scholarly journals Social Constructivism Theory in a Sociolinguistic Classroom

2021 ◽  
Vol 04 (02) ◽  
Author(s):  
Najla Alghamdi ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Final Project ◽  
High Level

This paper aims to examine the efficacious of using social constructivism in teaching sociolinguistics. The students of a bachelor’s degree in a department of English language and linguistics used to suffer in doing sociolinguistic projects and some of them failed in doing so although they obtained good marks in the written exams. This noteworthy dilemma led the researcher to conduct an action research as an attempt to discover the causes of this problem and to propose solutions. This action research took place in a sociolinguistic classroom for a one academic semester. The researcher decided to modify her teaching method by applying social constructivism theory which is embodied in student-centered method. Furthermore, the instructional scaffolding was used in the classroom to facilitate the knowledge flow and the students learning. The data was collected from the students’ performance in three related sociolinguistic tasks and to test the progress in the students’ cognitive and linguistic skills another data was collected from the course final project. The data revealed that students are struggling with the high level of cognitive abilities such as, applying, analyzing, justifying and thinking critically. Furthermore, students also lack some crucial linguistic and research skills such as, do phonetic transcription correctly, explain the findings based on the sociolinguistic theories and principals, highlight the importance of their work, steer clear of pilgrims and avoid redundancy in writing. The results of the action research showed that implementing social constructivism theory, which is based on the concept of learning by doing, in sociolinguistic classroom helped the students to absorb and digest the knowledge simultaneously with developing their cognitive skills.

Role of the Social Constructivist Theory, Andragogy, and Computer-Mediated Instruction (CMI) in Adult ESL Learning and Teaching Environments

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
Seda Khadimally
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
English Language ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Social Constructivist Theory

The purpose of this chapter is to explore whether social constructivism promotes mobile technology rich, student-centered learning/teaching practices, leading adult English as a second language (ESL) students to transform into self-directed learners. Under this theory, a shift from teacher-centered English language learning to a student-oriented approach to how students acquire basic English skills is promoted and students' possible transformation into independent and autonomous learners is fostered because, by use of mobile technologies, they may successfully transfer information from their previous experiences to their current knowledge. Incorporating mobile learning (m-Learning) into their instruction and making social constructivism an integral part of their curriculum, ESL teachers can contribute to their students transformation into self-directed learners as an active, knowledge-building community and in charge of their own learning processes, which explains that this theory is highly compatible with the principles grounded in what Knowles proposed as a progressive learning approach for adult education: andragogy.

Using Precision Teaching Method to Improve Foreign Language and Cognitive Skills in University Students

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 50-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Cuzzocrea ◽  
Anna Maria Murdaca ◽  
Patrizia Oliva
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Precision Teaching ◽  
English Grammar ◽  
Grammatical Accuracy

Learning a foreign language takes time and effort. In the last few years, too much emphasis has been placed on oral communication skills and English teachers make their students speak English without paying enough attention to grammatical accuracy. As a result, while students’ ability in terms of fluency has improved, they often cannot communicate appropriately in English due to a lack of grammatical knowledge. The aim of the study was to explore the potential of Precision Teaching software developed for the improvement of English grammar rules. Two groups were compared, one having used the software and the other following a traditional textbook-based approach. The students who used the software showed significantly higher learning scores than students who did not. In addition, after using the software students show increased scores in some cognitive abilities that are related to foreign language learning.

scholarly journals INCREASING FRESHMEN’S EXPECTATIONS, BELIEFS AND ACHIEVEMENT OF MATHEMATICS

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aysun Dogutas
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Positive Perception ◽  
Achievement Level ◽  
Expectancy Value ◽  
Negative Beliefs ◽  
Study Results ◽  
High Level ◽  
Interest And Motivation

