreter trainers have been arguing against the use of a transmissionist approach and for the use of a transformationist approach. Such a change in instructional approach is rooted in a shift in trainers’ beliefs from behaviourism to social constructivism/situated learning. Teachers’ beliefs on the nature of knowledge and learning influence curricular choices, instructional approaches and assessment formats, while students’ beliefs determine their plans for and approach to learning. However, relevant research on teaching and learning beliefs in translator and interpreter education is rare. This study reports on an exploratory case study of teachers’ and learners’ beliefs in the context of translator and interpreter education. It reviews the state of art of educational research on teaching and learning beliefs, and describes two categories of teaching beliefs in translator and interpreter education: behaviourism and constructivism/situated learning. Data were collected through two questionnaires from five teachers and their sixty students. Results suggested that teachers’ beliefs contained mixed elements of behaviourism and constructivism/situated learning and that students’ beliefs did not match those of their teachers. Pedagogical implications were discussed to justify advantages of the co-existence of behaviourism and constructivism/situated learning and reconcile the discrepancies between teachers’ and students’ beliefs..

Interaction of Vietnamese teachers with a social constructivism-based primary science curriculum in a framework appropriate for a Confucian heritage culture

Abstract: This paper describes the perception of a social constructivist approach to teaching and learning among Vietnamese teachers in a Confucian heritage culture and the changes these teachers undergo through their interaction with a new science curriculum that was designed culturally appropriate. A framework of teacher professional development combining state-of-the-art knowledge on professional development and knowledge on curriculum design was adapted and applied to the establishment of a learning community with a facilitator and the teachers as critical co-designers. Through the spiral approach of the development programme, the teachers showed certain changes from a traditional way of teaching to a more social constructivist way of teaching. The teachers proposed concrete teacher activities that can be applied to complete the design of the curriculum and make it a better teaching guideline. The teachers perceived the challenges for applying the newly designed science curriculum in primary education in Vietnamese Confucian heritage culture. This study reveals opportunities to improve the curriculum design and emphasises the need to facilitate teachers in applying the designed curriculum into practice with the stress on the roles of teacher input and professional development.

Practice Theoretically Inspired Focus Groups: Socially Recognizable Performativity?

Abstract: Focus groups have been theorized along a continuum, ranging from different types of scientific realism to various forms of social constructivism. One of the main points of disagreement relates to the understanding of the relations between the content of expressions in the focus group and the social dynamics of group interactions. A crucial question is the extent to which the patterns of expression in focus group interactions are recognizable (socially and culturally) in relation to participants’ everyday lives. Alternatively, these can be viewed as being uniquely situational. This chapter examines how recognizability is discussed in the existing focus group literature. A practice theoretical perspective is offered as allowing researchers to take a middle position, to enable focus group data to shed light both upon patterns of everyday activities across contexts and to illuminate situational negotiations as patterns are made and re-made. It is argued that recognizability can be produced through employing strategies, such as network groups and media representations. Empirical examples are drawn from work on contested food habits.

Several Conceptual Clarifications on the Distinction between Constructivism and Social Constructivism

Abstract: The present paper aims to contribute to the theoretical and operational understanding of the distinction between social constructivism and social-constructivism, both theories being referential for the foundation of a new ontology and social epistemology. In literature, the two models are often used in the same sense, both of which are used as theoretical references in research on the social construction of an institution or social phenomenon. How to cite: Sandu, A., & Unguru, E. (2017). Several Conceptual Clarifications on the Distinction between Constructivism and Social Constructivism. Postmodern Openings, 8 (2), 51-61. http://dx.doi.org/10.18662/po/2017.0802.04

Debating the Place of Knowledge Within Geography Education: Reinstatement, Reclamation or Recovery?

Abstract: This chapter explores the recent debates about knowledge among sociologists in education, subsequently narrowing its focus to consider the response to such debates from within the geography education community. It starts by reflecting on the development of ideas about both the place and function of knowledge in schools towards the end of the last century, drawing in turn on the social constructivist and social realist positions adopted by Michael Young, and others. After considering Young and Muller’s concepts of Future 1, 2 and 3 curricula the chapter concludes by pursuing the connection between the theoretical conceptions of powerful knowledge, different models of curricular futures and geography education. It is apparent that for many geography educationists the importance of the connection between powerful knowledge and ‘everyday’ knowledge in the school curriculum is not yet successfully articulated in the geography curriculum.

