Understanding the constructivist learning environment in teacher education methods courses

Abstract

This research will see to assess the degree to which teacher education faculty members were able to employ a classroom environment that encouraged a constructivist learning environment and how pre-service teachers feel about their teacher education methods courses at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). The participants in this research were pre-service teachers in their senior year of their undergraduate teacher education program. There were 128 students (110 females, 18 males) enrolled in two sections in the teacher education program, Early Childhood-6 (EC-6) and 4-8 intermediate. The researcher administered the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) as a pre survey at the beginning of the fall semester, six weeks into the semester. The post survey was administered 6-8 weeks after the first survey. By using the CLES the researcher was able to explore the degree of teacher education faculty members were able to employ a classroom environment that encouraged a constructivist learning environment. Results showed that the classroom learning was positive and there was uniformity among faculty in their teaching and teaching strategies. They were also able to maintain and encourage a constructivist-learning environment. ^