Constructivism in EFL Instruction: Albanian Teachers' Perceptions and Practices

Abstract A lot of research has been conducted in constructivism as a relatively new theory opposing traditional learning theories with its innovative ideas. In the field of English language teaching, however, and teacher’s cognitions of educational theories, research is still insufficient in the Albanian EFL context. This study explores Albanian EFL teachers’ perceptions of constructivism and their classroom practices. The data was collected from four high school classrooms and two EFL teachers through classroom observations, semi-structured interviews and stimulated recall interviews within a trimester. Results showed that teachers support the constructivist perspective and the existence of its techniques in actual curriculums by implementing it sparingly throughout their lessons. However, data also revealed that the use of constructivist techniques could not be carried out based simply on personal cognitions due to unsuccessful results in students’ socio-cultural behavior. The shift in usage of teaching techniques is analyzed and according to classroom implications the collected data is stated as helpful to understand the unconsciously employed techniques compared to the theoretical cognitions of English teachers. The findings were interpreted considering the teachers; understanding of the constructivist teaching process and its suggestions for changes in the role of the teacher and student with the aim of building a perfect environment for teaching and learning. Keywords: Constructivism, EFL teachers, EFL classrooms, Teacher perceptions, Teaching practices Introduction Constructivism is one of the most recent educational theories that emerged as an innovative perspective of teaching and learning in 1974. Initiated by Ernst von Glasesrfeld and developed by educational theorists such as Jean Piaget, Jerome Brunner and Lev Vygotsky, the theory supports that knowledge is actively constructed by learners who explore their environments and build knowledge based on pre-existing information schemas. There are many methods and models which represent constructivist approach for learning such as inquiry-based teaching, discovery learning, discussion and debates, peer-assisted learning and reflective teaching (Schunk, 2012). According to the theory, knowledge is co-constructed with social interaction and is a process that lasts and is formed in several layers (Bandura, 1986). In this theory, the teacher acts as a facilitator that encourages curiosity and motivates learners by analysing their existing knowledge and adapting it with proper posed questions at specific moments of instruction (Baviskar et al., 2009). The classroom is student-centered and the curriculum is formulated based on the needs of the student. Constructivist strategies have also proved to be very useful for students and teachers by making the teaching process active and interesting (Yilmaz, 2008). Many studies have explored teachers’ perceptions as well as the actual practicality and applicability of the theory in real-life EFL classrooms (Yilmaz, 2008). Teachers lean on different thoughts regarding constructivism and use it accordingly in EFL classrooms. Since constructivism is new as an educational theory compared to older theories, there are various issues to be considered as to whether it can be successfully applied in Albanian EFL classrooms or not, and if teachers actually support and practice the theory. Therefore, this study is conducted with the aim to investigate most frequent teaching techniques used in EFL classrooms and find possible relation to constructivist techniques; to explain teachers’ cognitions, beliefs, and ideas of constructivism; to analyze external factors that influence the applicability of the theory. It is a modest contribution to research in further understanding EFL teachers’ perceptions of constructivism and their classroom practices. Literature review The roots of constructivism are in Jean Piaget's work of age-related development stages which considered a child “a lone scientist of the world” (Hmelo-Silver & Barrows, 2006; Hmelo-Silver et al., 2007). Piaget is considered a biological individualist and therefore constructivism seems to be applied more efficiently in science related fields since they have the proper amount of curiosity to offer for curious learners (Piaget, 1964; 2003). He considered the learning process as internal, private and mental and pointed out the idea that learners should first explore on their own before they share their knowledge with peers (1964). For Piaget, the individual possesses the prime value and puts it in the first place letting aside the social. This point of view was, however, opposed by Lev Vygotsky and Cole, who underlined the importance of the socio-cultural context pointing out that students can learn better by socializing and co-learning (1978). Piaget’s revolutionary idea did not support passive learning in which the only source of information is poured from the teacher to a blank or empty “sponge”, which is the student (Piaget, 1964; 2003). With his ideas it became more popular for curriculum designs to integrate student-engaging activities through participation in dialogues, in group work and in self-made projects, thus making students “more involved” in the learning process (Piaget, 1964). Considering these new practices, in the linguistic approach of