Twenty Years of Technology Integration and Foreign Language Teaching: A Phenomenological Reflective Interview Study

Abstract: The evolution of the use of technology in the foreign language classroom has proven to be a challenge. In this paper, we highlight a study whose purpose is to understand how one retired foreign language educator reflected on the ways in which she integrated different modes of technology in her classroom. In this interview study, the participant discussed how technology has evolved in the span of her twenty-year career as a foreign language educator and how she integrated various technologies as they evolved in her classroom. The researchers employed a modified van Kaam method as defined by Moustakas (1994) to analyze the data collected through phenomenological interviews. The results revealed a complex negotiation process, a thoughtful reflection of advantages and disadvantages of technology integration in foreign language classrooms, and the value of understanding the cyclical nature of technology integration in education. Keywords: Foreign Language, Technology, Technology Integration, Phenomenology Often when one looks back at one's career, the perspectives and insights that emerge are different from when one must work in the trenches, within the daily drudgery of the details of lived realities. In this study, we work with a retired foreign language educator, Sama, who has been a foreign language educator in the K-12 education system in South Texas for the last twenty years of her career. During these years Sama experienced administrative mandates to integrate technology in the classrooms and the pressure to do so exponentially increased and did not stop at the point of Sama's retirement. In this paper, we (1) explore the ways Sama negotiated the mandates of new technology integration and how such negotiations influenced her emotions and the way she managed her daily teaching routine using documents, informal conversations, open-ended interviews, and photo-elicitations. This paper is grounded in Vygotsky's (1978) social constructivist theory of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) not only for the purpose of looking at learning processes, but also for understanding how educators can trace these learning processes to inform their own teaching approaches. In discussing ZPD, Vygotsky described one's learning process being reflected by what one can accomplish individually versus what one can do with the assistance of others who are more skilled than the learner. By working with others who are more skilled than one individual learner, the individual learner can make a choice to model his/her own approaches to a task based on the expert performer. This form of modeling can lead to a new stage of cognitive development. Specifically, Vygotsky stated, "The actual developmental level characterizes mental development retrospectively, while the zone of proximal development characterizes mental development prospectively" (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 87). These concepts of ZPD support that learning is a social process through interactions with peers and adults who are better skilled and that such learning experiences can be created by those educators who are aligned with the ways cognitive development occurs as described by Vygotsky. Through such cognitive development one can expect students to become better problem solvers and critical thinkers. In the context of this study, Sama taught students a second language, which was driven heavily through various mandates to integrate technology, especially in the form of software and programs used to learn a language. Someone such as Sama, who has been teaching for more than two decades, then, were compelled to modify her teaching approaches with the call for integrating these new technologies in her classes. These teaching approaches, when guided by the assumptions of social learning, create a learning environment where the teacher has to be seen both as the expert in navigating the technology and the subject matter. Depending on the availability of technology and pedagogy used in teaching, technology-integrated instruction could be used to provide opportunities for students to learn about information retrieval and dissemination, create collaborative products, all in alignment with the tenets of ZPD. …

ICT Pedagogy in Higher Education: A Constructivist Approach

Abstract: Information and communication technology (ICT) has been an integral part of pedagogy in educational institutions in general and higher education in particular My focus in this paper is to see how ICT plays a role in constructing knowledge and improving learning in the higher educational institutions The arguments are based on the review of existing ICT related literature, and in- depth interviews with few ICT pedagogy and social constructivist related educationists So, the method applied is qualitative First, ICT plays a role of a means to an end in the sense that it carries messages with higher level of accuracy Second, it makes the interactions among the target group ‘living’ and creates the environment for effective learning Third, ICT links the performers (teachers and students) in the learning groups cognitively and affectively to transform the unit of learning among the learners This means that ICT plays a vital role in the part of the learners in which they are liberated from their teachers’ dominance

