My preferred way of teaching matches the constructivist learning theory. Constructivism is ‘an approach to learning that holds that people actively construct or make their own knowledge and that reality is determined by the experiences of the learner’ (Elliott et al., 2000, p. 256). I believe that teachers can be the helpers and guides of students to construct knowledge, and stimulate students’ interest in learning, and stimulate and maintain students’ learning motivation. Arends (1998) pointed out that constructivism believes in personal construction of meaning by the learner through experience, and that meaning is influenced by the interaction of prior knowledge and new events. I think that in daily life and various forms of learning in the past, students have formed relevant knowledge and experience, and they have their own views on everything. Even if some problem students have no experience, when the problem is presented to them, they will still form an explanation and put forward their hypothesis based on their cognitive ability and the help of others, such as collaboration and communication among students.

I think digital technology can assist teachers in teaching more effectively. Teachers can combine the advantages of each learning theory and use different digital technologies to achieve a dynamic classroom.

References

Arends, R. I. (1998). Resource handbook. Learning to teach (4th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.

Elliott, S.N., Kratochwill, T.R., Littlefield Cook, J. & Travers, J. (2000). Educational psychology: Effective teaching, effective learning (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill College.