Constructivist theories and foreign language learning

Over the last few decades, there has been a shift in pedagogy from teacher transmission product-oriented approaches, concerned with imitation and with correcting students’

errors, to constructivist, process-oriented approaches, in which the teacher and students actively participate in the learning process (Widdowson, 1997; Crandall, 2000). The

constructivist approach was developed as a reaction to the behaviourist approach, which, as discussed above, focused on conditioning responses to stimuli (Sutton, 2003).

Constructivism in language teaching education is considered a natural and productive process for teaching language skills (Harriet, 2013). Knowledge and understanding is obtained through working with content in the construction of meaning rather than simply transferring it to the student (Richardson, 1997). Constructivism, in contrast to

behaviourism, views learning as a process that is established through the investigation of how knowledge and thinking develop over time. Learning occurs by involving students in active learning, in which they use their background knowledge to solve learning problems.

This process of the constructivist approach might help in teaching the EFL reader the

top-down type strategies. As discussed in Section 2.4, the top-top-down model suggests that reading begins with a global concept and uses the text to illustrate specifics and details, for instance, starting with readers' experience and knowledge about the topic. One of the main approaches to language classroom practice is based on Vygotsky’s (1978) theory of

‘social-constructivism’, which stresses the importance of ‘knowing how to teach over knowing disciplinary knowledge’ (Gallagher, 2007, p.79) to which I turn next.

Social constructivism (Vygotsky’s Approach)

Social constructivism focuses on learning language through dialogue which occurs as a result of the interaction between individuals and their environment. Thus, rather than directing students to pronounce the text correctly as a behaviourist might, Vygotsky (1978) demonstrated that acquiring language is interpersonal, between students and the external world, gradually involving 'internal dialogue, in what appears to be individual thinking' (Linell, 2009, p.135). Vygotsky’s (1978) social-constructivist theory combines the teacher-centred approach with the student-teacher-centred approach (Staples, 2007) in social learning activities (which, as noted below, might improve the way of teaching top-down type strategies), motivating students to learn through group work and discussion activities to solve language problems and obtain new meanings after s/he adopts the strategy.

From a Vygotskian perspective, learning precedes the development of the process

(internalizing the strategies needed to work independently). Interaction between the student and teacher is important for improving the individual's skills. Thus, the teacher’s role becomes essential for improving the strategies of language learning. Neo-Vygotskians, such as Mercer (1994) and Rogoff (2003), view learning as a process of sharing knowledge between teacher and students through social collaboration. For instance, in teaching REFL, the teacher would be able to participate with students in the lesson activities.

If a teacher were working with an advanced EFL group on A Scots Quair, s/he might share their knowledge about the topic with students, The Unfurrowed Field, explaining what unfurrowed field means, when and where the novel was set, the language used, and the major themes. The teacher would also provide language strategies to solve linguistic

problems such as the past tense or subjective aspect. For example, as noted in Chapter One, when I was reading A Scots Quair for the first time, I initially thought the word Norman meant a man from Norway, until my supervisor told me that it referred to the Norman people of Normandy who invaded England in 1066. This highlights the role that the teacher can play in assisting the student to understand the text and find the meaning of words that could not be found in the dictionary. Meaning can also be constructed from engaging students' experiences, if they have them, to the words unfurrowed fields, in a discussion, for instance, about whether that phrase is strictly agricultural or a reference to untried or unsought opportunities. This way of teaching activating student's experience is related to top-down type reading strategies in which, as discussed in Section 2.4, concepts and schemas from personal experience are used to help the reader understand the

significance of the new information.