An enquiry into young children's perceptions of learning, ability and schooling as an uncovering of a teacher's pedagogy and practice

Abstract: This thesis aims to examine, document and narrate young able children’s constructions of learning, ability and schooling as a means through which a teacher’s professional identity, pedagogy and practice are unveiled. The focus is on understanding the impact that a teacher and a group of young able learners (who have the potential to reach high levels of performance in one or more areas of endeavour) have on each other’s identities, learning and experiences together with an examination of the kind of inclusive practices that are effective in stimulating the minds of young able children and ultimately meeting their diverse learning needs. The research study, located within an interpretative, social constructivist paradigm in its attempt to construct meaning and knowledge inductively, adopted a qualitative approach through narrative inquiry as teacher and learners were given a voice through the construction of intertwined narratives that were later analysed and interpreted. Data was collected through a variety of tools that included the use of a reflective diary, visual narrative and participatory methods with children. The data yielded three main themes about aspects of the teaching and learning process that seem to influence the learning trajectories of six young able learners – the importance of supportive learning contexts for meeting the needs of highly able learners, the impact of powerful interactions with others and with the environment, as well as the notion of identity construction that seemed to form an integral part of their daily interactions as learning dispositions were acknowledged, inclusive practices adopted and, as a result, positive learner identities were developed and enhanced. Moreover, this thesis brought forth a number of interesting points and suggestions aimed at policymakers, educators, teachers and researchers working and researching with and for children regarding the relevance of learning about one’s professional practices by listening to children’s voices as well as the effectiveness of adopting a constructivist, inquiry-based and participatory approach to learning for the development and nurturing of the diverse needs and abilities of young able children in mixed-ability classrooms.

Reluctant participation - the experiences of adolescents with disabilities of meetings with social workers regarding their right to receive personal assistance [Motvilligt deltagande–erfarenheter hos ungdomar med funktionshinder av möten med LSS-handläggare gällande deras rätt till personlig assistans]

Abstract: The aim of this study was to improve understanding of the experiences of adolescents with disabilities concerning meetings that affect their possibility to receive personal assistance in Sweden. Qu ...

Encountering Tamil communities in Chennai, India and Melbourne, Australia: a reflexive study of learning about ‘the other’ and self