This study aimed to increase achievement level of college students on math by providing high level of expectancy, value, interest and motivation toward math. To be able to achieve this aim, action research was used instead of exploratory studies. Action research is a group of people’s identifying a problem, doing something to solve the problem, seeing how successful they were and if they weren’t satisfied by the results their retrying; in short learning by doing and living [39]. One hundred fifty freshmen of a university in Turkey participated to the study. The researcher and a math teacher implemented to the study. Results of the study showed that students’ negative beliefs and expectations can change if they get support. According to the beliefs and expectations grades of students also change and improve since positive perception makes life positive.

scholarly journals The Effect of Project-Based Learning on First-Year Undergraduate Students in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) Courses

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 227
Author(s):  
Aziza Kavlu
Keyword(s):  
Academic Achievement ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
English For Specific Purposes ◽  
Project Work ◽  
Efl Learners

Project-Based Learning is an approach that is significantly different from the conventional English Language Teaching method. PBL has been advocated as an effective instruction that promotes the simultaneous acquisition of language, content, and 21st-century skills to EFL (English as a foreign language) and ESL context. In this study researcher’s attempt is to integrate PBL (Project-Based Learning) approach, which incorporates authentic, learning by doing, problem-solving, critical thinking and team working skills with ESP (English for specific purposes) courses. The study aimed to investigate whether the PBL projects assist EFL learners in acquiring department related literature and information in the English language and the effect of project work on learners’ ESP course academic achievement. The study was conducted at Tishk International University, formerly known as Ishik University, in Iraq-Kurdistan Region with 2 Engineering (Architectural and Civil engineering) and Business and Management departments’ students. A mixed-method approach was designed to make the authentic interpretation of gained results. Quantitative and Qualitative instruments were utilized to probe the effect of PBL in the ESP course of undergraduate Iraqi EFL learners. The findings of this study reveal that PBL had a significant positive effect on acquiring department-related vocabulary and information in English as well as learners’ ESP course academic achievement showed statistically significant increment.

Role of the Social Constructivist Theory, Andragogy, and Computer-Mediated Instruction (CMI) in Adult ESL Learning and Teaching Environments

2021 ◽  
pp. 195-221
Author(s):  
Seda Khadimally
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
English Language ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Social Constructivist Theory

The purpose of this chapter is to explore whether social constructivism promotes mobile technology rich, student-centered learning/teaching practices, leading adult English as a second language (ESL) students to transform into self-directed learners. Under this theory, a shift from teacher-centered English language learning to a student-oriented approach to how students acquire basic English skills is promoted and students' possible transformation into independent and autonomous learners is fostered because, by use of mobile technologies, they may successfully transfer information from their previous experiences to their current knowledge. Incorporating mobile learning (m-Learning) into their instruction and making social constructivism an integral part of their curriculum, ESL teachers can contribute to their students transformation into self-directed learners as an active, knowledge-building community and in charge of their own learning processes, which explains that this theory is highly compatible with the principles grounded in what Knowles proposed as a progressive learning approach for adult education: andragogy.

Training in literature review and associated skills

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 258-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence A. Leger ◽  
Kavita Sirichand
Keyword(s):  
Instructional Design ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
English Language ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Learning Framework ◽  
Literature Reviews ◽  
Published Account ◽  
Small Work

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe and evaluate a credit-bearing taught module in literature review skills (broadly conceived, to include literature search, avoidance of plagiarism, analysis, synthesis, writing literature reviews, formulation of research proposals). The module provides training in skills with high transferability to employment, other areas of education and research. Design/methodology/approach – The structure of the module is informed by considerations from learning theory and instructional design. Training is by participation in tasks in an active learning framework (“learning-by-doing”). Students work both individually and in small work-groups, on tasks based on specially prepared reading sets. Tutorial presentations are followed by verbal and video feedback. Dedicated English language support is provided. The module is evaluated by analysing responses to an open-ended questionnaire. Findings – Students respond very favourably to the module and are aware of the transferability of the skills they practice. However, there is no real evidence of the acquisition of meta-cognitive skills. There is demand for enhanced feedback, particularly verbal feedback. Research limitations/implications – The results of the evaluation and the instructional design of the module suggest many areas for experiments in pedagogy. Originality/value – There is no other published account of extensive training in literature review skills that we have been able to find. The paper addresses a gap in both the provision of training and its dissemination.