To put this theory into practice, Vygotsky (1978) introduced two levels of performance:

lower and higher level of performances. The lower level, or unassisted performance, represents tasks the student can do independently, while the higher level, or assisted performance, represents tasks in which the individual requires assistance from the teacher (Moll, 1990). The difference between the higher and the lower level performance is known as the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), which is described by Vygotsky as follows:

The distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers. (Vygotsky, 1978, p.86)

Assisted and unassisted performances can be practised in teaching REFL. For example, in teaching for EFL students, the teacher would be able to provide his/her students with appropriate reading strategies, such as decoding and discussing knowledge about the topic until s/he knows that students can do the task by themselves. As noted in Chapters One and Two, in reading A Scots Quair, my supervisors helped me to gain knowledge of reading strategies and how and when to use the dictionary so that I could read independently.

Vygotsky's unassisted performance approach might represent the top-down type strategies

because the reader is using his/her own knowledge to understand a particular text.

Knowing what Norman was, I could understand that the novel was set in a historical context. With knowledge of what gryphons were, I could see that myths might play a role in this part of the novel. Finally, knowing that a hide window was a window covered by animal skin to protect the inhabitants from the elements, I understood these people were poor. Vygotsky suggests that students’ competence and experience can be expanded through guidance and explanations from teachers. Cognitive and social factors such as what students know already should be developed through interacting with others (Moll, 1990), supported by the guiding role of the teacher.

Teaching a foreign language, following the ZPD, is not just a transmission of knowledge, but is, rather, about scaffolding knowledge, a ‘metaphor for the kind of support that teachers provide to enable students to reach for higher level of performance’ (Coelho, 2012, p.102). Scaffolding represents the idea that the teacher attempts to build a bridge between the individuals’ existing knowledge and their needs for a task. Safadi and Rababah (2012) conducted an experimental study to test the effect of scaffolding

instruction on Arab EFL reading comprehension skills. They tested two groups; the first was provided with scaffolding instructions during reading English, while the second read the same units without scaffolding. The results showed that there were significant

differences in the subjects' achievement in reading comprehension skills, in favour of the experimental group. The researchers recommend integrating scaffolding techniques while teaching reading because they improve students’ comprehension scores. For instance, the teacher provides students with tasks that the student can only solve following the guidance of the teacher question, 'What is a gryphon?'. Gibbons (2002) adds that as students develop language skills, the teacher’s role should gradually recede, until they encounter a more complex text than the one they have just read. Similarly, Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) characterised scaffolding in teaching as the act of recruiting a students' interest,

highlighting the task’s relevant features, and demonstrating models to be performed in the task. This means that responsibility is passed to the student to practise language skills and application after having been given the required assistance. In the context of reading A Scots Quair, without the support of my supervisors, I could not have continued reading the text and its meaning would have remained elusive.

In terms of teaching REFL, Clark and Graves (2005) state that for scaffolding to be

accomplishing a task they might not complete alone. They recommended that teachers should consider students’ weaknesses and strengths by creating pre-, during and post-reading tasks that are designed to illustrate the purpose of post-reading. I apply this plan to A Scots Quair:

In the pre-reading stage, students could discuss with the teacher and each other the cultural background of the text (top-down type strategic behaviours). Then students may use their bottom-up type reading strategic behaviours to decode words and sentences, and if they are unable to, the teacher can explain their meaning. During the reading, the students can read the entire text alone, then discuss in it in pairs, and finally discuss it as a class to ask: 'What is happening in this extract?', 'What is the significance of the beast?', 'What does “meikle cock” mean?', 'What is the author's intended meaning?' Post task activities could extend these questions or direct the students to read further.

Though there are advantages to scaffolding, there are some drawbacks. Barnard (2002) argues that scaffolding lessons, to meet each student’s needs, is time-consuming, especially in large classes in which there are limited communication possibilities with students. This is the case in Libya, in which classes contain a large number of students and teaching is based on traditional, over-behaviourist type methods (Orafi 2008 and Aldabbus, 2008) with students relying on the teacher to read and explain the reading texts. To benefit from scaffolding, teachers should give students the opportunity to practise their language knowledge individually, in pairs and in groups (see Chapter Seven).