Abstract: This study is situated in a globalising world where cultural flows of people, practices and ideas are part of everyday life (Appadurai, 2001). Literature in the field of intercultural studies (e.g. Angrosino, 2007; Liamputtong, 2010, 2008) and the connected field of culture and identity (e.g. Crewe & Maruna, 2006; Hopper, 2007; Lawler, 2008) show that these cultural flows have some generalisable impacts on the way life is lived across the world, but they are also experienced in particular and diverse ways by individuals throughout the world. The study examines these flows through two inter-connected perspectives. From one perspective this thesis is a narrative-based inquiry into the effects of globalisation on middle-class Tamil peoples living in Chennai, India and Melbourne, Australia. From another perspective it is a critically reflexive account of one person’s efforts over a period of five years to understand and forge intercultural relationships with an ‘other’ culture in this globalising world. From both perspectives, the study is about ‘transformation’ for middle-class Tamils in Chennai, and Melbourne, and for the author, as the researcher. My PhD journey began as an investigation into the mediating impact of the English language upon cultures and cultural practices of Tamils living in two geographically distanced parts of the world. However, soon into the study I came to agree with a range of researchers, such as Crystal (2003, 2006, 2008), Graddol (2010), Kirkpatrick (2010) and Pennycook (1994, 2003, 2007), who point to globalisation and globalising practices as the major driving force behind the newly attained status of English as a (or the) global language. And so my reading broadened and a more complex picture emerged. Thus I became sensitized to the influence of globalisation on cultures, cultural practices and the language of the Tamil peoples in Chennai (and on Tamil diasporic communities in Australia). I explored the concept of globalisation through a range of theorists (e.g. Chirico, 2014; Robertson, 1992; Robertson & White, 2007; Turner, 2010b) and, importantly, Eriksen’s (2014) key concepts and dimensions of globalisation. I worked with Appadurai’s (1996, 2001) ‘global cultural flows’ to explain the shifts and transitions in national and international economies, political interactions, and an increasing sense of compressed time and place. The study is underpinned by a humanistic philosophy in the interpretive paradigm. I work with social constructivist theories associated with the social construction of meaning (Creswell, 2013; Denzin & Lincoln, 2008). The work of Burr (2003) and Gergen and Gergen (2001, 2004, 2009) are particularly important in the way I position myself as an intercultural researcher (see also A. Gray, 2003). Conscious of the tendencies in ‘insider/outsider’ debates to descend into simple dualism, I have taken on the role of ‘invited guest’ in my investigation ‘into’ these cultures and cultural practices. This methodological stance enabled me to participate in the daily activities, interactions and events of some Tamils in the course of my learning about the explicit and tacit aspects of Tamil cultures. However, I am mindful of Said’s (1978) warnings of the dangers of propagating colonialist approaches to power, exploitation, and control in research. My strategy, in this respect, has been to develop a distinctly reflexive narrative-based inquiry that draws rigorously on theorised notions of narrative, story and experience throughout this thesis (Etherington, 2004, 2007, 2009). I conclude that the linguistic and cultural practices of the middle-class Tamil participants in Chennai, India, as in Melbourne, Australia, are being significantly influenced by a range of globalising flows that can be seen to be in a state of profound “transition and transformation”. Individual Tamils and Tamil communities in Chennai are beginning to challenge the deeply held view of traditional cultures as being static, prompting them to engage in new identity work as they are impacted upon, and to some extent, engage with these global flows. In Melbourne, the middle-class Tamil families are in a complex process of transitioning into Australian social and cultural life, while consciously attempting to maintain what they see as ‘their’ traditional cultural practices. Globalising flows are having particular but quite diverse impacts on the identities and cultural practices of middle-class Tamil families, such that the deeply felt notion of the ‘joint’ family is changing, as indeed it has been changing over the course of the last one hundred years. My experience as an intercultural researcher, even one who was to a significant extent an ‘invited guest’, is that the journey of intercultural research is a slow and complicated one that requires time, patience and resilience in order to build understandings of an other’s cultures and cultural practices in a globalising world. I learned that I needed to be continually and reflexively open to difference and to transformation in ‘the other’ and ‘the self’, and to the ways in which my own background and cultures are unavoidably mediating the ways in which I learned about and understood the experiences and cultures of the middle class Tamil communities. This PhD study demonstrates what is possible in a globalising world when participating in intercultural encounters. It also reveals that these encounters can lead to further engagement through patience, attitudes of inclusiveness and reciprocity, understanding, and sensitivity.

A tale of two cognitions: The Evolution of Social Constructivism in International Relations

Abstract: Constructivism in International Relations (IR) is popular, but constructivists seem disappointed. Allegedly something has been lost. Such criticisms are misplaced. There was never a uniform Constructivism. Since constructivism is socially constructed, to argue that constructivism has evolved “wrongly” is odd. This paper explains the dissatisfaction with constructivism followed by a second reading of its evolution as a tale of two cognitions. These two cognitions distinguish genera in the constructivist “family”. A criticism against one genus based on the cognition of the other is unfair. A focus on cognitions and the use of genera helps in perceiving constructivism’s future evolution.Keywords: Cognition, constructivism, evolution, evolutionary branching, disciplinary history. Received: September 7, 2016 Accepted: March 24, 2017 Introduction T he contemporary state of social constructivism in International Relations (IR) is somewhat paradoxical 1 . Constructivism is well established and popular, but many constructivists seem unhappy. The common claim by dissatisfied constructivists is a variation on a theme about the mainstreaming of constructivism and how something important was lost in that process. Yet, as this article argues, such claims are misplaced. For one, there was never some uniform IR “Constructivism,” which then lost something. Rather, constructivism has been characterized by plurality from the start. Second, dissatisfaction with contemporary mainstream constructivism risks being based on some notion of “real” constructivism, which in turn is difficult to square with an important constructivist tenet – social construction – which must apply also to social constructivism. It is odd to argue that the evolution