EXPRESS: Taking apart what brings us together: the role of action prediction, perspective-taking, and theory of mind in joint action

2021 ◽  
pp. 174702182110501
Author(s):  
Lucia Maria Sacheli ◽  
Elisa Arcangeli ◽  
Desiré Carioti ◽  
Steve Butterfill ◽  
Manuela Berlingeri
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Joint Action ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Action Prediction ◽  
Ability To Act ◽  
Interactive Task ◽  
High Level ◽  
Predictive Mechanisms

The ability to act together with others to achieve common goals is crucial in life, yet there is no full consensus on the underlying cognitive skills. While influential theoretical accounts suggest that interaction requires sophisticated insights into others’ minds, alternative views propose that high-level social skills might not be necessary because interactions are grounded on sensorimotor predictive mechanisms. At present, empirical evidence is insufficient to decide between the two. This study addressed this issue and explored the association between performance at joint action tasks and cognitive abilities in three domains - action prediction, perspective-taking, and theory of mind - in healthy adults (N=58). We found that, while perspective-taking played a role in reading the behaviour of others independently of the social context, action prediction abilities specifically influenced the agents’ performance in an interactive task but not in a control (social but non-interactive) task. In our study, performance at a theory of mind test did not play any role, as confirmed by Bayesian analyses. The results suggest that, in adults, sensorimotor predictive mechanisms might play a significant and specific role in supporting interpersonal coordination during motor interactions. We discuss the implications of our findings for the contrasting theoretical views described above and propose a way they might be partly reconciled.

scholarly journals CELLO AS A LANGUAGE TEACHING METHOD IN INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION 4.0 ERA

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 75
Author(s):  
Halimah Halimah ◽  
Gufran Ali Ibrahim ◽  
Ninuk Lustyantie
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
English Language Learning ◽  
Innovative Teaching

CELLO is derived from Community English Language Learning and Orai. It is a new teaching method developed especially in the community of English language learning based on the idea of Curran�s work on teaching method. CELLO is a combination between an innovative teaching method and media technology called Orai Application that is applied in teaching and learning of speaking especially in fostering students� fluency. Today, all graduates face a world transformed by technology, in which the Internet, cloud computing, and social media create different opportunities and challenges for formal education systems. This paper aims to explore the use of CELLO in assisting student�s speaking fluency. This classroom action research consists of three cycles in which each cycle consists of six stages, namely identify the problem, data gathering, data interpreting, action on evidence, evaluation, and revision. The obtained data showed that CELLO method could improve students� speaking fluency. �Based on the finding, implementing CELLO method is strongly recommended in teaching speaking especially at fostering students� speaking fluency.Keywords: CELLO; speaking fluency; technology 4.0; industrial revolution; action research.

scholarly journals STUDENT CENTERED LEARNING: AN APPROACH TO DEVELOP SPEAKING SKILL IN EFL CLASSROOM

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Finza Larasati
Keyword(s):  
Learning Styles ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Classroom Teaching ◽  
Learning Approach ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Speaking Skill ◽  
The Relationship

This paper brings to light, the importance of an approach in learning speaking; a student centered learning approach. The researcher pays so much attention on this approach caused the necessity of students in globalization era that required them to master the English especially in terms of communication. A key issue here is whether what happens in a speaking classroom is concerned with “teaching speaking”. Student-centered learning is focused on the student’s needs, abilities, interests, and learning styles with the teacher as a facilitator of learning. This classroom teaching method acknowledges student voice as central to the learning experience for every learner. The relationship between student-centered approach and the speaking skill is relevant. This approach creates learning by doing situation. The students can develop their speaking skill through the realization of tasks, which are devised along with the students and taking into consideration their needs and characteristics.

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