constructivism, we notice a significant use of all these classroom activities with the aim of learning how to use languages more efficiently in real life situations as well as how to give and receive information in different social contexts. Vygotsky introduced another perspective of constructivism identifying the social character of learning (1978). Unlike the psychological features of the constructivist theory, social constructivism deals with the importance that social interaction and cognitive learning have in constructing cognitive and emotional images of reality (Yilmaz, 2008). Vygotsky concluded that social interviews are the foundation in cognitive development. Becoming the inventor of social constructivism, he emphasized the importance of human learning by interacting with each other, which is directly related to the linguistic approach of social constructivism and how important the application of the theory would be in English as a foreign language (EFL) context (Vygotsky & Cole, 1978). According to him, knowledge is a social product and learning is a social process (Abha, 2019). In other words, understanding is social from nature, and it is created by interactions with others. Vygotsky explains his theory speaking from a social and personal sphere, considering that perception is actualized only when the internalization of knowledge is created in interaction with others (Yilmaz, 2008). Vygotsky attaches great importance to dialogue and different types of interaction between the learners (1978). According to him, every operation within the cultural development of the kid happens twice: initially, at the social level, and later, at the individual level; initially between individuals and then among the kids. This is applicable to learners’ attention, to logical memory, and to the formation of ideas (Vijayakumari & Jinu, 2013). All higher functions occur as complete relationships between people. Vygotsky sees language as the main medium of interaction and communication and a prerequisite for absorbing and initializing the experiences gained from interaction. Therefore, constructivism as a learning theory, has many prospects in social-based fields where social interaction is more needed than personal exploration (Yilmaz, 2008; Alt, 2014). Following Piaget, who somehow initiated the basics of the theory, Jerome Brunner established constructivism through his approach of interactionism. Basically, this contributes to a better understanding of the linguistic approach of constructivism, as Bruner explored language development and how learners acquire knowledge by communicating or interacting and therefore developing linguistic expression. Brunner highlights that social interaction is an important factor in child development. It contributes to the use of meaningful language and active participation in creating valid shared meaning through collaborative processes (Bruner, 1961). He argued that “one seeks to equip the child with deeper, more gripping and subtler ways of knowing the world and himself.” (Bruner, 1961, pp. 117-118) thus pointing out that learning as a process is constructed based on the human’s previous experiences. It is true that we can learn by putting into practice the knowledge we get from experience, but actually the whole learning process is socially related. Experiences show that human beings learn easier by interacting with each other, by encoding and decoding (Karagiorgi & Symeou, 2005). Since it was invented, the theory continues to be increasingly employed by teachers all around the world, who try to find the most convenient learning style for their students. It holds that individuals require proper assistance at the right moment. Furthermore, the role of teacher as a facilitator is still necessary. This combination of the right assistance at the right time leads to very effective gain of knowledge in the learning process of a classroom where children try to gain more knowledge by interaction. Research shows that to be a successful constructivist teacher you should not only play the role of the facilitator but also create a conductive and social-friendly environment in the classroom (Abha, 2019). Learning should be contextualized in real-world environments that make use of a context which makes learning relevant (Jonassen, 1991). Usage of the principles and methods of constructivism has demonstrated that these constructive methods of teaching are more effective than the traditional ones (Bandura, 1986; Bandura et al., 2001). Concepts and Definitions Constructivism suggests that learners construct their knowledge based upon their pre-existing information by adding it to their knowledge schemas. Learners create understanding of this information in an active way through participating in the process of receiving and giving information rather than passively receiving it (Vygotsky & Cole, 1978). They reflect on the new knowledge according to experiences and they create their own perspective of the received information according to their personal and social background. Recent definitely suggest that teachers include in their lesson plans problem-solving activities which put students to the center of the learning process. The aim of the constructivist theory is to guide learners to think on how they can put theoretical acquisition into real-life use through assimilation and accommodation. Hence, language teaching and learning regards many practical everyday