Implementing Constructivism in Mathematics Classrooms

Abstract:  Everybody has a unique idea about what math is.  Whether a math student understands the material or not, he or she has internalized some understanding of mathematics based on previous experience. According to the constructivist theory of education, students mentally construct new information from current knowledge structures.  In other words, students build upon knowledge that they already have to understand new material.  Applying constructivism to mathematics instruction can prove to be a very useful pedagogical technique. If an instructor accepts the premise that students learn new information through previous experience, then the instructor can use that knowledge to engage students, and guide them to actively construct new information.  Additionally, I explore how constructivism can be used specifically to analyze students’ understanding of three related math concepts: counting, patterns, and functions.

Thursday, March 25th

4:30pm

Fowler 302