Teachers’ Perspectives towards the Implementation of Constructivism in Teaching EFL at Salahaddin University

Authors

  • Qismat M. Zahawi Department of English, College of Basic Education, Salahaddin University, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
  • Fatimah R. Hasan Al Bajalani Department of English, College of Languages, Salahaddin University, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21928/juhd.v5n3y2019.pp28-35

Keywords:

Constructivism, Kurdish EFLteachers, Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this study is to elicit Kurdish EFL teachers’ perspectives on constructivism and its implementation at university level. To obtain the needed data, a questionnaire is administered to 49 EFL teachers at Salahaddin University. According to the most significant results of the research, the Kurdish EFL teachers in general have positive perspectives toward constructivism as a teaching and learning approach. However, their agreement with the implementation of the different principles of constructivism varied and the agreement percentage for the items ranged from 89.39% to 73.47%. It is worth mentioning that the current study is an extract from a PhD dissertation that investigates the effectiveness of implementing the principles of constructivism in the Kurdish context.

References

Astawa, N, Artini, L., and Nitiasih, K. (2017). Project-based learning activities and efl students’ productive skills in English. Journal of Language Teaching and Research. 8 (6), pp.1147-1155.
Bakla, A. (2011). Teachers’ views on constructivism in Turkish primary EFL classes. Mediterranean Journal of Humanities. 1 (2), pp. 1-20.
Benson, Ph. (2011). Teaching and Researching Autonomy. US: Pearson Co.
Brooks, J. and Brooks, M. (1999). In search of understanding: The case for constructivist classrooms. VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Cey, T. (2001). Moving Towards Constructivist Classrooms. University of Saskatchewan. Retrieved from https://etad.usask.ca/802papers/ceyt/ceyt.pdf
Chieu, V. M. (2005). Constructivist Learning: An Operational Approach for Designing Adaptive Learning Environments Supporting Cognitive Flexibility. A published PhD dissertation, Université catholique de Louvain.
Cirik, I., Çolak, A., and Kaya, D. (2015). Constructivist learning environments: the teachers’ and students’ perspectives. International Journal on New Trends in Education and Their Implications. 6 (2), pp.30-45.
Fernando, S. Y. and Marikar, F. M. (2017). Constructivist teaching/learning theory and participatory teaching methods. Journal of Curriculum and Teaching. 6 (1).
Fosnot, C. T. (2005). Constructivism revisited: Implications and reflections. In C. T. Fosnot (Ed.), Constructivism: Theory, Perspectives, and Practice. 2nd ed. (pp.276– 292). New York: Teachers College.
Fox, R. (2001). Constructivism Examined. Oxford Review of Education. 27(1), pp. 23-35.
Hasan, H. S. (2014). An Assessment of the Sociocultural Approach to Teaching Communication at Salahaddin University. Unpublished MA thesis, Salahaddin University.
Henry, M. (2002). Constructivism in the community college classroom. History Teacher. 6 (1), pp. 65-74.
Hinojosa, L. M. M. (2015). Contributions of educational psychology to university education. Psychology. 6, pp.177-190.
Jordan, A., Carlile, O. and Stack, A. (2008). Approaches to Learning: A Guide for Teachers. London: McGraw-Hill House.
Kaufman, D. (2004). constructivist issues in language learning and teaching. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics. 24 (3), pp. 303-319.
Kaymakoğlu, S. (2014). Beliefs and practices of EFL teachers: constructivist or traditional. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching. 1 (3), pp.216-224.
Kudryashova, A., Gorbatova, T., Rybushkina, S., Ivanova, E. (2016). Teacher’s roles to facilitate active learning. mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. 7 (1).
Mahmud, A. (2013). Constructivism and reflectivism as the logical counterparts in TESOL: learning theory versus teaching methodology. TEFLIN Journal. 24 (2).
Richards, J. C. and Schmidt, R. (2010). Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics. 3rd edition. London: Pearson Education Limited.
Rowell, C. G. and Palmer, B. C. (2007). Cognitive and Constructivist Strategies for Teaching about Language and for Providing Reading and Writing Instruction. Published by the Forum on Public Policy. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1099088.pdf
Schell, G. P. and Janicki, T. J. (2013). Online course pedagogy and the constructivist learning model. Journal of the Southern Association for Information Systems. 1 (1), pp.26-36.
Sengupta, A. (2016). Going beyond traditional assessment: alternative assessment and Indian ESL classroom. Humainising Language Teaching. Year 18, Issue 1.
Tan, C. (2016). Constructivism and pedagogical reform in China: Issues and challenges. Globalisation, Societies and Education. 10, pp.1-10.
Vadeboncoeur, J. A. (1997). Child development and the purpose of education: A historical context for constructivism in teacher education. In V. Richardson (ed.), Constructivist teacher education: Building new understandings. pp.15-37. London: The Falmer Press.
Wilson, B. and Cole, P. (1991). A review of cognitive teaching models. Educational Technology Research and Development. 39(4).pp. 47-64.
Young, G. (2014). The Journey to Becoming Constructivist, Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, Secondary Mathematics Teacher. A published PhD dissertation. Portland State University.

Published

2019-07-08

How to Cite

Zahawi, Q. M., & Al Bajalani, F. R. H. (2019). Teachers’ Perspectives towards the Implementation of Constructivism in Teaching EFL at Salahaddin University. Journal of University of Human Development, 5(3), 28–35. https://doi.org/10.21928/juhd.v5n3y2019.pp28-35

Issue

Section

Conference Paper