activities which can be thoroughly supported by the constructivist teaching model (Bada & Olusegun, 2014). Constructivism is a theory that aims for the instructors to simply be facilitators that provide students with contexts where they can explore and find interesting things about the new information (Hyslop-Margison & Strobel, 2008). According to this approach, every learner should be an active participant throughout the learning process. All said, constructivism is a learner-centered educational theory and to be able to transform our teacher centered educational models has proven to be challenging. This theory includes significant concepts and processes such as assimilation and accommodation, zone of proximal development (ZPD) and scaffolding, an explanation of which will help in better understanding of this theory. Assimilation is the receiving of new information from the learner who tries to fit it in his pre-existing schemas of knowledge (Piaget, 1964). Every individual has a set of knowledge schemas which are created since he starts grasping and understanding information. His mindset is created by adding more information to those schemas of knowledge. Accommodation is the continuing process of assimilation where the learner takes the new information and tries not to fit the knowledge into the previous knowledge but actually “restores”, “revises”, “develops” and “transforms” the existing schemas to whole new schemas of understanding (Piaget, 1964). The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) implies the notion of “the more knowledgeable other” (Harland, 2003). Apparently there is always one or more persons who have a better understanding or skills regarding a specific area. The ZPD is the time that a learner cannot receive knowledge without proper encouragement or guidance. This zone is the time where instruction is much more needed in order for the student to develop the necessary skills (Yilmaz, 2008). This brings another important factor which is the role of dialogue and teacher facilitation for constructivism. A critical element regarding the ZPD remains the fact that during their lifetime students advance from one approximate area to another, with progress that sometimes is slighter and sometimes larger, depending on various internal and external factors (Vygotsky, 1978). Scaffolding is another constructivist concept that contributes to our understanding of the teacher’s role in constructivism. Scaffolding refers to the role of the teacher in providing learners with enough basic knowledge for them to pass the initial stages of learning a new subject (Bruner, 1961). Educators facilitate, organize, plan the lesson and use the more appropriate techniques to transfer the student exactly where his maximum understanding zone is. Domains of constructivism Constructivism is not a single or unified theory; rather, it is characterized by plurality and multiple perspectives. Varied theoretical orientations explicate such different facets of constructivism as cognitive development, social aspects, and the role of context (Yilmaz, 2008). Cognitive constructivism, developed by Jean Piaget, centers around the concept that knowledge is constructed through active learning and not simply received passively by a single source of knowledge (Piaget, 1964). Furthermore, radical constructivism (Von Glasersfeld (2013) suggests that the acquired knowledge is not necessarily reflecting knowledge of a real world, since every individual has his own construction schemas. In addition, critical constructivism emphasizes a critical evaluation in the communicative ethics used in the classroom between teachers and learners. It fully supports that knowledge is an adaptive process and that it is based on the experiences of the individual. Social constructivism, according to sociocultural theory, suggests that human development is a social-driven process by which students learn better and faster by interacting with their more educated peers. In the foreign language context, the effects of culture are meant to appear with the appearance of the tools of intellectual development. Social interaction is the main factor of social constructivism. In order to understand constructivism in the learning process, educators have to restructure their perspectives of teaching. As social constructivism can be considered the future in the teaching process, educators have to focus on interaction, multiple perspectives, different learning inputs and different environments of learning in order to be able to contribute to this huge world of information (Le Cornu & Peters, 2005; Gijbels et al., 2008; Bozalek et al., 2013). Constructivism in EFL Instruction Based on the main focus of this study, constructivism in the English as a foreign language (EFL) context will be presented in terms of principles that build the ideas of this theory embedded in the classroom. Regarding relevant research, the discussion in this context began after the 1980s and the term constructivism became more frequently used in the context of EFL teaching. In accordance with constructivist principles, Wolff and De Costa point out that constructivist language teaching is a learning process which is prominently autonomous, subjective, student centered and active (2017), while traditional teaching is mostly based on a pedagogical-psychological concept where learners simply “react” to what is being taught and they either accept or reject the information. In constructivism, the learner tries to accumulate the received information and embed it to the pre-existing knowledge by actively changing the cognitive schemas. Most important to the research is to understand how the sociocultural approach of constructivism is closely embedded with teaching English as a foreign language. Sociocultural approach in teaching English as a foreign language is teaching with interaction, negotiation and collaboration (Yilmaz, 2008). In the process of learning a foreign language, it is important for the teacher to intertwine collaborative learning by using experience and discourse for the students to grasp meanings through peers. Since a foreign language is mostly learned for communication purposes, the sociocultural approach helps to understand how students use their sociocultural backgrounds to add and give from their foreign language knowledge (Yilmaz, 2008). Recent studies about EFL teachers have shown that the sociocultural approach in constructivism has helped them reach better results in their classrooms. The EFL teaching process is oriented towards action oriented and cooperative learning activity, which constitute significant principles of constructivism. Some of the many activities within this approach are pair work, group work and social forms of English -speaking activities. The student is frequently asked to take the role of the teacher and so the student learns by teaching. As Wolff and De Costa claim, learning can be influenced by teaching but not in a way as traditional teaching suggests (2017). Furthermore, Tenenbaum et al. also suggest that knowledge develops internally rather than simply transmitted by the teacher or another learner (2001). In a language classroom, for example, the learner is asked to choose teaching materials for classroom learning; as a result, the ability to make decisions promotes autonomy and learners are able to distinguish their preferable style of learning and recognition of skills. Before being able to decide, the student is informed that with decision comes responsibility and the crucial thing is that his chosen techniques and strategies should be applied actively during learning. Gaining proper learning awareness is followed by language and intercultural awareness which were explained in detail in the socio-cultural approach. However, not all constructivist approaches are applicable to the EFL teaching contexts. For instance, radical constructivism cannot be applied as it has many disadvantages in the explanatory level and in areas of inconsistency. The holistic language experience or the content-oriented EFL instruction is applied in bilingual contexts and according to it, learning a foreign language is very effective in complex learning environments. Studies report interesting results regarding the usefulness of constructivism in EFL instruction. Reinfried argues in a more realistic approach to the application of constructivism in EFL teaching opposing learner-centered theories thus being more of an “absolute” and radical researcher (2000). Furthermore, Gul came to the conclusion that using constructivism in EFL teaching is more effective compared to traditional teaching approaches (2016). A study conducted by Al Muhaimeed (2013) demonstrated that using constructivist techniques of English language reading comprehension helped students in a school in Saudi Arabia learn how to read faster and better than using the traditional approach. In another study, in a school in India, Sengupta (2015) used an activity with collaborative writing tasks where all students discussed with each other while writing; thus, each student shared their personal knowledge and all of them took what they needed from other students’ knowledge. By scaffolding, the students took claim of their original ideas and also provided a context where other students could generate new ideas and new content through their own engagement. In another example, Nikitina (2010) conducted a study where students used visual aids to prepare projects in groups; the results showed that students learned the foreign language better and faster. In this study, the activities were selected by the students and the results were beneficial to their learning. The role of the teacher in the constructivist classroom The principles of constructivism can be applied into different forms by the teacher as a facilitator. The teacher's role is to give experiences to the students, to help them interact with each other in order to encourage and to advance their individual learning (Le Cornu & Peters, 2005; Pitsoe & Maila, 2012). However, teachers must be careful that the experiences they give to the students are within their zone of proximal development (Karagiorgi & Symeou, 2005). As a result, it is clear that it is the teacher's responsibility to make students self-regulated learners. A good teacher might choose catchy topics in order to involve all the students in the process of learning. As questions lead to more questions, students’ critical thinking would expand. In such specific cases, collaborative learning comes by way of peer interaction, but it is well structured and mediated by the cooperating teacher (Le Cornu & Peters, 2005). In a typical classroom, the qualified teacher is the conduit for the effective tools of culture that properly include language, social context and other forms of information access. Learning in the constructivist